Thank you to everyone who came to our martini pop up bar at the end of October. We held it in ‘the Gallery’ on the Main Street of Tobermory, Isle of Mull. At the end of the tourist season I hoped that it was a chance for locals to relax and try something different. It was also a bit of a send off for us … Continue reading Our Second Pop Up Martini Bar
This is one of my favourite places in the world. Oyster happy hour is a must! I’ve previously mentioned how well seafood goes with a martini, especially the simplistically delicate oyster, so a bar/restaurant that specialises in briny goodness was always going to get me excited. However, I’ve got to focus on the martini and not get too ahead of myself. Using my martini rating … Continue reading The Mermaid Inn, NYC 4.5/5
Grrrrrrrrrrr This is a very simple variation on the classic martini, and its obviously got a very arresting name. I first had a hot and dirty martini at the Mermaid Inn in New York. It’s an excellent aperitif as it really gets your digestive juices churning. It’s perfect before a special dinner, whether it’s Sunday lunch, seafood, a romantic meal for two or … Continue reading The Hot and Dirty Martini
A London variation on the classic Mexican drink. As I’ve said before, I don’t always drink martinis. I also like beer and lager, to name but a few alternatives. I recently wrote about the Mexican drink Micheladas and here I’ve come up with another variation. In its most simple terms, a Michelada contains beer/lager, the juice of a lime, a dash of Worcestershire sauce and a … Continue reading A Spicy Umami Michelada
It’s a thing now. What do Thais and Texans have in common? A penchant for spicy food. I have a good friend, currently in Texas, who recently announced his addiction to Sriracha hot chilli sauce, a fiery concoction from Thailand. A US national and an Arabist, he has a very interesting career and academic background, with some very intriguing (and often hilarious) tales from London … Continue reading The hot hot Sriracha martini
This spicy drink was inspired by the mermaid inn in New York, which does a tasty oyster happy hour. I had a spicy vodka martini there before consuming a platter of various types of oyster with friends. They garnished theirs with a hot pepper, but I didn’t have any of those available so I improvised with olives and sliced spring onion. The latter went very … Continue reading Spicy martini
The Martini Socialist 