‘Munch’ at Apartment3 matches cocktails with food
August 31, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Featured, Food and Drink, More from TGIF
Photos by Jason Genegabus / jason@staradvertiser.com
Apartment3 co-owners Flash Hansen, left, and Matty Hazelgrove, third from left, pose for a picture with executive chef Bob McGee, right, and Better Brands mixologist Joey Gottesman following the inaugural edition of “Munch” at the Century Center restaurant and lounge.
By Jason Genegabus
jason@staradvertiser.com
More than a few restaurants in Honolulu offer special wine dinners, pairing different wines with each course of the meal. Less often, you’ll come across a beer dinner — which, you guessed it, is just like a wine dinner, except beer is the beverage of choice.
At Apartment3, however, executive chef Bob McGee opted to partner with Better Brands’ master mixologist Joey Gottesman and launch “Munch,” a new, monthly three-course meal that matches McGee’s food with Gottesman’s cocktails. The featured liquor at last Thursday’s kickoff dinner was rum; next month’s menu will focus on tequila, while vodka will be the booze of choice in October.
According to an e-mail about the dinner, the cost is $45 per person — plus tax and 20 percent gratuity, which comes out to $56 per person — with a 48-hour cancellation notice and no-show fee in effect. Dinner “starts promptly” at 6:30 p.m. and only 25 seats are available. Call 955-9300 for reservations.
Along with photos from the first meal, click the links below to listen to audio clips from the evening. For more details about “Munch,” visit Apartment3’s website.
VIDEO: ‘Beachbum’ Berry talks Don the Beachcomber
August 18, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Barfly, In the Mix, Latest News, More from TGIF, Video
Video by Jason Genegabus / jason@staradvertiser.com
By Jason Genegabus
jason@staradvertiser.com
Cocktail expert Jeff “Beachbum” Berry was on the Big Island last weekend to participate in the Second Annual Don the Beachcomber Mai Tai Festival at the Big Island’s Royal Kona Resort. Along with judging the “World’s Best Mai Tai” contest, he was also asked to speak to guests about the life and drinks of the legendary Don the Beachcomber.
The Berry-hosted seminar also featured three tastings of Don the Beachcomber cocktails; in the video above, he talks about Don’s influence and the drinks he selected for the seminar.
Sip into summer with a coconut and basil cocktail
August 18, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Featured, Food and Drink, More from TGIF
Photo by Craig T. Kojima / ckojima@staradvertiser.com
Better Brands’ Joey Gottesman mixes a fresh basil and coconut cocktail inside Azure at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel earlier this month.
Star-Advertiser Staff
tgif@staradvertiser.com
Looking for something new to try while lounging by the pool this summer? Local bartender Joey Gottesman from Better Brands shared the following recipe, which calls for Coco Lopez cream of coconut and a few leaves of fresh basil — not exactly the type of ingredients you may having laying around, but they’re definitely worth searching out to use in this drink.
Read more
PICS: ‘Cocktail Development’ with Alan Wong
August 6, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Barfly, Featured, Food and Drink
Photos by Jason Genegabus / jason@staradvertiser.com
Chef Alan Wong, right, poses with Better Brands’ Joey Gottesman during “Cocktail Development” at the Pineapple Room last month.
By Jason Genegabus
jason@staradvertiser.com
It pretty much goes without saying that in social situations, food and drinks often go hand in hand.
A good cocktail shouldn’t just look and taste good. If made correctly, it should also serve as the proper amount of lubrication necessary for people to truly enjoy themselves.
The same goes with food, due to its ability to start conversations and bring tables of strangers closer together. Throw in an award-winning chef and a couple of local liquor specialists, and you’re looking at a pretty fun time.
That’s what Alan Wong had in mind when he invited a select group to the Pineapple Room on July 28 to participate in his inaugural “Cocktail Development” workshop hosted by the restaurant with assistance from liquor distributor Better Brands. Read more
PICS/VIDEO: Hawaii’s ‘Most Inspired Bartender’ crowned
June 24, 2010 by Jason Genegabus
Filed under Featured, Food and Drink, Picture Blogs, Video
Photos by Bruce Asato / basato@staradvertiser.com
Better Brands Hawaii’s Joey Gottesman addressed the finalists in the Hawaii qualifier of Bombay Sapphire’s “Nation’s Most Inspired Bartender” competition — from left, Christian Self, Eric Martinez and Deliah Asada — before the winner was announced.
Star-Advertiser Staff
tgif@staradvertiser.com
The heavy hitters of Honolulu’s bar community were all in the lineup on Tuesday, when Bombay Sapphire and Better Brands Hawaii brought the state qualifier of Bombay’s “Nation’s Most Inspired Bartender Search” at Pearl Ultralounge. More than a dozen local bartenders were in the running for a trip to Las Vegas and entry into the national finals for a shot at $10,000.
Continue past the pictures below for a video shot during the competition. Read more
$10,000 up for grabs at ‘Mai Tai Festival’
June 17, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Featured, Food and Drink
Jamm Aquino / 2008
Local master mixologist Joey Gottesman will host a Mai Tai recipe competition during the second annual Don the Beachcomber Mai Tai Festival in August.
By Gary Chun
gchun@staradvertiser.com
Celebrating the legacy of the man who invented the main tropical mixed drink, the 2nd Annual Don the Beachcomber Mai Tai Festival will be held on Saturday, Aug. 14, at the Royal Kona Resort on the Big Island.
Bartenders from across the globe will compete in a grand mix-off to win a $10,000 cash prize and earn the honor of creating the World’s Best Mai Tai. (Judges will be award-winning celebrity chef Sam Choy, Bacardi Brand Master William Ramos, publisher of Hawaii Beverage Guide Chris Teves, nationally published rum and mai-tai expert Jeff “Beachbum” Berry, and mixologist Joey Gottesman.)
Throughout the day, the fest’s marketplace will feature local vendors selling artwork, crafts, clothing and local produce. Patrons will also be able to taste and vote for their favorite creation in the World’s Best BBQ contest. Award-winning celebrity chef Sam Choy will also be doing culinary demonstrations, and the day will end with a special acoustic performance under the night skies by best-selling rock band Third Eye Blind.
Registration forms for both the mix-off and BBQ contest can be downloaded at www.donsmaitaifest.com. Mix-off forms must be submitted by July 14 and has to include a photo of the particular mai-tai concoction and a non-refundable $25 registration fee. Restaurants and chefs entering the BBQ contest must mail their forms before the July 15 deadline.
The festival is free and open to the public, but script will be sold for food and beverage purchases (certain food and drinks will be sold via cash and credit).
Admission to the Third Eye Blind concert is $35 general admission and $50 VIP seating, and tickets are available at www.groovetickets.com.
Inside HILife: In the Mix
February 4, 2010 by Star-Advertiser Staff
Filed under Featured, Food and Drink, In the Mix
Apartment3’s new food and drink menus elevate its style
George F. Lee / glee@starbulletin.com
By Jason Genegabus
jason@starbulletin.com
ONE OF my favorite places in Hono lulu to grab a drink has gotten even better.
Apartment3 now has a new way of spelling its name, along with a new executive chef and a new lineup of premium cocktails. According to business partners Flash Hansen and Matty Hazelgrove (Charles “Chip” Jew itt also holds an ownership interest), the third-floor lounge at the Century Center is ready to elevate its food and drink offerings to the next level.
“We know we can get people here to have a cocktail and create a cool ambience that people might enjoy,” Hazelgrove said last week during a private tasting. “We’re not changing our focus as a business, but we are trying to expand it.”
Hansen added that improving the menu was something they wanted to do since opening Apartment3.
“We just weren’t in a position to do it,” he said. “Everybody would prefer to eat locally and support local agriculture, especially with all these great sources for local produce.
“If you can do it, why not? There’s no reason not to.”
With the addition of executive chef Robert “Bob” McGee, items that used to be pretty good are now pretty darn fantastic. You can’t go wrong with his take on Pork ‘n Beans ($18) or Shrimp and Grits ($19), and the Ultimate Mac and Cheese ($15) took a recipe that was already one of my favorites and made it even better, with huge chunks of Dungeness crab and house-made cho rizo.
Also worth visiting for are the “Ultimate Libations,” a variety of drinks created by mixologist Chan dra Lam. Priced at $12 each, they’re not the most affordable in town, but the quality of ingredients used makes them worth the extra bucks. My favorites are the Studio 301, made with Maui Gold pineapple and 10 Cane Rum, and the Absinthe-Minded, which pairs a “trace” of Pernod with muddled Asian pears and pear-flavored Absolut vodka.
Also new for Apartment3 in 2010 are the operating hours — they are now open from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, and 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturdays — and the featured entertainment. Tahiti Rey will play in the lounge on Wednesdays in February, followed by YOZA on Thursdays.
Call 955-9300 for reservations …
Pick up a copy of HILife in Friday’s Honolulu Star-Bulletin to read the rest of this week’s column.
