Caroline Russock Cancun, Senior Week, 2002. I was 18, legally trashed under the Rio Grande, and making bad decisions involving frozen drinks at a hotel pool bar. Thinking back now on that sticky, blue Curacao-drenched blur of a week makes…

Neal Santos GETTING TOASTY: Cherrystones and surf clams on vegetable ash levain. Don’t let the dish-towel napkins at A.Bar fool you. Rolled and bundled on the tables, the scratchy cloths signal a casual, country approach reinforced by the wooden condiment…

Over 30 gins line the subway-tiled bar at Oyster House, from “old-world juniper bombs to softer, citrus-forward new-school” bottles, according to head bartender Lindsey Kreuger. “With seafood, people think about Muscadet or sparkling wine — and like them, gin is…

Mark Stehle MODERN RANCH: Independence Beer Garden is doing bar bites and craft beer with historic views. Michael Schulson is all over the place, geographically and stylistically. The chef and restaurateur counts Izakaya in Atlantic City (Japanese), Sampan on 13th…

via puresweets.com A curious brindle-pit mix named Tuffy lifted her head from a patch of sunshine on the red wooden floor and trotted over to the counter to welcome me. I scratched her ears and ordered a round of cold-pressed,…

Chatting with chef Michael Schulson today about his menu at Independence Beer Garden — look for a full review next week  — he confirmed rumors that have been circulating about a new restaurant in the works: “We’re looking to do…

Leigh Maida and Brendan Hartranft dropped us an email today announcing the closing of Resurrection Ale House (2425 Grays Ferry Ave.), a fountain of sour ales on Grays Ferry Ave since 2009. “As of the sending of this press release,…

Maria Pouchnikova LOW AND SLOW: Rex 1516’s Creekstone brisket is smoked for eight hours over oak. Novelty, novelty, novelty is the location, location, location of restaurant reviews. It’s the most important factor in determining what we cover and when. Ninety-eight…

Some drinks are served on the rocks. Some are served neat. Others, like the martini, are served up. Very, very few are “served down,” according to Jesse Cornell, cocktail man at Kevin Sbraga’s eponymous restaurant. “I’m a sucker for drinks…