The Roosevelt is one of the most stunning hotels in New Orleans. During the holidays, the Art Deco designs in the main lobby are hung with sparkling tinsel and garnished with snowy evergreen fronds. My friend Jessica and I met our new friend Yeesheen there for cocktails on Friday night. We really wanted to take advantage of the "glitzy" side of New Orleans (and the Roosevelt is certainly a place where you can fulfill that need. I mean, honestly, I felt like I was walking onto the movie set of the Great Gatsby!) There may have been fireworks, or maybe that was just my Miniver Cheevy-esq imagination running wild...
The hotel is perhaps most famous for the Sazerac Bar, which is named after that wonderfully satisfying New Orleans cocktail. The hotel describes the typical Sazerac bar experiences as follows: "Just gazing at the famous Paul Ninas murals that flank the long African walnut bar takes you back to the grandeur of old New Orleans—a time when Huey P. Long would stroll in, order a Ramos Gin Fizz and spend the next couple hours talking to his constituents." When we arrived at the bar, it was packed with men and women dressed in business attire (enjoying a much deserved after-work drink, perhaps?) and, surprisingly, a lot of twenty-somethings (how do they afford those $18 cocktails?) In my imagination, I always pictured old men in silk neckties frequenting this bar with a smoking pipe in hand...
I decided to splurge on the 1840 Sazerac, which is made with cognac instead of rye whiskey. The original recipe for the Sazerac calls for cognac, but that was replaced by rye whiskey (a more readily available liquor in the 19th century). Yeesheen ordered the "standard" Sazerac, so we were able to compare the tastes. The 1840 Sazerac was as smooth a silk. The flavors were subtle and elegant and the cocktail was almost viscous as it slid along my tongue. The standard Sazerac was a bit zippier, a little more unbridled and spirited. I like that. It reminds me of New Orleans. Both were delicious (although, I was a bit disappointed that the bar tender did not lace the glass with herbsaint by spinning it up in the air. Instead they used a modern spritz bottle to give you the subtlest kiss of liquorice). I did enjoyed watching the 4 bartenders work their magic - they functioned like machines...hands moving so fast to grab bottle of bitters, or lemon peels, or sugar cubes that they blurred in my camera lens.
After enjoying the bar for a while, we meandered off into the hotel to find a quiet place to chat. We picked the ice cream parlor (I think you can guess why!) Overall, a wonderful evening in NOLA!
The hotel is perhaps most famous for the Sazerac Bar, which is named after that wonderfully satisfying New Orleans cocktail. The hotel describes the typical Sazerac bar experiences as follows: "Just gazing at the famous Paul Ninas murals that flank the long African walnut bar takes you back to the grandeur of old New Orleans—a time when Huey P. Long would stroll in, order a Ramos Gin Fizz and spend the next couple hours talking to his constituents." When we arrived at the bar, it was packed with men and women dressed in business attire (enjoying a much deserved after-work drink, perhaps?) and, surprisingly, a lot of twenty-somethings (how do they afford those $18 cocktails?) In my imagination, I always pictured old men in silk neckties frequenting this bar with a smoking pipe in hand...
I decided to splurge on the 1840 Sazerac, which is made with cognac instead of rye whiskey. The original recipe for the Sazerac calls for cognac, but that was replaced by rye whiskey (a more readily available liquor in the 19th century). Yeesheen ordered the "standard" Sazerac, so we were able to compare the tastes. The 1840 Sazerac was as smooth a silk. The flavors were subtle and elegant and the cocktail was almost viscous as it slid along my tongue. The standard Sazerac was a bit zippier, a little more unbridled and spirited. I like that. It reminds me of New Orleans. Both were delicious (although, I was a bit disappointed that the bar tender did not lace the glass with herbsaint by spinning it up in the air. Instead they used a modern spritz bottle to give you the subtlest kiss of liquorice). I did enjoyed watching the 4 bartenders work their magic - they functioned like machines...hands moving so fast to grab bottle of bitters, or lemon peels, or sugar cubes that they blurred in my camera lens.
After enjoying the bar for a while, we meandered off into the hotel to find a quiet place to chat. We picked the ice cream parlor (I think you can guess why!) Overall, a wonderful evening in NOLA!
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