This past Wednesday I went to the Gibson with some friends from DC.  IN case you haven’t heard of it, the Gibson is the much-raved-about “speakeasy” style bar that’s cleverly hidden behind a nondescript door in the middle of U Street Northwest.  It has no windows open to the street; in fact, many people walk without ever knowing that a temple of cocktails lies within.

I started off the evening with a “boothby” Manhattan:

It’s your standard Manhattan (greatest. drink. ever.), except that it’s supposed to have  a float of champagne on top.  Either I have no pallet whatsoever, or mine lacked the champagne portion of the drink.  The awesome blog ajiggerofblog has a great post about the Gibson here, including a link to a recent menu (it’s since been updated, but you can still order any of the older drinks).  All in all, this was a fine rendition of the classic, but nothing to write home about.

Recipe: rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, Fee Brother’s Whiskey Barrel bitters, and a champagne float  (or not…), garnish with a maraschino cherry.

The best way to enjoy the Gibson is to go with a pack of friends (we had 7), each order different things, and share (read: mooch) with each other.  In that spirit, the next drink I tried was the Pisco Sour, an off-the-menu drink, which, according to Wikipedia, is “a cocktail containing pisco (a South American liquor made of grapes), lemon or lime juice, egg whites, simple syrup, and regional bitters”

This one was also very pleasant as far as cocktails go, but I expected a little bit more kick from a drink practically doused in bitters.

The next drink I ordered was the horse’s kick.  I was really hoping for the “kick”, as promised, since this drink was made from Wild Turkey 101 whiskey and seemingly not much else.  Leave it to the Gibson mixologists to make the horse’s kick nothing if not smooth, refreshing, and femininely attractive, to boot:

Recipe: Wild Turkey 101 Whiskey, Ginger Ale, Lime Peel, Fever Tree Soda Water

There were many other drinks tried this evening (my favorite was a frozen drink with chile, mango, cilantro, and milk… wtf?) but this is all the pictures I got, so I’ll stop here.  I’ll leave you with a shot of the aftermath and our attempts to divide up a $150+ tab…

Cheers!

MMmmm Yummy.

(Recipes forthcoming)

2.5 lbs bone-in Pork Ribs
1 medium onion, loosely chopped
1 c white wine
1/4 c soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp 5-spice powder
Chinese balsamic vinegar, to taste.
water
1 beef bouillon cube

Directions:

Heat up a skillet over high heat.  Generously salt all sides.  Brown all sides of the ribs with a little oil, if necessary.  Place finished ribs into rice cooker.  Reduce heat on the skillet to medium.  Add the chopped onions to the skillet.  Saute the onions so until the are translucent and slightly darkened, about 5 minutes.  Add the onions to the rice cooker.  Add the rest of the ingredients to the rice cooker and stir to combine.  Add just enough water so that the ribs are not quite covered.  Leave the rice cooker on high until it shuts itself off – this will take at least 2 hours, but then the ribs will be perfectly cooked with an amazing glaze.  Leave the ribs covered for the first 45 minutes, then uncover so that the glaze thickens.  Make sure to flip the ribs several times during cooking.

Steak Au Poivre

Adapted from www.foodnetwork.com, Alton Brown.

Steak Au Poivre
ingredients:

4 beef tenderloin steaks, 1.5 inches thick, room temperature
2 tbsp whole peppercorns
1/3 cup cognac/brandy/dark beer
1 cup half-and-half
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp olive oil
salt, to taste

Directions:

Crack the peppercorns with a mortar and pestle/ mallet and pie pan/ brute strength.  Pour decimated (not a technical term) pepper into flat plate.  Salt both sides of the steaks liberally.  “dip” the tops (and botooms, depending on your perspective) of each steak into the pepper.  Put a stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the butter and olive oil.  Once the fat begins to just barely smoke, add the steaks.  Cook steaks for four minutes on either side for medium rare.  Keep in mind that the “finger” technique to check for steak doneness doesn’t work all that well with tenderloin since it is so… tender.  The steaks will feel like they are more rare than they actually are.

Once the steaks are done cooking, remove to a plate and cover with aluminum foil or a large bowl to keep warm and prevent condensation from falling back on the steaks.  Pour out excess fat from your skillet.  Return the skillet to high heat.  Deglaze the pan with your alcohol of choice.   (If using high-proof alcohol such as cognac or brandy, make sure to flame the gases that come off the liquid so you don’t start a fire unintentionally.) Scrape the yummy bits off the bottom of the pan with a fork.  Let the liquid boil for a minute or so, then slowly add the half-and-half or cream.  Cook on high heat until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.

You can now return the steaks to the sauce and coat, or, as I prefer, dip the bottoms of the steaks into the sauce, plate, and then spoon additional sauce on the tops.  This ensures that each steak gets plenty of sauce without ruining the crispy crust produced by the peppercorns.  It also makes the presentation nicer.