PDT…OK, Just a Little Bit

 

Please Don’t Tell.  Actually I feel pretty good about giving this update.  I am in Hong Kong and am having a glorious time (no thanks to the weather, which is incredibly hot and sticky).  I’ve been running around the city revisiting places and restaurants that I experienced about a year ago.  I’ve met up with old friends, eaten a few egg custards and have already spent too much money on flavored milks.  It’s one of my indulgences in Asia.  But I’ve also had the lovely coincidence of running into the mixologist, Jim Meehan, of PDT.

Jim and I have a mini history.  Basically I volunteer for many of New York’s charity events that highlight chefs and mixologists.  I usually, somewhere halfway into the event, steal away from my post and make my way to the cocktails in hopes that the second half of the event will feel a bit smoother.  Jim is always there to aid in my stealth mission, delicious drink at the ready.  We’ve been casual acquaintances for  years and I’ve enjoyed his work at Gramercy Tavern, Pegu Club, and most recently PDT.

So I’m bringing Jim into the story because of random encounters, and we had one just the other day.  As I was walking down the aisle of the airplane, searching out my seat that turned out to be a middle and didn’t recline, I saw the smiling face of Jim.  Turns out he was heading to Hong Kong too!  Oh the chances of life.  He, Eben Freeman (previously of Tailor) and Linden Pride (from Spice Temple and Rockpool Bar and Grill in Sydney) are doing a master mixology event at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental on Hong Kong Island.  

So now I’m in Hong Kong and am going to help with the event that features solid (literally) cocktails, an eight course dinner by Michelin 2-star chef with drink pairings, and a brown spirits evening with historic recipes from the 1880s-1930s.  I love working events (and when I say working, I more mean experiencing) because of the exposure to concepts, ideas and flavors.  I am so thrilled to be hear at the same time as these three incredibly talented bartenders that I couldn’t not tell.  I had to…just a little bit.