• Welcome!
  • Contact
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
The LUSHious Life
  • Cocktails
    • Turkey Day Turn Up
    • Grown Folks Hot Chocolate
    • Post Holiday Re-entry
    • Cocktail of the Week
    • Sunday Night Cocktail
    • Mad Men and the Martini
  • Libation Education
    • I’ll Take Manhattan
    • Why So Sour?
    • A Taste of South Africa
    • The One Book You Need to Become a Mix Master
    • All You Need to Become a Mix Master
    • Do, Do Rum Rum!
    • It’s a Gin, Gin, Gin World
    • The Spirit of Brazil
  • Reviews
    • Rum Renaissance: Cockspur
    • Nip Nip, Hooray!
    • The Ultimate Baller’s Vodka
  • On the Town
    • It’s Negroni Week!
Bars, Life, Living Well  /  March 4, 2015

Where You’ll Be Drinking This Spring Part 2

by sharonrboone
Share
Twitter0
Pinterest0
Facebook5
Step inside and feel the calm wash over you.
Step inside and feel the calm wash over you.

A continuing look at new bars to explore in New York City this spring.

There are a few things I look for when you enter a bar for the first time that mark it as a step above the usual neighborhood spot. These “tells” include hooks hidden below the bartop to stow a coat and bag and good music played at a reasonable volume so I don’t have to shout to be heard by the person on the next stool.  What puts an establishment on the top tier are quality of drinks, cordiality of staff and atmosphere. Now a lot of places tick off three or four of those boxes, but when I find a bar that hits all five, well that’s a place I’ll gladly add to my regular rotation.

The Up & Up

The new bar from Matthew Piacentini of The Beagle, easily lands in the top tier. A good sized bar with hooks? Check. Music that allows for easy conversation? Yep. Friendly mixologists who care enough about the patrons to discuss and explain the drinks? You got it. But what really puts The Up & Up over the top are the great cocktails and the atmosphere. Now, readers will know that basement bars are in my DNA. The Up & Up’s subterranean location only adds to a nice low-key vibe. The muted colors and low lighting (low enough to be flattering without being so dim you can’t read the menu) only add to the allure. A walk down some steps from the sidewalk and through the threshold somehow feels as though you’ve left your troubles back up on Macdougal Street. And once you’ve taken a stool at the beautiful bar adorned with unmarked bottles of bitters and syrups, or grabbed a comfy booth, you’ll feel the weight of the world start to lift. Then it’s time to drink.

Up and Up

Head bartender Chaim Dauermann, formerly of Gin Palace, along with Piacentini has devised a clever and witty cocktail menu that is divided into four categories: Bottled, Originals, Favorites and Halfsies. Bottled drinks are batched versions of classics—martini, negroni and a Manhattan—made following the recipes of some of the Up & Up team’s favorite bartenders, and come in 375ml (for 2) and 750ml (for 3 or more) portions.

The Teague Old Fashioned
The Teague Old Fashioned

There’s even a 100ml personal size flask, The Teague Old Fashioned, that is the best version of that classic cocktail that I have ever had.

New and Old Favorites

Strunk Text
The Strunk Text

Originals, all priced at $14, range from the deliciously refreshing Taste of Chez Juan made with Cabeza Tequila, Tariquet Armagnac, ginger and lime juice to the sublime Strunk Text, made with Cabeza Silver Tequila, Amaro dell’Erborista, pink peppercorns,  chanterelle mushroom and Celery Shrubb. Sounds funky, tastes amazing.

My favorite of their Favorites is the subtly complex, Shaddock & Smoke, made with Ardberg Scotch, grapefruit liqueur, Amaretto, lemon juice and seltzer. It smells like a barbecue, tastes like tart smoke (if there is such a thing). And the $8 Halfsies are shot-sized mini cocktails.

Jenny Kidd Halfsies: Bar Hill Gin, St. Germaine, Campari and lemon juice
Jenny Kidd Halfsies: Bar Hill Gin, St. Germaine, Campari and lemon juice

Chef Jessica Meter‘s bar snacks include tuna pate, duck confit and chickpea puree, each served with mini baguettes.

The Up & Up even has location going for it’s a short walk from the West 4th Street station with an Insomnia Cookies right next door and an Artichoke pizza across the street (for those who get a little peckish after a night of revelry)

The Up & Up is located at 116 Macdougal Street and is open Sunday – Wednesday 5pm – 2am, and Thursday to Saturday from 5pm to 3am.

Tags

  • bar
  • basement bar
  • Chaim Dauermann
  • cocktail
  • Jessica Meter
  • Matthew Piacentini
  • Shaddock & Smoke
  • Strunk Text
  • Taste of Chez Juan
  • Teague Old Fashioned
  • The Up & Up

Post navigation

Here’s Where You’ll Be Drinking This Spring
Insta-tender

Related posts

Cinco de Drinko?
Cocktail, Life  /  May 5, 2015
by sharonrboone  /  2 Comments

Cinco de Drinko?

An Old Fashioned Good Time
Cocktail, Libation Education, Living Well  /  April 12, 2015
by sharonrboone  /  2 Comments

An Old Fashioned Good Time

Remembrance of Things Past
Life, Living Well  /  December 28, 2014
by sharonrboone  /  2 Comments

Remembrance of Things Past

Share your thoughts Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Elara Pro by LyraThemes.com
  • Made by LyraThemes.com