Carts and horses...

Before I get too ahead of myself, first I suppose I should give a brief introduction to the bar. 1022 South is a small, craft cocktail lounge in Hilltop, WA. We opened about 3 months ago (end of March? All the days are flowing together at this point. Where am I?) in a spot that was formerly occupied by another craft/tiki lounge of sorts called the Monsoom Room. They ran into the usual sorts of problems that befall small businesses that trade in spirits (in this case, of all kinds...). The owners of the building happened to have in their employ the former manager and longest tenured bartender of the aforementioned establishment (me). After some negotiating, they brought me on as the general manager for the new establishment. I gave it a light remodel, new name, and we were off.

The bar has a literary bent and the cocktails are either 1022 versions of classics or are based on classic architecture. Here is our current menu that is set to run through the summer:
While a few of us have experience bartending in its myriad and sundry forms, we are mostly students of the craft learning as we go along. So, forgive our apparent ignorance at times; we hope it is mitigated by humility and curiosity.

Nuts and bolts. We like spirits. We like stories. We like fresh, quality local ingredients. We try to bring all of the above to the table whenever we can. We do this through researching product. If there is something you had once in New Orleans and you really want it again, give us the name and we will see what we can do. Is there a spirit that you are particularly fond of that you think we should carry (hat tip to the gentleman who recommended the Domaine de Canton)? We will try our damnedest to get our itchy fingers on a bottle. What we do in the meantime is procure fresh, seasonal ingredients from the farmer's market or simply the farm and try to make tasty concoctions. In addition to what is on the first page of the menu, we feature specials every night. Sometimes these consist of experiments that we find tasty (Cynar and Punt e Mes topped with soda and finish with an orange zest) or they are simply what we have in limited supply for the night (margaritas made with basil infused Milagro tequila). We have tasty wine, rotating taps of great beer (and for the locals - Rainier, great in its own right), and happy hour from 4 to 8 everyday. Come in for $3 Cosmos (right now they are made with a bit of our strawberry rhubarb infusion), $3 margaritas (everything but the kitchen sink!), and $3 basil kamikazes.

Ok, enough with the schmoozing. This isn't what I'm best at. I wanted a neighborhood bar where I could sit with my friends and have quality cocktails. That's what we are striving for. Come in for a Rainier, a Chartreuse, or both. And if you see LC at the bar, make sure you say hello if we haven't introduced you already. Tip of the hat to Adam for the pics of the Revolver and the Crossing the Rubicon. Cheers.
-C