Featured Halloween Drink: Black Martini

You probably celebrated Halloween over the weekend, instead of leaving the tricking for today, but there's no reason you can't commemorate the day with a drink!

This Black Martini is really easy to make. You can find this recipe and others on About.com Cocktails.

This Black Martini replaces vermouth with either blackberry brandy or black raspberry liqueur (Chambord is a good choice). The drink will be dark, but not black-black, so another option is to make a Vodka Martini with Blavod, a black-colored vodka.

Black Martini

Photo Credit: Colleen Graham/About.com

Black Martini

Ingredients:
3 1/2 oz. gin or vodka
1/2 oz. blackberry brandy or black raspberry liqueur
Lemon twist for garnish

Preparation:

- Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice.
- Shake well.
- Strain into a chilled cocktail glass or serve on the rocks in an old-fashioned glass.
- Garnish with a lemon twist.

Island Dogs rolls out new menu crafted by Chef Pat Dunn and launches outdoor oyster bar

Chef Pat Dunn and Island Dogs' managers have been working tirelessly in the kitchen to perfect the bar's new and improved menu of munchies. This week, it launches.

"A lot of work, fun and taste-testing went into the new dishes' flavor combinations and we're happy with what we came up with," said General Manager David Thibault. "I think our customers' taste buds will be happy, too."

Vegetarian Pizza

Along with the new menu, Island Dogs customers will have their pick of fresh, char-grilled and Rockefeller oysters at the bar's new outdoor oyster bar on its breezy front porch.

The new menu features a host of new items:

- Soft Shell Crab Sandwich with Key Lime Mustard
- Jerk Chicken Sandwich with Mango Jalapeno Aioli and Rum-Soaked Onions
- Conch Fritters
- Rare Tuna Tataki with Asian Ginger Boiled Calamari and Seaweed Salad
- White Conch Chowder
- Key West Pizza with White Lobster-based sauce, Pepperoni, Shrimp and Pineapple

Leading the culinary side of the menu re-vamp was Chef Pat Dunn, also chef at Pat Croce's Rum Barrel.

"More than anything else, I'm excited to see customers' reactions when they taste what we've created," Dunn said. "It's just that good."

A Northeast Philadelphia native, Dunn made a name for himself as protege of Iron Chef Jose Garces
at Garces' acclaimed Latin-Asian restaurant Chifa in downtown Philly. Dunn is a graduate of The Culinary Institute of America. He joined Island Dogs in 2010 with a focus on crafting innovative and delicious cuisine with only the freshest available ingredients.

Island Dogs makes national TV on HDNET’s Drinking Made Easy

Lamprey and Friends roll into the Conch Republic to Uncover Unique Drinking Specialties and Time Honored Cocktail Traditions in Key West -- Wednesday, October 26 on HDNet!

Island Dogs' Key Lime Pie
martini featured on the show

Pat Croce's Rum Barrel, Island Dogs Bar and the iconic The Green Parrot will all be featured in a new episode of HDNET's Drinking Made Easy with cult sensation Zane Lamprey, which airs Wednesday, October 26, at 8 p.m. ET.

"You'll see the show, but we had a blast!" Croce said. "Wait for when Steve's speech starts to slur!"

In this episode, Zane visits Key West, where he stops at several bars, including Croce's, sampling a Key Lime Pie Martini at Island Dogs; Rum Barrel's intimidating Kill Devil bucket cocktail; and a dangerous Bloody Mary at the Green Parrot, a Key West institution.

OFFICIAL KEY WEST VIEWING PARTY:
Where: The Rum Barrel Quarterdeck, 528 Front Street, Key West, FL 33040
When: Wednesday, October 26, from 7:30 p.m. ET
What: Extended $5 Happy Hour on food and drinks; 10% off the Kill Devil featured on the episode; stay to hear Colorado-based Celtic Pirate-Folk Rock Band Potcheen and Tony Baltimore

The show will also be shown live at Island Dogs and the Green Parrot.

The HDNet series features Lamprey and his drinking buddy Steve McKenna as they travel the U.S. in search of the local drinks and drinking customs that have contributed to the birth, growth and distinction of our great country. Definitely a road trip unlike any other, Lamprey and McKenna travel to cities like Monterey, Miami, Tampa, Cape Cod, Washington, D.C., Seattle, Santa Barbara and Aspen among many others. "Drinking Made Easy" airs Wednesday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET on HDNet.

HDNet networks are available nationally via DIRECTV and Dish Network and locally in Key West on Advanced Cable Communications, AT&T U-verse, Atlantic Broadband and Hotwire Cable Florida. Check your local listings for channels and more information.

Another version of this post also appeared on Rum Barrel's blog

Featured Drink: Caicos Cooler

Here's a quick fact about rum: While there are rum producers in places such as Australia, India, Reunion Island, and elsewhere around the world, most rum production occurs in and around the Caribbean and along the Demerara River in South America.

Caicos Cooler

2 oz. Rum
1 oz. Cointreau
1/2 oz. Vodka
1/2 oz. Banana Liquor
2 oz. Orange Juice

Combine ingredients with ice in cocktail shaker and shake well. Pour into cocktail glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry and a pineapple wedge.

A Tribute to Steve Jobs: The Steve Jobs Drink

RIP, Steve Jobs

This week, the world lost a visionary and a change-maker when Steve Jobs died at 56. We came across this libation tribute to Jobs on Drink Philly and we're honored to share it with you.

The Steve Jobs Drink

4 oz. Apple Cider
2 oz. Whiskey
1/2 oz. Orange Liqueur (Combier preferred)
1/2 oz. Lemon Juice

Shake ingredients with ice, serve neat. Garnish with iPod Shuffle. Serve on an iPad.


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