Boston Cocktail Summit: Silvertone Bar & Grill
For this week’s Boston Cocktail Summit seminar venue, we visit a landmark in the Boston bar scene, Silvertone Bar & Grill. Owner Josh Childs opened Silvertone back in 1997 before many of the now surrounding bars were even around. You can pretty much pin point the beginnings of the Boston Fernet craze to this establishment. How about a Negroni? Silvertone listed the now very popular cocktail on their menu back in 1997. A tremendous amount of bar direction that is happening or has happened in Boston can be directly attributed to Silvertone. If you want to learn more, check out the seminar, which is sure to be as entertaining as informational.
THURSDAY, 10/4
The History and Change of the Downtown Bar Culture
Josh Childs, John Gertsen, Tom Mastricola & Ryan Mcgrale
October 4, 1:30pm-3:00pm
Silvertone Bar & Grill, 69 Bromfield St. Boston $25
To put it lightly, legends have walked through this door, sat at this bar and drank til the wee hours of the morning. During its early years, Silvertone was essentially the hangout for the hardworking restaurant industry. Here is a quote from one of my favorite websites, Lauren Clark’s, drinkboston.com:
“From the start, Silvertone showed particular love toward that latter group — our hardworking servers, bartenders, chefs, etc — by keeping its kitchen open until 11:00 (hardly anyone outside Chinatown was doing that in ’97), hiring a solid, loyal bar staff and doing a “good last call,” says Childs, who can still be found behind the bar on Tuesday nights serving drinks right up until 2:00 a.m. (Silvertone’s other longtime bartender, Cedric Adams, and his colleague Michael Stevens, are “like bookends,” each working three nights apiece.) Before they became celebrity chefs and restaurateurs, Ken Oringer, Andy Husbands, Barbara Lynch and Garrett Harker dropped in regularly after their shifts, and before they became celebrity wine and cocktail consultants, Steve Olsen and Willy Shine were admirers…”
Now on to the cocktails!
Lin’s Favorite: Tibetano (recipe via @joshua_childs)
- 1.5 oz rye
- .75 oz FAIR Goji
- .75 oz Amaro Montenegro
- Long orange peel
Glass: Chilled rocks glass
Method: Stir with ice and strain down in a rocks glass. Add garnish.
Jon’s Favorite: The Shaddock (recipe via #onthebar)
Read my previous article on the Shaddock, here.
- .75 oz Gin (Bols Genever if you have it)
- .75 oz Aperol
- .75 oz St. Germain
- .75 oz Lemon Juice
Glass: Chilled coupe
Method: Add the ingredients into a pint glass. Add ice and shake. Strain into your glass.
“Named after Captain Shaddock, the 17th century English ship commander who introduced the citrus varietal to the West Indies.” – Cocktail Virgin
Other Highlights
- Kitchen opens at 11:30am, meaning you can grab a quick lunch Monday through Friday.
- Entrees, including the popular Steak Tips, range from $9-14. That’s a steal for downtown Boston!
- Bar stays open until 2 am for the late night crowd.
- Silvertone’s famous mac and cheese (picture below) is now available until 2 am on Friday and Saturday for that late-night craving.
- When you are there, be sure to check out Josh’s wine room and the wine menu. Great collection and prices.
- Chez Freddie, Silvertone’s back bar, is now open on Friday and Saturday nights.
- Casual and retro atmosphere for all to enjoy.
- Owner and bartender, Josh Childs, has a blog on Boston.com. Read it.
- Be sure to follow all of your Silvertone bartenders #onthebar.
Whether you are in town for the Summit or you are looking for a fun, unique spot, head on over to Silvertone and literally soak up the Boston bar scene history, all while snacking on a shot of Fernet or two. You will be in good company.
Like Silvertone? Then visit Trina’s Starlite Lounge in Inman Square!
Silvertone Bar & Grill is located at 69 Broomfield St. in Boston.
Check out our previous Boston Cocktail Summit Seminar Venue posts:
Check out our previous post on The Shaddock cocktail.
Print 
PDF