Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/807384
april 2017 / the tasting panel / 109 N atasha David was born in Germany to musician parents with a hectic, globe-trotting itinerary. At 18, she moved to New York City to attend New York University. While a freshmen, she got her first restaurant job—bartending in an East Village Irish pub. By her senior year at NYU, she was assistant general man- ager at the Corner Shop Café. During this time she was offered an opening bartending position at Woodson & Ford. The cocktail bug took hold. From there David has worked behind countless bars, including Danny Meyer's Maialino, Keith McNally's Pulinos, Maison Premiere, Mayahuel and Donna. She opened Nitecap, where she is a co-owner, in 2014 with partners David Kaplan and Alex Day. In addition to bartending, David runs bar consult- ing company You and Me Cocktails with her partner Jeremy Oertel. Some of their projects include the Soho Grand Hotel, The Saguaro Hotel Palm Springs, The Roxy Hotel, Paul's Baby Grand, Dear Bushwick and Pravda. Allen Katz: What has been the most challenging aspect of run- ning your own bar? Natasha David: Well, I'd like to preface this with making sure everyone knows that I love my job. But yes, it comes with its challenges. I'd say my biggest complaint is that I never have a "day off." Something either breaks, someone is sick and can't work, a delivery gets messed up and so on. Nitecap is a tiny little business, so I wear a lot of hats and deal with it all. What has been the most surprising aspect of running your own bar? (Laughing) How often a dishwasher can stop working and how many leaks one room can have! In an era when new bars open constantly, how have you been able to retain staff? Do you implement any regular trainings for your team? We've been super lucky with a very low staff turnover. I believe having a happy staff is the number one most important ingredient to having a successful busi- ness. It's important to me that we are a family and that they have voice and look forward to coming to work every day. What is the average number of shifts your staff works per week? Three. How often do you update or change your drinks menu? We do two menus a year: one spring/ summer and one fall/winter. Our menu is quite extensive and has a different theme each time, so the menu devel- opment process is long—about five months per menu. I work with an incredible illustrator, Rotem Raffe, who totally gets my vision of the bar. Her menu design is incredible. And then the whole bar staff—and by that, I mean our huge bar staff of four bar- tenders and me—collaborates on the cocktails. The process is regimented and follows set guidelines and rules, but within those rules is a lot of creative freedom. Is the menu under constant/regu- lar evaluation? While we can't change the menu once it's been launched as we only do one printing, we are definitely constantly evaluating what we need to do better next time, so that we can make sure to make more and more people happy. How have you found manag- ing being a new parent (!) and working late hours? Have there been any shifts in your scheduling? Moving inventory, staff meetings or other vital tasks to different times of day? Well, it hasn't been easy—it's a balanc- ing act—but I'm lucky in that I can make my own schedule. I've always wanted children; in fact, it has been my one constant desire in life. A huge part of why I wanted to own my own bar was so that I could have children. Being my own boss is a big luxury. My husband is also in the industry, so we understand each other's schedules. I bring my son to work with me most days, while I am there before the bar opens doing the day-to-day manage- ment tasks. On days I really need to focus, my husband will take him, maybe drop him off for a little while, so that I can breastfeed him. There's a lot of passing baby between mom and dad! Nighttime is a little trickier. I've very consciously decided to not take any bartending shifts at the moment and prefer to take on floor manager shifts instead. I'm breast- feeding, so I'm on a pretty rigorous pumping schedule when I'm away from him. Working a ten hour shift behind the bar is unrealistic for me right now, not to mention unfair to the rest of the team as I would need to leave the bar at least twice and pump for 30 minutes at a time. But I need to give major props to my very patient staff—my son comes to staff meetings, menu tastings, and manager meetings. They all take turns holding him, entertaining him. It's really wonderful. If you were not a bartender/bar owner, what would you be doing? I'd be a full-time stay at home mommy. What is your deathbed/final/favor- ite cocktail? A Margarita on the rocks with salt. A lot of salt. Space Oddity by Natasha David ◗ 1 oz. Perry's Tot Gin ◗ 1 oz. lemon-lime cordial ◗ ¾ oz. Lustau Fino Sherry ◗ ½ oz. Ramazzotti Amaro ◗ 1 dash house orange bitters Shake and strain into a Highball glass. Top with tonic and garnish with a lime.