A Heathen's Cocktail Haven
This is progressively our best work yet because everything you see here is custom made. It is crafted. It's not a classical variation or anything like that.
If you've ever identified as a rebel, you've probably spent most of your life looking for the perfect place to hang your tattered hat, and perhaps enjoy a cocktail or two. At Macao Trading Co., a Macanese restaurant and cocktail bar that hopes to cater to the bad boys and girls of New York City, handcrafted and one-of-a-kind cocktails are the name of the game. While the food at Macao Trading Co. is gaining more hype every day, it is the cocktail program, put together by Dushan Zaric, that tends to keep people coming back for more.
The decor of Macao Trading Co. is that of a 1940s trading port in Macao, China. Home to the pirates, beggars and hookers of the time, it is meant to attract people who identify as living on the edge, but still need their port in the storm. Based on the interior, one may think that the cocktails would be focused solely on the fruits that are known to come from China, but according to Zaric, this is not the case. After visiting Macao and taking into account all of the different flavors, herbs and spices of the region, Zaric and his team of rebellious bartenders were able to put together a truly riveting cocktail program.
"We focused on infusions with different asian ingredients, different herbs here and there, and different liquid ingredients that made sense to us," says Zaric. "This is progressively our best work yet because everything you see here is custom made. It is crafted. It's not a classical variation or anything like that."
The cocktail menu, while concise in its design, is incredibly complex and deep in its execution. Zaric acts as the "executive chef" to the cocktail menu; he is for the most part in charge of the whole thing, but he does invite his bar staff to throw in their two cents as well. The signature cocktail, a creamy and truly outstanding cocktail called the Drunken Dragon's Milk, is made with Charbay Green Tea Vodka, Young Coconut Puree, Thai Basil and Macao Five-spice Bitters. According to Zaric, the milk comes from a dragon that they get drunk every night, and then milk in the morning. Whether or not you choose to believe the tale is up to you, but the combination of cooling coconut puree with the sweet Thai basil and the kick from the five-spice bitters may just turn you into a believer.
Like many places in New York City, Macao Trading Co. puts an incredible amount of focus and detail into both their food and cocktail program. An integration of the familiar spices and flavors of the Macao region find themselves everywhere, from appetizers to after-dinner drinks. For Zaric, Macao is "an experience of the cuisine and gastronomy, and an experience in drinking and libations," even if you come from the wrong side of the tracks.
