Studio No. 7

We didn’t set out to be called a craft bar. (I actually still wouldn’t call us a craft bar, but I’ll explain later.) We simply went in knowing the following:

1. Fresh ingredients make better cocktails.
2. The most popular spirits aren’t necessarily the best quality spirits.
3. Bartenders should be knowledgeable about what they serve and take pride in their craft.
4. Creating a great cocktail is an art.
5. Classic cocktails should be respected and subsequently, not screwed with.
6. The menu should change seasonally.
7. We’re not carrying Ciroc.

Those were the things we used to guide us. (No, we didn’t intentionally have 7.) Six months later, people are starting to describe us as a craft bar. That’s fine. However, the reason I won’t voluntarily attach this label is because of all the other things that can come with it: the pretentiousness, the smugness, the 20 minute wait for every drink, the lack of Red Stripe, the suspenders… We’re just not into those things. (Ok, suspenders can be cool.) One of the central themes of our space is art and our bar/cocktails are a reflection of that. Nothing more.

I stumbled across a great article on the subject in which the writer, Sarah Deming, sums up my feelings perfectly:

“Discrimination is one of the qualities of the divine. Bartenders should drink the milk of the mixologists’ techniques and fine attention to detail. They should leave behind the venom of judgment and privilege…Drinkers should try new things, even if they aren’t ‘the usual.’ Bartenders should honor the spirit of the public house, a place with wide-open doors.”