5 Cocktails to Try in New York Right Now

A cheap ticket to Rio is just an uber away. Spiked with sherry, of course. And what happens when Mexico rethinks the negroni? Below, five great cocktails happening in New York right now.

If You Like Jack and Coke

Photo by Matty Kim.

Head To: Salvation Burger, is the place for chef April Bloomfield's (The Spotted Pig) reinvented Americana fare—which mostly translates to great burgers and a few extras, like an awesome spiralized vegetable salad.

Drink: Whiskey & Cola ($14): Better ingredients bring this bar basic to a new level.

[Note: Salvation Burger is temporarily closed because of damage from a recent fire, but hopefully, it will reopen shortly.]

If You're CitiBiking Home

Photo by Nick Solares

Head To: Izi is the new Japanese-American splinter of a bar that moved into what previously functioned as the lounge of Blue Fin in Times Square. The 26-seater space is now plating a hodgepodge of a somewhat izakaya-inspired menu, from sushi to sticky fried chicken.

Drink: Floating Flower ($19) get its name not from that garnish, but because the drink tastes beautifully floral. And that's thanks to a quick shake of sake, celery juice, and elderflower, which keep this coupe low-ABV.

For a cheap ticket to rio

Photo by Matty Kim.

Head To: Oiji, the East Village's home to honey butter chips à la mode, and more excellent modern Korean fare.

Drink: Um Parafuso ($15), is a play on Brazil's national drink with a hit of funk. Think rhum agricole, amburana wood-aged cachaça, a touch of sherry, plus tamarind syrup in place of traditional white sugar, for a rounder iteration of the caipirinha.

If you're keen on Nigori

Photo courtesy of Nix.

Head To: Nix, chef John Fraser's (Narcissa) new vegetable mecca that carnivores have been loving.

Drink: Rose ($12) is like a reconstructed cocktail version of cloudy, coarsely-filtered nigori sake. And that's thanks to Marcona almond milk blended with rose and sake for a pretty, flowery-tasting drink.

If You Fancy a Negroni ... in Mexico

Photo by Matty Kim.

Head To: Masa y Agave, the newish subterranean den below Tribeca's Rosa Mexican, devoted to agave distillates.

Drink: This (super delicious) Raicilla Neroni ($15) actually tastes like chocolate. Mescalier Courtenay Greenleaf mixes raicilla (an agave distillate similar to mezcal) with Carpano Bianco vermouth, the Italian aperitivo Cappelletti, plus a bit of grapefruit bitters and lemon.

Beer Slushie, the Best Drink You Didn't Know About