Local residents and hotel guests seeking the next exclusive adult experience in Orange County, will want to check out two new “secret” cocktail lounges at Irvine Marriott. Garrett Schott, Director of Food and Beverage, notes the hotel now features a re-imagined Y.N.K. and a new venue, The Butchershop.
For those who like to be the first to try new spots and hang out where the masses are NOT, The Butchershop should be at the top of their list. It’s really not advertised or promoted and you wouldn’t know it is at the hotel. You have to inquire for its location and a reservation is strongly recommended to ensure you are granted access. The Butchershop is actually tucked away in a small area of the hotel’s kitchen and since the average room temperature is a cool 62 degrees, guests are given blankets while they sit at a horseshoe-shaped bar or on the white leather sofa and sip adult beverages and small bites with an amazing mixture of flavors and scents.
Signature cocktails include the Da Cannon, Mezca-Cillen, Coffee + Cigarettes, and Baby Mama Fizz while the menu items designed to pair with the cocktails include Steak Tartare with Garlic Crostini, Pork Belly Lettuce Wraps, Mojito Lamb Chops, a Chefs Charcuterie Board, and Brûlée Bananas Foster.
The Butchershop is open Friday and Saturday from 6 pm to midnight. For reservations, call 949.254.5713.
Y.N.K. has been re-imagined as a Madmen-esque type of space. The setting is now an intimate old English study with leather sofas and chairs. The leather-bound menu is the gateway to Y.N.K.’s incredible cocktail culture where a master mixologist standing behind a vintage desk scientifically pours, smokes, shakes, and flames his way to sips of pure brilliance. Ten new Signature Cocktails on tap were added to the menu and guests can actually choose from over 100 different drinks with categories including Refreshing & Bright, Long & Playful, Tropical & Confident, Sweet & Fulfilling, Sour & Lively, Spirituous & Honest, and Boozy & Herbaceous. Among the signature concoctions is the Draper Deal, with gin, pear brandy, vermouth and orange bitters.
For those curious about the difference between The Butchershop and Y.N.K., Y.N.K. is a prohibition-style Speakeasy focused on prohibition-era cocktails made to the original recipes and style. Y.N.K. is lounge-esque, resembling an English study, where The Butchershop is focused on the art of crafting a cocktail and beverages are created based on seasonality and a modern interpretation/twist of classic cocktails. Customers can even create their own cocktail and The Butchershop will name it after them.
