September 12th, 2008
Please don’t tell
If you walk into Eastern Standard next week and wonder who that new kid is behind the bar, count your blessings. His name is Daniel Eun, and he works at PDT (Please Don’t Tell), a speakeasy-style cocktail bar in lower Manhattan. And if you’re wondering where Eastern Standard’s sweet-faced Kevin Martin is, don’t worry. He’s shaking up a few ES cocktails down at PDT. Yep, it’s a bartender exchange.
Jackson Cannon, bar manager at ES, and Jim Meehan, owner of PDT, are sending these two talented, young emissaries to each other’s bars for three nights: Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. At PDT, Kevin will greet a clientele of in-the-know cocktail enthusiasts who enter the bar by ringing a bell on the wall of a phone booth inside a hotdog joint. At Eastern Standard, Daniel will tend to a sprawling mix of cocktail enthusiasts, businesspeople, baseball fans and tourists who enter the place through a clearly marked entrance in bustling Kenmore Square. Both bartenders will bring with them an abridged menu of drinks from their own bars. I, for one, am looking forward to meeting Daniel and ordering one of his cocktails. “He’s pretty feisty, they say. Young and gung-ho,” says Cannon.
Despite the two establishments’ differences, Cannon says that “bars are supposed to be like kitchens — there’s a common language. We’re putting that hypothesis to the test.”
The mastermind behind the bartender exchange is another NYC mixologist, Philip Ward of Death & Co. He helps coordinate the exchanges along with Rob Cooper, distiller of St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, who as a goodwill gesture provides a small stipend to the bartenders for travel and lodging expenses. These two guys got wind of a “shot war” between Boston and New York bartenders who attended Tales of the Cocktail this year (the only war in which shots of Grey Goose are considered an attack), and figured they might as well nurture that rivalry. Good luck, Kevin and Daniel.
Permalink | Filed under Bartenders | Tags: bartender exchange, daniel eun, eastern standard, kevin martin, pdt
September 12th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Aw, what an awesome program! Kudos to Mr. Cooper for stepping up with the stipend.
Kevin is one of my favorite Boston-area bartenders. I’ve noticed that when he’s working, he makes everything seem like it’s under control, even on a crazy game night. He has a genuine smile and gives great bear hugs (which is why my friends have nicknamed him Kodiak). I’ve also seen him deftly deal with uncomfortable situations in a respectful yet firm manner. Jackson has cultivated another stellar service-oriented bartender in Kevin.
September 12th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
oh dear. those boys at PDT better be nice to Kodiak or I’m gonna have to go down there with some more Crown&Pama next week & put them in their place.
September 13th, 2008 at 1:21 am
OMG, Keebler, I was trying to remember what that retaliating shot was. Thanks for the refresher!
September 16th, 2008 at 10:59 pm
We went to ES last night and got seats right in front of Mr. Eun. Not only did he bring a lot of interesting new cocktail recipes with him to Boston, but he brought a really good service-oriented demeanor as well. Thank you for the heads up! I posted the drink reviews in our blog…