Author Archives: Payman Bahmani


October 21, 2009

Happy Hour: Flying Scotchman Cocktail

by Payman Bahmani

Today’s Happy Hour is the last stop on the Scotch Express. If this is your first time checking in or haven’t been around in a while, we’ve been in full-Scotch mode the last several weeks, sharing numerous classic-yet-unsung Scotch cocktails (by classic I mean recipes that are at least 80 years old). This week’s cocktail […]

October 14, 2009

Happy Hour: “Hoots Mon” Cocktail

by Payman Bahmani

It’s Happy Hour once again, and classic Scotch cocktails are in effect as they have been over the past few weeks. Why have I been focusing so much on Scotch lately you ask? Well, firstly, because I enjoy the spirit a whole lot. Besides that, I realized reason alone could not dissuade the purists who […]

October 7, 2009

Happy Hour: Scotch Cocktails With Rachel Maddow (NYC)

by Payman Bahmani

Last week I had the distinct honor of being one of five NYC mixologists chosen by Gothamist for a special event involving three of my favorite entities: Scotch, cocktails, and Rachel Maddow. The event was held in the private Gonzo Room (named after the late great Hunter S. Thompson) of Aspen in the Flatiron, and […]

September 30, 2009

Happy Hour: Cameron’s Kick Cocktail

by Payman Bahmani

“I love scotch. Scotchy, scotch, scotch. Here it goes down, down into my belly…”-Ron Burgundy I couldn’t agree more, which is why last week I declared that for the coming month or so I’m dedicating the column to classic Scotch cocktails. Not only is Scotch underused by mixologists, it’s also underrated as a cocktail component–when […]

September 23, 2009

Happy Hour: Bobby Burns Cocktail

by Payman Bahmani

Like an overly anxious 300 pound stripper, Fall this year seems to have fallen abruptly on our lap and we are powerless to do anything about it. While there is normally a slow and smooth transition between seasons in New York, summer this year seemed like a mere placeholder for the season to follow. But […]

September 16, 2009

Happy Hour: El Grito

by Payman Bahmani

Today is Mexican Independence Day folks! It’s been too crazy of a day for me, and everything including Happy Hour’s been behind schedule, so I’m keeping today’s post short and to the point. Mexican Independence Day, also known as El Grito de Dolores, is often incorrectly confused with Cinco de Mayo, which is actually a […]

September 9, 2009

Happy Hour: Parkway Punch

by Payman Bahmani

Another Labor Day has come and gone. Although summer doesn’t technically end until sometime around mid-September, many generally regard Labor Day as the finish line. This is especially true in New York, where the holiday is regarded as seriously as the expiration date on a carton of milk–here, the prep set make their final Hamptons […]

September 2, 2009

Happy Hour: Leap Frog

by Payman Bahmani

Last week, while reminiscing about the various fun summer activities I engaged in as a child, I remembered a game some kids liked to play which I was not so fond of–Leap Frog. I remember lots of kids getting a huge thrill from the game, but never me. Frankly, the idea of kneeling down and […]

August 26, 2009

Happy Hour: Endless Summer

by Payman Bahmani

Since childhood, the end of summer has always made me a little sad. I grew up in Los Angeles, so it wasn’t so much about the weather since the weather wouldn’t shift much after Labor Day the way it does here in New York. Rather, it was about the change of the feeling in the […]

August 19, 2009

Happy Hour: The Painkiller

by Payman Bahmani

*This post was updated on June 16, 2011, as it relates to Pusser’s vs. Painkiller. I’ve never been a big believer in alternative medicine. While there are centuries-old practices like acupuncture–and even relatively new ones like chiropracty–that seem to deliver on what they promise, I can’t really get down with all the new-age therapies that […]