The Grid, NYC’s Whiskey-Centric Experience

Where Native New York Ingredients are sourced and produced (On-Site) from Upstate to your plate…

The Grid restaurant, inside Great Jones Distilling Co., Manhattan’s first legal whiskey distillery since Prohibition, is dedicated to native New York ingredients. Thoughtful ingredients are sourced from surrounding neighbors and curated into decadent dinner, dessert, and drink menus.

 

A core ingredient: whiskey, crafted from 100% New York State-sourced grain. Three signature whiskeys are distilled, aged (in new charred American Oak barrels), and bottled on-site at Great Jones Distilling Co.

 

Great Jones Straight Bourbon, Great Jones Four Grain Bourbon, and Great Jones Rye whiskies are poured into various cocktails close to the side of proud Brooklyn-based spirits.

 

The drink menu is trio-divided between Tall & Refreshing, Bright & Citrusy, and Updated Classics categories—also implemented in dessert ‘tails. The Broadway Boulevardier boasts Great Jones’ toasted Four Grain Bourbon and St. Agrestis (bright) Inferno Bitter Aperitivo from Greenpoint, while the Black Manhattan mixes Great Jones Rye with “an Amaro by Forthave Spirits” on Flushing Avenue. Sweet vermouth is present in both for stirring up and down.

More importantly, the brown spirits are blended into multiple masterful culinary creations interlocking New York distilling and New American cooking, like a grid.

 

“Bourbon is an American-style whiskey, and our menus are heavily influenced by the American-style bistro cuisine,” mentions Executive Chef Adam Raksin (Benoit, Per Se). “The culinary team has creatively infused our whiskies into the culinary offerings, for example, the Great Jones Bourbon Washed Peggy [is] a triple crème, Camembert-style cheese, washed and aged with Great Jones Straight Bourbon Whiskey.”

 

Menu items as simple as the spent grain butter (made with leftover grain from whiskey production) to accompany the skillet brioche showcases the crossover of distillates and dishes keeping whiskey central to the experience.

 

Seasonal produce and meats move and shift from numerous New York farms and vendors, including Churchtown Dairy and Cowbella Creamery, next to homegrown wines from The Finger Lakes and Long Island’s North Fork because what grows together, goes together.

 

“We focus heavily on cool climate Riesling and Cabernet Franc from the Finger Lakes, and Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon blends from the North Fork of Long Island,” Raksin shares.

 

Pairing wise: Raskin suggests the Long Island Duck Breast (a crispy leg with glazed pear and Great Jones Rye “Penicillin” atop) with a glass of Macari Dos Aguas Bordeaux Blend from the North Fork.

 

“From our food and beverage program, to the spirits themselves, we believe in highlighting the best New York has to offer,” adds Andrew Merinoff, project manager at Great Jones Distilling Co. roughly referring to the red-lit speakeasies (popular during Prohibition days) on the illuminating Manhattan grid-map spanning the back wall of the Art Deco dining room.

 

“The city is more than just streets and buildings. It is a constant moving and shifting concrete jungle adapting to the daily needs of its inhabitants. This is all done by one of the most iconic grid systems in the world, and the [featured] map and name are our tribute to this,” Merinoff concludes.

 

*Great Jones Distilling Co. marks Manhattan’s first and only legal whiskey distillery since Prohibition. The 28,000-square-foot operation occupies a vast NoHo building (built during Prohibition) and features an active whiskey distillery, tasting bar room, subterranean speakeasy, and The Grid restaurant.

 

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Broadway Boulevardier

Ingredients:

• 1½ oz. Great Jones Four Grain Bourbon
• ¾ oz. St. Agrestis Inferno Bitter Aperitivo
• ¾ oz. Sweet Vermouth
• Orange Twist

Preparation: Combine and stir down the listed ingredients. Serve in a double rocks glass with an orange twist garnish.