Blogs

We stopped by Kathryn Weatherup's new cocktail bar, Weather Up (get it?) this weekend to see what was what.

There were two bartenders working—a tattooed, tank-top wearing woman and a mustachioed (naturally), tie-wearing guy. Both apparently trained under Milk and Honey's Sasha Petraske, and both were very, very serious.

The place has no sign, but can be spotted by the shiny facade, which is done up in smooth white tile that reminds me of an operating room. The small room was busy, but not packed, and they were playing Motown, which is always, always welcome.

The cocktail list sports about a dozen classic drinks, like the Brooklyn, classic daiquiri, dark and stormy and gin fizz. I got a Weather Up, cognac, amaretto and lemon, which was tasty but a little too sweet. I did like the enormous piece of orange peel it was garnished with, because every time I took a sip I got a big, refreshing whiff of orange.

But if I'm going to pay $11 to $15 for a cocktail, I do like for there to be a little bit of comfort involved. There isn't much seating, so you're lucky if you can snag a seat at the bar. And for some reason, the bar doesn't have a foot rest, so if your legs aren't long, you're dangling like a six year old.

If you can deal with the price tag, though, this is a nice option to have in the neighborhood. But I don't think I'd make a special trip from Manhattan. As we were sitting there, watching the very serious bartenders pour and shake, my boyfriend commented that, as trends go, cocktail geekiness is one that's easy to get behind.