Cocktail Armageddon Is Here

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The End Times might actually be here… but only if you’re a cocktail. That’s because a new trend, the Vapor Spirit, is starting to catch on. The Vapor Spirit is an invention that boils your favorite spirit so that you can literally inhale the alcohol through a straw. The Vapor Spirits product claims to make drinking “as easy as breathing,” and it promises enhanced flavor and smooth “drinking,” all while reducing your chances for a hangover. We’re kind of worried. Here are the details on what the Vapor Spirit is and how to use it, as well as three reasons why it might just kill the cocktail. 

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Add It to Your Menu: Amaro

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Looking for a new menu addition? Try amaro. Although bartenders have known about amari (the plural of amaro) for many years, they’ve mostly been keeping the secret to themselves, or using amari solely as drink additives to kick up their cocktails. This means that most of your customers don’t know what this exciting “new” drink is. Here’s everything you need to know to add amaro to your beverage menu. 

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Uncorkd 8 Top Spirits Predictions for 2015

8 Top Spirits Predictions for 2015

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It’s the end of the year, and everyone is making their drink predictions. Last year, I made food predictions, of which one-third came true… which is enough to have merited me the title of a prophet back in the day. While I still think kumquats are due for their time in the spotlight (man, I love those things), I’m ready to get even more right this year with the eight top spirits predictions for 2015.  Read more

5 Thanksgiving Cocktails to Sweeten Your Prix Fixe

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Thank goodness for Thanksgiving! This is the time of year when the weather starts trapping us inside for the winter months, so we clean the house obsessively, cook complex dishes for days on end, and get together with our families to yell at each other!

Hmmm. Wait. Scratch that. This is really the time of year that we decide to ditch time-consuming food efforts and go out to eat at your restaurant. (Thank goodness for you!)

In order to make us feel better about abandoning our families for the official start to the holiday season, how about you include some simple and affordable cocktails on your holiday menu. Here are five great Thanksgiving cocktails to sweeten up your prix fixe menu (and increase your margins) this year.  Read more

Spring Cocktail Trends 2017

The Cocktail Menu Fight for Fundamentals (Part 2 of 2)

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We recently talked about the current debate that’s been insidiously sweeping the cocktail world for a few years now. Namely: Should your cocktail menu be complex and creative…or tried and true? Our earlier post suggested tips to make your craft cocktail menu a success, but this article weighs in on the other side. Here are some tips to make your cocktails both simple and alluring. 

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Pricing Cocktail Menu

The Cocktail Menu Argument for Avant Garde (Part 1 of 2)

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Are you looking to upgrade your restaurant’s cocktail menu? Drinks menus these days must place themselves solidly on one side of today’s controversial quaffing question: Should your cocktails be complex and creative… or should they be tried and true? If you’re planning to join the mixologists by creating a cutting-edge cocktail menu, here are some tips that will help you get started.

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5 Autumn Drinks to Add to Your Menu

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As of September 23, the season finally changed. Here in Chicago, we started seeing glimmerings of cooler weather almost a month ago, when temperatures started dropping into the 40s at night. Hopefully your weather is better than ours here in Chicago (really, I hope it is—the weather here is just dreadful) but at this point, I’m sure your restaurant has stopped serving gazpacho and your pina colada sales have dropped off. It’s time, so here are five delicious autumn drinks you should add to your menu. Read more

The Newest Alcohol Finds for Your Fall Drink Menu

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Do you want to add something a little unexpected to your fall drinks menu? A recent article in the New York Times, “Culinary Trends in New York” described all the new, exciting innovations that I did not see coming in the predictions I made for 2014, and they sound delicious. Try adding these three alcohol trends to your drinks menu to spice up the season.

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Keep ‘Em Comin’: 6 Drinks from Around the World

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If you’re a restaurant that serves an international food, you probably also sell a large amount of one traditional drink. But what do you offer for the people who want a drink from your country, but who are tired of the same old thing? You really need to broaden your drinks menu to keep them coming back. We’ve all heard that variety is the spice of life, and today’s post serves up a good helping of hot and fresh variety for your restaurant. To serve you, I’ve compiled a list of six lesser-known cocktail drinks from around the world. Read more

The Secret of a Good Signature Drink

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A lot of restaurants offer drinks. What makes you different? Is it the fact that you have a wine list filled with $200+ bottles? Is it that you offer 458 types of craft beer… or that all your drinks are straight from Japan? These key differentiators make your restaurant stand out, but unless you show off your differences, your customers will never know what you have to offer. What you need is a signature drink. Read more