"When Boccato co-founded [Dutch Kills] in 2009... he wanted the place to be self-sufficient in ice production... This past spring, however, Boccato, 35, made good on that dream when he co-founded Hundredweight"

Richard Boccato is getting some attention from Forbes Magazine:

“'Economists call what Boccato did 'backward integration,'” says Susan Clark Muntean, assistant professor of entrepreneurship and management at Ball State University, in Muncie, Indiana. Clark Muntean defines it as going back one step in the production process and claiming control over it. For example, she says, instead of buying tires from a supplier, an automobile manufacturer might decide to buy a factory that makes the tires."

They say Boccato is clearly a serial entrepreneur and an astute one in the craft cocktail world:

“'Although all entrepreneurs should constantly be on the outlook for increasing their revenue streams, it’s often serial entrepreneurs who can spot opportunities because they’ve had more experience,' says Joel Shulman, a professor of entrepreneurship at Babson College, in Wellesley, Massachusetts, who also owns and manages EntrepreneurShares, a publicly traded mutual fund.”

“'Serial entrepreneurs get better at cutting costs, such as buying refurbished, rather than new equipment, and exploring new ways to make a profit,' he says.”

Dutch Kills

Nicole and I were in Manhattan for New Years and stayed with a dear friend from high school named Ben Loving. I had targeted several craft-cocktail establishments to visit while in New York. But Ben insisted that we visit Dutch Kills. 

Located in Long Island City, the bar's namesake originates from its historic neighborhood which hugs the Newton Creek tributary. The kills themselves reach out to the East River and separate Queens from Brooklyn. What use to be a little Dutch hamlet eventually became part of the greatest American metropolis.

Ben recommended that we take seat at the bar. We were apparently in for a treat. He's aware of our attraction to mixology. And when one enjoys conversating about the hard stuff one finds him or herself sitting in front of the hard stuff. So each one of us plopped ourselves onto a stool and studied the cocktail menu.

The bartender's name was Matt and if the bar was a flute, he was Ian Anderson. As with many craft-cocktail saloons, Dutch Kills seems to accommodate the eccentrics that clientele have come to expect. Fresh fruit, juices, and syrups chilled in a giant tray of ice, ready for use. Matt's support helped carve a giant ice block into little crystal clear cubes.

Our barman fixed a delicious brandy cobbler, old-fashioned, mint julep and 4th regiment. After a round of drinks, we discovered to our amusement that our barkeep was himself from Washington D.C. I couldn't help but reflect on the irony. Here we venture to the big apple, expecting to enjoy hand-crafted cocktails by a local mixologist, only to find a DC native treading on the New Yorker's territory.

I snapped a few pictures of our evening for the blog. If you, dear reader, are hungry for the experience yourself and happen to be in the Queens area, visit Dutch Kills. And don't forget to fasten on your drinking shoes. 

NOTE: This post has been revised since its original publication.