The Ball & Biscuit

You may have a hard time imagining he-man Ernest Hemingway sipping a modern daiquiri, but this cocktail with a literary twist is both sophisticated and refreshing enough to quench the thirst of a lusty bullfighter.

“This aqua is a quintessential midcentury color. It reminds me of that time when everyone had a whole pink or blue kitchen.”

Photo by Tony Valainis

As every lounge in town rolls out its pre-Prohibition cocktail list—muddling herbs and berries until their wrists go limp—you get the feeling that it’s no shtick here.

Champions were chosen based on the following criteria, with each bar rated on a scale from 1 to 10: visual appeal, creativity/originality, inventiveness of ingredients, and the balance of flavors and taste.

Since the Super Bowl, you may have noticed that some of the city’s wine-and-beer–only restaurants now stash small selections of brown and white liquor bottles behind their bars. A lucky group of restaurateurs had the chance to upgrade their liquor licenses for a steal, and it is making us rather thirsty.