The narrow portal led into a low-lit room. When I entered, it was just bright enough to see that the six people nestled at the small bar had turned to glance at me. Feeling like I’d just interrupted a conversation, I grabbed a seat at one of the tables along the wall and squinted at the menu and took in my surroundings.
Jettison, opened in October at Sylvan Thirty, is an intimate lounge with classy–retro decor, a blend of dark hues and shiny brass accents. Liquor bottles glow on a backlit shelf at the bar, sumptuous curtains spill over the windows, and the bartender wears a vest. The bar is part of Houndstooth, the coffee shop next door, and so naturally there is a fair amount of cross-pollination, at least as far as the beverages go.
I was staring up, trying to figure out how to describe the bright, abstract ceiling design, when Sean Henry, the bearded owner of the bar and coffee shop, approached. He explained that he’d always planned to open a bar, too. It seemed like a logical pairing.
“The concept was to serve two groups—the am and the pm crowd,” he said.
For the pm crowd: the menu includes a decent selection of classic cocktails, many with a caffeinated twist. What intrigued me, though, was the column dedicated to sherry-based drinks—including a sherry flight.
“Sherry is between wine and a cocktail,” Henry told me. “It’s popular in Europe but hasn’t caught on here yet.”
I was feeling adventurous, so I opted for the sherry-based Good Morning Jerez. My companion ordered the BLVD, Jettison’s coffee-infused take on the traditional bourbon cocktail, the Boulevardier.
As we waited for our drinks, jazz music played overhead, and we relaxed into the moment. When Henry dropped off our drinks, he advised us to get the sherry flight next time we came in. After one sip of my amazing coffee-and-sherry concoction, I predicted that “next time” would be soon. As in: possibly tomorrow.
