Courtesy of Victor Tango
Audio By Carbonatix
We’ve seen some unique (read: bizarre) ingredients behind the bar, but we’ve gotten to the point where we’re just floored by the direction some bartenders are headed. We’re past the simple days of adding bacon to cocktails; we’re now seeing full-tilt weird stuff in Dallas drinks.
Victor Tangos bar manager, Andrew Stofko, is one of the bartenders leading the charge into the abyss of curious cocktail ingredients. If it sounds challenging, he’ll see if he can make it work in a cocktail. His most recent unusual ingredient, squid ink, has been seen in some cocktails in Dallas to give drinks a murky, black color (instead of the dreaded charcoal), but is difficult to integrate thanks to its salty flavor.
Stofko works squid ink into one of his new cocktails, the Seppuku Reale, by balancing out its brininess with bitter elements like Gran Classico and Amaro Montenegro, then brightening the flavor with a touch of lemon. Not to let the saltiness be downplayed, he adds a touch of Furikake Cordial (a cordial paying homage to the slightly salty Japanese condiment) and even tops the cocktail with a piece of seaweed and a sprinkle of furikake.
Victor Tangos, 3001 N. Henderson Ave.
