A Burlington bar that endured a renovation and a shutdown elongated by the COVID-19 pandemic has finally reopened.
What is the place?
A fixture on St. Paul Street, the bar known as Drink went on hiatus last year before reopening Aug. 13. Drink serves drinks, naturally, with an emphasis on cocktails.
If Matthew Doyle, head bartending and marketing manager at Drink, is mulling an after-work drink, he’s likely to opt for an old fashioned. Drink offers $6 mojito specials every day. The Drink crew has even crafted its own eponymous beverage that’s a variation of a French 75 cocktail modified with Smugglers’ Notch vodka, fresh lemon juice, strawberry syrup, St. Germain liqueur and prosecco.
“It’s our bestseller,” Doyle said.
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Drink serves beer on tap and in cans or bottles, wine and small plates of food including French fries, onion rings, chicken tenders, Buffalo chicken dip, spinach and artichoke dip and chips and salsa. Seating inside holds 53 customers — half of its non-pandemic capacity — while another half-dozen can gather at two wine-barrel tables out front, across from City Hall Park.
What’s the story behind it?
When Drink shut down last fall, expectations were that the bar would reopen before the holidays.
“It’s an old building,” Doyle said, “so we had a couple of hiccups.” Employees did much of the work themselves.
“Nothing’s level,” Doyle said, so ensuring tables weren’t lopsided presented a challenge. Employees grappled with the fine art of cutting floor tile and finishing woodwork before the establishment was presentable again.
“It came out great,” Doyle said
The previous incarnation of Drink was a relaxing place where friends could gather after work for an adult beverage and a board game. The games are gone for now — sharing dice or cards isn’t so popular during a pandemic — and the space has taken on the casual elegance of the Jazz Age, with classic crooners singing on the sound system and Art Deco-ish lights suspended over the nearly 45-foot-long black-granite bar and black-and-white-tiled floor
“It’s very ‘Great Gatsby’-ish,” Doyle said — but still approachable.
“We don’t want it to be intimidating,” Doyle said. “This isn’t the Ritz.”
What’s it like reopening in a pandemic?
The bar was ready to reopen soon after COVID-19 arrived in March, but the Drink crew waited until the pandemic in Vermont seemed reasonably contained before deciding to reopen. Drink is striving to make it as safe as possible. Doyle on a recent evening checked the temperatures of patrons approaching the front door. A large dispenser of hand sanitizer sits on a table near the entrance.
“Showing that you’re taking these extra steps makes the customers feel more comfortable,” Doyle said.
Location and information
Drink, 135 St. Paul St., Burlington. 4-11 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. (802) 860-9463, www.drinkbarvermont.com
Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@freepressmedia.com. Follow Brent on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/BrentHallenbeck.
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