The Drink: “Hanky Panky”
The Location: Hank’s Oyster Bar, 1624 Q St. NW, (202) 462-4265
The Price: $11
The Buzz: After spending a day huddled in my hoodie in my frigid office, I decide to walk home to enjoy the lingering rays of sun. It only takes a couple of blocks before I’m sweating my ass off and cursing D.C. summers. I pop into Hank’s Oyster Bar in Dupont for a refreshment. The long, narrow restaurant has a small bar in the back where you can sip and watch the shucker work on mounds of oysters. There are a handful of specialty cocktails to choose from; I pick a classic, one they’ve had since the beginning: the Hanky Panky. I can’t order it without smirking, which the bartender matches with his own. But the concoction is nothing to laugh off: It’s a shaken mixture of Belvedere Cytrus, a rye vodka with the oils from lemon and lime peels, Caravella limoncello, a sweet lemon liquor from Italy, and a splash of Prosecco, a sparkling white wine—-all garnished with a twist. It’s citrus-y without being overly sweet or sour, and the Prosecco adds a refreshing tingle—-it’s like lemonade for grown-ups. If kids were selling this summer elixir on the sidewalks, people would be smiling through the dog days while the little ones would be zipping around on shiny new bikes.