Thoughts on dining out again and a classic whiskey sour cocktail recipe.
WE HAD COCKTAILS AND DINNER IN A RESTAURANT LAST WEEKEND. For most of you reading, this probably warrants an “And…?” For us, it was an event, something we hadn’t done since the before times. And it was delightful.
The occasion was visiting our daughter and her boyfriend in Milwaukee a couple of weeks after having had the latest booster shot. We were feeling, as we told them, cautiously bulletproof, and were ready to stick a toe back into the world. We do go in stores and public buildings and museums, but always with masks. Our caution comes from having family members who are high risk and being at moderate risk ourselves because of our age.
One of the things we’ve missed most is just sitting in a bar, in a restaurant, talking and laughing and sharing bites and sips and… So when we decided to do it, we let the kids find a place for us. They chose Goodkind, a lovely restaurant in the Bay View neighborhood. They have delicious shareable plates on a seasonally changing menu. And to the point of this story, amazing inventive cocktails.
Marion chose When the Walls Fell, made with hibiscus-infused Banhez mezcal, Campari, pomegranate grenadine, lime juice and Angostura bitters. (We actually both considered it because of the mezcal.) I chose the Double Exposure, made with London dry gin, Meyer lemon oleo saccharum, poppy Amaro, lemon, lazzaroni amaretto, saffron, Mandarin-infused olive oil and bay leaf.
Both were perfect (we did pass them back and forth) and beautifully garnished. And the company, the food and the cocktails were a perfect re-entry for us.
As much as we love crafted cocktails like these, there’s something to be said for simple classic cocktails, something a good bartender makes from muscle memory. Such as the Whiskey Sour at the top of this post, especially when it’s made with an egg white to give it a frothy head and a velvety mouthfeel. You’ll find the recipe and the back story here.
That sounds like it was a fun evening… and now I want a whiskey sour. Mmmm.
It was a delightful evening, Eeka. Thanks!
I can’t remember the last time I went out to eat!
I just moved May 1st from a second floor apartment where I was extremely limited in getting out, more due to a balance disorder that made it almost impossible to get down the stairs than to the pandemic.
Now I am in a ground floor apartment and looking forward to going out again occasionally. My granddaughter has a second job bartending at a sushi restaurant on weekends so I’m sure that will be the first place I go.
Thanks for sharing, Terry.