Navy Yard’s brand-new 40-seat mixed drink nest Trouble Bird has actually rapidly discovered the next-door neighbors desire its boozy beverages over bao.
D.C. sommelier and restaurateur Brent Kroll relied on disco balls and the mixed drink expertise of Silver Lyan alums Justin Cara-Donna and Andrew Hurn to change his Maxwell Park white wine bar into Trouble Bird at the tail end of February (1346 fourth Street SE). The inaugural “Breakfast for Dinner” consume style is still going strong, including a “flapjack” bourbon-and-mezcal Old Fashioned stacked with brown butter, maple, and buckwheat bitters to a crowd-pleasing “Everything Bagel Sazerac” coupe with sesame aquavit and chive gomme.
Trouble Bird opened with a Thai-Italian menu by Maketto alum Ben Plyraharn, however with a small cooking area and thick dining competitors (Michelin-ranked Albi is next door), it was quickly obvious that food fits finest in a little supporting function. The group has actually dramatically scaled down meals in favor of quickly, cheffed-up drinking snacks through last call like laab spice-dusted Chex mix, peanuts roasted with togarashi, and shishito peppers. Aged prosciutto and a decadent carbonara panini made it, however squash arancini, fried chicken bao, and polenta french fries did not. Large-format beverages like a “Champagne Julep” likewise didn’t make good sense in the shot-sized space, whereas white wines by the half-bottle do.
Party-beginning boilermakers have actually likewise shown to be hugely popular considering that the first day. Pair beers with an “improved” green tea or “glitterschlager” shooter made from cinnamon and mezcal for $5 more. Kroll highlights bubbles huge time at his brand-new Shaw bar Pop, where a tiny food menu draws motivation from American fast-food favorites like In-N-Out and Taco Bell.
Here’s a better take a look at 3 liquid (and slushy) standouts at Trouble Bird:
Cosmo Swizzle
Keeping the vodka, cranberry, and triple sec elements of traditional made popular by Sex and the City, revitalizing and spiced falernum and bitters include some depth and heat. “The modern classic goes on vacation,” says Hurn.
Frozen swirl
Two slushy mixed drinks churn behind the bar at a time. A pink-ish “Neptune” is a traditional from the tiki lexicon, says Hurn, including London dry gin, enthusiasm fruit, orgeat, and a touch of ube for depth and a more earthen base. Its pearly white “Oaxaca-Chillin” equivalent commemorates the slushy “Penichillin” developed at Brooklyn’s Diamond Reef, the a lot missed out on tiki bar that closed throughout the pandemic. Trouble Bird’s take maintains the citrusy-honey ginger goodness and swaps the scotch for a mix of tequila and mezcal, he says.
Morning Glory Colada
Billed as a “whisky sour meets a painkiller,” piña colada base tastes of banana and coconut water set well with traditional whisky made the Scottish method. The consume finishes up with an abundant foam of coconut milk, pineapple, and a dash of fresh nutmeg.
—Emily Wishingrad added to this report
