wWw Holiday Edition at Flatiron Room

Last Wednesday we decided to host an impromptu event to have one last drink together before we all went our separate ways for the holidays. 

We chose the Flatiron Room, for it's cozy ambiance, live music, and well-crafted cocktails. 

The bartender pouring a flaming drink

Flatiron Room is famous for its "Bottle Keep" service.

Good whiskey is meant to be enjoyed at your leisure and preferably in the company of good friends. We created our “Bottle Keep” program for this very reason. Most of our whiskeys can be purchased by the dram or by the bottle. If you come across an expression you really like then you might consider purchasing the bottle. 

It works like this: You purchase your favorite bottle and enjoy as much as you’d like at your table. When you’ve had enough, we’ll tag it with your name and store it safely in our Bottle Keep. 

You’ll also receive some “Entitlement Cards”. These cards give the holder authorization to drink off the bottle (so be careful who you give them to!). Next time you come by simply give the server your Entitlement Card and we’ll fetch your bottle. It’s a lot of fun and it makes a great gift. 

 The bottles are kept in beautiful, softly lit lockers that line and decorate the length of the bar. 

The "Bottle Keep" Locker

We started off the evening with a round of Old Fashioneds at the bar, while we waited for our table, and perused the menu of Tasting Flights and Classic Cocktails.

An Old Fashioned

When we finally sat down we got a round of Templeton Manhattans, straight up, and waited for our food--truffled mac and cheese, mushroom pizza, and beet salad. We were starving! 

The Flatiron Room's standard is a Perfect Manhattan (made with half sweet and half dry vermouth) and served with a twist. Personally, that how I prefer it--something about the citrus aroma really opens up the flavors--but Kim was a little disappointed that they didn't have brandied cherries. 

Templeton Manhattans

Given the last minute nature of the invitation, we had a small group, but it gave us the chance to catch up with each other and share an intimate evening over delicious drinks and tasty snacks.

Mary and Julia

Julia and Andrea

Kim and Elizabeth

The live jazz was a delightful addition to the cozy, timeless atmosphere. 

The Flatiron Room is the perfect place for a quiet evening with friends, or a romantic, intimate evening with a lover. 

At around $15 each, the cocktails are a little on the pricy side, even for Manhattan, but they're impeccably mixed and the service is flawless, so it's worth the little extra, especially if you want to impress.

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The Flatiron Room

37 W 26th Street

(6th Ave)

212.725.3860

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Women Who Whiskey: Birthday Edition!

This event was a WWW first!

It was a Whiskey Tasting to celebrate my 28th birthday.

The lovely hostesses: Maggie, Barbara, Amanda, and Julia (me)

My roommates Maggie, Amanda, and Barbara--all Women Who Whiskey members--and I hosted the event at our upper west side apartment.

Amanda and Maggie

I had decided on an original line up of five bottles--a bourbon, two ryes, and two scotches--but a few guests brought bottles of whiskey as birthday gifts and we decided it was only appropriate to include them in the line up, bringing the up the total to eight bottles, and expanding the selection internationally. 

Some smiling guests

The original line up before the addition of Yamazaki, Bushmills and Glenfiddich

The final line up was served in the following order:

1) Rowan's Creek Bourbon - John Rowan was a statesman and judge who dabbled in Bourbon makin' on the side. A light, spicy flavor. 

2) Templeton Rye - A small-batch Prohibition era recipe, and Al Capone'swhiskey of choice (and my personal favorite). Smooth and sweet, with a slightly spiced finish. 

3) Redemption Rye - An excellent bargain. Retails between $25-30, but tastes like $60 rye. 

4) Yamazaki 12 Year Single Malt Japanese Whiskey - Would be a scotch if it weren't from Japan

5) Bushmills 10 Year Single Malt Irish Whiskey - A marriage of the new world and old world whiskies, with a hint of the sweetness of Bourbon and Rye.

6) Glenfiddich 12 Year Single Malt Scotch - A lighter, less potent but still delicious scotch

7) Balvenie Doublewood 12 Year Single Malt Scotch - A smoother, more vanilla flavor

8) Lagavulin 16 Year Islay Single Malt Scotch - A robust, smokey, peaty deep flavor 

Paige, Kim and Maura, WWW members

The ladies of Women Who Whiskey, smiling! 

Andrea, Julia, and a very enthusiastic William

All in all it was a wonderful evening--both as a birthday celebration and as a Women Who Whiskey event. 

Employees Only

Our inaugural Women Who Whiskey outing was to Employees Only.

Employees Only is where I began my search for the best Manhattan in Manhattan (although I look forward to expanding my search to Brooklyn), and has since become one of my favorite speakeasy style whiskey bars in the city.

Made with a little more Vermouth than usual, citrus bitters, and a generous sliver of orange peel, and served in very generous larger-than-average stemware, the Manhattan at Employees Only has yet to be beat.

If you don't know exactly where it is, the first time you go Employees Only is hard to find. The only thing on the sign is their enigmatic EO logo, which on its side looks more like stylized Arabic scrips than English. But you can recognize the place by the red light of the palm reader in the entrance.

When we showed up at 6:30 on a Sunday evening, we expected to find a table, since there weren't very many of us. Fortunately (although we didn't think so at the time) there weren't any open tables, so we were forced to stand at the bar. This was a blessing in disguise because it meant that we got to chat with the not-too-busy bartenders, and have them explain everything that was going into our cocktails. All of which were delicious, including the fruity ones!

It was then that we realized that every bartender's wet dream is having a group of beautiful, charming women show up at the bar in the form of a women's whiskey club, and start making connoisseur inquiries about the whiskey selection.

The bartenders at Employees Only take their work very seriously, a number of them rocking identical Prohibition era waxed mustaches and tattoos of the EO logo.

Our bartender certainly took the time to make sure all of our questions were answered. He even gave us a very generous (free) sample of delicious Templeton Rye, which Paige and I promptly ordered a glass of, neat.

It was like warm liquid nutmeg-spiked eggnog, and one of my favorite rye whiskeys to date.

As our first Women Who Whiskey event, it was a success (in spite of all of the women who couldn't make it), and I look forward to our outing to Employees Only.

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Employees Only

510 Hudson St
(between 10th and Christopher)

212.242.3021

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