Drink Your Greens: 12 Must-Try Veggie Cocktails
Eat your veggies and drink them too—that’s the newest trend behind the bar at many of NYC’s hottest restaurants and cocktail dens. We’re not just talking Bloody Marys, either. From antioxidant-rich kale to vitamin-packed root veggies—not to mention add-ins like turmeric and CBD—more and more superfoods are making it into the martini glass.
Mike Di Tota, bar manager at the Bonnie in Astoria, says the healthier happy hour is the result of the growing relationship between kitchen and bar. “Until a few years ago, the bar and the kitchen were seen to be two different entities. Now, chefs are influencing bartenders,” he explains. And if drink menus are any indication, mixologists welcome the opportunity to get creative. “As a bartender, you get bored using just fruit.” We’ll drink a nutrient-dense cocktail to that.
OG Celery at Existing Conditions
Opened by mixology vets Dave Arnold (Booker and Dax), Don Lee (PDT) and Greg Boehm (Cocktail Kingdom), this West Village cocktail den incorporates cutting-edge science into its drink-making process. The OG Celery, for example, uses liquid nitrogen to freeze the leaves. They’re then muddled into a powder that’s shaken with gin, parsley, orange syrup and lime to play up celery’s robustly vegetal notes.
35 W. Eighth St.; exconditions.com
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The Beet at Olmsted
Known for dishes like a carrot crepe and kale crab rangoon, chef Greg Baxtrom extends his vegetable-forward cooking to Olmsted’s cocktail menu as well. In the Beet, a mix of gin, preserved lemon, maraschino and juniper add a refreshingly tart kick to the earthy flavor of its namesake ingredient.
659 Vanderbilt Ave., Brooklyn; olmstednyc.com
Jade Fizz at Peachy’s
This underground bar from the Chinese Tuxedo team is all about balancing the healthy and not-so-healthy in its superfood-packed tipples. The Jade Fizz combines Pisco El Gobernador with moringa powder, drops of CBD, bok choy greens and egg whites into a tall foamy, green concoction.
5 Doyers St.; peachys.nyc
Victory Garden at The Bonnie
Leafy arugula becomes the green-juice base for bartender Mike Di Tota’s Victory Garden. Celery bitters further accentuate the verdant flavor, while lime, orange blossom water and grapefruit liqueur help enliven the Teeling Whiskey drink.
29-12 23rd Ave., Queens; thebonnie.com
Season of the Witch at Sunday in Brooklyn
Head bartender Brian Evan’s take on a boozy root beer float uses an actual root: carrot. He starts with fresh juice and sarsaparilla-infused simple syrup and adds aged aquavit, egg white, soda, smoked bitters and yet another ingredient that originates from a vegetable: Giffard Rhubarbe Liqueur.
348 Wythe Ave., Brooklyn; sundayinbrooklyn.com
Garden Variety at The Wild Son
The laid-back, health-conscious café isn’t just piling greens into grain bowls, it’s also incorporating ginger-infused kale juice into this salt-rimmed cocktail. The drink is brightened up with lime and agave, and gets its booziness from blanco tequila.
53 Little W. 12th St.; thewildsonnyc.com
R&R at Ferris
This is no ordinary pink drink. Jenny Lakin—formerly the bar manager at Dirty French and Santina—gives the R&R its stunning rosy hue from freshly pressed radish juice. Aquavit and raspberry eau-de-vie take it from wholesome to imbibe-able, and the coupe is garnished with a “flower” constructed from thinly sliced radishes.
44 W. 29th St.; ferrisnyc.com
Pepino Puntaverde at Oxomoco
The ever-refreshing pairing of cucumber (yes, we know it’s technically a fruit) and lime are the foundation for this Greenhook gin cocktail kicked up with Ancho Reyes Verde, a spicy, smoky chili liqueur. Sip one alongside Oxomoco’s beet “chorizo” tacos and trust us, you won’t miss meat at all.
128 Greenpoint Ave., Brooklyn; oxomoconyc.com
Apple and Fennel Cobbler at Saxon & Parole
The classic salad coupling of apple and fennel is the inspiration behind head bartender Maxime Belfand’s cobbler with a twist. Not only does Belfand infuse Lo-Fi wine with fennel seeds, he also pours fennel juice and Calvados apple brandy into the glass with the traditional cobbler spirit—sherry—and tops it all with fresh pieces of the featured produce.
316 Bowery; saxonandparole.com
Vida Verde at Little Park
Another fruit masquerading as a vegetable, avocado lends a creamy consistency to the mezcal-based Vida Verde. Tomatillo adds a bright citrus tartness, while fresh jalapeño and Ancho Verde liqueur spice things up.
85 W. Broadway; littlepark.com
Tapatío at Gibson + Luce
Following the opening of Henry by chef JJ Johnson, the Life Hotel has also revamped the bar program at Gibson + Luce, tapping mixologist Luis Hernandez to create a new list of drinks, many of which source ingredients from the kitchen. The Tapatío showcases fresh corn (botanically a fruit but thought of as a veggie) that’s pressed into a milk and blended with raspberries. To amp up the dessert-like sweetness, Hernandez uses a mix of Cazadores tequila and bourbon, plus an egg white to make it extra creamy.
19 W. 31st St.; lifehotel.com
Health Kick at Tiny’s & The Bar Upstairs
Inspired by the stuff you find at juice bars, bartender Zach Cramer created this better-for-you daiquiri, imbued with Botran blanca rum, Prata Cachaca, lime and two ingredients that give it the orange color: carrot juice and house-made turmeric agave. It’s finished with a sprig of basil to resemble a leafy carrot top.
135 W. Broadway; tinysnyc.com
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