Greg Seider of the Summit Bar
Thu Jul 14 2011
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Jason Littrell of Death & Company
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Greg Seider of the Summit Bar
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Brad Farran of Clover Club
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Karin Stanley of Little Branch and Dutch Kills
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Sam Ross of Milk and Honey and Little Branch
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Meaghan Dorman of Raines Law Room and Lantern's Keep
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Jeff Bell of PDT
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Frank Cisneros of Dram and the Drink
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Steve Schneider of Employees Only and Macao Trading Co.
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Kenta Goto of Pegu Club
Know your bartender
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Photograph: Dale May
Greg Seider
Greg Seider
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Photograph: Jolie Ruben
Bartender Greg Seider at the Summit Bar
Bartender Greg Seider at the Summit Bar
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Photograph: Jolie Ruben
Bartender Greg Seider making a margarita at the Summit Bar
Bartender Greg Seider making a margarita at the Summit Bar
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Photograph: Jolie Ruben
Margarita at the Summit Bar
Margarita at the Summit Bar
The talent: Greg Seider
Where to find him: Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at the Summit Bar (133 Ave C between 8th and 9th Sts, thesummitbar.net)
Why you'll dig him: Many bartenders shy away from baroque multi-ingredient cocktails, but Seider is a skilled tinkerer. He was one of the first in NYC to roll out a barrel-aged cocktail, and his culinary experimentations yield madcap combos like agave infused with a pantry's worth of aromatics—chipotle, cardamom, Vietnamese cinnamon. He soaks Afghan raisins in rye and deploys red pepper and saffron as naturally as other bartenders dash Angostura. Yet for all his gastronomic showmanship, Seider is a beast behind the stick: He's fast, he's sharp and he's usually having a damn good time.
He says: "The John Lee Hooker is probably my most original cocktail. It's based on [the blues artist's song] 'One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer.' It's misted with Scotch—a smoky Peat Monster—and then there's bourbon, cinnamon, agave and lemon juice, homemade sarsaparilla bitters, and it's topped with an IPA beer. You get every one of those elements in perfect nuance."
