During Negroni week, arguably the dopest week of the year, me and the gov’na rendezvoused over libations at this quaint, yet highly recommended Italian Bistro. It’s a joint that I’ve read much about, but up until now, I hadn’t had the pleasure.

At first impression, the inside makes you want to redo your sorry excuse of a kitchen.  Plants, white accents, natural light, classic tiling oozes vintage Greenwich Village, but rings contemporary as well. The outside makes you want to judge with  distinguished authority.

Breezy Parisian seating on the south end of Macdougal provides ample space for relaxation, and enough traffic for people watching. The houses across the way are painted vibrant hues. Every once in a while a UPS truck will block your view, and a dog from the far table will bark at the delivery man. The wind picks up, and dares to swipe your napkin from the table. The glassware is sparkling, vintage looking, but is actually new and from the supplier cocktail kingdom.

The drinks are crisp, tart, impressionable.

I took this vermillion baddie of a drink.

The Negroni moves across your palette like models on a Milanese runway. Smooth, practiced, and full-bodied this cocktail was awarded the prestige of a Triple Crown Drink, which places it alongside the company of the Manhattan and Martini.

Originating in Florence, when Mr. Negroni asked for Gin instead of soda in an Americano. Bold move. The bartender, feeling himself, threw in an orange wedge just because. And like magic, Mr. Negroni slated his own gold star in the walk of cocktail fame.

This tall, tan and handsome drink is the Garibaldi.

We got the juice, forreal, we got Orange juice. Blended until fluffy, then they pour Campari into polished glass. Easy to assemble, but noteworthy. Its another of the bar’s favorites, but has proliferated throughout the world as a distinguished summer beverage.

Dante is a place that has, with evidence backing it, a mastery of its craft. To me its a perfected version of what it embodies, a laid back, but visually tickling tavern that specializes in Italian Food & Drink. You can get a banging Espresso, Bolognese, or Flatbread, but I’d always recommend one of their drinks.

Negroni

• 1 1/2 ounces of Campari
• 1 1/2 ounces of Martini & Rossi Vermouth
• 1 1/2 ounces of Bombay Sapphire Gin
• Orange Wedge for Garnish

Pile in an Old Fashioned Glass filled with ice, stir 5 times, and garnish.

Garibaldi

• 1 1/2 ounces of Campari
• Fresh Orange Juice
• Orange Wedge for Garnish

Blend the OJ until foamy, pour into an iced Collins Glass and garnish.

Con Amor,

Alexander Cohiba

 

Insta: @Dantenewyorkcity