Elettaria

[Sethro]

I'm going tomorrow night and I haven't been so excited for drinks in a while (don't worry, I will have a few apps and desserts as well).

[Sethro]

Mai Tai: Pretty sweet even for a mai tai. The flavor of Rum did come through well, and overall it was a pretty pleasant if not exciting version.

Zombie Punch: This tasted like jungle juice with cinnamon. It was really, really strong and strong tasting. It got me pretty drunk pretty quickly.

Electric Ladyland: Far inferior to the "Roses" at P*ONG, which is pretty much the same ingredients. I think it could have been a lot better if it was mixed spot on.

Ginger Rodgers: Once again on the sweet side, but otherwise very well balanced and enjoyable.

Rita Hayworth: Absolutely brilliant, and easily one of the most successful tequila cocktails I've had. I could drink this all night.

Quimby Fizz: Disgusting. Like carbonated cologne--and not a nice cologne either. Old man cologne. Basically way too heavy on the bitters. We learned at this point that it was our bartenders first night. Probably not a great idea to let the guy fly unsupervised at peak hours on a Thursday night (when they should very well be on critic-watch at this point).

Overall I was disappointed. Lots of potential, and the menu reads like a dream, but the execution was poor.

[newbie21]

I went in early last evening, and man-o! That Rita Hayworth is spectacular! We were pressed for time, so I didn't try any other cocktails. The stuffed pig's feet and saag paneer were oh-so-yummy!

[Nathan]

finally tried some of the food.

cured kanpachi was quite good.

so was the pig's foot...albeit an easy to like preparation...emphasizing savoriness not texture.

wild boar with cilantro and bok choy was properly cooked...but it really needed one more ingredient. not quite enough flavor on its own.

it occurred to me that if you were accompanying someone who was a novice to both pig's foot and rye....the pig's foot at Elatteria along with the Rita Hayworth would be perfect "gateway" concoctions.

[newbie21]

finally tried some of the food.

cured kanpachi was quite good.

so was the pig's foot...albeit an easy to like preparation...emphasizing savoriness not texture.

wild boar with cilantro and bok choy was properly cooked...but it really needed one more ingredient.  not quite enough flavor on its own.

it occurred to me that if you were accompanying someone who was a novice to both pig's foot and rye....the pig's foot at Elatteria along with the Rita Hayworth would be perfect "gateway" concoctions.

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I was a novice to the pig's foot, and it was great! The Rita Hayworth, though, had pineapple and sage infused tequila. I think you're thinking of the Ginger Rogers...

[Nathan]

sorry, I meant the Jane Russell

[newbie21]

sorry, I meant the Jane Russell

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Right-O...Rita, Ginger, Jane. It's hard to keep all those babes straight!

[misterdyer]

Sethro~

Hmmm, it seems that your review of Elettaria's cocktail menu was a bit fuzzy on some of the facts. No worries, I often do the same after tipping back a few.

Mai Tai: Pretty sweet even for a mai tai. The flavor of Rum did come through well, and overall it was a pretty pleasant if not exciting version.

I'm certain that Brian and Lynnette there serve up the historically correct original 1944 Trader Vic's Mai Tai of Jamaican and Martinique rums, orgeat, lime juice, simple syrup, curacao and mint. This isn't merely a version of the Mai Tai, it is the version. Any libation of different construction which claims the same name is just a hodge-podge of rums and juices in a glass (although that can be tasty as well).

Zombie Punch: This tasted like jungle juice with cinnamon. It was really, really strong and strong tasting. It got me pretty drunk pretty quickly.

Jungle juice? Really?!? <Don the Beachcomber shakes head in disappointment from beyond the grave>

Electric Ladyland: Far inferior to the "Roses" at P*ONG, which is pretty much the same ingredients. I think it could have been a lot better if it was mixed spot on.

According to their respective websites and menus, P*ONG's Roses includes elderflower, prosecco, and gold mist. Elettaria's Electric Ladyland includes pisco, lime juice, rose jam, and champagne. Not quite the same ingredients, but after a Zombie, my palette is usually a bit compromised, too.

[johnder]

Zombie Punch: This tasted like jungle juice with cinnamon. It was really, really strong and strong tasting. It got me pretty drunk pretty quickly.

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Well I am not surprised it tasted strong, it has 3 rums in it, and one of them is 151 proof rum. There is almost 5.5 oz of liquor in that drink. As far as it tasting like jungle juice, not sure where the comparison is. Yes, there are a lot of ingredients in it, but when I had it, the flavors were balanced.

[Sethro]

Like I said, I was giving the benefit of the doubt that the execution was just off. Like I mentioned, it was our bartender's first night, he was working off a cheat-sheet, and these drinks are VERY complicated.

The Mai Tai was the first thing I had, so my palate was pretty neutral, and it was VERY sweet for me, and not (to my taste) the best I ever had. It wasn't bad by any means--it was good.

The Zombie Punch tasted like 5.5oz of liquor, and just not very pleasant overall. My friend and I shared it and still ad a hard time putting it away. Definitely a medicine aftertaste. The Quimby Fizz just tasted horrible. No way it could have been mixed correctly.

As for the bubblies; p*ong's website fails to mention the candied rose in "roses" (which is why it's called "roses"), making both drinks really similar in the they are: sparkling wine, rose, something sweet and sour.

I think my palette remained pretty intact thoughout the night, as I was able to taste all of the ingredients in the Rita Hayseworth in perfect balance.

Once again, I applaud the creativity and I hope the next time I visit the execution is on point.

Edited March 22, 2008 by Sethro (log)

[johnder]

There is a great short piece in this sundays NY times that mentions Elettaria as well as Brian Miller and Lynette. It is an article about the Navy Grog they are serving there. Link is here.

It’s a throwback, as all New York cocktails are these days, but from what cocktail historians would deem more “recent” history: the 1930’s. That’s when Ernest Raymond Beaumont-Gantt, as Donn Beach, started serving dolled-up rum drinks at his Polynesian-themed restaurants, kicking off the decades-long “tiki” phase of American drinking. Along with the Mai Tai and Zombie, the Navy Grog was part of his holy trinity of tiki drinks. “These are truly classic cocktails,” Mr. Miller said. “They’re bright, refreshing, with tastes that really pop in your mouth. They’re relics that people should get to know.”

They also have the recipe on the site, which I paraphrase:

1 oz each of Cruzan Light, Goslings Black Seal and Demerara rums

3/4 oz each of lime and grapefruit

1 oz of 1:1 honey syrup

Shake and strain into a collins glass, top with soda.

If somehow you are lucky enough to live in a place that has Lemon Heart Demerra, that is the way to go. Sadly, in NYC it isn't available.

[jimk]

Our experiencce the other night was pretty underwhelming. My cocktail was quite good - an opaka raka - and something in the mix hinted at the Indian influences of the place ... perhaps some cardomom in the mix. Food was generally very, very good - lamb sausage and stuffed pig's foot were great though not that adventurous. When I asked what the pig's foot was stuffed with the server responded that it was stuffed with pig's foot as though it was a stupid question. We both had the boar, which appearred to be a roasted loin, aside a very tasty and bracingly salty vermicelli. My boar was perfectly medium rare (although we weren't asked about temp and we were both expecting a boar sauce) although my wife's was closer to medium well and on the dry side. Biggest problem here was the design - incredibly uncomfortable and virtually anyone sitting near us could be overheard complaining about it at one point or another. Female staff uniforms were pretty dorky - kind of an eight-maids-a-milking look. Vibe felt a bit like a MePa scene dropped into the west village.