Don't-miss Dallas drinks destinations
Interior of the Village Marquee Grill & Bar
Two upscale hotel bars pull in lively crowds
most evenings and feature distinguished cocktails. They're the Mansion Bar at the Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek and the Library Bar at the Warwick Melrose Get a taste of Dallas glamour at the Village
Marquee Grill & Bar and Bistro 31, both in Highland Park Village. Bistro 31's upstairs lounge emphasizes sparkling wine cocktails. Dallas has a slew of relatively new cocktail
bars as well. Three of the best sit along the same short stretch of McKinney Avenue: Tate's, the Standard Pour and Private Social. —JB
CULTIVATING THE COCKTAIL CULTURE The curiosity of customers and creativity of bartenders came
together to propel two events in 2012 that demonstrated this maturing cocktail culture, Craft Cocktails Texas and the Dallas Whiskey and Fine Spirits Festival. At Craft Cocktails Texas, professionals lectured on topics that included cocktail party best practices (Campbell) and the use and history of bitters (Milano) at the swanky Stoneleigh Hotel. The whiskey festival drew about 1,500 to a hangar at the suburban Addison Airport, where 200 liquors were represented. One of those was from a local start-up, the Firestone &
Robertson distillery in Fort Worth. Its first offering of TX Blended Whiskey flew out of stores and found shelf space at establishments such as Chamberlain's Steak and Chop House in Addison. Owners Leonard Firestone and Troy Robertson were determined to create a blend that rivaled the best Canadians. "Canadian blended whisky is the most popular in Texas,"
says Robertson. "We wanted to capture those Texas loyalties with a homegrown product by making something that could be in the same category." Adds Firestone, "Given it's a premium, our goal was to create something with a lot of body, traditional bourbon-whiskey characteristics, without that spiciness that some people object to." So now producers have joined consumers and purveyors in the pursuit of superior drinking in Dallas.
A Cedars Social Manhattan. 38 | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012
Morning News. Read more at www.misterdallas.com. Follow him on Twitter: @misterdallasvip.
Jerry Bokamper is the night-life columnist for The Dallas
www.cheersonline.com
