Chicago, the small cocktail brother of New York. Slightly smaller maybe, but worse in quality? No way! Besides New York, the city with the coolest bars all over the US and I would be lying if I would say I prefer New York over Chicago when it comes to interesting bar concepts. I don’t even know where to start since the experiences chase each other and one is better than the other.
Vintage collection
I had to see the Aviary but when I came to Chicago the first time we did not get in. It was my fault as we just did not reserve. A mistake in this always busy molecular heaven established by Charles Joly, which left a short while ago. But we are coming back to Aviary in another tale. This is about a little secret which you find downstairs in the Aviary. Not a well kept secret anymore but still a quite exclusive one and a big contrast to what is going on upstairs – Welcome to The Office. There is nothing to dislike about this place if you are a vintage enthusiast and if you enjoy exclusivity and cosiness. Only 5 seats at the counter and 3 small tables are located in this mini bar. Heavy leather seats, art at the walls, a beautiful metal bar top, vintage looking glassware and last but not least wonderful vitrines with an exclusive and aged selection of spirits, all underlined with nice Jazz music in the background. The menu spreads out over 40 pages from normal cocktails, to aged ones and a vast range of spirits but what the bartenders really like is to give advice in which direction your drink of choice shall go.
Alchemist at work
Ingi and Anthony were working that night. Very nice guys, knowledgeable, friendly and talkative; all in all fabulous hosts. We started off with a few oysters and then dived into the cocktail world of The Office. The first one I ordered with cognac and a composition with spiced pear liqueur, Averna, Punt e Mes and various bitters arrived. A very round delicious drink with hints of vanilla, cinnamon, pear, a touch of bitterness but all in all not too heavy to drink. A perfect digestif cocktail. This was followed by an Old Fashioned drink with Brimstone smoky Bourbon, Tennessee BBQ bitters and Demerara sugar – a well executed twist of the classic. The ice cubes are clear and hand carved. Big cinema all in all and when you have to go for little kids, you get the key to The Office as the door is closed from the outside. One must feel very exclusive here. We couldn’t stop here and continued with a rum based recipe of El Dorado 15, Dry curacao, Cynar, Angostura bitters and a truffle tincture. The truffle wasn’t too overpowering and completed the drink excellently.
Classy interior
A dark woody colour and full bodied with all ingredients present on the palate was the final result. Last but not least Mezcal had to round off the night. Del Maguey, Cognac, Cynar, Chartreuse verte and black garlic which melted the Cynar and Chartreuse nicely together. A solid and heavy sweetness, hints of black garlic and a present smokiness – a drink to remember. Slightly tipsy but satisfied we made our way up to the Aviary which you will read more about in another tale. A final surprise, it seems that Anthony has another hidden talent. Every bill is handwritten with an old ink pen and the nicest handwriting you can imagine. A bill that you can almost frame at home. I will be back for sure. Just wow!
© images: Christian Seel
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