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“When we asked John deBary, a New York City-based drinks writer, hospitality consultant, and the author of Drink What You Want: The Subjective Guide to Making Objectively Delicious Cocktails, what the Lone Ranger reminded him of, he explained that it’s like a mash-up of Ranch Water (tequila and club soda), a spritz, and a French 75 (which contains all of the same ingredients, just with gin instead of tequila).”
Author and former bartender John deBary, who started his career at New York’s Please Don’t Tell, says that years of the “startender era” of the aughts—a time when working at high-end cocktail bars could mean becoming a celebrity in your own right—created the mentality among bartenders that there’s always a better job out there.
“There’s this idea that you could go somewhere else if you’re not being appreciated, because you have a brand already and you’re sort of known, rather than trying to roll up your sleeves and fix the conditions where you’re working,” deBary says. But “with turnover, it’s very chicken and egg. Maybe if you had a union, the turnover wouldn’t be as big a problem. You’d have a better place to work, and then there wouldn’t be this cycle.”
“‘This particular combination is new to me and I can certainly see the appeal,’ says John deBary, a New York City-based drinks writer, hospitality consultant, and the creator of the Drink What You Want: The Deck cocktail recipe guide.”
Taste and quality are keeping pace, thanks to drinks maestros like deBary, a former bar director at the Momofuku restaurant group who later launched his own nonalcoholic drink brand, Proteau. Before the brand’s discontinuation, sober customers emailed him, saying, “I was able to feel included in these rituals that are very normal for a lot of people that can be very isolating for people who are not drinking.”
Anoop Pillarisetti will bring the flavors of his native Louisiana to his newest "passion project," Strange Delight in Fort Greene. The restaurant is a partnership with Pillarisetti's fellow Shake Shack alum Michael Tuiach and chef Ham El-Waylly.
Located at 63 Lafayette Ave., near Fulton Street, in Fort Greene, Strange Delight will serve as a neighborhood oyster and cocktail bar.
The menu was made in collaboration with El-Waylly and will feature several hot and cold seafood items, focusing specifically on oysters and shrimp dishes inspired by some of their favorites from the New Orleans region.
For the cocktail bar, Pillarisetti told Patch that he partnered with bartender John deBary to create the full drink menu. A separate wine list was developed by NYC sommelier Miguel de Leon.
John deBary, previously of New York City speakeasy Please Don’t Tell and Momofuku, includes non-alcoholic cocktails in his 1990s-themed cocktail book, Saved by the Bellini. When it comes to the burn—or piquancy—of a drink, he likes to add black or white pepper. “A very common issue with non-alcoholic drinks is that you take two sips and you just crush it—I’m a chugger.” So, to slow people down, he tends to incorporate a lot of bitterness. “I don’t like a lot of non-alcoholic spirits that are reliant on chili extracted to give spice,” he said. “I find that to be a little distracting.”
“Kitschy blue cocktails had their heyday in the eighties, but like all things vintage, have made a comeback. Bartender John deBary is credited with bringing back the blue in modern times, at the respectable New York speakeasy bar PDT (Please Don’t Tell). deBary created the festive tiki drink for his friend and PDT regular Jacob Briars, and named it after another PDT bartender, Sean Hoard, whose nickname is “Sharky”. The drink is based on butter-infused rum, using a technique known as fat-washing, also invented at PDT, and features a riot of flavors including hazelnut and pineapple.”
“When John deBary started working as a bartender at the legendary New York City cocktail bar Please Don’t Tell in 2008, he noticed that customers occasionally requested cocktails without alcohol. To serve them, he developed a small set of recipes for nonalcoholic cocktails—or mocktails. After a while, he noticed that offering mocktails led to an increase in beverage sales.
When he went on to manage the cocktail programs for the popular Momofuku restaurants, he made a point to create a comprehensive list of mocktails.
Nonalcoholic offerings were rare and not all that good when deBary started his career. But in recent years, there has been an explosion of offerings—including no or low-alcohol versions of popular beers and increasingly sophisticated mocktails.”
Rum and rye whiskey keep this amaretto and coffee drink from getting too sweet. It’s one of our favorites from Saved by the Bellini, one of the best cocktail books of 2023.
“Of course, punches don’t have to contain alcohol — or even ice — to shout “We’re at a Punchbowl Party!” John deBary, the New York hospitality consultant and author of two cocktail books, recommends a wassail, aka a spiced large-format drink, like the one below, typically served warm during the holidays in cold-weather regions. Enamored of the movie Home Alone — and of Chicago winters in general — John imagines the MaCallister family might drink something like this.”
“If you’re tired of the same classic cocktails every night, try out John deBary’s nostalgia-fueled book where you can make ‘90s-themed drinks such as the Hyrule Highball or the CapriRum.”
“Take a trip by to the 90s with John deBary’s newest cocktail book, Saved by the Bellini. Described as “a brilliant walk down memory lane” by Saved by the Bell star and 90s icon Tiffani Thiessen, who wrote the forward for the book, deBary walks you through the creation of more than 65 different 90s-inspired cocktails including treats like Salt-N-Pepa Lemonade and a tribute to AOL Instant Messenger, a drink called The Away Message.”
“The drink, which had a cult following in the bar world for a time, is part of a category that cocktail expert John deBary refers to as quartets or “shaken drinks with four equal parts, usually citrus plus three intense ingredients that counterintuitively work in harmony.” In the Last Word, those ingredients are equal parts gin, green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, and lime juice.”
“Alcohol is optional, but for many eggnog lovers, it just isn't as festive without a wallop of rum, brandy, Cognac, or whiskey. Your choice may hinge on personal taste, family tradition, or regional preferences. "I almost always make my eggnog with at least two spirits, such as bourbon and Cognac,” says John deBary, author of Drink What You Want and Saved by the Bellini. Why add more than one liquor to the elixir? “I love the added complexity and the eggs are a great base to hold all the competing flavors from the spirits," he says.”
“Get a preview of the year’s best books before you decide which volumes to add to your cookbook shelves.”
“With every new cookbook I feel more like Lexi Featherson. The Sex and the City character featured in the 2004 episode “Splat” famously cries “No one’s fun anymore! Whatever happened to fun?” before falling to her death after declaring “I’m so bored I could die.” But deBary’s new cocktail book, filled with wacky animations, punny recipe names, and pop culture references, reminds me that cookbooks can be fun. DeBary’s deep knowledge of ’90s culture and interest in toeing the boundaries of what others consider “good taste” has yielded a hilarious and lovable cookbook that can’t help but make you smile. He swaps serious headnotes for rib-tickling ruminations on frosted tips, standard food photography for campy illustrations of anthropomorphic cocktails, and everyday drink recipes for a Technicolored array of kooky combinations. But don’t let deBary’s style and sense of humor fool you: The cookbook is filled with inventive, creative, and easy to make cocktails that have been developed by a master of the craft. Pairing unexpected ingredients like Yoo-Hoo and absinthe and infusing smoky Lapsang Souchong tea into watermelon juice are just some of the techniques you’ll find within this new culinary camp classic. —Jesse Szewczyk”
“Author and acclaimed bartender John deBary transports readers back in time with this 1990s-inspired cocktail book that features more than 65 recipes celebrating the decade. Take the Gusher Crusher, influenced by ‘90s kids’ favorite after-school snack or the Flannel Factor, built with rum, rye, amaretto and cold brew as an homage to the grunge trend. There are also nods to the cassette tape, slap bracelets, Reebok pumps and even the famed “Got Milk?” ad; whether a ‘90s baby or not, deBary reminds of the gaiety of this decade.”
On the series premiere Alex, John, and Youngmi figure out the show format in real time. Starting with the segment, "Are You Mad At Me?" they each take turns sharing why they think the world is mad at them this week before diving into the The Thunderdome, the heart of the show where each host pitches a topic and votes on what they'll discuss during the episode.