Wine in a Can, Booker & Dax and Strippers with Gold with Devour the City

David Opancha — known as Devour the City – is a Brooklyn-based food critic who has a penchant for pairing 90’s hip hop and swear words with haute cuisine. David represents the new school of food critics following in the footsteps of some of the greats like Robert Sietsema and Frank Bruni. With a strong online following, David is building a reputation for being a tough palate to please with a sharp tongue who serves out his reviews with a big side of snark. Since he readily shares his food adventures in Devour the City, we sat down for a lil Q+A sesh to find out his take on all things drinks in the city.

Favorite NYC place to hang out over a drink?

Being that it’s the summer, I like to hit up the rooftop of The Standard Hotel. Not many people know this, but the rooftop opens at 4pm on the weekend. I get there extra early to grab a seat closest to the glass panels. Nothing better than getting hammered with a view. In the winter time though, you’ll catch me at Clover Club in Carroll Gardens. They have a ridiculous drink program and great food to boot.

Favorite drink (with any call brands if any)?

The Pistol Pete at Booker & Dax with scotch, Chartreuse, lime, bitters, smoke and spice. I drank so many of these one time I ended up waking up on the D Train in The Bronx that night.

Drink trend you wish would go away?

Wine in a can. I could never understand how you take something as beautiful and sacred as wine and stuff it into a can. That’s like stuffing foie gras into a day old Dunkin’ Donuts bagel.

First alcoholic drink you ever?

I’m Russian, so naturally it was vodka. I was 16, and my friends decided to invite over some bimbos they met in a chat room on AOL to come hangout with us on the beach. I wasn’t really into drinking at the time, but when the head bimbo, who was also the hottest of the crew, offered me a shot, I couldn’t say no. I woke up the next day in my parents basement wearing a basketball jersey and a sock, not knowing who or where I was.

Coffee or tea? Fave cup (from where)? How do you take it? How many a day?

Coffee for sure. My two favorite coffee spots are La Colombe and Blue Bottle. I drink about one cup a day with cream and sugar. Oh, and it’s always iced, even in the dead of winter.

Favorite bartender/mixologist/sommelier/ drinks service industry person? Why?

My favorite sommelier has to be Mike Madrigale from Bar Boulud. I don’t know Mike personally, but we follow each other via social media. My knowledge of wine isn’t the greatest, so I tend to skim through his Instagram and try to find the same bottles in my local wine shop. So far I’ve had 3 bottles that he’s posted via Instagram, each one was better than the other. Also, you gotta respect a man with such a vast collection of old school hip-hop records.

Best pairing meal you ever had?

The Captains tasting and wine pairing at Del Posto. Holy fuck, it was like eating and drinking in G-d’s dining room while strippers poop out gold bars serve you.

Where is your fave spot for a beer and classic Devour the City eat steez?

A few years back I found this little hole in the wall place in Brooklyn where Bollywood meets hipster land in the Ditmas Park. This dude was serving Dogfish Head beer before anyone in NYC knew what the fuck an IPA was. Also, his Alamo burger made my list as the best burger in Brooklyn.

Hidden NYC gem? (dive bar, late night eats, anything you love about the NYC hospitality scene)

This isn’t really hidden, but my go to spot for late night eats is definitely Blue Ribbon in SoHo. Where else can you get fresh oysters and one of the best plates of fried chicken in Manhattan at 3am.

Straight-Update: What are you working on?

As of now I will continue to keep eating and writing restaurant reviews on my food blog. Also, I’ve had a project on the backburner since late last year for a carrot based spread my grandmother concocted back in Ukraine called ‘Babulya’s’. I had to stop fucking around with it because my daytime gig was getting busy and that’s what pays my bills. But my time has freed up lately so I will be hopping back onto that shortly.

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