24 Oct Where We’ve Been Drinking: Masseria at Union Market

Posted at 07:00h in Blog, Where to Drink, Where to Drink: DC by Roberts & June

Where We’ve Been Drinking: Masseria at Union Market

Steph’s work has recently involved fairly frequent, longish business trips. We decided that the perfect way to celebrate the end of the last of these kind of grueling periods apart was with a date at Masseria. Then, when the reality of a late night dinner after a long day of travel set in, we downgraded to Cava Mezze instead–not that there’s anything wrong with Cava. In fact, our dinner, our drinks, and the patio were all perfectly delightful. It’s proximity to home and a small plate dinner instead of a multi-course simply made it the smidge less of an investment we needed.

We hadn’t forgotten Masseria, though; and last week we cashed in our Masseria rain check.

We’ve mentioned this before, but it’s worth saying again: when you walk into Masseria, it’s like you’ve stepped through a portal into a different world, a very pleasant world filled with lovely spaces, sumptuous food, and excellent drinks. We had a difficult time even deciding which of their three spaces to sit in. It was a pleasantly crisp fall evening, perfect weather for the light-strung, fire-pit-warmed patio. But we were a bit too hungry for the appetizer menu that’s served there. The airy combination of industrial architecture and warm accessories in the dining room was also appealing. In the end, we compromised between indoor and out with a full dinner in the retractable roof courtyard.

It was a magical evening. If you’re looking for the right place to celebrate a special occasion, we can’t recommend Masseria highly enough. Don’t be daunted by the loading docks and empty-looking spaces of the wholesale warehouses surrounding Union Market. When you step through Masseria’s doorway, you’ll be well taken care of.

We need a couple of new special occasions ourselves to try out the other two rooms. For our budget’s sake, though, we’re trying as hard as we can to space them out.

What We Drank

Thai Me Up Douglas: St. George gin, douglas fir, kaffir lime left, coconut acid phosphate soda

Like Barnes With Noble Hooks: chamomile-infused Il Poggione grappa, Aperol, lemon, honey

I’m the King of Brooklyn … For All She Knows: Peligroso tequila, crimson crisp apple, escamillo pepper, lemon, clove-infused olive oil

I’ve Often Thought of Becoming a Golf Club: Dickel rye, mint-infused water, Amaro Menta

What We Thought

Yes, we had two rounds. We followed our rules, though, starting with the lighter, coconut soda drink and ending with the sweeter, whiskey one. Partially, we just didn’t want the lovely evening to end. Partially, we couldn’t decide among all of the intriguing drinks.

None of the four disappointed. All of them won points for an excellent combination of creativity and drinkability. We especially appreciated the way that each of them made good use of both their spirits and their fresh, h0use-made secondary ingredients.

While none of them was by any means a loser, the big winner of the night was the King of Brooklyn. The other three were flashier looking drinks, but the King had a well-balanced, complex, fresh flavor that rose it far above its unassuming appearance. The drops of clove-infused olive oil was a surprisingly big contributor to the overall taste and effect of the drink. This is the second time we’ve come across olive oil bringing a drink over the top. We’ll have to investigate this further.

Thai Me Up Douglas