Dutch Kills

Hidden in industrial Long Island City, away from all the new high rises, is a bar by the name of Dutch Kills. Run by the same guy behind the notoriously exclusive Milk and Honey, Dutch Kills brings to the New York scene a place where a person can get a well mixed drink at a reasonable price. Its a place where you can find some creative concoctions, interpretations of classics, & the classics themselves. For around $9 a cocktail, the quality of bartending here is on par with other pricier city establishments (PDT, Randolph, etc). It's a gem and I hope that its location will keep it that way.

The place is easy to find if you are looking for it, but almost impossible to stumble across. The only clue that Dutch Kills exists is the sign on the door. But armed with an address its hard to miss. Everyone who shows up came for a reason; its not a place to visit during your weekend bar crawl.

The place is dark. Real dark. With wood paneling all around and no windows, our group staggered in during a late afternoon summer and let the world around us stop, reentering hours later to the glorious setting sun. I have never felt like such an alcoholic stumbling out of a bar; the world so bright. And that wasn't a bad thing.



The first round of drinks we ordered were off the menu. The flavors were bold. The flavors providing big flavors to accompany their fermented friends. Heavy tones of ginger (Gershwin), grape (Garibaldi), and nutmeg (Infante). It was a nice change of pace to be able to sit at a table, indulge in our drinks, and converse quietly. It might have been the time of day, most likely it was, but I can't see the place getting too packed even late nights.


The menu.


From bottom left(clockwise): Garibaldi, Gershwin, Infante

What Dutch Kills currently lacks is a kitchen. I would be more than happy with some nice roasted peanuts (in the shells please!). Just a little something to munch on while you drink. The hostess made it seem like a kitchen was in the works. But until then, I'll be more than happy with drinks and intoxicated ride back into the city.

Making Drinks

You know you've walked into a bartender's home if you see the image above. Not just a mix of lemons, limes, and other fruit but ones that are perfectly zested. I guess the other tell tale signs are the buckets of fermenting peach wine and the well stocked bar.

My friend Stephen is a great guy to have driving the death of your liver. We started off some wine he was able to get at wholesale prices which really made us ponder the ridiculous markup at restaurants. But what I was really looking forward to was what he would serve us once the wine ran out. Now don't get me wrong, the wine was great but its always enjoyable to see a man practice his craft in his own time and environment.

I've always found it difficult to put together menus when cooking for guests. There's a part of me that wants to do something impressive but that usually ends up being so much work that I end up just being the cook and not the host. What I realized works better is to make things that are amazingly simple that require either very little attention or time. That way, with good prep, you can carry on conversation and cook smoothly without breaking a proverbial sweat.



This is exactly how Stephen approached the situation. He had a bottle of dark rum he was looking to finish off so he simply paired it with some lemon juice, well shaken with ice, and then strained into your vessel of choice.

The drink? It was nice and smooth and perfectly refreshing the evening and mood. What really got me at the moment was how natural it all felt. The transition from wine to a light mixed drink. The beginning and end of a meal. And how it all complimented a nice evening with friends.