Kenta Goto of Pegu Club
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
Kenta Goto
Kenta Goto
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Photograph: Caroline Voagen Nelson
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
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Photograph: Caroline Voagen Nelson
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
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Photograph: Caroline Voagen Nelson
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
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Photograph: Caroline Voagen Nelson
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
Kenta Goto making a gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
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Photograph: Caroline Voagen Nelson
Gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
Gin-gin mule at Pegu Club
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Pegu Club cocktail at Pega Club
Pegu Club cocktail at Pega Club
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Pegu Club
Pegu Club
The talent: Kenta Goto
Where to find him: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays at Pegu Club (77 W Houston St between West Broadway and Wooster St; 212-473-7348, peguclub.com)
Why you'll dig him: In an industry full of inflated egos, Goto's understated style doesn't court attention, but his fluidity (on view at Pegu Club, where he's been a fixture for nearly five years) is definitely deserving. Born in Tokyo, he's a thoughtful ambassador for the Japanese cocktail tradition, drawing on its strengths (craftsmanship, hospitality) while fully embracing NYC's boundary-pushing spirit. He's contributed some inspired East-meets-West creations to the Pegu menu over the years—including a surprising blend of Calpis (a Japanese lactic drink), fresh cantaloupe juice and gin—and even his signature shake is a hypnotizing international hybrid.
He says: "In Tokyo, you use creativity to stay inside the box and try to make the perfect gin martini, or the perfect sidecar. Here you can use creativity to take classics and add modern twists to them."
