It was everything I expected and more! I loved the whole concept. An intimate, dimly lit room with good music. Cocktails with special ice cubes carved by hand in cool glassware. Fun, random conversation with your fellow drinkers. Perfect pairings.
We started with a glass of champagne. This instantly wins me over because I think everyone should start their evenings with a glass of champagne. This is concept I picked up from my brother when he worked at Cypress in Charleston, SC. Any place that starts your evening with a glass of champagne is allllll right, by golly.
Then Derek made us a "Soyer au Champagne" which a grown up version of a float. It had handmade Remy Martin gelato, champagne and brandy. Sounds like a strange mix but it tasted amazing. While we were discussing what normally gets paired with classic floats (hot dogs, hamburgers, french fries), a perfect, baby Kobe beef burger was delivered. Yum.
Next, Katie mixed a few cocktails for us. Since she's familiar with our cocktail preferences, she made a different cocktail for each of us. She made me a "Corpse Reviver #2", my friend a perfect dry gin Martini named the "Fifty-Fifty" and my husband received a bourbon drink called a "Fancy Free." Mine was made with gin. It was so good I completely overlooked the fact that I usually detest gin. Each was taste tested by Derek to make sure it was up to the strict Columbia Room standards. Needless to say, you're not getting a bad cocktail in this joint.
Usually, this is where the fun stops. We had a little extra time before the next reservation so we also had a round of gimlets. Once again, it was top notch.
When our drinks were finished and our stuff gathered, we paid our tab and ended our cocktail adventure. I'll definitely be going back for another round as soon as possible.
