"MixedDrinks" news and stories

• It's an east-meets-west love story: tacos, Korean-style.
• A different east (the Ottoman) meets a different west (London) as chef Silvena Rowe takes over the May Fair Hotel restaurant.
• When you're mixing drinks, adding water doesn't always mean watered-down taste. Chemistry lesson to follow.
• The Lion receives but one star -- and that's not counting chef John DeLucie.
• Meanwhile, the Commodore "feels like the bar next to the bus station, only without the daytime drinkers and sticky floor." And that's a good thing.

No that headline isn't a typo, there really is a drink called a Bloody Caesar. It's Canada's take on a Bloody Mary. I had the dubious pleasure of enjoying several while spending a day in Toronto last week. Look for more dispatches on my Canadian adventures in the near future.

Before I had one of these, I never imagined that our friends to the north had their own mixed drink. Basically a Bloody Caesar is a Bloody Mary that uses Mott's Clamato juice. It seems like a small change but I find them more refreshing. Of course that bracing flavor could also be from the celery-salt around the rim of the glass. After some experimenting at home I find that I like mine with a little garlic pepper and a generous dose of Tabasco.

Bloody Caesar

• 1 ounce vodka
  
• 5 ounces Clamato juice
  
• 3 drops of Tabasco
  
• 2 drops of Worcestershire
  
• Salt and pepper

Rim the edge of the glass with celery salt and garnish with celery and lemon or lime as desired. Did I forget to mention the ice? Perhaps I had one too many Caesars last night.

There are several variations on the Bloody Caesar, including the one that is said to come from Sault Ste. Marie. It's defiining characteristic is the use of a pickle spear as a garnish. Then there's the Russian Caesar. I'm of the opinion that this mutant variety, which consists of borscht, Clamato, vodka and dill was invented by the marketing mavens at Mott's.