In fact, many of today’s restaurant trends are reflected on cocktail menus as celebrity chefs make room on the stage for celebrity mixologists. Restaurant Hospitality magazine, which has long been featuring rising star chefs, last year began featuring master mixologists as well. What’s more, many of these mixologists are taking a similar approach to drinks that chefs have taken to food. Charles Joly at The Drawing Room in Chicago, for instance, features seasonal, fresh and house-made ingredients in his drinks. And with all the interest in locally and regionally grown foods, it’s small wonder that more bars are getting into the spirit of place, offering locally produced liqueurs, liquors and microbrews.
The Greenhouse Tavern in Cleveland, the first certified green restaurant in Ohio, adheres to environmentally conscious business practices. Chef Jonathon
While small is a size rather than an ingredient, it seems to be front-and-center on bar menus these days with small plate offerings and items such as sliders. In Boston at 33 Restaurant & Lounge, the new bar menu features mini plates (a trio of grilled lamb chops, traditional sliders, or three local oysters) and “3 for $3,” offered from 5-7 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays at the bar (and from 8-11 p.m. on weekends in the lounge). Among the $3 sides are French fries and truffle macaroni and cheese. At Bar Rosso in Aventura Florida, Chef Joshua Medina’s food is designed with wine in mind. On Flight Night Fridays, he personally pairs the piccolini (small plates) with selected wines. Small plate offerings include crispy artichokes, meatball Parmigiana sliders, braised clams and more. And speaking of flights, at the Asian-Brazilian influenced SushiSamba restaurants, the cocktail tree is an eye-catching way to present cocktail flights.
No doubt you’ve noticed that bacon is faddishly popular. One could make a hobby out of tracking it on menus, and now bacon has been showing up in drinks, too. Consider the Chocolat Cochon served at Tini Biggs Lounge in Seattle. Mixologist Jamie Boudreau creates cutting-edge cocktails such as this contemporary drink that combines bacon-infused Woodford Reserve Bourbon with cherry, chocolate, amaro and bitters. At Oliver’s Lounge in the Mayflower Park Hotel in Seattle, the B.L.T. Mary Cocktail, made with Bakon Vodka, is paired with one half of a B.L.T. sandwich. The drink itself incorporates bar food: a garnish of a half bacon strip, romaine heart and a cherry tomato. 
Dr. Gail Bellamy is a leading on-premise trade writer and has been the Food and Beverage Editor of Restaurant Hospitality for over 20 years.
Among the top lottery picks of the Class of 2009 is SKYY INFUSIONS ALL NATURAL PINEAPPLE. It’s a mixologist’s dream come true—an unpretentious, skillfully produced spirit that’s chaffing at the bit to have some fun. In fact, there are six of these brilliant infusions now in the SKYY portfolio, each tailor-made to deliver sumptuous flavor without unwanted sweetness.
SKYY Infusions are crafted using the centuries-old method of maceration. In this case, fresh pineapples are placed in a vat and steeped for an extended period of time in super-premium SKYY Vodka. With the passing of time, the vodka becomes saturated with the lavish aroma and flavor of fruit. The infusions are then column-distilled and repeatedly filtered for clarity. All of the infusions are bottled at 70-proof so there’s no biting edge or alcohol burn.
From start to finish, SKYY Infusions Pineapple is an enticing treat for the senses. It has a satiny featherweight body and a succulent, remarkably generous bouquet. The infusion raises little to no heat as it bathes the palate with the lush, tangy flavor of pineapples. Thankfully the flavor lingers on the palate for an impressively long time.
Anyone who’s ever stained their fingers feasting on fresh fruit will attest that SKYY Infusions taste like the real deal. That’s because they’re made from the real deal. The other fruit showcased in the SKYY Infusions line-up are raspberry, grape, citrus, passion fruit and cherry. Each is a classic in the making and needs to be sampled neat to be fully appreciated.
