Ahhh the Aperol spritz: the cocktail favored by TikTokers on perennial Italian vacations and college sophomores studying abroad. While the storied Italian aperitivo drink—made with Aperol, prosecco, and club soda, garnished with a slice of orange—once ruled as the go-to happy hour drink, in recent years, it seems the thing has fallen from favor. Perhaps Instagram basic-ified the beverage, perhaps bartenders stripped the option from their menus out of sheer boredom, perhaps all trends must rise and dissipate per the temporal laws of the universe. But, here’s the thing: They’re back. We’re calling it. And frankly, you’ve been craving one all along.
“The Aperol Spritz is the summer drink par excellence — it’s light, fun, and not too boozy. It’s the perfect cocktail to enjoy while sitting down with a friend for hours and catching up,” says Jenny Rose, the head bartender at just-opened Bed Stuy cocktail and oyster bar, Selune. And as she puts it, the numbers go to show: People are, indeed, drinking spritzes.
“I would say that as a team, we’ve been surprised by how well spritzes are doing this summer…And we’ve even leaned into their popularity and added a few more spritzes to our menus” adds Jarrett Karlsberg, beverage director at the Wythe Hotel (Le Crocodile, Bar Blondeau), where you’ll find a house riff on the menu titled Spritz Au Crocodile: a combination of campari, Aperol, dry vermouth, and orange liqueur topped with soda and prosecco. “But to be clear, [the spritz trend] never really left. What looks more refreshing on a hot day than a cool bubbly spritz?”
To that end, in all likelihood, we never stopped craving the Aperol spritz. The color! The fishbowl glass! The sweet carbonated kick! Who among us is immune to that kind of siren call in high summer? The answer is: No one. So why, then, have we been abstaining? “It's almost like people started hanging out exclusively with their shiny new friend but then realized they missed their bestie all along,” says Karlsberg.
He’s right: While we were all busy praying at the altar of the espresso martini, the negroni sbagliato, bottles of natural wine—the drink trends usurping our fields of vision—the ‘ol reliable Aperol spritz was merely waiting patiently in the wings for us to come back around. As the old (new) adage goes, hipper does not always taste better.
Of course, let it be known: The spritz is not static. A la Le Crocodile, we’re seeing plenty of variations on your typical spritz. We’re adding olive brine, Campari, amaro. Bitters and cordials of all kinds. A variety of stone fruits and vermouths. Fresh herbs. Margot, a restaurant in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, is even in the midst of launching a tailored summer-long al fresco spritz program because, in the words, of the spot’s bar manager Ivo Gueorguiev, “Everyone is tired…of working non-stop, of not being able to afford NYC, of the same old grim news cycle. The reasonably priced Aperol spritz is the escapism we need.”
He’s right. At bottom, it’s a philosophical matter. “Hedonism has gotten a bad rep over the years, often seen as self-indulgence and excess. But I think the true definition isn’t about losing control–it’s about letting go,” offers Nick Bradley, Co-Founder of DIO, a chic ready-to-drink cocktail line. “We’ve been in a constant cycle of too much restraint, control, and moderation. No one wants to admit they enjoy anything anymore.
That’s why the spritz hits right now. It’s not trying to be functional. It’s simple, joyful, and completely unbothered. And that, to me, is the new luxury.”
There you have it: Our collective penchant for refinement, even intellectualism has precluded us from engaging with pleasure in its rawest, most thoughtless, quintessential form: The Aperol spritz. This summer, however, restraint is passé. Go ahead, order one, we’re not judging.
🍹Spritz and the City
A spritz isn't a complex cocktail, meaning it's only as good as the place you drink it in. In other words, you're going to want a spot awash in light, maybe with some al fresco seating, and brimming with laidback summer vibes.
Consider the six below, all on Blackbird. Check in to earn $FLY, perks, status, and more, and be sure to spritz it up.
F&F Restaurant and Bar
📍Carroll Gardens
It’s no secret that we’re big fans of the Franks’ culinary empire, and their latest delivers on all fronts, from the booths to the bar to the pizza (Chris Bianco vouches for the place). Enjoy a spritz in any of the joint’s nooks and crannies, or sneak it out to neighboring Frankies 457 Spuntino’s back garden.Romeo's
📍East Village
The cocktails, playlists, and crowd all earn top marks. But while the indoor vibe is impeccable, we’d be remiss if we didn’t suggest sipping at least one spritz at a sidewalk table.Leon's
📍Union Square
Big room, big vibes, lots of light. Yes, the pasta gets all the praise here (as it should), and the horseshoe booths are, indeed, a move, but the bar itself, and surrounding scene, are not to be missed — spritz in hand, no doubt.Anton’s
📍West Village
Same team as Leon’s, just substitute the space for something a bit more intimate and timeless. The bar is beautiful, and exactly what you want in the West Village (patina aplenty), but when we’re optimizing for spritz drinking, the sidewalk scene and people watching reign supreme. Plus, when Jeff Bell (of PDT fame) digs the place, you know the cocktails are on point.Hotel Delmano
📍Williamsburg
Banquettes, seafood platters, a bevy of drinks — what more hedonism do you require? Order up a round of spritzes, you bon vivant, you.Maison Premiere
📍Williamsburg
One look at the u-shaped bar and suspender-wearing bartenders from your perch on a Bentwood chair (East Coast oyster in one hand, spritz in the other), and you know you’re in the right place. Cheers.
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Long live the spritz <sips spritz>
Ha, I wrote about the very same thing this summer! Perhaps the spritz had to leave for a few years just to remind us what we were all missing.