Episode 075

Some of the topics we cover in this really fun conversation with Hakim include:

• How to think about the difference between bartenders, mixologists, and beverage directors, and how Hakim’s curiosity and insatiable imagination propelled him into the role of “Beverage Director” at Nocturne.
• The roles that bar design, vision, and leadership all play in the execution and ultimate success or failure of a cocktail menu.
• How Hakim started this menu with a single, crucial cocktail that then led him around the world and even permeated his dreams as the menu took shape.
• The relationship between food and drinks on a cocktail menu and how to go about pairing them with balance and delight.
• How to think about guests as renewable resources, capitalizing on relationships, rather than volume and high profit margins.
• Which member of the Expendables to grab a drink with in London
• And much, much more.

Nocturne Bar is a sister establishment to another bar across the river in Alexandria, VA called Captain Gregory’s. Both bars are “speakeasy-style,” and both are hidden on the premises of donut shops in a local chain called “Sugar Shack.”

Nocturne is open Wednesday-Saturday 6pm-Midnight. To make a reservation at Nocturne, visit their reservations page. You can find Hakim on social media @teamhh_ and Nocturne @nocturnebardc.