King Cole Bar is considered the post-Prohibition birthplace of the Bloody Mary, or rather the ‘Red Snapper’. When the drink debuted here, it was given this more dignified name to appease to the hotel’s highfalutin guests. It’s stuck ever since.
As a rite of passage, the signature drink can be ordered any time of the evening, simply dressed with lemon and shorn of celery stalks, pickle spears and olives – those clunky, intrusive garnishes that all too commonly mar a Bloody Mary these days.
Drink lore aside, the room stuns with a Maxfield Parrish mural hanging above the bar, its saturated hues bringing to life Old King Cole, that ‘merry old soul’ eternalised in nursery rhymes. Originally commissioned for Astor’s Knickerbocker Hotel, the painting’s throne-ensconced king, underscoring Astor’s bravado, bears the hotelier’s likeness.
FERNAND PETIOT, SUPPOSED INVENTOR OF THE TOMATO JUICE AND VODKA COCKTAIL, FIRST STARTED SERVING IT TO HIS GENTEEL GUESTS AT KING COLE BAR IN 1934. IT WAS CHRISTENED THE ‘RED SNAPPER’ – A FAR MORE ELEGANT ALTERNATIVE TO THE GAUCHE ‘BLOODY MARY’.
No. 11
Loisaida Avenue
THE NOMAD AND ELEPHANT BARS AT THE NOMAD HOTEL, NEW YORK, USA
Created by Leo Rabitschek
INGREDIENTS
15 ml (½ fl oz) simple syrup
15 ml (½ fl oz) green Chartreuse
25 ml (¾ fl oz) freshly squeezed lemon juice
25 ml (¾ fl oz) Sombra mezcal
25 ml (¾ fl oz) Jalapeño-Infused Tequila*
1 dash of Angostura bitters, to garnish
*For the Jalapeño-Infused Tequila (makes 750 ml/25 fl oz):
3 medium-sized jalapeños, diced
1 x 750 ml (25 fl oz) bottle Excellia Blanco tequila
METHOD
For the Jalapeño-Infused Tequila, steep the jalapeños and tequila in a container for 5 minutes. Taste the mixture to ensure that the spice level is to your taste; if you prefer a spicier end product, allow to steep for longer. Strain into a sterilised airtight container and store in the refrigerator indefinitely.
To make the cocktail, combine all the ingredients except the bitters in a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a Nick & Nora glass, then top the cocktail with a dash of Angostura bitters.
Hospitality hit-makers, Sydell Group (The Line, The Ned, Saguaro), first wowed New Yorkers with the NoMad – a revamped, turn-of-the-century Beaux-Arts building in Manhattan’s Madison Square North neighbourhood – in 2012. Even if visitors don’t get a peek into the Jacques Garcia-designed guest rooms, reminiscent of a Parisian pied-à-terre with free-standing clawfoot bathtubs and velvet- and-damask-patterned screens, there is the dimly-lit library to gawk at – a spiral staircase imported from the South of France connecting its two floors of wall-to-wall tomes. There is also the eponymous restaurant, home to a storied chicken-for-two stuffed with black truffle and brioche foie gras.
The NoMad Bar, which has the air of a gussied-up tavern and serves dry-aged beef burgers to match, and The Elephant Bar – a swirl of mahogany and leather that invites multiple nightcaps – are just as romantic, swelling with both hotel guests and locals seeking out some of the city’s most finely wrought cocktails. With a flair for the savoury, these creations deftly incorporate ingredients such as olive oil-infused tequila, sheep’s milk yoghurt and horseradish. Despite the growth of the NoMad brand, since expanding into Los Angeles, Las Vegas and London, the New York original thankfully feels at once timeless and energised.
SPOTLIGHT:
WORDS FROM THE WISE
a few industry heavyweights wax on about hotel bars
HOTEL BAR MAGIC
‘Historically, the hotel was simply a place in which to rest; a place just for hotel guests. Now, however, the hotel has become a social hub; a place where everyone can gather. This is largely thanks to the hotel bar, which universally appeals. The legendary bars of the roaring twenties provided a blueprint for hotel bars: approachable and comfortable, yet incredibly glamorous and with a hint of intrigue. I’ve always sought to make the hotel bar feel special and a destination in its own right. By incorporating aspects such as a separate entrance and a concept that feels different from the rest of the hotel, the hotel bar is unique and appealing; it’s a place of excitement.’
Martin Brudnizki, London- and New York-based founder of Martin Brudnizksi Design Studio, which has handled such bars as The Coral Room at The Bloomsbury Hotel in London; The Bar Room at The Beekman, A Thompson Hotel, in New York; and Doyle at the Dupont Circle hotel in Washington, DC.
‘Part of the allure of hotel bars is that anything is possible. There is an extra level of intrigue with the mix of people who have been here before, are enjoying the freedom of travel, or shaking off a workday far away from their community. There is more of an openness to talk to a neighbour, or be adventurous with a drink order. I sometimes get the sense that people are trying out a different version of themselves. At Dear Irving on Hudson it is a big part of our philosophy to remember the first trip we saved up for, knowing that we are going to see many people visiting NYC for the first time who cannot truly be themselves at home, but here there is a possibility of feeling fulfilled, even for just a day or two. The desire to be a positive impact on or memory of that trip is part of what motivates us. Hotel bars are also a landing point for guests on their way back in, so we get a report of their adventures while they mellow out over a nightcap.’
Meaghan Dorman, New York-based bar director at Raines Law Room and Dear Irving, as well as Raines Law Room at The William hotel and Dear Irving on Hudson at the Aliz Hotel Times Square.
‘For me, opening a tiki bar in a hotel was an act of resurrection: back during tiki’s golden age in the 1950s and 60s, some of the best tiki places were
