Front page · The Cosyford Lounge
Shaken on the beat: the cocktail bar where the band keeps time
Velvet chairs, a jazz band on the little stage and a long bar to slide the drinks down. Lou Lavelle has run the Lounge for years, and she has opinions about garnishes.
Someone settles on a stool and orders, and the recipe goes up on a little card: two of this, one of that, a dash of something, shaken or built in the glass. Pick the right bottle off the shelf and hold to pour, letting go when the drink reaches the yellow line. A dash is just a tap. The regulars notice when you get it right.
Shaken drinks go in the shaker, and that is where the band comes in. The Cosyford Jazz Ensemble plays on the stage across the room, and you tap Shake! right on their beat, six times. Then the garnish it asks for (a slice of lime, a sprig of mint, a cherry, an orange twist or three coffee beans) and it slides all the way down the bar to its owner.
Every so often Rox comes in, and Rox only ever has one thing: a Roxy, which is four gins and a dash of tonic. And if the band likes the look of you, they might ask you to manage them. That is how Cosyford Records gets started.
