Negroni and Shaker image by Lindsey Eltinge at lindseyeltinge.com
From Mandy Huffaker, Bar Manager, Sly's:
I am a firm believer in the
cocktail. You may think this is because I am a bartender by trade,
and, in part, you'd be right. However, the real reason that I love
cocktails is that they are very nearly food. They require a
recipe, and attention to that recipe, in order to be really special.
The fun in making beer or wine lies with the vintner or brewer.
There's not much left for the bartender to do but offer suggestions and
pull corks and taps. I love great wines and beers, and the interplay
they have with great food, and will probably write something (or many
somethings) about them in the future. However, for my first foray into
the blogosphere, I wanted to focus on the cocktail, which measures the
worth of the bartender.
It is difficult to find a "real" cocktail on bar menus anymore. At many bars and clubs, ordering a cocktail is pretty well discouraged. I can understand why. When the line at the bar is three people deep at every stool, the mixologist is naturally reluctant to build the perfect Old Fashioned. One becomes a soda jerk, pulling tap handles and shooting cola into buckets of liquor and ice in an effort to keep up. I have worked in these bars, and have been guilty of claiming the "broken blender excuse" more than once, just to save 90 seconds.
Cue the beauty of the bar in the fine-dining establishment like Sly's. So perhaps I'm not cranking out 70 drinks an hour and dragging in piles of crumpled one-dollar bills for the tip jar...I'm too busy making cocktails. In a restaurant like Sly's, the quality of the cocktail serves as an indication (one hopes) of the quality of the food to come. James and Michael set up the bar with the intention to serve a classic cocktail with the best, freshest ingredients and it's my job to make sure that happens consistently. And what a great job to have! In my near-decade of bar tending experience, I have never had such a large selection of premium spirits nor the quality of fresh juices and garnishes to work with. It's like a bartender's playground back there! Want a caipirinha? I've got premium cachaca and fresh limes. Want a Bloody Mary? I've got fresh horseradish and house-blended celery salt.
Sadly, even in great bar, the classic cocktail often
gets ignored. Often people think "liquor is liquor" and just order
what I call an "and drink", i.e. rum and coke, gin and tonic, whiskey and
lemon-lime. It's easy, one knows what to expect, and it doesn't
require much interaction or conversation with one's server or
bartender. I'm always happy to make your drink exactly the way you
like it every time and without any editorial comments. However, you
and I could be having so much more fun! Ask me questions! Ask
your server questions about the cocktails...they are all very
knowledgeable about our cocktail menu and know that they can come to
the bar at any time and with any question should you manage to stump
them. Tell us what sorts of flavors you like and we're happy to make
recommendations that could probably enhance your experience, and quite
possibly replace your "and drink" with a very special cocktail. For
example, are you a gin and tonic drinker? I have a White Lady cocktail
that may be right up your alley. Whiskey and lemon-lime? How about a
John Collins with fresh citrus juices...tart and tangy! And for my rum
drinkers, have I got a cocktail for you! Not for the faint-of-heart,
coming up next post is the first of what I hope will be many of "The Best Cocktails
You're Not Drinking": The Zombie. Until then, thanks for reading, and I look forward to making a cocktail for you at Sly's. Mandy Huffaker, Bar Manager, Sly's Carpinteria.
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