You know, we have not been to [tag]Watershed[/tag] in Decatur in a dog’s age.  I am not sure why.  Maybe it was because the last time we went like three years ago, we sat next to a couple and their baby who wailed at the top of his/her lungs the entire dinner.   Was none too relaxing.  Regardless, we decided to make it a dinner date as we had been hearing what fabulous signature cocktails they had.   And they do have amazing signature cocktails as well as amazing food of course…

We plopped ourselves up at the bar and chatted with the wonderful bartender/ mixologist/knower of so many things, Katy.  She gave us a choice of three drinks for us to try and we picked two of the three so we would not be lushes.  I chose the Cool Heat and thought it was magnificent.  It contained Charbay Ruby Red Grapefruit Vodka, Jalapeno, Citronge, some simple syrup, and fresh lime juice.  I normally don’t like the ruby red vodka, but thought this with the tiny tiny bits of jalapeno was grand. *pictured below!

Don’t forget our ratings scale is between 1 and 5 Olives.  One Olive = waste of my blogging time;  5 Olives = oh my goodness/yummmmm

Presentation: 4 of 5 olives: The drink was presented up with flakes of lime and hints of jalapeno -

Taste: 4 of 5 olives: I loved the slight spicy-ness that went great with the grapefruit taste – not too tart and not too hot.

Creativity: 5 of 5 olives: In my view, a really creative drink – I mean, jalapeno?  Loved it.

Overall: 4.5 of 5 olives:  Such a wonderful drink on an early Saturday evening!

Alison got the Whistle n’ Dixie, and although we both liked it, we wished she would have gotten the Ice-Sickle.  Oh My Gawd.  Regardless, the Whistle n’ Dixie was created with No 209 Gin, Fruit Lab Organic Hibiscus Liquor, Hari Absinthe, Agave Nector, and Fresh Lemon Juice.  Wow- that was a mouthful.  And even though all this sounds as serious as it is, we thought it tasted like a revved up cosmo or something of that nature.  Alison’s ratings are as follows:

Presentation: 2 of 5 olives: Nice pinkish drink with a lemon peel in it- nothing too special.

Taste: 3 of 5 olives: Nice, but not “not knock me over I am dying nice.”

Creativity: 4 of 5 olives: A very creative drink – just did not do it for us.

Overall: 3 of 5 olives: Nice (way overuse of the word “nice” I know) drink – and tasty yes, but Alison should have gotten the Ice-Sickle.  (You will just have to go to Watershed to find out what is in that one.)

Thanks to Katy and Daniel (the other bartender/ mixologist/ knower of things) – both of whom were enjoyable to talk to and fun to watch make drinks!

*As an FYI- we have decided we need to mix this [tag]52 Weeks of Drinks[/tag] up a bit.  We will be asking our millions of readers to get more involved and we will be asking our favorite bartenders to create drinks specifically for 52 Weeks.  That’s right.  There will be some contests happening, kids.  

Our apologies to Jill & Scott for having to cancel our planned outing to [tag]Parish[/tag] for [tag]Inman Park restaurant week[/tag].  Cocktails do not mix well with acetaminophen.

So instead of reviewing Parish’s cocktails, our post was going to be about Yogi Cold Season Tea because we spent all weekend losing a battle with nasty head colds.  We sipped Yogi Tea - organic hippy crap that makes you feel better with fluffy words and warmth.  There is a picture of a dude named Yogi and his story about bringing healing tea, yoga and philosophy from India to the good old US of A where he can capitalize on our need for comforting words during cold season:

“When the north wind starts blowing, warm yourself from the inside with our soothing Cold Season tea.  Our Wellness Blend starts with the warming herbs of Ayurvedic medicine…to support nasal and bronchial function.  We add lively eucalyptus, peppermint, and basil to promote free breathing and a healthy sinus.  Sip a steaming cup to keep your internal fire blazing through any cold season.*  *These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.”

But who really wants to read  review of hot tea?  Although we have had at least two boxes of it, we made the ultimate sacrifice for our readers and changed out of our PJs for the first time in several days and made the short drive to [tag]Mac McGees Irish Pub[/tag] in Decatur.  We ate a late lunch of bangers and mash and beef and mushroom pie and finished the meal with a lovely Hot Toddy consisting of Kilbeggan Irish Whiskey, honey, hot water, and lemons with fresh cloves.

Don’t forget our ratings scale is between 1 and 5 Olives.  One Olive = waste of my blogging time;  5 Olives = oh my goodness/yummmmm

Presentation: 4 of 5 olives: The cloves strategically placed in the fresh lemon wedge made this drink.

Taste: 5 of 5 olives:We can’t tell you how nice this toddy felt going down our sore throats.  The whiskey and honey combined were enough to make you swoon.

Creativity: 4 of 5 olives: I am telling you, the Irish know how to make their toddy’s.  The cloves again were a kicker.

Overall: 5 of 5 olives:  Nothing – not even water- has tasted good to us in days during this wretched cold.  This drink soothed our coughs, throats, and congestion – and made us sleep when we got home!
Again, this was the best thing for a stuffy head and sore throat.   Forget Yogi tea – the Hot Toddy did more to clear our heads and calm our throats.

FYI: Alison and I were on vacation in paradise this past week, so our friends, Matthew and Drew went out for us.  This is their post written by Matthew! 

We are so honored to be the first guest bloggers for Ashley and Alison.  Drew and I have been drinking and eating our way through the city of Atlanta over the past 7 years, and we decided to go back to a former Midtown hotspot, [tag]ONE Midtown Kitchen[/tag].  It had been several years since our last glass of wine there and our faithful [tag]iPhone app, ScoutMob[/tag], helped us finalize our plan.  With a 50% discount burning a hole in our pocket how could we go wrong. 

We arrived on a Tuesday night to the wonderful enthusiasm of Bob the Maitre’d.  We were seated at the bar as we waited for a friend to arrive, and we decided to start drinking.  As we looked around the still sleek restaurant, it was apparent that at 7:30 it was corporate cocktail hour.  We waited fifteen minutes for Erica to take our order, but once she arrived she was very pleasant, and she profusely apologized for the wait. 

We looked over the chalkboard menu and I ordered the ONE Martini comprised of Absolut vodka, rose champagne, and frozen grapes.  Drew opted for the Ruby Red Sparkler, a concoction made of Absolut Ruby Red vodka, rose champagne, and simple syrup.  Both were terrible!  The rose champagne of the ONE Martini overpowered the flavor of vodka and together, they tasted like they were made at a fraternity social where all the boys just wanted to get the girls drunk using pink cocktails.  The Ruby Red Sparkler just did not mix well at all.  

Though they missed big time on cocktails the wine list was very approachable.  I always appreciate a bar and restaurant where they will open up any of their wines and serve by the glass.  They have a tiered price menu, and a large selection.

Don’t forget our ratings scale is between 1 and 5 Olives.  One Olive = waste of my blogging time;  5 Olives = oh my goodness/yummmmm

ONE Martini review by Matthew:

Presentation: 2 Olives: At least the champagne grapes created some interest in that hot pink mess. (Photo of the drink with grapes above!)

Taste: 1 Olive: Can I just have a glass of water, please?

Creativity: 1 Olive – (frat boy drink) 

Overall: 1 Olive; Enjoy a bottomless glass of wine instead.

Ruby Red Sparkler review by Drew:

Presentation:  2 Olives: the fizz made this martini appealing and the orange peel garnish was a nice touch.

Taste:  1 Olive: Ruby Red did not provide enough grapefruit taste to the cocktail.  And something about the champagne and grapefruit combo didn’t work.

Creativity:  1 Olive: pretty standard ingredients.

Overall: 1 Olive; I too recommend the bottomless glass of wine.

The best news for those that had a tough day at work (or a tough time finding work) is the option for a bottomless glass!  Oh, and the food is still very good, even after several chef changes over the past few years.

Friday night, we decided to start off our vacation before actually hopping on the plane, at the Bone Garden Cantina.  The Bone Garden is a fabulous authentic Mexican restaurant owned by our wonderful and hot friends, Kristen and Michael Benoit.  They have great food and a massive selection of fun and interesting mixed cocktails.

Erika, Jules, Alison, and I ordered a number of cocktails Friday night.  Erika and Jules actually decided what we would post on since we are biased because we are good friends with the owners of this establishment.  All in all, we ordered the Ginger Margarita, the Caipirinha, the Cosmorita, the Bone Garden Punch, and gorgeous glass(es) of sipping tequila.  Let me first say, we did not finish all of these, but we did get a selection…and if you would like to learn more about these drinks, take a look at the downloadable menu!  By the way, all of their cocktails are made with fresh squeezed juices.

Jules and Erika’s selections to this post are the Bone Garden Punch and the glass(es) of Frida Kahlo Reposado.  The Bone Garden Punch consists of  muddled lemons, limes, and oranges with El Jimador Blanco tequila and their fresh Jamaica (hah-Mike-ah) juice.  The Jamaica juice is brewed like sweet tea using dried hibiscus flowers.

Don’t forget our ratings scale is between 1 and 5 Olives.  One Olive = waste of my blogging time;  5 Olives = oh my goodness/yummmmm

Erika’s ratings for the Bone Garden Punch: *Erika is writing narrative here. 

Presentation: 3 of 5 olives: Nothing too special but nicely done.

Taste: 4 of 5 olives: Good cocktail that will sneak up on you. Sweet with a whisper of your pending drunk fate…

Creativity: 3.5of 5 olives: Grown up punch is fun!

Overall: 4 of 5 olives: This drink would be a good guzzler on a sunny day that would motivate a wonderful afternoon nap.

The Frida Reposao Tequila is possibly the best tequila any of us have sipped.  Not many places have it (we only know of two) and it is a specialty so get it.
Jules’s Ratings for the Frida Kahlo Reposado: *FYI-Ashley is doing the narrative here….

Presentation: 5 of 5 olives: The presentation rocked because it was brought out by the owner, Kristen, who just got her hair done and it is short, sexy, and platinum blond.  The slightly chilled glass made the tequila shine.

Taste: 5 of 5 olives -We know it is cheesy to name a tequila after an artist, but quite frankly, like the artist, it is amazing.  We all agree it is one of the best tequilas ever.

Creativity: 4 of 5 olives – not served many places so it is unique

Overall: 5 of 5 olives -Damn good.

We hope you enjoy the Bone Garden as much as we do!