Bar openings and events in NYC

Rome is home to an '80s-style underground lounge just a jaunt away from the famed Colosseum. A playground of mixologist Patrick Pistolesi, Drink Kong dabbles in Japanese futurism set to a neon-lit interior. Since its inception in 2018, the bar has earned various awards and has consistently ranked on The World's 50 Best Bars list. This month, the bar is catching a flight over to New York for one night only.   On March 25, the Italian bar will take over Flatiron's massive 24,000-square-foot dual restaurant, Aqua. The first bar to kick off Aqua’s guest shift series, four of Drink Kong's classics will be shaken, stirred and poured all night long. In partnership with Weber Ranch Vodka, Aqua and Drink Kong have also created a specialty cocktail, Aqua Kong Reverb (vodka, rhubarb honey and liquor, lemon juice, and pink peppercorn tincture). The cocktail will be available during the evening and will be on menu for a limited time. Tickets are $20 and include one drink. Purchase yours here. 

As reported last week month, one of Brooklyn’s best cocktail bars, Leyenda, is closing its doors. While there are still talks of the bar coming back in some form or fashion, the original cocktail bar will be closing its doors on March 28. But that's not to say they won't be leaving without a bang.  In its last few weeks of business, Leyenda is inviting some of its favorite talent back for Legends of Leyenda. Leading up to the final day, familiar faces from Leyenda's 10-year run will be back behind the bar once again for one night only. So come raise a glass and say "farewell" to one of Brooklyn's finest. Legends of Leyenda calendar February 10: Ryan Liloia February 18: Nik Sparks February 25: Alisha Neverson March 3: Jesse Harris and Garret Borgeson March 11: Leanne Favre March 19: Ivy Mix March 28: Final Day

There are a lot of cocktail-making classes in New York, but Manhattan’s first legal distillery to open since Prohibition, Great Jones, does it just right. Set within its underground speakeasy, its two-hour class, The Shake Up, taught me how to make two actually-delicious cocktails with its smooth whiskey—but that’s not all. To start the class, we were whisked into the distillery where we had a quick tour and learned about the distilling process and the different kinds of whisky that are made on site—helping set the scene for the imbibing we were about to do below.  Once downstairs, we were immediately greeted with a Great Jones Straight Bourbon Smoked Old Fashioned (a welcome cocktail) and a solid charcuterie board (smoked almonds, marinated olives, dark chocolate coins, Jasper Hills Farm Alpha Tolman cheese, Jasper Hills Farms Moses, American Prosciutto and housemade sourdough crackers) at each table. To my surprise, we did a tasting of a few of the Great Jones Straight Bourbons, which already had me wondering how I’d get through making two cocktails. Our mixologist Ren took us step-by-step on how to make a Boulevardier and a Paper Plane, giving us tips and tricks along the way, including how to use (and open) a cocktail shaker and how to smoke one. The welcoming and cozy atmosphere helped me to relax and just learn, too, rather than being anxious about not being the best mixologist. I definitely made a few spills along the way, but I learned so much about why whiskey...