J. Crew sweater, Levi’s shirt and 511 jeans, Topman boots
Up next in our Athens bar crawl series, Ryan Sims, Bar Manager at 5 & 10. Let’s get right to it.
Raised in:
Marietta, Georgia
Lives in:
Athens, Georgia
How you landed at 5 & 10:
This is my second stint here. I began as a part-time busser, then a host, then a waiter. Then, seemingly out of nowhere they put me on as an expediter – which was pretty crazy. However, that got me in the kitchen which unlocked a whole new world for me. I began coming in off the clock to learn how to cook and eventually asked the executive to work full-time in the kitchen. I learned all the stations and eventually was a bit of a junior sous chef. I left a year or so later to pursue restaurant work in New York only to return a year later. I worked at Seabear for a while and then moved back to 5 & 10 this past September.
Mamiya 645 on Ilford 1600 film
“Firmino’s Familiar.” Blanco tequila, Strega, blood orange juice, lime, agave, and saline solution. It’s very refreshing and has a gorgeous color.
Your go-to beer order:
Anything from Creature Comforts. Those men and women are inspirational and their beer is fantastic. I’ll never turn down a Mexican lager, either.
Moonlight Through the Pines:
I knew I wanted a refreshing rye cocktail on the menu. The pastry department had some really nice Honeycrisp apples so I immediately thought to put the two together. I think it really found it’s identity once I added some Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur. All that was left to do was to brighten in up so I added lemon juice for freshness and Dolin to calm the heat of the rye. People drink through this one pretty quickly.
1.5 oz Rye whiskey – I like Templeton
3/4 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
1/2 oz simple syrup (1:1)
1/4 oz Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur
1 cheek of Apple, roughly chopped (with a few slices reserved for garnish)
In a shaker, muddle a few apple chunks with lemon and simple syrup.
Add the rest of the ingredients.
Shake for just a few seconds and strain into a double rocks glass and fill with ice.
Garnish with a few thin apple slices.
The Nostrand A:This is named after the Subway stop closest to my apartment when we lived in Brooklyn. It’s basically a classic Brooklyn with a few small modifications. First, a true Brooklyn uses Amer Picon, which is all but impossible to find in the states. I substitute Amaro Montenegro or Amaro CioCiaro. Second, I add orange bitters. Matt McFerron over at Old Pal makes amazing bitters so I’m using those. He calls them Buster’s Bitters. The only other difference is that I change up the ratio slightly.