Euphoric Drunk: Dutch Kills, Milk & Honey

The last day of the conference wrapped up around noon and I had one thing on my mind, and that was getting to Dutch Kills and Milk & Honey, two bars held in the highest regards in the cocktail world. I was staying at the Brooklyn Bridge Marriot, so the subway to Queens would be a little bit of a ride. Since I would be passing by Union Square, I thought I would follow through with a promise to myself and sit down for a meal at Union Square Café. A good half pound bacon cheeseburger on a poppyseed bun, fries, three oysters on the half shell – Raspberry Point, Pebble Cove, Hood Canal, a beer, and a coffee. This meal would be the last solids consumed for the rest of the day.

30 minutes on the subway later I found myself in Queens for the first time. Big, a little deserted, and industrial, with a few tall office towers on the horizon, this was quite a different scene from both Manhattan and Brooklyn. Once again I found myself lost in New York looking for an incredible bar I had heard about, only to realize I had walked right by it. At 27-24 Jackson Ave there is a non-descript brick building with a metal door and small lit BAR sign. Inside, there is a row of dimly lit booths on a pathway to the bar. Behind the bar there is a big block of ice with a knife in it. I warmed up with a refreshing Prescription Julep, a classic with rye and cognac, and a cognac French 75. Then I asked bartender Giuseppe Gonzales for something I could only get at Dutch Kills and I was brought a delicious original cocktail with tequila, lime, house orgeat, fresh ground nutmeg and big ice. I was about to leave, but was convinced by a new friend, writer Robert Haynes-Peterson, to have one more round, a Pisco Sour variation with a little Angostura art on the foam. Ah…

Dusk now, I hopped on the subway back to Manhattan to look for Milk & Honey in East Village. I really thought I would have figured out the New York speakeasy/hidden bar thing, but Milk & Honey is just about as hidden as it gets. Actually a private club now based in London, Milk & Honey’s New York clientele is only members and by invitation. I wanted to get a few drinks from Sam Ross, the world-class bartender I had met last year at Little Branch. I will refrain from disclosing excessive details about my experience out of respect for the establishment, but also not to ruin the mystique of Milk & Honey if you ever find yourself there. I will say that I found it, the door is somewhere in this photo, waited a good two hours, and got a seat at the bar where Sam made me three fantastic cocktails: 1) Bourbon, Aperol, lemon, Amaro Nonino 2) Gin, Carpano Antica, Bonded Applejack, Chartreuse 3) Bermuda rum, coffee liqueur, egg, cream, nutmeg. Milk & Honey has no cocktail menu, so if you do find yourself there, have a favorite spirit or flavor profile in mind. Yeah, this night couldn’t have gone any better.