Recharge After Christmas at the Boxing Day Social

Christmas is such a tiring day of the year.  So much preparation. So many dishes to cook, presents to wrap and stockings to stuff.  The day after you need to recharge after one last helping of Cousin Florence's fruitcake.  What better way than at the Boxing Day Social at the Spare Room at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel?

A $10 minimum suggested donation gains you entry to the "Social" event of the year on Monday the 26th.  The event is a fundraiser for the Hospitality Kitchen, which feeds and cares for the homeless.  Live music will be provided by Hobo Jazz, who contrary to expectations are not homeless clients of the Hospitality Kitchen.  In addition to the live music, your donation gets you a bottomless glass of punch (which puts any bottomless cup of coffee to shame), bar bites and entry to the legendary Jenga Tournament.  If you strapped for cash after being guilt tripped into buying too many presents for friends and relatives, blankets, sleeping bags or warm clothes will also be accepted as entry donations in lieu of cash.

In addition to all proceeds from entry benefiting the Hospitality Kitchen, there will be the First Annual Bartenders with Bar Tabs Auction.  You can bid on drinks with one of the top bartenders in LA at one of the best bars in the city.  Each bartender is generously donating their time and a bar tab at their establishment; the tabs will be mixed and matched and you can bid on an evening with folks such as Kate Grutman, Aidan Demarest, Marcos Tello, Dave Kupchinsky, Lacey Murillo, Lauren Osbourne and more.

This Social will be hosted by Naomi Schimek, so you know it will be legit.

Monday December 26th, 7 - 11 pm @ the Spare Room at the Roosevelt.
7000 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood.  Phone: 323.769.7296 | Website: http://www.thompsonhotels.com/hotels/la/hollywood-roosevelt/drink/the-spare-room

Ladies, Start Your Engines: Speed Rack Comes to the Roosevelt

Cocktails, Food, Beer, Punch, Charity? Check to all of those at Speed Rack Los Angeles, taking place this Sunday afternoon from 3 - 7 pm at the Blossom Room in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.  This benefit pits some of LA's best female bartenders against each other in a competition to see who can make cocktails accurately in the least amount of time.  Dr. Cocktail himself, Mr. Ted Haigh, will be one of the four judges.

Tickets are only $20 in advance ($25 at the door) and all proceeds go to fight Breast Cancer.  Yes, thanks to the generosity of sponsors, 100% of the proceeds go to charity. Competitors include the Spare Room at the Roosevelt's own Naomi Schimek, as well as Danielle Crouch of Cana Rum Bar, Devon Tarby of The Varnish, Kiowa Bryan of the Eveleigh, and Mia Sarazen of Harvard & Stone among others; in total 18 women will compete.  This promises to be quite a party.  Ivy Mix and Lynette Marrero of LUPEC (Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails) in New York are the hosts and organizers of Speed Rack, which is stopping in cities coast to coast to raise funds for charity and showcase the talents of female bartenders.

Tickets: http://speedrackla.eventbrite.com/

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel: 7000 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood.

Paris J'Adore LA at The Spare Room Tonight

When you think of France, what comes to mind?  The love affair between Paris and Hollywood of course!  So where could be more appropriate to celebrate Bastille Day than the au courant epicenter of Hollywood chic, the Spare Room at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.  Tonight you can see Adele Jacques's band Paris Loves LA sing the classic repertoire of the Serge Gainsborg songbook.

You might find your self singing along to Bonnie & Clyde as you sip Aidan Demarest and Naomi Schimek's cocktails, all featuring French ingredients:

Duke For a Day
2 oz of Cognac, .75 oz lavender, 75 oz lemon juice

Champs Elysees
1.5 oz Cognac, .5 oz Yellow Chartreuse, 0.5 oz lemon juice, 0.25 oz simple syrup and a dash of Angostura bitters

Champagne Flip
.75 oz Cognac, 0.25 oz Cointreau, 0.25 oz simple syrup, 0.25 oz cream, egg yolk
Top with champagne and nutmeg

La Prise
1.5 oz Armagnac, 0.75 oz Cointreau, Luxardo Bitters

Champagne Cobbler
3 oz Champagne and 0.75 oz simple syrup muddled with 3 strawberries and 1 lemon wedge

The evening's soirée is presented by Cointreau and begins at 8 pm. The music performances begin at 9 pm and will include a DJ set from none other than Nils Kock.  I have it on good information that some of the greats of classic French cinema will be playing while guests dance and mingle with the haut monde.

The Spare Room: The Mezzanine at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood. Phone: (323) 769-7296. Website: http://www.spareroomhollywood.com/

The Cape Comes to Hollywood This Summer at the Spare Room

Wednesday nights this summer you don't have to go to Cape Cod to experience some old fashioned New England summer breezes as the Spare Room hosts a Wednesday night Nantucket special.

Nantucket Sound cocktails are only $7, with mini lobster (pronounced lob-stah for you non Yankees) rolls for $5, beer for $3 and best of all half off bowling (a $50 savings).  What is in a Nantucket Sound you ask?  Naomi Schimek's recipe is:

1 1/2 oz. Chamomile and lemon balm infused Plymouth gin
3/4 oz.    Bianco vermouth
2 oz.       Fresh pressed cantaloupe juice
Fresh lemon juice and Peychaud's Bitters to taste

Shake ingredients together with ice and strain over a scoop of spiced ginger sorbet.  Garnish with a candied lemon balm leaf.

Sounds like a perfectly civilized way to while away a Wednesday evening.  The Spare Room becomes your "Cape House" every Wednesday this summer from 6 - 9 pm.

The Spare Room at the Hollywood Roosevelt: 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood. Phone: (323) 769-7296. Website: http://www.spareroomhollywood.com/

Punch Party at the Spare Room

The Spare Room has become one of the premier cocktail spots in Los Angeles for punch bowls due to the diligent and creative efforts of General Manager Aidan Demarest and Head Bartender Naomi Schimeck.  Last month the lounge was the scene of a fundraiser for Share Our Strength and Schimeck and team created several punches for the occasion, two of which are featured below.

Talbert's Tub 

Talbert's Tub is named for the tub in Talbert's Barbershop on the lower level of the hotel, in which Errol Flynn used to mix up large quantities of gin during Prohibition.  The Genever-based punch was refreshing and the citrus rinds added to the festivity of the bowl.  This punch goes down easy, so beware.

Talbert's Tub Recipe (by Naomi Schimeck):
2 pineapple rings
3 whole lemon rinds
3 T demerara sugar
4 oz housemade raspberry syrup
6 oz lemon juice
2 oz orange juice
2 oz maraschino liqueur
.5 oz Regans Orange Bitters
16 oz Bols Genever

Muddle lemon rinds and pineapple into sugar until it has completely dissolved
Add the rest of ingredients - stir well
Ice down and add 12 oz club soda

Tobacco Road

The Tobacco Road is a rye based punch with a large dose of tea and grated nutmeg at the end to garnish.  The nutmeg adds a scent to the flavor of the punch as well as a zesty visual touch.

Tobacco Road Punch Recipe (by Naomi Schimeck):
3 oz lemon juice
5 oz demerara syrup 1:1
30 oz chilled lapsang souchong tea
20 oz rye

Dry shake lemon juice and demerara syrup to emulsify
Pour into punch bowl and add tea and rye
Ice down and serve with a touch of grated nutmeg

If you haven't made your way up to the second floor of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, these punches are the excuse you have been waiting for to visit the Spare Room.  The space is elegant and is old school without feeling forced.  There is a two lane bowling alley straight out of There Will be Blood and a lounge area where you can play Connect Four and Jenga with custom sets.  The shoes for the bowling alley are more comfortable than any street shoes you probably own.  So grab five friends and order a punch bowl and reserve a lane of bowling.

The Spare Room: The Mezzanine at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood.  Phone: (323) 769-7296.  Website: http://www.spareroomhollywood.com/

Repeal Day Cocktail Winners

Three cocktails were judged to be the cream of the crop at the 2nd annual Los Angeles Repeal Day cocktail competition sponsored by Plymouth Gin and named for Jimmy Barela, who tended bar at Cole's Red Car Bar for 63 years.  First place went to Oliver Jones of Las Perlas, the downtown mezcal bar, for his Myrtle Berry Flip.  Second place went to Naomi Schimek of First & Hope for her Remembrance cocktail and third place went to newcomer Garrett McKechnie of 1886 for his Molly Pitcher Club cocktail.

The contest was held in the Varnish, the classic cocktail bar accessed through the back of Cole's.  Several dozen area bartenders submitted recipes and twelve were selected to make their cocktails for a panel of judges that included Jonathan Gold, the Pulitzer prize winning chief restaurant critic at LA Weekly, Chris Bostick, the General Manager of the Varnish, Erick Castro, the Brand Ambassador for Plymouth Gin, and Jessica Gelt of the Los Angeles Times. The contest was sponsored by Plymouth Gin, so all entries had to use at least 1.5 oz of Plymouth, and at most five ingredients.

The winners were announced at the Repeal Day party at Seven Grand and the crowd cheered when Jones's name was called. He won $500 in prize money along with the acclaim of the crowd and the title of Jimmy Barela Award Winner. Jones's cocktail The Myrtle Berry Flip is a "flip" cocktail, which means that it includes egg whites and is shaken. He also used blueberry jam and garnished his cocktail with a sprig of myrtle, thus the name of the drink.

Schimek has been gaining attention for her market driven cocktails and the Remembrance included a pear-infused sherry and rosemary syrup, both of which she made for the occasion. Shimeck commented about the origin of the cocktail and its name, "Rosemary has been associated with strength of memory and remembrance of loved ones since ancient times, especially at funerals and weddings, ceremonies, etc. I'm always fascinated by the mythology associated with different herbs.  The flavors of pear and rosemary combine together naturally with such a beautiful result.  I wanted to illustrate that in a cocktail, and it's perfect for the holiday time of year."  To complete her effect, Schimek brought her own vintage coupe glasses.

McKechnie said he named his cocktail the Molly Pitcher Club after the 1920s women's anti-Prohibition organization in New York.  The club itself was named for a famous Revolutionary War heroine.  McKechnie said he thought it appropriate to name his drink after such an organization as the contest celebrated Repeal Day, the end of Prohibition, and it was a feminine cocktail.  McKechnie is one of the crop of talented bartenders at 1886, the new bar from Marcos Tello and Aidan Demarest in the back of the Raymond in Pasadena.

For the winning cocktail recipes, check out ThirstyinLA's coverage.

Schimek and McKechnie celebrate on Repeal Day

Cocktail All Stars: Farmers Market Edition - What You Missed

Monday evening, First & Hope Supper Club was the host to a crew of half a dozen of the best bartenders in Los Angeles, working with farmers market fresh ingredients to create cocktails for a thirsty crew of enthusiasts and fellow bartenders at the Cocktail All Stars: Farmers Market Edition.  Matthew Biancaniello welcomed guests with an amuse cocktail with fresh pomegranate (pictured above).

The bar was literally a cornucopia of ingredients that could be combined in any form to create a drink in a collaboration between guest and bartender.  This creativity and the enthusiasm in the crowd made for a great night, both for the bartenders and the lucky customers.  Naomi Schimek (pictured below with Juan Sevilla of Big Bar) smoked her own vermouth and the other bartenders brought homemade syrups and infusions, to provide a truly custom experience.

If you missed out on this one, stay tuned for updates on the next Cocktail All Stars.

Cocktail All Stars: Farmer's Market Edition

Fresh off his win as LA's Best Bartender at the Table 20 competition, Matt Biancaniello of the Library Bar at the Hollywood Roosevelt will join Juan Sevilla of Big Bar, Naomi Schimek, Aidan Demarest, Dan Long and Brent Falco, all of First & Hope at the Cocktail All Stars: Farmer's Market Edition at First & Hope on Monday evening (October 25).

The party begins at 6 pm, and in addition to their own signature recipes, this party is a Choose Your Own Adventure in which Demarest and his merry crew of foragers cover the bar with a bountiful array of produce, fruits, vegetables, and herbs and guests will be provided a basket and "harvest" any ingredients they wish. Attendees then hand their selections to the dream team of market driven bartenders who will whip up a handcrafted one of a kind cocktail. Choose wisely because all combinations are not created equally.

For those who would like to experience some of these bartenders signature cocktails, each will be making one specialty, including Sevilla's Vermont Log Cabin made with Scotch, Smoke and Maple Syrup and Schimek's George Burns with Chivas 12, Cigar Smoked sweet vermouth and a dash of Averna and Luxardo maraschino.

Matt Biancaniello and his Library Bar team and Vincenzo Marianella and his Copa d'Oro team have both raised the profile and quality of market driven cocktails in Los Angeles. Monday night should be a great event and a wonderful opportunity to try six of the top practitioners of the Art of the Shaker work with all the fall fruits and vegetables on offer in Southern California.

First & Hope is located in the corner of the plaza at the Southwest corner of 1st and Hope Sts. Phone: (213) 617-8555 Website: firstandhope.com

Halloween @ Le Des Deux: Night of Rising Spirits

The mind of Aidan Demarest of Tello/Demarest Liquid Assets is devilish indeed.  The former GM of Seven Grand and the Edison will be hosting the Night of Rising Spirits on the evening of Saturday October 30th at the new Les Deux to celebrate All Hallows Eve and the relaunch of Les Deux with an all star lineup of bartenders from across the country.

Not only will advertised bartenders Simon Ford from London, Erick Castro from San Francisco (ex Rickhouse), Jennifer Contraveos of Chicago and LA's very own Naomi Schimek (First & Hope) be on hand but they will be joined by local hotshots Damian Windsor of the Roger Room and Grady Purtle of Palihouse. Note that Ford and Castro are part of the Pernod Ricard mafia.

Admission to the event is only $10 and requires an RSVP on the website and a costume. No costume, no admission, no exceptions. The party begins at 8 pm and goes til closing. Note that there will be a cash bar for beverages and part of the proceeds go to the charity the International Rescue Committee.  Demarest described the festivity as a tasty treat he was serving up, so don't miss out as this is a one night one time only offer.  Sometime it pays to make a deal with the devil when the terms are this good...

Les Deux: 1638 N. Las Palmas in Hollywood.

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Cocktail All Stars Tonight at First & Hope

Tonight at First & Hope Supperclub, the downtown restaurant and bar opposite the Music Center, Aidan Demarest and Marcos Tello present Cocktail All Stars, where five top bartenders will be mixing cocktails for the sipping pleasure of Los Angeles's growing cocktail community.

Bartenders include Demarest, Naomi Schimek who won a Rising Star award at this year's Tales of the Cocktail, Julian Cox of Rivera restaurant, Sean Hamilton, a finalist in Bombay Saphire and GQ's Most Inspiring Bartender event, and Brent Falco of First & Hope. The party begins at 6 pm and continues through 11 pm. If the Red Rover that Demarest and Tello hosted in the spring at the same location was any guide, this should be a crowded and fun evening.



First & Hope. 710 W. 1st Street (@ Hope St.). Its in the corner of the plaza. Phone: (213) 617-8555. Website: firstandhope.com