27 Nov 7th-Nov 13th, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | from local, intergalactic inspiration. Inside Quartz’s rose gold tiled hide- away, The Cave, the menu continues to revolve around desert landscapes, people and flavors, but “there’s some fun twists and turns as we even leave the planet,” Berlin says. The mixologist is leaning into Quartz’s inadvertent label as a “Star Wars”-themed bar after co-owner Chuckie Duff referred to part of The Cave’s private-booth design being inspired by film’s iconic cantina on Tatooine. “At the end of the day we’re not a “Star Wars”-themed bar, but it always stuck and we could never get away from it,” Berlin says. With the Binary Sunset cocktail, he chose to lean into intergalactic character- ization while using flavors from this planet, including “all these kind of alien tropical fruits that grow around the world.” The barman says the drink is akin to the colorful, layered Filipino dessert Halo Halo. Another drink from The Cave hits closer to home, and is one Berlin has been working on from Quartz’s start. It is “prob- ably the most difficult cocktail, conceptu- ally, that I’ve ever created,” he says. We Call It Home pays homage to Phoenix and some of Berlin’s favorite restaurants. “We’re a thriving food community that really is (putting) itself on the map,” Berlin says. “I wanted to take a little bit from all these people.” He started by making a list of his favorite places, such as Bacanora, Belly, FnB, Old Town Taste, Tratto, Valentine and Glai Baan, whose wine and beverage program was nominated for a James Beard Award in 2023 during Berlin’s tenure. The flavors he sought to highlight from each of those places included a seemingly dispa- rate collection that included chiltepin and prickly pear, as well as sun-dried tomatoes and fish sauce. “I was looking at this list and I’m like, this is all over the place,” Berlin says. Things clicked when he started thinking about the ingredients as more of a melting pot of soup, evoking flavors of pho and pozole. He used Phoenix’s unofficial cocktail, the margarita, as his starting point. The drink uses a tomato-infused bacanora, citrus stock and a rice syrup made with prickly pear and red onion, among other ingredients. “It’s a little smoky, sweet, sour, spicy, all whipped up into something that’s very refreshing and very Phoenix,” he says. The drink arrives in a cactus-shaped glass adorned with a piece of fried, seasoned rice paper and is topped with a cluster of bougainvillea blooms. Imbibers will also find signature savory sips from Berlin. He has integrated flavors of Middle Eastern mezze, or appetizers, such as baba ghanoush and tabbouleh. For one such drink, Berlin riffs on a Southside cocktail by adding parsley and honeydew. “I’ve always tried to incorporate my love for food and my culinary history into my cocktail making, so there’s naturally a tendency to incorporate more savory ingredients,” he says. Favorites from The Cave’s first menu that will remain include the gin-based Dreamtime, which is inspired by the Great Australian Desert. While this is Quartz’s first menu change-up, it’s something Berlin hopes to continue to do annually. What won’t alter is his approach of incorporating the ingre- dients, people and traditions from around the globe. “I always try to find the halfway point between their stories and my story,” he says. Quartz 341 W. Van Buren St., Suite B Intergalactic Inspiration from p 24 (Photo by Sara Crocker) The Bamm Bamm Beryl draws on inspiration from its namesake pink crystal and its nostalgic properties. (Courtesy of Quartz)
