Sweet, glorious cocktails
Guest blogger Dan Volin has some tasty sounding cocktail suggestions for us. Dig his, and feel free to add your own:
Look, we all saw that Brewer’s Art was named the best bar in the country by Esquire – deservedly so, I might add, it’s a heck of a place – but sometimes I just don’t feel like a pint of Resurrection, you know?
Sometimes I just want to kick back, sip a cocktail and pretend I’m in Mad Men or something. When I feel like that, there are a few places in Baltimore where you’ll find me ...
Golden West Café (pictured), in Hampden, known more for its Southwestern-inspired slow food (and I mean slooooooow), has a smoke-free bar in back. Their beer selection is great and rotates frequently, but their cocktails are where it’s at. My favorite is the Trolley Car, made with Captain Morgan, Cointreau, sweet and sour, rimmed with cinnamon sugar and fresh lemon. But then again, I’m a sucker for almost anything with cinnamon sugar.
Captain Larry's, down in South Baltimore, has their famous Dark and Stormy. The Dark and Stormy is made from Barritt's ginger beer and Gosling's Black Seal rum. I like this drink a lot; however, I’m a bigger fan of its impossible-to-find-in-Baltimore cousin the Moscow Mule (vodka, ginger beer and lime, served in a copper mug). You find that drink in Baltimore; you’ve made a new friend in me.
If you imbibe as much as I do, you’re going to have a few hangovers. And if you, like me, think the hair of the dog that bit you is the best way to get over them, I’ve got some good news.
Miss Shirley's, with locations off of Cold Spring Lane and in the Inner Harbor, has some seriously thick, seriously great Bloody Marys. Made with citrus vodka, tomato juice, hot sauce and spices garnished with a celery stalk, green tomato slices, lime, pickled okra, jalapeño and hot cherry peppers, with optional fresh jumbo lump crab meat and Old Bay for three dollars more, this is one serious eye-opener for a bleary-eyed Sunday morning.
(Sun archive photo)
Erik Maza is a features reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He writes for several sections of the Sun paper and contributes weekly columns on music and nightlife. He also writes and edits the Midnight Sun blog. He often covers entertainment, business, and the business of entertainment. Occasionally, he writes about Four Loko, The Block, the liquor board, and those who practice "
Comments
Wow, all of those actually sound pretty good. I've had the Dark and Stormy, but have never heard of the Moscow Mule. I'll have to look up the recipe and make one tonight!
The garnishes on that Bloody Mary sound amazing.
Posted by: Ryan Graham | May 21, 2009 9:14 AM
This sure is the week for publicity for Golden West. It's been beaten to a bloody pulp over at Dining@Large, yet is still standing. It's nice to hear about the bar. In about 130 comments nobody mentioned the bar or their cocktails.
Posted by: Owl Meat Gravy | May 21, 2009 10:18 AM
For interesting and great-tasting margaritas, you can't beat Blue Agave in Federal Hill.
Posted by: CS | May 21, 2009 1:09 PM
Ah, the Dark and Stormy! The unlikely combo of two things I don't like, rum and ginger beer, into a drink that I do. The heat of the ginger undercuts the sweetness of the rum, and the carbonation gives the whole thing a lift. Thumbs up! Will have to give the Captain Larry's incarnation a try.
And regarding Golden West, I generally don't think the restaurant is worth it, but I've gotten less surly treatment in the bar. Or maybe I was just drunk and didn't notice the surliness. Eh, same difference.
Posted by: pomme de terre | May 21, 2009 1:58 PM
I'm pretty sure you can score a Moscow Mule at The Gin Mill. I'm not sure about the copper mug though.
Posted by: Doug | May 21, 2009 2:54 PM
A smoke free bar in the back? I thought all bars were smoke free.
Posted by: RayRay | May 21, 2009 3:31 PM
Enogh already, this is terrible! Where is Sam?
Posted by: Sue Hopper | May 22, 2009 12:06 AM
...these are the cocktail spots in baltimore? Golden West?! What about Jack's Bistro, Blue Grass Tavern, or Clementine? How about a deeper dive into a cocktail specific Post Prohibition?
Posted by: Josh | December 2, 2010 12:02 PM