🍸 A Cocktail Adventure in Slovenia’s Capital 🍸

It’s very possible you’ve never heard of the country of Slovenia. It’s only been a sovereign nation since 1991 – formerly part of Yugoslavia. But more Americans are discovering it because of its history, natural beauty, and wonderful culture. So we’re going to take you to the capital city of Ljubljana to share our #tipsypicks for fantastic cocktails and wine.

First, the city is very walkable, with most of the spots we’ll mention all within walking distance of each other … which is a good thing since most of the historic city center is pedestrian-only! Second, most Slovenians speak English as a second language, especially in major cities. We had no trouble getting around and ordering what we wanted!

Local bartenders in Ljubljana will admit there are only a few “true” cocktail bars in the city. Silk and Fizz is one of them and probably the one that is most like something we find in New York or Miami. They have an upscale vibe and some of the most creative cocktails around, including one that’s a tribute to Elvis (think PB and Banana) with a banana-flavored garnish that completes the package. Their classic cocktails are also delicious. We visited three times during our stay! It’s our #tipsypick!

The other true classic cocktail bar is Kolibri, an intimate spot down a side street from the riverfront with lovely patio seating outside and warm retro spaces inside. We enjoyed both. They have an apothecary-style counter that fits with their creative cocktail ingredients. But they can also do classic cocktails on request!

Slovenia has a vibrant “patio culture” with sidewalk seating at most places. But we found one spot that takes it to another level. Normally we wouldn’t recommend drinking under a bridge … unless it’s at Klub Recnih Kapitanov (KRK). That’s right, this bar is actually under a bridge, with seating right along the Ljubljanica River and plenty of shade because … it’s under a bridge! They have great beer selections and some perfect patio cocktails like spritzes. Definitely worth the stroll along the river to get here!

On the way back toward the city center from our bridge adventure we wandered into a lovely corner bistro bar that turned out to be a wonderful discovery. Ferdinand is very much a locals spot but close enough to the tourist spots with a great food menu, cocktails and wine/beer selection as well as a lively patio space. It’s a very relaxing #tipsypick!

Have you ever been to a bar or restaurant that makes you feel like you’re somewhere else?  That’s the vibe we got at Captain’s Cabin. It’s a basement bar with a pirate/nautical theme straight out of the Caribbean … or maybe our favorite Pirate Tavern back home!  We especially enjoyed the 2-for-1 cocktail special, meaning we had to order two per person, although that could be dangerous in the wrong hands! Great spot for a drink (or two) or a fun night out with friends!

Speaking of places where you feel like you’re somewhere else … Ljubljana does indeed have a medieval castle overlooking the city! How about drinking wine at sunset with such a view? Grajska Vinoteka is a winery, cellar, and wine bar within the walls of the Ljubljana Castle. They host sunset parties with a view straight out of a fairytale! You can choose from glasses or bottles with nibbles and wander the grounds of the castle as well.

You can also ride the funicular cable car to the castle and back for some extra views. After your visit (or on the way up) you can stop at the base of the funicular for a drink at several spots. We chose Daktari after our sunset wine experience. They have a fantastic selection of cocktails, including a solid Old Fashioned, that you can enjoy on the patio or inside. The indoor space reminded us of a library speakeasy with some “old world” charm.

Ljubljana also seems to be a college town, with lots of students out on the streets and squares both day and night. One of four favorite spots we found close to the main university was Tozd. It was a delightful mix of coffee bar and drink stop, perfect for relaxing and/or pulling out your laptop. We really enjoyed the vibe, the service, and an opportunity to try one of the local brews.

There are lots of great restaurants in Ljubljana … in fact a surprising number!  Here are a few we enjoyed: Tabar – tapas and drinks along the river; Julija – a modern dining experience with expansive patio on a busy street; and Pop’s Aperitivo, which was probably the most crowded one we visited, but they had great food and drinks in a lovely courtyard setting. All of these options had great cocktails and natural wines.

Overall, we think Ljubljana and all of Slovenia is worth a look for your next European adventure!

Asheville’s Local Hotspots are Open for Business

 

In September 2024, Asheville North Carolina and the surrounding mountains faced the unthinkable when a hurricane (or what was left of it) brought flooding and devastation to the region. More than a year after Hurricane Helene, local businesses in Asheville want people to know one thing… they’re open for you. Unfortunately, there are some exceptions – locations that were too heavily damaged and will never reopen. But here’s our attempt to highlight those that we found on a recent visit that are open and serving again!

First, we can report that long-time favorite downtown spots like Top of the Monk and Imperial did in fact survive both the pandemic and Hurricane Helene. Top of the Monk in particular is worth the wait for seats, even if you have to stand out in the cold for a bit. Their cocktails are top notch and where else can you pick your own snacks from an apothecary cabinet?

Speaking of apothecary… we’ll go with that theme for our first few highlights. How about a fantastic cocktail bar that also makes its own liquor? Antidote is a relatively new spot in the South Slope area – new construction that looks like it’s right out of the 1920s. They have creative cocktails and a wonderful Black Manhattan on the menu as well as tasty charcuterie and other bites. They’re part of the Chemist Spirits distillery, which offers their own gin, vodka, and whiskey. This is a #tipsypick!

There’s also a place downtown that makes their own natural wines and cider! Botanist and Barrel is a cool little spot where you can get wine and cider by the glass or by the bottle. The staff is excellent at helping you navigate and taste the options… and there are lots! They also have guest bottles for purchase and a cool atmosphere perfect for hanging out. This is an ideal mix of bottle shop and wine bar!

And one more with the theme – Sovereign Remedies is an eclectic cocktail spot with lots of dark wood but also great natural lighting through their huge windows. They have a fantastic Old Fashioned among other cocktails and a nice wine selection.

Changing tracks, you know we love a good speakeasy! The Crow & Quill fits that with an unmarked door down a side street. But it’s worth the hunt because this place always delivers great cocktails and some live music along with a very cool vibe that fits the theme. Their Smoked Old Fashioned is one of the best around and you have to see for yourself how they add the smoke! This place is less of a secret now that they were named one of the best in the country by USA Today. Find out for yourself why this is a #tipsypick! 

We also love great historic buildings that find new life as places for great drinks. That would include The Times Bar and Coffee. This eclectic spot used to be the S&W Cafeteria back in the day – as in 1929. It was also home to the Asheville Times newspaper for many years. Now it’s home to a coffee shop in the morning that turns into a beautiful cocktail spot at night, complete with high ceilings and chandeliers. The drinks are top notch, with their takes on classic cocktails including the Rob Roy, Rusty Nail, Sazerac, Daiquiri, and too many others to mention… even barrel aged and smoked if you prefer!

For creative cocktails in an underground vibe – literally – Farmese Cocktail Lounge is a great spot!  This basement space has lots of great areas to relax for a drink – think wood and leather furniture. Customer service is a winner – the bartender even apologized for running out of “big rock” ice before he made our drinks, which were still very tasty. 

Some others worth mentioning – 5 Walnut Wine Bar is a welcoming space with a great wine list and food options. They often have live music!  Rankin Vault is billed as a cocktail lounge, but they are very popular for their burgers, which we can agree are fantastic! There is even a room that was a bank vault… the door is still intact. And Curate’ has a wonderful food menu with tapas, wine and cocktails. 

Do yourself (and these businesses) a favor and make the trip to Asheville and give them some love!  Stay tuned because next time we’ll share some cool places we found in a couple of neighborhoods just outside of downtown in our next Off the Tipsy Path post.

🍷🍸 NYC: Underground Cocktails and Above Ground Natural Wine 🍷🍸

 

New York City is home to literally hundreds of great bars – dive bars, speakeasies, historic watering holes and world-class cocktail experiences. But there are some you just have to try for yourself.

For example - have you ever considered going dancing in the subway in New York City? If you’re willing to go underground near Times Square, you’ll find Nothing Really Matters. Even if you miss the discreet door on a landing, once you step inside, the disco ball is a dead giveaway that you’re in for a good time. The atmosphere was indeed fun and the drinks were better than we expected! This is a unique stop for any night out near the square.

Not far from the first stop, you’ll find the entrance to what looks like a sex shop. In the 1970’s and 80’s, that wouldn’t be an unusual sight in this neighborhood, as Times Square was full of adult bookstores and theaters. Now, the signage would appear out of place if you didn’t know that this one leads to The Woo Woo, a fun underground speakeasy behind the faux sex shop. Clutch your pearls and embrace the kitsch and you’ll be rewarded with great and creative cocktails and a fantastic experience. In fact, we had one of the best smoked old fashioneds of the entire trip here. Enjoy the visuals, it’s a #tipsypick!

While we’re at it, we should also recall our first visit to an underground subway speakeasy … La Noxe is worthy of another mention in this category from a previous visit. This former brothel turned cocktail spot is still going strong!

Now let’s go back above ground for a few #tipsypicks we recommend on the Lower East Side and the Village!

Bar Veloce (pronounced velo-chay in Italian) is a neighborhood cocktail bar that we think is hidden in plain sight. That’s maybe because we haven’t noticed it until now! But it will definitely be one we’ll return to. It’s the kind of place you can enjoy an afternoon cocktail or glass of wine (which we did) and escape the madness that is NYC. We hear it gets quite lively at night though! We’ll be sure to let you know. (We should note that there are several locations, all locally owned, but we visited the one in the Bowery.)

Another neighborhood spot nearby with a well-earned reputation is Mother’s Ruin. Yes, it’s named after the historic nickname for gin during prohibition, so there are gin drinks aplenty. During the day it’s a low-key spot for great drinks and food including brunch, but at night it can be a bustling hot spot, mostly for locals. We will visit this one again as well!

Since we’re on the Lower East side, it’s no secret that we are enjoying exploring the world of natural wines. Those are varieties made without preservatives and other additives. And there are three fantastic natural wine spots all within a few blocks of each other on the LES. All of these were recommended by the folks at our local natural wine bar in Knoxville.

Somm Time is maybe the most intimate of the wine bars but they make up for it with a giant reputation for having some of the best food to go with their selection of wines by the glass and bottle as well as pairings. They also have quite a selection of orange or amber wines, also known as “skin contact” wines.

Which brings us to another wine bar in the same LES neighborhood… Skin Contact. That’s right, they embrace the selections of wine that are left to soak with the grape skins. They opened in 2020 and weathered the pandemic by focusing on natural wines and small producers, mostly from Europe, that you don’t find elsewhere. This is a great stop for wine lovers!

And finally, yet another fantastic natural wine bar in the LES … The Ten Bells. They have a lovely space that includes garage doors which they open to enjoy the fresh air, and if you think oysters go well with wine, this is your spot!  They also have a great happy hour and tapas to pair with your wine. They were among the first in the city to embrace natural wine back in 2008 and they’re still going strong!

Can we ever get enough of NYC? What are your favorite spots?

🍷 No Whining About the Wine Bars in St. Pete 🍷

If you haven’t caught up with us on our blog, you might not realize we’re pretty fond of the cocktail scene in St. Petersburg, Florida. Now we’re getting up to speed on the vibrant wine scene! 

First, we’ve shared before in previous posts about a couple of our favorite #tipsypicks – Bar Chinchilla and Dracula’s Legacy. These are our go-to spots every time we’re in town. We’ve also had a lovely dinner and some wine at Sauvignon previously. So, you can read more about those here.

Recently, thanks to our friends at Zero/Zero in Knoxville, we’ve started exploring the world of natural wines. That is wine made without pesticides or additives. And they recommended one of our new favorite stops in St. Pete – Cellarmasters. It’s almost like a speakeasy because it’s tucked behind a wine bottle shop and can be hard to miss if you don’t see it’s there. But you’ll be glad you found it! The bartenders are all friendly and knowledgeable! They call it “The dive bar wine bar.” They will take the time to find out what you like and recommend something just for you. There are lots of great spaces to hang out or chill for a date night. This one is definitely on our regular list now!

Wine tastings and wine flights are great ways to figure out your wine palate. Now there’s a spot in downtown St. Pete just for that! It’s appropriately named Try Wine Company. You have the option of purchasing curated flights of various wines or pouring your own samples from dozens of machines around the shop. We chose the curated route along with some fantastic charcuterie specific to the flights. The wines came in test tubes, which was a nice touch. We very much enjoyed this experience!

What could make a glass of wine even better? Maybe enjoying it with a good book! You can do both at Book & Bottle. We discovered this little shop a few years ago but never took the time to enjoy it until recently. It’s a combination wine store, bar, and bookstore! They have a wide selection of wines by the bottle or glass that you can enjoy with a book you can purchase from the shelf in the same space. When we visited, there were lots of people sitting at the bar and at most of the tables, many of whom had… you guessed it… a book in hand. This is a great place to spend a few quiet hours with friends or just by yourself reading.

Our next stop is one that we’ve walked past a dozen times but either couldn’t get in or didn’t try. But we’re glad we did this time! Bacchus is appropriately named for the Roman god of wine and revelry. We found a bit of both! Bacchus reminded us most of a European market where you can get wine by the glass or bottle and fresh deli meats, cheeses, and produce. There are tables outside on the sidewalk as well as room inside. Jazz music in both places add to the ambiance. It’s ideally located close to the Pier and Beach Drive!

So, if wine is your thing, there are plenty of options in St. Pete! In fact, we have a couple more on the list for next time. If you’ve been to The Study or Lolita’s Wine Market … let us know what you think, and we’ll check them out!

#tipsypick for this time (if we have to pick one) - Cellarmasters