Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/960891
april 2018 / the tasting panel / 81 W hen it comes to menu presentation, most bars choose to print their selection on a sheet of paper and call it a day. Within some facets of the industry, however, it's becoming increasingly clear that an artful drink list can be as integral to a guest's experience as the drinks themselves. From pop-up and puzzle books to original graphic novels (as seen at New York's The Dead Rabbit) and collectible sticker albums (London's Callooh Callay), an innovative design can be well worth the investment when it comes to engaging your guests and expressing your brand—provided you take a page, literally, from some success stories. In San Francisco, craft cocktail bar Trick Dog ventured onto the unconventional menu scene with its now-legendary Pantone fan deck, which showcased each cocktail on a matching color swatch. Since then, partners Josh Harris and Morgan Schick have gone on to, in Harris' words, "three-dimensionalize" the themes of their lists by taking an elaborate yet holistic approach to their development. More recently, a menu in the form of a trifold tourist map was accompanied by rectangular coasters doubling as postcards ("You could write on the back, and we'd pay for the postage and mail them," Harris says). Granted, Schick says, "each idea presents its own set of problems." Theft of the Pantone menus was so rampant that Trick Dog ensured its next release—a collection of old 45s— would be difficult to steal. It turns out it was also hard to read: The drink descriptions on the records' labels replicated the original text so closely that "people couldn't find them," Schick says with a laugh, adding that the situation ultimately served to remind them that "form cannot trump function." Long-term viability has emerged as another concern as they launch new concepts. "We've done menus that cost a buck and menus that cost $25–$30 a unit," notes Harris. "You need to think about how easily you can redo them. A map you can run off in a day" at little cost; a coffee table–worthy tome, not so much. Kevin Beary faces a similar dilemma in his role as Beverage Director of Chicago tiki bar Three Dots and a Dash. As part of the Lettuce Entertain You restaurant group, he concedes they're "lucky to have the resources at our disposal"—including an in-house design department—to create vintage-inspired lists replete with sumptuous pho- tographs and charming illustrations. But even so, he says, "you've really got to be ahead of the game. Changing two cocktails might cost you $500 [in reprints], so sometimes we use Photoshop, or I'll try to make a new cocktail that looks just like the old one." The visuals impact the ordering process regardless: "Guests are basing their decisions not just on the description but the presentation—'I really like the ingredients in this one, but I like the way that one looks,'" Beary says. Meanwhile, at Emmerson in Boulder, Colorado, every cocktail in Bar Manager Nancy Kwon's booklet occupies its own glossy page with eye-popping cover art from old issues of sci-fi comic Heavy Metal. A QR code leads guests to "the song that got me in the mood" for the recipe, Kwon says, which aims to enhance their visit and encourage repeat busi- ness. "People sitting alone at the bar really love it; it gives them something to do," she adds. "They'll ask to take a copy home, then come back and say, 'OK, I love this song. Now I have to try the drink.'" For her next menu creation, Kwon is tinkering with the idea of a tarot card deck. The bottom line of menu innovation, Beary says, is that while "you can't underestimate the commitment" involved in an attention-grabbing design, he "wouldn't discourage anybody" from trying out the trend. "At the end of the day, I think you should put as much effort into your drink presen- tation on paper as you do in the glass," he adds. IMAGE COURTESY OF LETTUCE ENTERTAIN YOU ENTERPRISES The visually-engaging menus at Chicago's Three Dots and a Dash uphold a long-held tradition: "Tiki bars were doing big, elaborate menus as early as the 1950s," Beverage Director Kevin Beary says. Trick Dog's children's book–themed menu— titled "What Rhymes With Trick Dog?"—required some finesse when it came to brainstorming ideas: "We couldn't have all these drinks named Brick Fog," Partner Morgan Schick says with a laugh. IMAGE COURTESY OF TRICK DOG