Drinks - Page 231

Summer’s healthiest and unhealthiest coffee beverages
March 20, 2018

Summer’s healthiest and unhealthiest coffee beverages

As summer approaches at a rapid rate, many of us are carefully watching what we eat, but what about what we're drinking? Everyone appreciates a nice morning caffeine buzz in the form of an icy coffee drink, but unfortunately, many of us are blind to the fat, sugar, and high caloric content of these drinks. Luckily, it doesn’t have to be this way. Most venues will promote their new sugary additions to the menu because they may be more summery or outlandish, but there are a few of rules of thumb that will help you avoid unwanted fat and sugar when ordering your iced coffee at your favorite restaurant or coffee joint. For one, we know whipped cream, flavored syrups, and crazy toppings like drizzles or cookie crumbles will add on calories and fat. Plus, they take away from the coffee’s flavor, and isn’t that the real reason you’re ordering your beverage anyway? Also, buzzwords like "chill," "lotta," "supreme," and "blast," can almost guarantee that your drink will contain more sugar and calories than you want to ingest. That iced drink isn’t going to be any colder by adding "frozen" into the name, but you can almost certainly bet it will be unhealthy. Not all hope is lost, though — you can still find plenty of cold coffee treats to satisfy your cravings without busting your diet. We did some research and found out everything you need to know about your favorite restaurants and the summery coffee drinks they offer. By taking a good look at the calories, grams of fat, and sugar content in each medium-sized beverage, we were able to find the best, the worst, and the downright craziest drinks for you to enjoy — or avoid — this summer.

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5 cocktail trends you need to know before you order a drink
March 20, 2018

5 cocktail trends you need to know before you order a drink

Handcrafted cocktails have been all the rage for years now.  Farm-to-table ingredients are more important than ever and bartenders are mixing exotic drinks with as much attention as a James Beards-rated chef. The fourth annual Manhattan Cocktail Classic drew to a close this week in New York City, but results from the mixers and shakers who flocked to stir, sip, and speculate on what’s next behind the bar may well be coming to a glass near you. And what may be the most notable and welcome trend has more to with attitude than aperitifs. “What’s exciting is the trend of bartenders getting over ourselves,” laughs Tobin Ellis, president of the Las Vegas-based BarMagic, a high-end cocktail and bar-design consulting firm. “There’s been a backlash, and I’ve been waiting for that to happen for a while.” What Ellis is referring to is a bit of preciousness that’s entered behind-the-bar decorum, where some bartenders prefer to be called mixologists and take 20 minutes to make you a drink. “Trends come along and people geek-out on them – but we have a lot of people who are excited about flavors and who are very talented, but have no business being behind a bar. It shouldn’t take 16 minutes to make a Sazerac,” says Ellis, a near 20-year veteran of the hospitality and cocktail industry. “Every bartender should be able to use fresh ingredients, make classic cocktails, be innovative, and also help people have a good time. Give them the experience they want, not the one you want.” With that in mind, the innovation part appears to be alive and well in cocktail culture. During the classic, Ellis hosted an event called Social Mixology: Unchained.  The event was a challenge to several prominent bartenders to come up with never-seen-before cocktails. There was the science-geek wizardry of Dave Arnold, owner of David Chang's Booker + Dax, who used nitrogen to muddle fresh herbs and turn them into a potent powder for use in drinks and that wouldn’t oxidize over time. Then there was the venerable Don Lee, creator of the cocktails and spirits program for Momofuku Ssam Bar, who used technology similar to that of a humidifier to turn liquor liquid into a heady mist (although, of course, this might not be particularly satisfying to the very thirsty – but it is pretty cool). While these might not be your everyday cocktails, these nationally acclaimed drink specialists worked with some of the latest trends in cocktails. What else is on deck? Although less “ta-da!” than the above, and more “it’s about time,” keep your eyes peeled and your shakers ready for the following:

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