Metro-billy Sips
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blackberry and lemon VODKA TONIC

The dog days of summer require something cool, strong, and slightly sweet - this one is just the ticket. Quick and easy to whip up…but impressive as a pre-dinner cocktail or for just sippin’ on the back porch. Feel free to increase the amount of vodka depending on your day -

blackberry and lemon VODKA TONIC
Metro-billy Nosh
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tomatoes and peaches with WHIPPED GOAT CHEESE

Something magical happens when goat cheese is paired with summer tomatoes and juicy ripe peaches. This super quick salad works well as a starter course, but also equally impresses as an appetizer when served with our firecrackers or buttery grilled toast. We especially love the bright green nuance of fresh basil and mint from the garden, even though added bits of zesty arugula or watercress would make this the summer salad to end all summer salads….

tomatoes and peaches with WHIPPED GOAT CHEESE
Metro-billy Nosh
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summer tomato TOAST

Nothing on the planet is more delicious than fresh tomatoes steeped in olive oil, basil, and fresh garlic. Our SUMMER TOMATO TOAST is simple, but promises to be the belle of this year’s Fourth of July pool, lake, or river party. The tomatoes gain sweet complexity the longer they sit…so prep about an hour before guest arrival to ensure maximum flavor…and guest adoration.

summer tomato TOAST
Metrobilly SIPS
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it's hard out here FOR A PIMM'S

Our simple version of this classic summertime cocktail includes muddled cucumber and Arkansas strawberries that elevate it to a whole new level. Barely sweet, heady, with bright red berries, lemon, and fresh mint that screams “SUMMER HAS ARRIVED!”

it's hard out here FOR A PIMM'S
Citiscapes Eats
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buffalo grilled MUSHROOMS

Mushrooms when cooked properly are the epitome of umami; I love this recipe as a side dish, but it’s also killer as a vegetarian main course as the base for sliders…it’s also excellent as an accoutrement to pizza.

The high heat grill ensures a crispy mushroom, so be sure to keep the burners on high through the cooking process. Morels are a seasonal treat, but worth the addition to the mix during the Spring months if you can find them. Thump thump!

buffalo grilled MUSHROOMS

Metrobilly Drinks

METROBILLY NEGRONI

METROBILLY NEGRONI

Few adult beverages have solicited more varied creativity than the classic Italian Negroni over the course of its 100-year run. The one-to-one-to-one recipe of gin, Campari and sweet vermouth yields an ethereal bitter experience that is also an easy gateway to other cocktails…swap bourbon for gin, and you’ve got the Boulevardier, my favorite drink of all time. We love our METROBILLY NEGRONI made with Texas Distilled CALAMITY GIN, nuanced with floral and citrus notes, guaranteed to satisfy the ITALIAN-TEXAN in all of us.

The Natural Sip

The Natural Sip

It’s finally the weekend, which means it’s time to sip, relax, and cook - and our favorite adult beverage this week is the The Natural Sip, a cool, clear cocktail devised mostly of ingredients from Arkansas. We start with subtle, nuanced vodka from Little Rock’s Rock Town distillery, layered with fresh lime, basil from our Fayetteville garden, a kiss of ginger syrup from North West Arkansas’ Pink House Alchemy, and finally topped with hydrated basil seeds and the ethereal bubbles from Mountain Valley water out of Hot Springs.

RASPBERRY PEACH SANGRIA: Sip, Sip, Hooray!

RASPBERRY PEACH SANGRIA: Sip, Sip, Hooray!

The history of SANGRIA goes way back; a chilled, fruity wine cocktail first made popular in the United States at the 1964 New York Worlds Fair, finds it’s true roots wrapped tightly around Spanish culture and early Greek and Roman life. Like many moments in history, alcohol was a means to hydrate since water was often too dangerus to drink…and ancient civilations like the Romans consumed something called “Hippocras” which utilized wine mixed with whatever was on hand, like sugar, fruit, and herbs.

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