The Greater Kansas City Bartending Competition returns to The Uptown on Aug. 21. A dozen of the region’s best bartenders will battle it out onstage, in front of what has been in years past a happily raucous crowd. Each must prepare an original cocktail for a panel of judges (including Dale DeGroff, aka King Cocktail),… Continue Reading
I have to start by admitting I’ve never ordered a drink at Benton’s Prime Steakhouse, at the top of the Westin Crown Center. But Tony Beyer, the lounge’s regular (and usually only) bartender, is an enthusiastic and generous guy, though, so I stopped by recently for a chat. Beyer’s no stranger to this business. To… Continue Reading
What’s the best way to inject fun into a meeting? Hold it at a bar, of course. It certainly worked during a planning session for Turning Point’s 10th Annual An Evening Among Friends, recently convened at Tavern in the Village. It was fitting—the June 24 event is billed as The Art of the Cocktail. So… Continue Reading
Mezcal. I’d read about it, but never given it much thought. Even after Doug Frost opined about its smokey richness back in, oh, 2007 or so. Even after Saveur published a killer article about it in 2009. Even after Ryan Maybee stocked Manifesto’s bar with it, and Beau Williams earned second place with his mezcal-based… Continue Reading
We all know Arturo Vera-Felicie is a good bartender. Now the folks at Sazerac do, too. Vera’s Chambeli Cocktail topped The Gran Gala Shakedown, adding another title to his resume and earning him $5,000. Vera’s drink combines Gran Gala, Aperol, gin, bitters and lemon juice for a balanced and subtle drink that wowed judges like… Continue Reading