Restaurant Review: Gin & Juice
Tomorrow is Turkey Day, and this year’s version is undoubtedly different than any we have experienced before in Chicago. Thanks to the pandemic, traditional large Thanksgiving gatherings aren’t recommended this year to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
So, what is a Chicagoan to do during a Thanksgiving that kind of feels like just another Thursday? Perhaps a drink or two would make this year’s lack of tradition easier to swallow. Let’s take a look at an exciting new spot offering to-go kits featuring famous cocktails for pick up or delivery.
Gin & Juice is a virtual cocktail bar offering carryout and delivery-only launched by River North’s Three Dots and a Dash. They offer kits to make classic cocktails at home, whether for yourself or a group. This endeavor from award-winning Beverage Director Kevin Beary is definitely something worth toasting.
The individual cocktail kits feature a wide variety of traditional drinks you can create at home. The Daiquiri Kit comes with Bounty Dark St. Lucia Aged Rum, daiquiri mix, and a lime wedge. Whether the weather calls for it or not, you can’t go wrong with the Dark and Stormy Kit starring Bounty Dark St. Lucia Aged Rum, Q Ginger Beer, fresh lime juice, and a lime wedge. In the mood for a Dirty Martini? Gin and Juice provide you with triple distilled vodka, olive brine, and queen olives to mix up this classic in your abode. Some other cocktail kits you can pick up feature a Moscow Mule, Margarita, and an Old Fashioned. All the previously mentioned cocktail to-go kits will run you $10.
Gin & Juice also offers more than individual drinks on the menu with their “Kits for Sharing (Responsibly) options ranging in price from $40 to $120.
Class it up with their Espresso Martini kit that comes with 375mL of Grey Goose Vodka, 12 ounces of Espresso Martini Cordial, and espresso beans. This kit serves eight cocktails and costs $50.
The Spiced Cider kit allows for eight cocktails and features 375mL of Old Forestor 86 Proof Bourbon and Klug Farms Spiced Cider for $40. The Mai Tai take-home kit will get you 12 cocktails consisting of Plantation Isle Of Fiji Aged Rum, Combier Orange Liqueur, fresh lime juice, almond orgeat, and a garnish pack for $65.
Other multi-cocktail possibilities include the Painkiller featuring Dark Jamaican Rum and serving up to eight for $45. Whiskey fans will love the Sesame Japanese Old Fashioned kit highlighted by Nikka Yoichi Japanese Whiskey, serving 12 for $120. The Shaken Daiquiri kit serves 12 cocktails consisting of Appleton Estate 8-Year-Old Jamaican Rum, fresh lime juice, and cane syrup for $60.
Do note that some bar tools are required to create these cocktails properly, such as a jigger, shaker tin, or Hawthorne Strainer, depending on the drink. Luckily, Gin & Juice has all the necessary tools needed for whichever kit you purchase at an additional cost if need be. Instructions on how to concoct the cocktails are included in each kit.
You can place your order on Tock to pick up your kit at Three Dots and a Dash, located at 435 North Clark Street between 11 am and 8:30 pm, or have your purchase delivered via DoorDash.
ERIC KAPLAN AND DEAN’S TEAM CHICAGO
