DBA, an offspring bar by the Strand, crafts stiff sips and cheffy snacks in Mills 50

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Photo by Rob Bartlett

A decade after Joe and Alda Rees opened the Strand in the heart of Mills 50, an offshoot was quietly born next door to the perennial neighborhood favorite this past March. It's doing business as d.b.a., a cocktail bar with cheffy snacks, breezy vibe and, like its parent operation, a midcentury aesthetic courtesy of Alda and her daughter Olivia.

Olivia, in fact, plays the role of greeter, server and vinyl spinner, as do her brothers, Leo and Zack, who also appeared quite comfortable behind the terrazzo-walled bar mixing and swizzling quaffs. Seeing their children take the reins of d.b.a. has to be a satisfying sight for Joe and Alda, even though the siblings were coy about fully committing to running the neighborhood bar as a career. Hey, they're still young and with their whole lives ahead of them, but they're also adept at what they do, and they do it without a lick of 'tude.

There was, however, a shameless lick or two on my part. The object of desire: a creamy green-curry aioli brushed alongside a superbly fresh tuna tartare ($19) positioned atop triangular snaps of lavash. We even bypassed the pimiento cheese spread that came with the warm pretzel ($6.50) and scooped that aioli up with torn shreds of the Olde Hearth twister. Not that the pimiento cheese was lacking in any way. It's just that we wanted more of the other comforting spread.

Just as impressive was the octopus salad ($14) and its bracing vinaigrette. Red onion and red pepper lent the bowl of brainy goodness ceviche-like feels. What's more, the side of crusty bread helped soak up some of the boozy doozies crafted by the liver-kicking crew behind the bar.

click to enlarge

photo by Rob Bartlett

A caipirinha ($10) and mezcal-forward "jaguar's nap" ($10) started things off, followed by a daiquiri ($8) and a refresher called the "carnival cruise" ($17) fashioned from rum and absinthe with pineapple, orgeat, curaçao and Peychaud's bitters. Be warned, it stealthily sails you into an ocean of crapulence, and I can see why there's a limit of only two of these per guest.

After a few ounces of this ship-shape sipper, we had no choice but to go overboard with more food. Two items — pan con tomate ($11) dusted with cotija and basil that tasted like a savory bread pudding, and cacio e pepe deviled eggs ($13) with pecorino and bottarga — may be familiar to regulars of the Strand. Like the warm pretzel and pimiento, they're also on the menu next door. After polishing off the duck flatbread ($14) boldened with caramelized onions, tomato jam, goat cheese and a balsamic drizzle — not, thankfully, a deluge — we noticed that most everything we ordered had a bread component.

"I'm suffering from bread fatigue," said the pal, and I didn't think either the Old Bay chips or barbecue cashew nuts — the only menu items we didn't order — would help alleviate the carb coma. There are other, less bready items from the Strand's bill of fare that could easily port over to d.b.a., so here's hoping we see some fried mushrooms, snapper cakes, or broccoli and labneh on the other side of the wall soon.

That aside, d.b.a. is everything lovers of the Strand would expect from a bar operated by Joe and Alda, who, by the way, are as low-key and as high-performing a restaurant couple you'll ever meet.

Whether it's dinner at the Strand, or drinks and snacks at d.b.a., the two are just different sides of the same coin.