Archive for the ‘drinkboston in the news’ Category
April 27th, 2011
I’m tickled to be included in the annual “beloved bartenders” issue of the Improper Bostonian, which celebrates its 20th birthday this year. The profile refers to me as the “thinker’s drinker” and a “curator for Boston’s spirited zeitgeist.” Finally, someone who loves me for my brains, not just my liver.
Managing Editor Nick Altschuller, who conducted the interview, was doing double duty that day — he suggested we meet for midday drinks as he was in the midst of research for his column about embarking on a one-man revival of the martini lunch. (Nice reference to the notebook, Nick.)
Among the bartenders profiled are two of my personal faves: Emma Hollander of Trina’s Starlite Lounge and Evan Harrison of Deep Ellum. Congrats to them and all the other slingers who made this year’s cut!
Let me also heap praise upon the photographer who took this pic, Adam DeTour.
Tags: Improper Bostonian
Posted in Bartenders, drinkboston in the news | 9 Comments »
January 17th, 2011
Hey! I’m an “ultimate insider” in the MSN website’s new “Rediscover…” series of travel videos profiling 12 U.S. cities. In the intro to the Boston videos, three other insiders and I gather for pints at Doyle’s in Jamaica Plain and gab about our fave spots in greater Beantown. Then, we splinter off into four separate vignettes where each of us pairs up with another Bostonian and drives a Buick (the series’ sponsor) to different neighborhoods. Here’s the one I’m in with Harvard archivist and Boston Typewriter Orchestra member Giordana Mecagni.
The other Boston insiders are Fenway Park DJ (and sometime drinkboston drinking buddy) TJ Connelly, butcher and fishmonger Michael Dulock of Concord Prime & Fish, and Kupah James, a hiphop dancer, DJ and mentor to teen boys. The videos jam lots of noteworthy places and things, both touristy and un-touristy, into just a few minutes: East Boston (the Zumix performance space, the Boston Typewriter Orchestra, Piers Park, Santarpio’s Pizza, Scups), downtown (Union Oyster House, Boston Athenaeum, Stoddard’s, Bond) Back Bay/South End (Casa Romero, the Otherside Cafe, Darrell’s Corner Bar, Wally’s), Inman Square (East Coast Grill, Trina’s Starlite Lounge, Olé), Concord (Concord Prime & Fish, Main Streets Market, Concord Barber Shop), Jamaica Plain (Salmagundi hat shop, Vee Vee, Ten Tables, Doyle’s) and Fenway Park, to name a few.
The experience gave me an appreciation for the skill with which professional video producers boil an entire weekend of shooting into just a few informative, lively minutes. My favorite behind-the-scenes moment was showing up at the Union Oyster House in the middle of an autumn Saturday lunch rush with a crew of about 10 (producer, a couple camera guys, a sound guy, a photographer, assistants, etc) and nonetheless being politely expedited to a table where we filmed a conversation amid the hubbub. And I got to fulfill my lifelong dream of sucking down a raw oyster on camera.
Tags: insider, Kupah James, Michael Dulock, MSN, TJ Connelly, travel, video
Posted in drinkboston in the news, Video | 4 Comments »
August 27th, 2010
Watch out when making off-hand remarks around Devin Hahn, author of the blog Periodista Tales. He will record everything you say. Then publish it. The thing is, you’ll be (mostly) thankful he did.
Hahn began writing the engaging, real-time narrative of his quest to find the origins of the Periodista — a drink found on multiple cocktail menus in Boston but apparently unknown in other cities — a mere few months ago. And already, the description of the Periodista on the menu at Eastern Standard pays homage to him. Already, cocktail historians around the country know about him.
In his most recent installment, he describes a sit-down we had at the Franklin Cafe to talk about this apparently Cuban cocktail (of which he now knows more than probably anyone alive) and other matters of the Boston drink scene.
If you dig cocktail history and haven’t checked out Hahn’s blog yet, I suggest you start from the beginning.
Tags: Cuba, Devin Hahn, Periodista
Posted in Books & resources, Cocktails, drinkboston in the news, Rum | No Comments »
August 4th, 2010
Everyone who runs a bar or liquor store in this state has probably by now seen my mug on the cover of the Massachusetts Beverage Business Journal, which is part drinks industry magazine, part catalogue for booze retailers. What can I say? A girl doesn’t say no to such exposure.
More important, a girl doesn’t say no to being profiled by Liza Weisstuch. Her smart writing about drinks, theater and other culture topics has appeared in the Globe, the New York Times, Imbibe, Stuff Magazine, the Phoenix and numerous other publications. She begins the profile…
“Some people in the food and drink world gain recognition for being proficient at detecting a trend long before it’s identified in the mainstream, and keeping it fresh and relevant with style and artistry. Others establish an identity by creating a niche for themselves where there’s long been a gaping hole. Lauren Clark has turned herself into a respected brand by doing both simultaneously.”
…and then chronicles my career backward from I-just-like-to-drink-cocktails blogger to beer writer to brewer to college bartender. Along the way, she manages to thread together my often grammatically free-form chatter (I swear I only had one beer during that interview) into a respectable narrative. Dang.
Many thanks to both the Beverage Journal and Weisstuch for the article. Now it’s back to business.
Tags: Liza Weisstuch, Massachusetts Beverage Business Journal
Posted in drinkboston in the news | 4 Comments »
April 15th, 2010
I wish I could buy a drink for each and every imbiber who voted this the Best Blog in the Boston Phoenix’ Best of 2010 readers’ poll. But my bar tabs are insane enough as it is, so I’ll go with a simple “thank you.”
I’m tickled that the Phoenix refers to me as an “experienced taproom denizen.” Speaking of taprooms, many congrats to best Boston bars Deep Ellum, Drink, Eastern Standard, Franklin Cafe and Highland Kitchen for their wins in various bar/cocktail categories, and to Guerilla Queer Bar for Best LGBT Night.
Cheers and thanks again to all drinkboston readers!
Tags: Boston Phoenix Best 2010
Posted in Boston bars, drinkboston in the news | 11 Comments »
