Bartender or Bar Manager of the Year — This individual is seen as a leader in the field and an expert in the craft.
Fun fact: Four of the five nominees for Bartender or Bar Manager of the Year for the 2019 Elby dining awards share humble beginnings behind the bar at shuttered Carytown watering hole Portrait House. From national accolades to Emo Nights, a Speed Rack queen and stays at Camp Runamok, the members of this booze squad are dedicated to their craft and have shaken up the Richmond bar scene over the past decade. Now, these libation leaders can be found at some of Richmond’s finest establishments. Let’s get to know this cocktail crew a little better.
Brandon Peck
Brandon Peck behind the bar at The Jasper (Photo courtesy Brandon Peck)
Current restaurant: The Jasper
Past restaurants: Ipanema Cafe, The Roosevelt, Portrait House
Years bartending: 10
Accolades: Named a Rising Star by Star Chefs in 2018
Random fact: Peck formerly rolled sushi at Sticky Rice and worked there with fellow nominee Lindsey Scheer. The two are also hosts of the cult favorite Emo Night RVA — an evening of cocktails and late '90s and early 2000s emo and indie music.
Cocktail to check out: Caribbean Kween, with Blackstrap tequila, Cappelletti aperitivo, Ancho Reyes chili liqueur, pineapple, lime and tiki bitters. The riff on a Jungle Bird is one of Peck’s oldest cocktails, and he says, “It didn’t really find its legs until this place [The Jasper]."
Justin Ayotte
Justin Ayotte at a Woodford Reserve competition (Photo courtesy Justin Ayotte)
Current restaurant: Saison
Past restaurants: Capital Ale House
Years bartending: 13
Longevity: Ayotte stays at his jobs for lengthy periods of time. Before Saison opened, he worked for Capital Ale House for six years, along with a number of fellow Saison employees including General Manager Sara Kerfoot, co-owner Jay Bayer, and Chef and co-owner Adam Hall. "We don’t know everything, and we aren’t going to, but we’re trying to learn and also educate guests — it’s a growth together," he says.
Random fact: Ayotte was a fan of the craft beer scene and thought he would get into brewing, but after becoming acquainted with craft cocktails at Saison, he’s been hooked ever since.
Cocktail to check out: The Matador and Mezcal — a play on the well-known cocktail Blood and Sand. Ayotte says that although it’s been off the menu for over a year it’s still requested by guests.
Katy Best, bar manager and beverage director at Alewife (Photo courtesy Katy Best)
Katy Best
Current restaurant: Alewife
Past restaurants: Baja Bean, Tarrant’s, The Magpie, Portrait House, Lunch and Supper, The Roosevelt
Years bartending: 12
Represent: Best runs an educational and engaging monthly meet-up at Alewife called Women in Wine, featuring female distributors and winemakers.
Random fact: Every year Best tries to go on two career-expanding experiences. Recent trips include a Tiki Camp held in Wildwood, New Jersey — where she will return to teach this year — along with visits to Kentucky, Baltimore, D.C. and Miami. “If you only learn in your market, you’ll only learn what that market knows,” she says. “You have to be the growth you want to see in the community.”
Cocktail to check out: Tonic, Suze, Magic — white port, Suze, pineapple and lime juices, tonic, soda, and cardamom bitters. Best says, “It’s a juicy, juicy drink.”
Lindsey Scheer
Lindsey Scheer behind the bar at Heritage (Photo by Pheylan Martin courtesy Lindsey Scheer)
Current restaurant: Heritage
Past restaurants: Sticky Rice, Cous Cous, Ipanema Cafe, Don’t Look Back, Portrait House, The National, Liberty Public House, Vagabond
Years bartending: 12
Doer: Scheer was the force behind getting the United States Bartenders Guild chapter started in Richmond and also founded the Facebook group Lindsey’s List, a Richmond restaurant industry-based forum for jobs and housing that in over four years has grown to almost 40,000 members.
Random fact: Scheer, a music devotee, used to work at Tower Records, sold merchandise for bands and got her first bartending job at The National. Check her cocktail menu to find a plethora of pop culture references (e.g., Cosmic Dancer is named after a T. Rex song).
Cocktail to check out: Does This Spark Joy — Bombay Sapphire East, Junmai sake, yuzu cordial, Ostervit, dry curacao and melon bitters. Scheer says, “Somebody said it tasted like geometry in their mouth.”
Shannon Hood
Shannon Hood competing during the national Speed Rack competition at the end of March (Photo by Ernest Jay Mandario Apaga courtesy Shannon Hood)
Current restaurant: Brenner Pass
Past restaurants: Don’t Look Back, Portrait House, Saison
Years bartending: 14
Warrior: Hood was the first bartender from Richmond to compete at Speed Rack, a national competition of the fastest female bartenders that raises money for breast cancer research, and she also won the first Bartenders Battle at Fire, Flour & Fork.
Random fact: Hood once worked in a bakery and and loves making sweet treats and incorporating elements of baked goods into cocktails.
Cocktail to check out: Caught in the Rain — Overproof Aged Rum, Campari, coconut, pineapple and lime.
The 2019 Elbys take place at Hardwood West Creek at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 28. Tickets are $55 each plus a $5 processing fee. Net ticket proceeds will benefit Tricycle Gardens.
