Bronx Cocktail

Bronx Cocktail Story

Johnnie Solon was tending bar at the Waldorf Astoria in 1906 when a customer ordered "something new." Grabbing a few oranges, some vermouth, and gin, Solon shook up a light, refreshing afternoon cocktail, coined thereafter as the Bronx. Johnnie was considered one of the Waldorf's most creative professionals—the Bronx was the first cocktail to use orange juice as the sole citrus component. The drink became just as, if not more, popular than the Manhattan, though it appealed to an entirely different palette. William Boothby immortalized the recipe in 1908 by printing it in his book, World's Drinks and How to Mix Them. Though it seemed that cocktails bearing the names of New York's boroughs were popular on that trend alone, the Bronx has endured thanks to its bold ingenuity.