Martini cocktails, martini bars and martini culture
Some bars are landmarks in history. For example, since 1923 the bar of the Copacabana Palace - one of the first hotels built on the beach of Copacabana - has been serving drinks to the world jet set. Today you have two choices: the Bar de Copas, a poshy bar where the rich Cariocas go to …
Continue reading "Copacabana Palace, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil"
Want to feel like the rich Italian fazenderos who created the fortune of Sao Paulo with their coffee business in the 50s, and in the meantime have a glance at the city skyline? Then go to Terraço Itália, the terrace bar (& restaurant) on top of the Edificio Italia in downtown Sao Paulo. The place …
Martini, jazz and history go well together. If this is true, a good martini in an historical jazzclub should be "the" experience you are looking for. You can find this in many clubs in NYC and beyond, but here we are talking of something more. We are talking of drinking your thing in the very …
Let's get it straight: the Bridge Café is the oldest surviving bar in New York City. Once it was a brothel, then a speakeasy, then a tavern, now it is a classy and very enjoyable restaurant and bar. The bar is located in a woody building erected in 1794 with a splendid view on the Brooklyn Bridge …
The legend says that Bono and The Edge enjoyed so much a night at this bar, located in the Clarence hotel in Dublin, that they decided to buy the whole Hotel. The question is: what was served to them that night? Probably Martinis. Apart from legends, the Octagon is one of the best cocktail bars …
Dublin is not the best place for cocktails, with its rivers of Guinness and Irish wisky, but still it is possible to find some good Martini spots. One is the Mint Bar at the Westin Hotel: once the caveau of a bank, the bar is a rather large and confortable lounge where middle and upperclass …
Back in 1952, the famous bartender Giuseppe Cipriani, creator of the Harry's Bar in Venice, convinced his friend Enrico Mariotti to use the name “Harry’s Bar” also for his new bar in Florence. Since then, the bar is the realm of Leo Valdorini, probably the only bartender who was honoured with the Key of the City …
Before entering the Carousel Bar in the Hotel Monteleone, in New Orleans, I was convinced that - at the end of the day - good bars are good bars, but they all are quite similar, the rest are details. Then I sat at the bar, I ordered a Martini (sorry, a very good Martini) and …
The Peabody Hotel in Memphis is a landmark in US history, at least for two reasons: it is the place where Elvis used to buy its clothes (!!) and it has a fountain where a few famous ducks happily swim all day long. Apart from this, the Peabody offers a lobby bar that is referred …
Born as a pastry shop in 1832, the Ex Urbanis is a nice spot a few steps from one of the most beautiful squares on earth, Piazza Unità in Trieste. The Bar still has its original glasses and a spectacular 1800 mosaic on the floor, all combined with modern furniture and lights. Even though the …
The Martini Hour 