First Look: Cocktails and Caviar at McGregor Square's New Bar, Call Me Pearl

What: Call Me Pearl

Where: Inside the Rally Hotel at 1600 20th Street

When: Open 5 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 5 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday; happy hour is available from 5 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday

For more info: Visit callmepearlbar.com
What we saw: Tucked in the corner next to the check-in desk at the Rally Hotel, Call Me Pearl, which opened on November 4, looks like a cozy lounge where you can settle in with a laptop for a work session. In a way it is, but there's more going on in the thirty-or-so-seat space, which includes floor-to-ceiling windows, an open bar and a stunning glass chandelier made of 1,350 pearl-like glass orbs (a direct nod to the venue's name).

The furniture comprises a mix of grandma-style lounge chairs, sleek leather bar stools, and a banquet with table seating padded with a plethora of cozy, mismatched cushions. When creating the feminine space, the staff shared stories about their own grandmothers, which helped shape the overall vibe as well as the drinks, says general manager Edward de Decker. For example, his grandmother inspired Sally's Rose Garden, a cocktail made with vodka, maraschino liqueur, egg white, raspberry, lemon and rosewater. 

Ranging from $12 for the zero-proof Oh, Honey Spritz up to $16 for a carefully crafted Salt & Pepper Vesper, the drinks are meant to be sipped slowly while relaxing in the comfortable atmosphere. Other highlights include a coconut-washed spin on a Negroni and the Cafe de Tacuba, the bar's version of an espresso martini, made with tequila, mezcal, local espresso liqueur and coffee. The beverage menu also includes around twenty beer options, as well as a bottle list featuring more than fifty selections and eighteen wines by the glass.

Even though McGregor Square looms right outside the door, there's nothing about Call Me Pearl that speaks to the bustle of downtown. It's meant to be a place to stop and ponder while enjoying a tasty beverage and, if you're in the mood, some bites.
What surprised us: Caviar, which is billed here as a market-price service complete with crème fraîche, housemade potato chips and the choice between sturgeon caviar or salmon roe. Add another touch of grandeur by requesting a bump of caviar alongside a martini — a $25 extravagance not often seen in the Denver bar scene.

In keeping with the pearl theme, a daily selection of East and West Coast oysters come raw and on the half-shell at $3 a pop, or heated up as oysters Rockefeller.

As for the rest of the food options, executive chef Stephen Greer has curated a menu of small plates that can fill in for a solid meal or act as a precursor to dinner. Truffle fries with two dips can easily be shared, and pair well with the wagyu sliders with decadent black garlic aioli and Humboldt Fog goat cheese. The heirloom tomato and burrata salad also proves hearty, either as a plate for the table or a personal meal.
Dishes such as garlic-chile shrimp and spicy crab salad over crispy rice cakes showcase the eclectic, globally inspired cuisine the chef is going for, as does the olive and anchovy tapenade over a toasted baguette and the ahi poke wontons topped with sambal mayo and pineapple relish.

No matter how you go about enjoying Call Me Pearl, the vibe is easy-going, like stopping by your grandma's house — if your grandma happens to be very chic, with a penchant for ice-cold martinis and caviar by the spoonful.