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Would you say that anybody’s been a mentor to you?

Audrey Saunders, opening The Tar Pit.

What did she teach you?

Audrey comes to my mind as my mentor, but so many people have taught me so many different things. Audrey taught me about the balancing act that’s in a cocktail. It’s like two fighters who are in a ring. They have to be evenly matched, or one will knock the other one out. So Audrey taught me balance. Christy Pope taught me technique. Chad Solomon taught me precision and attention to detail and weights and measures. And Marcos [Tello] taught me the importance of community, and he’s my librarian for my required reading list, so that’s good.

Do you have a first cocktail memory?

Ever?

Yeah.

Taking sips off my dad’s Screwdrivers. Sitting next to my dad in bars in New England when I could barely see over the counter, and ordering cheeseburgers. He’s always let me have the whiskey soaked cherry that was in the bottom of his glass. That was fun.

What do you think are some characteristics of your bartending style?

A lot of people associate me with farm to glass. That, because I have a garden and I grow a lot of things. I’m involved with different gardening organizations and a lot of things I grow eventually find their way to the bar. I do a lot of foraging and Fallen Fruit type stuff and that eventually finds its way to the bar as well.

How did that come about?

It’s just something I’ve always done. We always had a garden when I was a little girl, and I’ve always had a garden. I’ve never not had one.

What are you growing now that you’re especially excited about?

Right now, I’m really bummed out because my pomegranate tree had a bad year, but I’ve got a couple different kinds of sage, all different kinds of herbs, I’ve got some peppers growing for fall, a lot of different kinds of hot peppers, lots of herbs. Right now is that quiet time before you start replanting for spring.

So that all makes its way to the bar?

Pretty much, especially when we have a day here, on Thursdays, which is more popular in summer because the bounty’s more plentiful at the farmers market, but I go to market, and I go to my garden and take a lot of clippings and bring them here and do an arrangement on the bar and let the customer decide what they want to pick and we discuss our approach to a cocktail with them and make them something based on their choices. That’s fun.

Do you work with Chef Joseph Panarello here at all?

A lot. We do a lot of pairings together, and we always have each other to bounce off of for food and cocktails.

What’s the advantage of working in a restaurant for you?

Always working in a restaurant, and most bartenders will say this, you have the advantage of the kitchen, of using what’s in the kitchen – if you have a kind chef – and having that culinary approach to the bar is always good. Plus you have all kinds of great machinery that you wouldn’t have access to otherwise unless you went out and bought it specifically for that.

How did this opportunity come about for you?

When Audrey, Chad and Christy abruptly left The Tar Pit. There was a bit of a falling out between the owners of that place. I didn’t feel comfortable staying on after they left. Marcos left and came to open First & Hope, to open the bar program here with Aidan [Demarest] as Liquid Assets, and he brought me with him.

Who are some other bartenders who you really respect?

Besides the ones we’ve talked about already, I would say Julian Cox at Rivera. I would say Chris Bostick at The Varnish. Zahra [Bates] and Tricia [Alley] both, over at Providence.

If you could only drink one more cocktail, what would be in the glass?

Oh, it’s the desert island question. If I’m about to die, give me a scenario and a place and I will tell you what I’d drink. That’s much more fun. Now it’s interactive.

It’s a cold night, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be your death row drink, it could also be the one cocktail you drink for the rest of your life.

One for the rest of my life? Whiskey and water.

How come?

It’s good, it’s simple, it’s good for you.

Which whiskey?

Michter’s Rye, neat, with a water back.

What about on a hot day?

Queen’s Park Swizzle.

Why that one?

It’s my go-to rum drink. You have a lot of bartenders who say, when they go to bars, there’s always one they’re going to throw out there to kind of test people. For some it’s an Old Fashioned. For some it’s a martini. I test people on Manhattans, but at a place that has a really good rum selection, I’m always going to test them on a Queen’s Park Swizzle and see how well they make it.

Who would you want to make it?

Daniel Eun makes a damn good Queen’s Park Swizzle. I would want to make it, but if not me, then Daniel. I’d also say Rhachel Shaw over at Caña.

Any particular rum that you like in there?

I like La Favorite Blanc in there. Any agricole, I like in a Swizzle.

What’s a great cocktail for people to make at home, and what would the recipe be?

When my daughters and I were cooking last Thanksgiving, I taught them to make an Americano highball, and I think it’s the perfect drink to make at home before you head out for the night, or when you’re cooking. It’s a great simple drink, not too much alcohol in there, and it’s a good aperitif as well.

What would the recipe be for your preference?

One to one. One Campari, one sweet vermouth, fill with soda, and it’s a true highball.