"Who enters here leaves care behind,
leaves sorrow behind, leaves petty
envies and jealousies behind."
In 1882 a society was born of journalists and imbibers who met monthly to eat and drink 'til they sang and talk until they were blue in the face. This select group privy to these "meetings" continued until the 1920's, but the spirit of this comradeship lives on. This is the Clover Club.
As many city folk head out to the Hamptons for weekend getaways in the summer, my trips are the opposite. On a warm Saturday afternoon I headed to Brooklyn to see a friend I had met at school in London, a friend whom I bonded with over eating, drinking and smoking at a local pub almost daily. Nantaara is an Oakie who moved to the city shortly after we returned from our studies abroad, and a friend that I always pick up with right where we left off. She now lives on the border of Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill in Brooklyn, an area I have previously never visited. The weather was perfect for walking and the districts both so beautiful, I forgot I was just visiting. Then a little sad of course when I remembered.
Along with Nantaara's friend Parker, we made a few stops along the way, but ended our night at the Clover Club to enjoy cocktails al fresco. The menu is what first caught my eye. Savory bites and bar snacks filled two narrow pages, while cocktails and other libations commandeered the remaining ten pages. An introduction to the Clover Club provided guests with some insight to the menu and history of the place, and beverages were divided into various categories, which in turn offered their own mini intros. Sections include Sours & Daisies, 21st Century Tiki, Royales, Punches, Brooklyn Tea Party, Collins & Fizzes, Rites of Spring, Cocktails, and Dave's Forgotten Classics. In a list such as this, it is hard to choose one cocktail and hope its the right one. So naturally, we each chose a different drink and rotated.
I began in the Collins & Fizzes section with the Willow's Fizz (12). Gin is my go-to, as I am inherently an old Englishman, and this cocktail included my favored liquor with lavender syrup, grapefruit juice, lime juice and soda. It was a delicious and refreshing cocktail, perfect for summer evenings.
My friends went with the Rites of Spring, ordering the Green Giant with Old Tom gin, lemon, sugar snap peas, tarragon and dry vermouth (12) and The Machinist with tequila, fine sherry, celery juice, lemon juice, celery shrub, Suze, and a pinch of salt and pepper (12). Of the two, the Green Giant was my favorite with the sugar snap peas adding a crunchy touch and air of spring. I enjoyed it so much that I ended up having that as my second cocktail. Boring? Maybe. Did I care? Certainly not.
We also sipped on the Sancho's Sour with Anejo tequila, lime, pineapple, jalapeno syrup, egg white and sage (12) from Sours & Daisies and another Collins & Fizzes option, the Spicy Pete with scotch, Velvet Falernum, ginger beer, lemon juice, orange juice and agave syrup (13). All equally delicious.
When in the area, the Clover Club is the place to be. You will find yourself surrounded by fellows with similar interests, savoring small plates, sipping cleverly named cocktails, and chatting into the early hours of the morning about everything and nothing. Cheers!
"While we live we live in clover;
When we die we die all over!"
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