Our Favorite Cocktails For Fall
When restaurants make themselves over for fall, they leave no stone unturned; updating not just their dinner and dessert menus, but their beverage offerings as well. So take a moment to check out some of the delicious, seriously seasonal libations at bars and eateries all over the city, from the cream and allspice-topped “Mare Island” at the award-winning The Dead Rabbit, to the unexpectedly autumnal Margaritas (think apple cider-flavored!) at the just-opened Empellon al Pastor.
Empellon al Pastor
One of the most surprising discoveries about Alex Stupak’s newest Empellon venture, al Pastor, is how little of the menu is devoted to food (one page), compared to how much is relegated to alcohol (five pages). So look at the spit-roasted Pork Tacos at this East Village hotspot as an opportunity to steel your stomach for an onslaught of alcohol, in the form of White Miso Micheladas and Apple Cider Margaritas.
Read MorePerla
Few restaurants have beverage programs truly worthy of their food offerings, but Gabe Stulman’s Perla, overseen by chef Michael Toscano, serves some destination-worthy cocktails. This fall, try the “There’s a New Sheriff in Town,” made with golden rum, apple cider and lemon, and the “Tombstone Sunday Nights,” featuring cinnamon-infused bourbon, amaro, chile-soy maple syrup and bitters.
Read MoreDear Irving
Owned by the folks behind Raines Law Room, this sprawling Union Square bar boasts some major cocktail cred. It’s also comprised of four entirely different spaces (inspired by JFK, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Abraham Lincoln and Marie Antoinette, respectively), serving a wide range of drinks to match, including the “Ideal Patriot” with bourbon, calvados and spiced apple syrup, the “Screaming Viking” with sherry, cherry heering, ginger and caraway, and the “Santa Rosa,” a baking spice-scented tipple with cocchi rosa, sorel and lime.
Read MoreThe Dead Rabbit
This acclaimed FiDi establishment is essentially two bars in one, with an informal ground floor Taproom, serving craft beer, bottled punch and whiskeys, and a lavish upstairs Parlor, featuring over 72 variations of 19th century-era cocktails, such as “The Goldmine,” with port, cranberry, allspice and orange, “The July 27th,” containing champagne cider, lemon and apple, and the “Paradise Square,” a combo of Irish stout and whiskey, apple, demerara sugar and spice.
Read MoreExperimental Cocktail Club
This sexy, Lower East Side speakeasy (which has branches all throughout Europe) just released a new, innovative fall menu, featuring “Brazilian Magic Punch,” with cachaca, almond milk, Chilean peppers and nutmeg, the “Midnight Snack,” comprised of bourbon, New Orleans coffee, orgeat and egg, and topped with a butter cookie, and the shareable “Outcider,” a punch made with Calvados, honey syrup and lemon juice, topped with champagne and grated tonka bean.
Read MoreArtisanal
Respected mixologist Orson Salicetti (who designed the opening menu at Apotheke) is currently working exclusively with Artisanal; meaning you can pair your gooey Fondue platters with a scrumptious vegan Eggnog, made with soy milk, cognac, rum, spices, and home-made orgeat, Mulled Wine, infused with fresh-pressed apple cider, brandy and hibiscus flower, and a “Spice ARTiKIN Cocktail,” a new twist on an Old Fashioned made with rye whisky, spiced pumpkin butter, agave, orange peel, aromatic bitters and roasted pumpkin seed.
Read MoreThe Pines
Chef John Poiarkoff’s popular “Baked Apple” cocktail returned to The Pines in Gowanus last week, containing apple cider, Elijah Craig 12-year bourbon and maple bitters, and served in a glass smoked with autumn spices and herbs, such as sage, orange peel, cinnamon, allspice and clove. Another worthy fall option is “The Trillium Lodge,” with Fidencio mezcal, BroVo chocolate amaro, sage-infused orange juice and bitters.
Read MoreWhiskey Soda Lounge
Once Andy Ricker’s relocated Brooklyn outpost of Pok Pok Phat Thai opens, you’ll be able to hit up three different spots (all on the same block), for his drinking vinegar-based cocktails, such as the Apple Gin Rickey and Yuzu-Honey Whiskey Hot Toddy, currently served at both Whiskey Soda Lounge and Pok Pok Ny.
Read MoreCheck out My Book – Try This
