You know what the typical Moscow Mule looks like. Surely, you’ve seen those trendy, copper mugs floating around bars and restaurants, filled to the brim with some combination of vodka, ginger beer and lime. Right now, the Moscow Mule is as hip as a drink can be. It is the crop top or topknot of beverages. It’s graced enough social media pages that it basically sells itself at this point. But Jerry Straub, general manager at Grain in Allentown, says that throwing the typical Moscow Mule on the menu would have been “the easy way out,” which, if you’ve ever been to one of Cristian Duarte and Mo Taylor’s Valley restaurants, you know, is not their style at all.
Bartenders Simon Woolbert and Dave Stanley, who, according to Straub, were “instrumental in creating the entire cocktail list,” designed something much more enigmatic. They knew that existing in Downtown Allentown would require a certain competitiveness when it came to craft cocktails, but it’s also important to differentiate oneself from the herd. Straub says that Grain’s method became taking old-school, traditional cocktails and updating them in a way that Hamilton Street would accept and embrace. So no, this isn’t your typical Moscow Mule.
For one thing, it’s topped with a scoop of sherbet, which, when paired with the citrus vodka, replaces the lime you would normally find in the drink. Ginger beer—a non-alcoholic Moscow Mule staple—packs such a spicy, carbonated punch that Straub says you need something citrusy and fresh to balance out the beverage.
Looking to feast with your drink? According to Straub, the options are endless. Grain designed it that way. Executive Chef Tyler Baxter’s menu of small-plate dishes plays effortlessly with this palate-cleansing cocktail, allowing you to continuously indulge in multiple plates and return to your drink for a refreshing sip.
Straub says the “rules” of food and drink pairing are long gone, and instead, guests are scanning the menu for flavors they want to latch onto. And trust us, you’ll want to latch onto this one.
536 W. Hamilton St., Allentown | 484.221.9465 | grainallentown.com
