Rock And Roll Out The Barrels

Paul Stanley, left, Gene Simmons

Along the southern stretches of Mexico's Baja peninsula lately, the Sea of Cortez has been putting on quite the show. Waves taller and more vigorous than usual thunder and shatter onto the beach, hurling spray inland like nature's own concert fog machine. Whales leap and spin a short distance offshore with the athleticism and grace of well-choreographed backup singers. The theatrics and noise can be enthralling, or distracting, as they were the other evening as two veterans of the concert stage explained why they were in Los Cabos.

At a casual press conference on a seaside patio of the posh Sheraton Hacienda Golf Resort & Spa just outside of Cabo San Lucas, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, the founders and only constant members of the rock group KISS, recognizing its 40th anniversary this year, kicked off the inauguration of the second link in their nascent restaurant chain, Rock & Brews.

The restaurant itself is neither at the resort nor in Cabo San Lucas, but at the older and more laid-back settlement of San Jose del Cabo 12 miles to the northeast.

Rock & Brews, San Jose del Cabo

Not the most animated and giving of entertainers when they aren't in makeup, Stanley and Simmons had little to say of what drew them to what up to now almost invariably has been called "sleepy San Jose del Cabo." Stanley did allow that the community's easy accessibility from Los Angeles factored into their calculations that a club with live entertainment, burgers and pizzas, and up to two-dozen craft beers on tap would appeal to Southern Californians hopping down to Los Cabos for the weekend.

"We want to help cultivate an area we love," he added, noting that an intent of the San Jose branch of Rock & Brews is to use local produce, hire local workers and headline local craft beers, of which there aren't many, though during the grand-opening weekend two from the town's Baja Brewing Co. were being poured.

The overall design and thrust of the club, said Stanley, is to pay homage to classic rock, in large part by creating the look and feel of a backstage party. "We're thanking rock and roll for what we have, and we want to give something back," he added.

For his part, Simmons had little positive to offer, possibly because he was jet-lagged, possibly because he was irked that someone unaware that KISS still tours had asked whether the band again would go on the road. When someone asked whether the two would jam at the club, he snapped, "Yes, because we have nothing better to do here."

KISS isn't shy about acknowledging significant others

This was not the time or place to bring up the sensitive matter of why KISS hasn't been elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, even though the group's 28 gold albums is more than any other American rock band has sold. Industry insiders indicate that the hall's electorate shuns KISS because of its emphasis on showmanship more than creativity and because of  its smart if crass commercialism, which has involved linking its brand to everything from cabernet sauvignon to caskets. When I asked Simmons if he felt KISS ever would get elected to the Hall of Fame, he deadpanned, "I'm too rich to care. I'm thinking of buying it. Why stand in line?"

With that, the KISS Army advanced up the road to the new Plaza del Pescador, a snazzy strip of restaurants and boutiques smack in the middle of San Jose del Cabo's resort row. It's a bright and engaging facility, with a central stage flanked by a loft appointed with plush couches, just as you might find in a well-appointed green room. Snippets of rock concerts and music videos play on several monitors about the premises - but why so much Queen and so little KISS? - while the art runs to vintage rock posters and photos.

More than the glitter and music, Rock & Brews has the potential to bring to San Jose del Cabo something sorely missing in the city - good beer. Almost without exception, the beer selection in Los Cabos restaurants and bars runs almost exclusively to the insipid brands of Grupo Modelo - Pacifico, Corona, Victoria and Leon. At the city's recent fiesta I noted that anyone who wanted to enjoy a decent drink during the concerts and games had stopped at a market and picked up a half-case of something decent to drink, usually Tecate.

Best seating, above and behind stage

At any rate, Rock & Brews is off to a slow start with its beer menu. Only a half-dozen of the 24 taps along the back bar have been hooked up, and then only to the usual suspects - Dos Equis and Modelo, plus a couple of the sort of craft beers that Stanley and Simmons says they want to promote, both from San Jose del Cabo's Baja Brewing Co.

In time, that could change. After all, the original branch of Rock & Brews at El Segundo has a pretty exciting rotating selection of beers, including Green Flash's West Coast IPA, Dog Fish's 90 Minute IPA, Firestone's Double Jack and Eagle Rock's Manifesto, among many others. We can only hope that at least a few of them will make it to the San Jose del Cabo branch of Rock & Brews.

Heck, the KISS archives is a veritable lode of catchy names for artisan beers, including Psycho Circus, The Demon and Starchild. My favorite, however, would be Wicked Lester, but when I suggested it to Simmons he merely shrugged and said, "Well, OK."