Happy Hour At The Velvet Tango Room

Having started a new consulting position in Cleveland recently, I find myself on a very tight schedule with regard to when I leave in the morning. If I am running more than ten or fifteen minutes late, that can mean the difference from slowed, but continuous driving to the start-and-stop traffic that I personally find annoying. Additionally, if I grab something quick for lunch and take it back to my desk and eat it, I can leave early enough in the afternoon that I can enjoy a stress-free drive home.

Sadly, this gives me much fewer opportunities at lunchtime to explore the restaurant scene around my client. I decided that on one day per week, usually Friday, I would take a lunch break and go someplace local. However, in doing so, that means I would be leaving one hour later, and trust me when I tell you that trying to leave downtown Cleveland via the freeway at 5:00 PM on a Friday afternoon can be simply a horror story if you don't enjoy sitting in traffic.

My very first Friday working at my client, I decided to skip the aggravation of the fully packed freeway and instead of trying to head away from downtown Cleveland, I would go to the very belly of the beast and embrace the Happy Hour at the Velvet Tango Room. I have written about the Velvet Tango Room twice before and now that I am employed again, it seemed like a wonderful way to welcome the weekend as well as wait out the traffic. As a bonus, I had the opportunity to sample two new drinks that will be showing up on the official VTR menus come early June, so consider part of this review to actually be a preview, if you will.

Besides giving you the scoop on several of the drinks on the new menu, I was also happy because I was meeting up with some friends, both old and new. And as it turned out, we not only got to sample some of VTR's delicious beverages, but also their food. I arrived shortly after 5:00 PM and even though the bar was still pretty empty, I was warmly greeted as I took my seat at the expansive mahogany bar opposite the front door. As I sat down, the bartender, Hillary, recognized me from my previous visit two weeks ago. She asked me if I wanted to see a menu and I indicated that I was interested in something from the upcoming menu. Having discovered that I actually do like gin-based drinks when poured and mixed properly, I was feeling no fear when asking her to make a selection for me. The only restriction, I told her, was that I prefer my drinks to be on the drier (i.e. less sweet) side.

"How about a bourbon drink?"
"Absolutely."

My bartender proceeded to mix a combination of Bulleit Bourbon, St. Germain Elderberry Liqueur, fresh lime juice, Falernum, and a few dashes of bitters into the stainless steel shaker along with some cubed ice. The Falernum, as Paulius put it, gives this cocktail it's characteristic "Creole spiciness." A quick shake back and forth and the now chilled liquid was strained into a martini glass. Here was The Ninth Ward:


This was a delicious and refreshing way to begin my evening tonight. Each of the ingredients could be tasted on their own and yet as a sum total, they mixed together so nicely. As with all of the drinks I've had at VTR, this one was superbly balanced. My first friend arrived just after having been served The Ninth Ward, and after I let him taste mine, he insisted on having the exact same thing.

Next up was a cocktail that I have had a few times before, but never written about, The Last Word:


I thought that the Aviation had been my all-time favorite cocktail at VTR until I tried this remarkable concoction. Where the Aviation had been a combination of gin, fresh lemon juice, and Maraschino liqueur, The Last Word was a slight variation consisting of gin, fresh lime juice, and Chartreuse. As with the Aviation, the taste was crisp and clean, but The Last Word brought an extra level of sophistication to the party. It's as if the Aviation were simply a gateway drink to something more grandiose. It was during this cocktail that our third party member showed up. When the fourth finally showed, we moved from the bar to a four-top table just across the room.

As we sat down, we cool feel the gentle cooling breeze blowing in from the open front door. At this point, all introductions had been made, the four of us were enjoying the end of another work week as well as some fine cocktails when someone spoke up about ordering some food. The only other food I had ever had at VTR was during the special Bar DeVille visit in October 2009. I knew that some of the food that VTR sold was of a pre-cooked / pre-prepped variety, but since everyone else seemed to be hungry, I went along for the ride.

We decided to order two plates of food. The first of which was a fruit, cheese, and cracker plate:


The cheeses consisted of Tillemook Cheddar, Gouda, and what one of the bartenders, Rick, described as a Amish yogurt cheese. There were both water and rice crackers available as well as fresh grapes, dried apricots and cranberries, and toasted almonds. We greedily devoured the entire plate and were even supplied with additional crackers when our supply ran low.

The other plate we ordered was speck on bread:


Speck is a cured pork product that unlike prosciutto, is de-boned before curing. After being cured in salt and various spices, it is then cold-smoked. What you end up with is what we were served today on the plate: luscious slices of cool pork served atop whole wheat bread and adorned with a slightly sweet, slightly piquant mustard. For just a bit of acid to help balance out the fattiness from the pork, a small dish of cornichon was also served.

Having finished both plates of food in what seemed like only a matter of minutes, I decided to finish out my evening tonight at VTR with an old favorite, a Tango Negroni:


What differentiated a Tango Negroni from the conventional was that in place of the sweet vermouth, VTR's own wine reduction was used. I find that the Tango Negroni balances out the bitterness of the Campari much better than standard vermouth. Instead of an overwhelming bitter orange flavor, you get a slight sweetness to the drink as well. And while the Tango Negroni was not new for the summer like The Ninth Ward and The Last Word were, sometimes it is nice to come back to an old friend now and again just to rediscover how good it always was.

Fully relaxed and sated from food, drink, and great conversation, we paid the check and disbanded into the cool Cleveland night. I had not only successfully managed to avoid the Friday afternoon traffic, but also had the opportunity to try out some wonderful new cocktails at the Velvet Tango Room. To make a great time even better, because we had gone for Happy Hour (which ended at 7 PM), all of the drinks were 1/3 off. I knew that whatever stressors my previous week had brought me, I could at least start the weekend off on the right foot.

Extra Helpings: Chi-Town At The Velvet Tango Room

I had been hearing rumors for a while.

Back in May of this year, Paulius Nasvytis, co-owner of the Velvet Tango Room located on Columbus Road between Tremont and Ohio City in Cleveland, had traveled to Chicago for both personal and professional pursuits. As a result of that trip, an idea was born. He had the fortune to visit the fine folks at Bar Deville during his visit and really liked what he saw. What if the two bars, with equally refined cocktail menus but different vibes, were to do an exchange? In professional kitchens, cooks often do a stagiere at other restaurants for several days or weeks at a time in order to gain experience and expose themselves to new ideas and cuisines. Why not put this concept to use for two cocktail bars that have such a dedicated following?

I happened to be at the Velvet Tango Room about two weeks ago to celebrate my new-found employment with some friends and our bartender brought over a flyer that described the exchange in more detail. Apparently the fine folks from Bar Deville would be arriving for their stagiere at the VTR relatively shortly. It wasn't until I received an invitation from Paulius asking if I'd be available to attend a reception he was throwing to welcome the staff from Bar Deville that I realized that the exchange was not several weeks away, but imminently upon us. It seems that the Bar Deville staff would be here serving cocktails on Monday, October 26th and Tuesday, October 27th. To kick everything off, the charismatic chancellor of cocktails decided to throw a small two hour complimentary soirée to introduce the visiting bar staff and their cocktails to an eager Cleveland crowd.

I happened to arrive about fifteen minutes early and was immediately greeted by Paulius as I walked into the front bar area of the Velvet Tango Room. After enthusiastically shaking my hand, he asked if I was hungry. Admittedly, I had left work around 4:30 PM today in order to make it in time and hadn't had a chance to stop for any type of sustenance. He escorted me to the back room where Chef Rocco Whalen from Fahrenheit had dropped off an impressive selection of food for the staff and guests to nosh on before the start of the event. Among the food available were several pizzas, a salad, ravioli, and a beef noodle dish. I walked down the line, taking a little from here and a little from there and ended up with an amazing selection of food.

Fortunately, today was a gorgeous fall day in Cleveland, so it was a complete no-brainer to walk out the back door of the Velvet Tango Room and sit at one of the patio tables. Here was a shot of my food:


The pizza to the right side of the plate had mushrooms, onions, goat cheese, and rosemary as toppings. The pizza slice right in the middle of the plate (which was kind of buried underneath the ravioli on the left) was cheddar cheese, incredibly thin apple slices, and a chili and cumin spiced sausage. Needless to say, both pizzas were excellent, but I particularly liked the the mushroom and goat cheese pizza. The crust was thin but still had a wonderful chew to it. The ravioli on the left side of the plate had been stuffed with potato and were topped with a wonderful spicy cream corn sauce. I almost wanted to call them pierogi, even though they had the classic ravioli shape. At the top of my plate were the noodles and beef. The beef was nearly falling apart and the noodles were tender and flavorful. I have yet to try out Fahrenheit, but after having this plateful of food, that may be next on my list of must-try places.

After finishing my pre-event dinner, I grabbed my glass of water and my phone and digital camera and headed back up to the front area of the bar to stake out a table. I figured it would give me the best view of those coming through the front door as well as a great visual of the gentlemen working behind the bar. Here was an early shot of a VTR regular, Rick, as well as one of the handsome gentlemen from Bar Deville:


This shot was taken just as the reception started. Once guests started to arrive, the atmosphere really got hectic. The two gentlemen working the bar did an excellent job filling orders and creating some really dynamite cocktails. Sitting out on every table and along the bar were cocktail menus detailing the drinks we would have an opportunity to sample tonight and tomorrow night:


Paulius wisely decided early on to serve half-sized cocktails during the reception. This would give guests the opportunity to try more samples from the menu as they attempted to try and figure out what suited their own individual tastes. I thought this was a fantastic idea. With twelve available cocktails on the menu, I ended up getting to try half of them. It probably also helped that I was sharing my cocktails with two of my favorite people, Debbie and Scott. By the end of the two hours, I had probably only consumed about two cocktails worth of alcohol, making me perfectly fine to drive home.

In addition to the cocktail sampler we were about to enjoy, passed hors d'oeuvres made their way around the room. Half of the appetizers were of the "flavorful ingredient on a toasted crostini" variety, two were of the "protein on a stick" variety, and the final one was sushi, specifically an inverted maki roll.

The first appetizer to make it to us was a double crostini variety:


Here was a close-up on my cocktail napkin:


On the left you have a cooked portabello mushroom on top of a goat cheese spread with roasted red pepper slices on top. On the right you have slices of cooked chicken breast on top of a basil pesto and covered with artichoke hearts. Both were served chilled, but were still very flavorful. These had obviously been assembled earlier and then chilled for service. The only problem I had was that the crostini had absorbed some of the moisture from the cooler and had softened somewhat. This resulted in the bread being a bit delicate. Fortunately, these had been designed to be bite sized and it was entirely too simple just to pop the entire thing in your mouth.

The first drink that we received was a Sao Paolo Word:


I had actually just tried a new cocktail on the upcoming menu at the Velvet Tango Room the last time I visited called The Last Word. Made with gin, Chartreuse, lime juice, and Maraschino, I had actually managed to stumble onto a cocktail that bested my beloved Aviation. It was simply that good. The Bar Deville's version took the concept of The Last Word and substituted Cachaca for the gin. The floral notes were very similar to the original The Last Word, but the Cachaca added an extra bit of exoticness that one can experience only in a true Caipirinha. The Sao Paolo Word was definitely tasty and I rated it in the top three of the drinks I tried.

Next up on the appetizer selection were chilled chicken livers wrapped in bacon:


While these were definitely flavorful and had a lovely mouthfeel to them, I think I've grown accustomed to chicken livers being served hot and juicy (thanks, Lolita) and probably would've preferred them served warm. That being said, the zippy citrus flavors from the Sao Paolo Word helped to cut through the fattiness of this two-bite morsel.

Ironically, our second drink was the Negroni #2:


Traditionally, a Negroni has Campari in it. This one did not. However, it did still have the orange bitters used in a traditional Negroni, so I like to think of this version as a play on the original. Composed of gin, dry vermouth, Aperol, and orange bitters, this was a delightfully balanced cocktail. It had an amazing orange nose to it and it played well to both bittter and sweet tastes in my mouth, neither flavor dominating the drink entirely. As it turned out, this cocktail was also in the top three of the evening.

Our next round of appetizers consisted of two similarly inspired tastes:


On the left was a crostini with smoked salmon over a horseradish sauce and finished with finely diced red onion. On the right was an inverted maki roll containing carrots and cucumbers with just a dot of spicy wasabi paste. While I missed having just a little bit of salty tamari in which to dip my maki, the smoked salmon more than made up for it with it's smoky and salty flavor. The spiciness of both the wasabi and the horseradish were definitely welcome flavors.

Our third cocktail was the somewhat non-inspirationally named Bar Deville Cocktail:


Comprised of rye, Campari, grapefruit juice, lemon juice, egg whites, and just a few drops of Peychaud's bitters, this was an excellent drink. Something about the combination of these ingredients actually evoked the flavor of coconut to both Scott and myself. We speculated on what it might be and personally, I think it was the astringency of the grapefruit juice with the smokiness of the rye that combined to form that additional flavor profile. Either way, this cocktail managed to walk the fine line of being sweet, smoky, and bitter without being too strong in any one area. Three cocktails into the evening, we seemed to be batting 100%; the first three cocktails were all winners in my book.

Our fourth appetizer was a beef satay, served on a wooden skewer (sorry for the blurry photo):


This bite of beef was decent. It was tender enough, but I was kind of hoping it would have a more authentic Thai / Malaysian sauce served with it. That being said, it was clear that the appetizers were designed to mix it up and hit multiple proteins with a few vegetarian options thrown in for good measure.

Our fourth cocktail of the evening was one that I was on the fence about initially, a signature drink of Bar Deville called the Songbird:


When I first inhaled the very floral bouquet emanating off of this drink, I was puzzled. I knew that both Chartreuse and St. Germain were used as flavoring agents in this gin-based cocktail. What struck me as I continued to try and identify the unique flavor after repeatedly smelling and tasting it, was that what I was detecting was an almost basil-like quality to the drink ... which, of course, was completely absent from the list of ingredients. I think what was tickling my taste buds into thinking that I was tasting basil was the slightly anise flavor that the Chartreuse brought to the table. Once I identified the mystery flavor, I enjoyed the remainder of the cocktail quite a bit. It wasn't quite as good as the first three, but I could see myself ordering one of these every now and again, just to shake it up a little bit.

Our fifth cocktail (remember gentle reader, these are half-pours and I am sharing them with two other people ... if I had been drinking full-sized versions, I'd be pretty shnockered by now) was something called The Hard Sell:


A gin-based drink containing St. Germain, Malort, lemon juice and grapefruit oil, I immediately guessed where the name had originated. This drink was decidedly bitter. Grapefruit bitter, Campari bitter. This drink definitely appealed to a subset of the crowd and Debbie had exactly the kind of palate to which this drink catered. Being a lover of strong bitter flavors, this was right up Debbie's alley and Scott and I were only too happy to oblige and surrender the cocktail to her. Don't get me wrong, this wasn't a poorly executed cocktail. It's just that that such an astringent flavor only appeals to certain palates.

Our sixth and final cocktail tonight also turned out to be somewhat of a mystery. When one of the VTR bar staff dropped off an Autumn Sidecar at our table, Scott immediately commented on the floral nose of the cinnamon used to top the drink:


Upon tasting it, however, something didn't seem right. Based on the Bar Deville cocktail menu, this libation should have consisted of apple brandy, orange curacao, lemon juice, old-fashioned bitters, and cinnamon. Scott and I both agreed that while this cocktail was tasty, the flavors from the apple brandy and orange curacao seemed to be missing. And in fact, when we compared the color of our cocktail to another guest enjoying the same thing, ours was a decidedly yellow color while hers was a more apple cider color. The cooperative cocktail comparer stated that her drink was absolutely delicious, so I can only surmise that somehow in the mad rush (and it was definitely a mad rush), one or more ingredients were accidentally left out of our version.

As we were reveling in our final cocktail, the final appetizer made its way to our table, a jerk-spiced chicken skewer:


Being the lone hot appetizer of the evening, this was moist and tasty and had a nice little kick to it from the jerk spice rub. The pineapple and red pepper added a lovely bit of sweetness to help cut through the heat. For me, this was probably the tastiest hors d'oeuvre of the evening.

At 8 PM, Paulius raised the lights in the bar slightly and announced that although the reception was officially over, the party need not stop as both the bartenders from the Velvet Tango Room and Bar Deville were available to fulfill all of the patrons wishes and desires. Having had my fill of amazing food and delicious cocktails, I thanked our gracious host, hugged my friends farewell and strode out into the still lovely fall air. I realized how lucky I was to live so close to so many amazing people, restaurants, and epicurean experiences. I even managed to rub elbows with several authors, bloggers, and a chef that I greatly admire.

The fine gentlemen from Bar Deville will be serving their Chicago-based cocktails on Tuesday evening, October 27th as well. While there won't be a reception like there was tonight, the excellent cocktails will still be available for sampling. I highly encourage you to check them out while they are in town. An additional note, several of the bartenders from the Velvet Tango Room will be in Chicago returning the favor at Bar Deville in November. If you happen to be in Chi-town during their visit, you might just want to look them up and make a stop at Bar Deville.

Cocktail Nirvana at the Velvet Tango Room

If someone had ever told me that my favorite cocktail would be a gin drink, I'd have called them insane. Growing up, I watched my grandfather make gin martinis at home and order them as a pre-dinner cocktail when going out. I would try them from time to time and could never understand why on earth anyone would subject themselves to the pine and juniper berry horror that those drinks offered.

Even more to the point, the notion of a "cocktail" just seemed so antiquated to me. None of my peers in college and beyond were interested in martinis except the kind which contain cranberry juice, Cointreau, or Godiva chocolate liqueur. Frankly, this whole "-tini" craze seemed nothing more than a dressing up of the much forgotten classic martini for the "white zinfandel" crowd. So it was with great surprise and interest that several of my foodie friends let me in on one of Cleveland's best kept secrets, the Velvet Tango Room.

I had long considered wine and food to be worthy of education and discernment. And with the advancement of the beer micro-breweries popping up throughout the country, even the lowly beer was now being elevated to a position of status and worth seeking out, even if one had to drive to find a distributor. With the introduction of the Velvet Tango Room, I had finally found a true edifice of higher learning to bring the art of the fine cocktail where it truly belongs: at equal footing with all other manner of fine food and drink.

Finding the Velvet Tango Room is the first trick. In the spirit of the 1920's speakeasies, the front of the building is quite unassuming:


Parking is on the street directly in front of the location or around the corner in a small lot.

Once inside, however, the old-world charm simply washes over you. The dark woods that make up the bar and console behind the counter just ooze with sophistication and class. The lighting in the bar is intimate, but warm enough that you can strike up a conversation with your neighbor at the bar without feeling like you are invading their privacy. On nights where there is live jazz music, the melodies waft through the air and mix in with the conversation to form a sort of symphonic etude that ebbs and falls as old friends reconnect and new friends are made.

I remember as a child whenever I would attend an important event, a symphony concert, a recital, a holiday dinner, I was always expected to dress up. It made the event even more special by visually reinforcing the importance. The Velvet Tango Room is just such an event. While good-condition jeans are allowed, the specialness of experiencing one of their cocktails makes me want to dress up. Even just a little bit. You're not going to find Rum Runners, Sex On the Beach, or that horrible abomination the Amaretto sour made with pre-made sweet and sour mix.

What you are going to find are carefully thought out, carefully measured, and artistically crafted cocktails that could withstand a challenge from any other bar in Cleveland. For that matter, outside of Cleveland. And you are going to find the most gracious staff, ready to welcome you and make you feel at ease while you are their guest. From my first visit to this current one, I have never met a bartending staff who works so diligently on making sure that everyone's visit is memorable and enjoyable.

When my friends finally got me in the door, I immediately started gravitating away from the gin drinks to the vodka drinks. After a little cajoling, I finally agreed to give one of their more recent additions to their menu a try. The moment I took a sip of my first Aviation:


I was hooked. This is a cocktail that is perfectly balanced. It is dry with a lovely note of citrus and has a wonderful cherry note to the nose. When I found out that this was a gin-based drink (no vodka in sight), I was flabbergasted. There was no pine taste. There was no juniper berry taste. It was smooth, delicious, and refreshing. It was only then that I began to understand that not all gins are created equal. And while some are better for martinis, others are more suited to a subtler use of their talents. While there are many cocktails I have fallen in love with at the Velvet Tango Room, the Aviation remains my favorite.

It became quite clear early on that the Velvet Tango Room is committed to making the best cocktail possible using only the freshest ingredients. When you walk in and sit down at the bar, the first thing you notice are the enormous platters of fresh lemons, limes, and oranges sitting at various stations. When you order an Amaretto Sour, fresh lemon juice is squeezed specifically for your drink. If your drink requires fresh lemon zest (as did my Aviation), it is removed only at the time it is required. This ensures that you get the maximum flavor from all the ingredients. The Velvet Tango Room also makes their own bitters, their own vermouth, and their own syrups (simple, ginger, and root beer) on a regular basis.

One of the great ideas that has been implemented by the owners and bartenders is the notion of the classic cocktail or a Tango version. For instance, my next drink, the Manhattan is classically made using vermouth. You can get it that way if you choose, or you can get this:


A "Tango" Manhattan using the house-made spiced wine reduction in place of the classic vermouth. I often prefer the "Tango" version of several of their cocktails as it adds a slight sweetness to an otherwise assertive drink. This Tango Manhattan was a perfect way to pay homage to my late grandfather who loved a well-made Manhattan. I don't know if I could've gotten him to change his spots over the original version, but it's nice to know that he could've enjoyed the classic version and I the nouveau one at the same time.

Finally, co-owner Paulius Nasvytis made up a batch of a new cocktail they had been perfecting, the Ginger Flyer:


With muddled ginger and lime, this was like a margherita laced with a ginger flavor grenade. The flavor of the ginger was immediate on the front of your palate and only when you swallowed did the gentle burning of the ginger reach the back of your throat. This was definitely a summer cocktail. The flavors were nicely balanced and really the only problem we kept having is that the muddled ginger kept getting stuck in the straws which prevented us from taking anything more than a small sip at a time. Which actually might be good since after a few of the Ginger Flyers, you might be better off grounded.

I will be the first to admit that these are not inexpensive cocktails. And if someone in your party just refuses to drink anything other than "lite" beer or "pink" wine, they may feel like a fish out of water. But for those who can already appreciate a fine cocktail and for those who want to learn what a fine cocktail is, I can think of no other place in the entire northeast Ohio area to pursue this endeavor than the Velvet Tango Room.