Steve Schneider of Employees Only and Macao Trading Co.
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
Steve Schneider
Steve Schneider
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Photograph: Virginia Rollison
Bartender Steve Schneider making a cosmopolitan at Employees Only
Bartender Steve Schneider making a cosmopolitan at Employees Only
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Photograph: Virginia Rollison
Bartender Steve Schneider making a cosmopolitan at Employees Only
Bartender Steve Schneider making a cosmopolitan at Employees Only
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Photograph: Virginia Rollison
Bartender Steve Schneider at Employees Only
Bartender Steve Schneider at Employees Only
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Photograph: Virginia Rollison
Bartender Steve Schneider at Employees Only
Bartender Steve Schneider at Employees Only
The talent: Steve Schneider
Where to find him: Thursdays and Sundays at Employees Only (510 Hudson St between Christopher and W 10th Sts; 212-242-3021, employeesonlynyc.com); Saturdays at Macao Trading Co. (311 Church St between Lispenard and Walker Sts; 212-431-8750, macaonyc.com)
Why you'll dig him: He's got "Schneidy sense": It's what he calls his ability to divine the needs of his guests. He readies the strawberries for your Fraise Sauvage cocktail before you're done calling for the round; he dispatches water before you realize you could do with a sip. And unlike most bartenders around town, Schneider "free pours," tasting his drinks for balance before sliding them across the bar. Such confidence and steady hands are to be expected from a former Marine. Schneider joined the corps after 9/11, and he maintains that old Semper Fi attitude: He's so faithful to Employees Only, he's had the bar's logo tattooed on his hand.
He says: "I want anybody on the planet to be able to come into my bar. And I'd like to be able to make you a quality cocktail.... I don't [judge] what you're drinking. You're paying me and when I'm behind the bar, I'm like Alfred from Batman. I'm like your butler."
