I attended the "
Secret Society Mixer" at
Yerba Buena in the East Village this past Tuesday night. The private invite said it would be featuring complimentary appetizers and
São Organic Cachaça caipirinhas. The Yerba's are known to be mixology/foodie venues so that coupled with the tempting appetizers and caipirinha's was a party I wasn't going to miss. Unfortunately, I am not able to tell you too much about the food as I only managed to get a quick bite of some quacamole, I can tell you it was on point though. By the time I arrived the event was in full swing and everyone was mingling and cocktailing, it was nice to come into a buzzing party.
 |
| Street view |
The crowd was a cool mix of New Yorkers, you could tell everyone was a New Yorker by the way no one even blinked an eye when someone new walked in the room. Mind you, the space is small, think the size of a living room stretched out longways. Only a New Yorker can ignore someone that is smack in the middle of their personal space. After a while I managed to get into some interesting conversations and exchange business cards.
The fashion was upscale, I didn't see any hipsters for some strange reason, they're usually everywhere! The women wore nice dresses, heels and the men were in suits with ties, not all but quite a few - very MAD MEN type of vibe. Basically what I figured for this venue. I have dined here before so it was nice to find out about this secret room with the "secret mixer."
 |
| Caipirinha |
On to the cocktails...caipirinhas! I am huge fan of caipirinhas, for that matter a huge fan of anything Brazilian. Pronounced
kaip-i-rheena, it's the national cocktail of Brazil. It's made with limes, sugar, cachaça and ice. The Brazilians use crushed ice and serve the cocktail with the limes in it, Yerba's mixologist did the same making them authentic.
I've had caipirinhas with other cachaças and I've noticed a burning in my throat, with the organic cachaça,
São, I didn't get this. It tasted clean and pure, real smooth - like a lemonade. Therefore, if you care about cocktails and quality, opt for the organic cachaça in your caipirinhas, it's definintely worth it.
 |
| São Organic Cachaça |
Cachaça is pronounced ka-sha-sa and is similar to rum in that they are both derived from sugar cane. The difference is that cachaça is made from pure sugar cane juice while rum is made from molasses. The organic property of this cachaça (São)
has to do with the sugar cane field, which is free of pesticides and chemicals and allowing the sugar cane flavor to come through.
The spirit is produced and distilled in Horizontina, Brazil in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Fun fact!: Horizontina is the birthtown of
Gisele Bundchen; therefore, if you drink
São Organic Cachaça you will shortly thereafter turn into a gorgeous supermodel... psych!
It's nice to go into a venue and see a varitey of artisanal spirits and not just the main-stream, mass brands. This is a hint to the back of the house and the products and ingredients they choose. If they take great care in choosing quality spirits, they're doing the same in the kitchen.
 |
| Yerba mixologist |
Back to the event...when I arrived I felt very special as I was escorted by a lovely gentleman down tiny wooden stairs, through a skinny candle lit hallway and into the secret mixer. The restaurant has an atmosphere and design that makes you feel at home, down to the friendly staff. Note to venues: this is so important and it's sad that many have forgotten to be nice to everyone who comes into your establishment, it makes such a difference and makes us want to return. In any case, it felt nice to be treated special here.
The space is perfect for intimate cocktail parties such as this one or birthday dinners. I can see it becoming a fan favorite during the colder months as it's very cozy and warm. I loved the mix of cocktail party happening downstairs while the upstairs was a buzzing restaurant with people dining and drinking. As my friend would say it was "poppin."
Yerba is planning to hold the secret mixers once a month and I'm hoping to make the cut again. If not, the environment was good enough to make me crave wanting to make a reservation and bring a sexy date to canoodle with.
