Meet the Mixologist: Nikki McCutcheon

Nikki McCutcheon is vice president of beverage for New York-based Tao Group Hospitality, which includes the TAO, Hakkasan, Omnia, Lavo and Marquee brands, as well as several other concepts.

What was your first job in the beverage or hospitality industry?

I was an F&B manager at the Dream Downtown Hotel in New York for the restaurant Bodega Negra. The first beverage task I was given was counting a weekly inventory of the entire hotel consisting of a restaurant, two nightclubs, a lobby bar, pool deck and 300 room minibars. It was quite the learning experience, but ultimately landed me the assistant beverage director role.

What is your favorite spirit to work with at the moment?

I’ve really been gravitating towards vermouths and amaros lately. The category as a whole provides such a range, from bright, herbal, citrus, to rich, unctuous, bitter qualities making it the go-to grab when balancing out a cocktail that seems to be missing a little something.

Cathédrale, which opened at the Moxy East Village in New York in 2019, has a 400-plus-bottle list; what are some of the highlights and popular pours?

We have made our niche “affordable Bordeaux’s with age.” We pride ourselves on finding selections from vendors, importers, and auctions to make sure we keep that category of the menu full and balanced. Our goal is to give guests at Cathedrale the opportunity to revisit coveted favorites or discover something new, all at an accessible price point that keeps them coming back to see what we’ve added next.

Tell us about Cathédrale’s Magnum Mondays program.

Magnum Mondays builds on our “affordable Bordeauxs with age” identity, using a similar strategy to our bottle list. We scour the wine-buying world to find the most interesting and compelling Bordeaux from 2016 and earlier, specifically in large formats, and give our guests the opportunity to enjoy them by the glass, one night a week only!

To further expand the offering and elevate the guest experience, we’ve invested in a large cradle decanter, allowing us to showcase even larger formats like 3 liter, 9 liter and beyond when available. These pours create an incredible tableside moment for our guests and make the experience feel as exclusive as the wines themselves.

What are some of the popular cocktails on the menu currently?

Our most popular cocktails currently are a few that have been with us since inception in 2019. Our Barcelonette and San Simon cocktails, both happen to be agave based, but couldn’t be more different in flavor profile.

While the Barcelonette plays on the herbaceous refreshing nature of the agave plant, adding notes of aloe, cucumber and winter melon; the San Simon dials up the flavor with hibiscus and habernero. I think with tequila being such a hot seller the past five years, these cocktails jump off the page, but once our guests get hooked, they’re an easy choice to reorder time and time again.

What’s your own current go-to cocktail or beverage?

I like to joke that I have the drinking preference of a 65-year-old lady. It sounds like a mouthful, and I often preface this when I order it at bars and restaurants, but it really couldn’t be more simple: A Tanqueray and water, on the rocks, in a wine glass, with a lemon.

I’d say that’s my tried-and-true order, however, lately I’ve really been enjoying White Negronis, with Rockeys Botanical liqueur and Luxardo Bitter Bianco, or a chilled glass of Beaujolais.

Would you share the recipe for one of the most popular cocktails at Cathédrale, or one of your favorite drink recipes?

Here’s one for the Barcelonette.

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