Already, the buzz for Phil Ward's new tequila themed mixology den has exceeded any healthy level. So, as your eyes and ears, we couldn't turn an opportunity to give you the first look at their full cocktail menu (click through the gallery below).

The cocktails were all as amazing as they sound and the decor downstairs matches the vibe perfectly. We were fortunate enough to score Jim as our bartender last night, and he was as personable as he was skilled behind the bar.

He mixed up an Italian Inquisition for my first cocktail, and I was impressed with how complex and light something that dark and seemingly syrupy tasted. We moved onto El Jimador Shifty next, which featured Mezcal and Negro Modelo.  It was spicy, it was flavorful. In short, it was great. Over the next hour we sampled half of the menu, and were impressed with each drink Jim slid our way.

We spent the bulk of the evening in the downstairs bar, which you can check out over on Urban Daddy, if you're so inclined. Jim suggested we take the trip upstairs to check out the "baby maker" (his term not mine), and the upstairs might be the only part of Mayahuel that underwhelmed me.  The vibe upstairs was definitely very loungey with plush velvet and extreme red lighting.  Somehow, it didn't quite fit with the tiles and veladors downstairs. 

Upstairs be damned, this is a great spot, and certainly a destination for any tequila lover.

Mayahuel
304 E. 6th St
(at 2nd Ave)
East Village
New York, NY 10003
   

Day 1 - total meat overdose

We stopped by the Fat Tuesday party at The Bell House where The Sugartone Brass Band was swinging, the Jambalya was spicy, and the Hurricanes were strong.  Our favorite BH bartender, Kimberly, has the recipe.

Tracey Toomey of PlumTV fame twists up some Italian Ices spiked with Pyrat Rum and Maraschino Liqueur.

While they could have made these with a blender, the liquid nitrogen looked so damn cool.

Another Valentine's Day cocktail from our friend and master mixologist Allan Katz at Cabrito

It's Valentine's Day. A day where your usual PBR and Old Crow sipping ways will not fly as you attempt to show that lucky lady how classy of a gentleman you can be.

Still, times are tough and you don’t have the kind of walking around money to buy your date a fancy drink at the newest Gastropub or Vintage Cocktail joint…

Might we recommend Skittles Juice:

Mix that Drink and Neatorama show you how to make a Skittles infused Vodka drink that really will have you Tasting the Rainbow.

We are sure the fruity concoction will show your female associate that you know how to make a fancy flavorful candy drink and still keep a budget.

The recipe is a pretty simple infusing technique and Mix that Drink even recommends throwing in one of our favorite drink mixers to really make this drink top notch: 7-Up!

Tell us how your head feels after ingesting that much sugar as you work to get into your gal’s fish net stockings.
 

The Dow may have dropped another 100 points yesterday, but there was no sign of recession at the pristine New York Palace Hotel where mixologists from each of the Dorchester Collection Hotels gathered to show off their new signature cocktails. And last night, we got to try them all.

So, click through the gallery below and join us on a narrated tour of classy cocktails, fancy chandaliers, and Giuliano Morandin's Martinez (yes, it is so good it deserves a extra shout out here). 

I am going to make a bold statement: We at Lush Life are not just Manhattan drinkers. We are Manhattan Purveyors — that's right — I capitalized the P. Our mornings often begin with rousing Morning Manhattans — a tradition at Lush Life headquarters — and our evenings are rarely whiskey free.  Needless to say, the Manhattan is typically the measure we use to judge a bartender's most basic ability. 

So, we were a little confused this week when Time Out New York put out their list of quintessential NYC neighborhood cocktails.  Sure the list hits so many high points from the Pegu Club classic 'Little Italy' and my neighborhood joint's aptly named 'The Brooklyn.'  But, while there were some amazing recipes, the classic Manhattan version seemed to be missing something.

Look at the recipe. What's not there?

2 oz rye whiskey
1 oz sweet vermouth
Cherry garnish

Pour liquid ingredients over ice and stir. Strain into cocktail glass, serve up (no ice) and garnish with a cherry.

Yup, you guessed it: bitters.

Even the most basic iterations of the Manhattan (including the Wikipedia entry), always include a dash or two of bitters.

Well, dear readers, I suppose the moral of the story is this: never, ever order a Manhattan any cocktail from Bemelman's Bar.

I know I won't.
 

The Chinese New Year is upon us, and it's time to get down Ox-style.  What does that mean?  We cornered Allan Katz, our favorite mixologist and Lush Life columnist to find out.

Lush Life: So, Allan, what are you drinking to celebrate the Chinese New Year?

Allan: We're serving the Petronas Cocktail at Fatty Crab uptown.  Might not sound Chinese, but it's definitely Asian.

LL:  What's in it?

[Allan starts wiggling his fingers and pulling ingredients from the back bar.]

Allan: The Petronas Cocktail

2.0 ounces Old Bardstown Bourbon (or similarly greezy 101-proof)
.5 ounce Charbay [fortified] Pomegranate Wine
.25 ounce Dry Vermouth
3 dashes Lemongrass-infused Angostura bitters 
[Stir]
And, garnish with a whiskey-cured cherry

LL: So, why is this your official cocktail of the Chinese New Year?

Allan: Because it's a Manhattan prepared for the Asian conquest of our country after the economic stimulus fails.

LL:  Haha, fair enough.  Do you have any other suggestions for the folks who might not have the time to steep their bitters in lemongrass?

Allan:  Let's hit up the Savoy. I know Dale's got an old recipe that ain't bad.

[Looking through Savoy Cocktail Book from behind the bar, Allan stops at The Chinese Cocktail, and shows me the recipe:

The Chinese Cocktail
1 dash Angostura bitters
3 dashes Maraschino Liqueur
3 dashes Curacao
1 ounce grenadine
2 ounces Jamaican rum
Shake well with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.]
 

Allan: That is disgusting. Let's do this instead.

[He starts pulling ingredients and juicing lemons.]

LL:  All right, we need a recipe. What's going in here?

Allan: Here is what I would do.

2.0 ounces Navy Rum
.5 ounce Pom
.5 ounce Meyer Lemon Juice
.25 ounce Marie Brizzard Curacao
.25 ounce Luxardo Maraschino
Dash Fee Bros Rhubarb Bitters
[Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.]

LL:  That does sound better.

Allan:  Just because it's old, doesn't fuckin' mean it's good.  An ounce of grenadine is nasty even if you're from Staten Island.

We couldn't agree with you more. 

Happy Year of the Ox to all of you out in cocktail land!
 

We have already espoused our interest in the iPhone’s breathalyzer attachment here.  We have even tested out some of the Apple-approved booze applications ourselves.

But now comes a whole new chapter in mixology as Simon Difford took his Cocktails Made Easy drink book and Apple-fied it.  Since Simon is the brainchild behind the ever-present Difford's Guide- the series takes up an entire shelf in our office- you have to assume the product is pretty decent.

So, we took it upon ourselves to give this baby a test run, and well, visually, it's as stunning as all of Simon's products.  The graphics are sweet and the pictures are crisp with that little artsy edge that quickly became Difford's signature.

We particularly like the look of the shelf littered with our favorite bottles including a very conspicuous product placement for Bulleit Bourbon (yum). Finding drinks though, is a bit belabored, but the recipes are spot on.  Out of the many apps out there, this definitely ranks in the top for we Lushies.

If you don't believe us, Camper English over at Alcademics gives his perspective on the new apple application that takes Difford’s easy-to-use cocktail book and made it downloadable and ready at any moment — given you have the iPhone and not some junked cell phone like that crappy Blackberry.