Back in August of 1997, after missing an incredible martini party hosted by Nancy Ryan, radio personality on the BOB 94.9fm Breakfast Club, a discussion arose at one of the MODE staff meetings as to whether or not martinis really were popular in Harrisburg, and if so… where?

Well, seven months later, after a significant degree of planning, MODE’s Martini Tour of Harrisburg set out for an evening of martini discovery. The tour was not intended as a "best of the best" competition, but more to flush out the really great places to get a really great martini. The Martini Tour "tourists" included: Nancy Ryan (of course) and her husband, Brad Rodgers; martini connoisseur, Leroy Stevick of famed D.L. Stevick Clothiers; creative thinker, Mitchell Hillman; voice of reason, Nathan Mains and, of course, publisher/reporter/photographer/delivery boy, Scot Giambalvo.

After an in-depth study, the tour was narrowed to five downtown fine dining and spirits establishments and one recently remodeled, suburban location. In order of visitation, these were Catalano’s, Scotts’ Bar & Grille, Stocks on 2nd, the new Firehouse, Garrason’s Tavern, and Cantone’s Southern Italian Restaurant.

At each location we ordered three martinis. The first was to be a truly traditional martini measured anywhere from 5 to 1, to 10 to 1, vodka (or gin) to vermouth. All establishments served top shelf vodka or gin and Martini & Rossi Vermouth and prepared their martinis shaken, not stirred. Interestingly, we discovered many of the places served tomolives instead of traditional olives. "Tomolives?", you say? It’s a baby green tomato that has been pickled and, I can tell you right now, they’re so popular that one patron at the Firehouse had a little tupperware container with tomolives in it, just in case the bar ran out. For the second martini, we asked the bartenders to prepare their house specialty, a contemporary martini, something they wouldn’t mind being known for. Finally, for the third martini, we requested the wildest or most unique martini the bar served which, mind you, ranged from a flaming martini to one that had garlic in it. Phew!

One note, it was a unanimous decision to remark that the "wild or unique" entries from every establishment were about as far as one could depart from a martini and still feel comfortable pouring it in a martini glass.

At 7:00pm, in one of the finest At Your Service Limousines you could ask for, the Official Martini Tour arrived at Catalano’s in Wormleysburg. Full of zest, we entered the bar to be met by owner Joe Catalano and bartender Karen Gnazzo. Karen prepared our "traditional" martini impeccably. At Catalano’s, it’s referred to as the 007 and is prepared with Ketel One Vodka and topped with a tomolive. It clearly set the standard for the night as the perfect martini. The "house specialty" martini was called the Cosmopolitan. Prepared with Strawberry Stolichnaya (hereinafter known as Stoli) Vodka it had a plump ripe strawberry waited invitingly at the bottom of the glass where the traditional olive (or tomolive) would reside. Nancy Ryan referred to it as "smooth, strong and tart." For our last martini, Karen slid five bright blue martinis in front of the tourists for Catalano’s "wild or unique" entry. They were called Gondolas and were pure evil. Vodka, Malibu Rum, Blue Curacao and pineapple juice made this one silky and refreshing. Mitchell stated that he could spend a July in that martini glass. The popular (and still very sober) consensus was, that we were still too sober and needed to get to the next stop as soon as possible.

Outside Scott’s Bar & Grille, owned by Tom Scott, we were joined by a fellow martini fan, Chuck Allen. Inside we were greeted and served by bartender John Robertson.

The "traditional" martini served to us was prepared with Stoli Vodka, and was much sweeter (more Vermouth) than that at Catalano’s. (Please note, that part of our tour was to purposely ask the bartender to prepare their "traditional" the way they do most often.) It was rated excellent. Scotts’ "house specialty" was a chocolate martini, which truly surprised us tourists. Built with Stoli Vodka, Kahlua, and Crème De Cacao, it was "a martini anyone can drink, but it’s not too sweet", commented Leroy Sevick. Mitchell Hillman said that it reminded him of a Brandy Alexander. Scott’s "wild or unique" entry was a vanilla martini. Prepared with Stoli Vanilla Vodka and White Crème De Cacao, it pushed the "ON" button for most of the tourists. Comments like Leroy’s "It makes good vodka easy to drink", and Brad’s "It tastes like angel food cake" were only topped with Nancy Ryan’s own "Where do I put the cherry?"

The tourists were getting warmed up, so off we went to our next destination… Stocks on 2nd. Mind you Stocks had only been open for a few weeks as of the visiting of our tour, but they were ready with the big guns, no doubt about it. Stocks sports a Martini Menu with 17 different martinis, one for every palette. Sneaky martinis at that.

The "traditional" martini was prepared and served to us by bartender Adam Chiffy. Owner Steven Weinstock stood by as we tasted the first martini. Smiles abounded as I asked for the formula. Adam replied Leyden Gin with a splash of Martini & Rossi Vermouth. At this point, Leroy exclaimed, "This martini was made with Gin?!! That’s one thin gin! This is an excellent gin martini." Right up until the next martini arrived, Leroy was examining the bottle and asking where he could buy a case. I think he liked it.

The house specialty was also called a Cosmopolitan (like Catalano’s), but that’s where the similarities ended. Stock’s Cosmopolitan was citrus based and made with Ketel One Vodka, Cointreau and cranberry juice with a splash of lime. Mmmmm. Mitchell took one sip and said "Ahhh, a martini that bites you back."

Finally, Adam prepared the "wild or unique" martini which was called the Astini. Again, a significant departure from the "traditional" martini, but what a martini. Prepared with Martini & Rossi Asti, Chambord, and Martini & Rossi Dry Vermouth, the Astini drew comments like, Brad’s "Oh man that’s good" and Nathan’s "Amazing!" to Mitchell’s "It’s like sex for your taste buds" and Leroy’s "It’s very, very good, but far from the truth."

On a side note, several of us chose to order a few "Beer Buddy" burgers at Stocks. They were delicious, and well worth mentioning as part of our tour.

The next stop, and one hoppin’ place, was the new Firehouse, owned by Don Brown. Our gracious and animated bartender was Dennis Mulroy. Our tour group was officially lit at this point and quite willing to let everyone know. Dennis whipped up our "traditional" martinis with Tanqueray Gin and a simple coating, then a spill of Vermouth in each glass. They were above par for the tour and eagerly consumed. The "house specialty" was a Raspberry Field and could easily become a favorite. Prepared with Stoli Raspberry, Chambord and a topping of fresh raspberries, this sweet martini packed a subtle punch. But, not nearly as much as the "wild or unique" entry of the Firehouse’s own 44 Magnum martini. Prepared with Liqueur 43 and Belvedere Vodka, this martini was rated as "one of the best of the night" by Leroy and it was noted that the 44 Magnum "shined beyond all the stars" by a slightly glowing Mitchell. Shining mostly because it, too, was glowing; the glass is lit on fire before being served. Now that’s hot!

The Martini Tour brought us to our fifth downtown institution, Garrason’s Tavern, where it is rumored that Harrisburg’s fastest (when he wants to be) bartender, Gerry Muth would be serving us. The rumors were true and in a matter of seconds from entering the bar, our "traditional" was getting old on the counter. The 10 to 1 Stoli to Martini & Rossi was, again, par for the tour. Little did we know what was coming for the "house specialty", however, and if you’ve never had a Garrason’s Moscow Mule, you’re not a true martini drinker. Served in an ice-cold copper mug with 2 ounces of Stoli Vodka, ginger beer and fresh lime (clearly nothing like a martini, but who were we to argue), it was sensational, and the only martini on the tour of which Nathan drank two full mugs, tsk tsk tsk.

But, it was Gerry’s entry for the "wild or unique" martini that rang the Martini Tour Bell. It was called a Greek Martini and was Stoli Vodka, Ouzo and a fresh clove of garlic. That’s right, it’s surely an acquired taste, but wow, what a wild martini. It’s also the only martini on the tour of which Brad drank two, pat, pat, pat. The Greek Martini drew the comment of "Boy, he’s awfully blurry" from one of our tourists.

There was a brief break in the fast pace of the Martini Tour as we were whisked from downtown to suburban Harrisburg and to our last stop, Cantone’s Southern Italian Restaurant. During the limo ride, each of the tourists had the opportunity to clearly communicate their current level of sobriety to Gloria Giambalvo, stationed strategically at home with a telephone tape recorder. Comments like "I can’t feel my tongue" and "I could spend the month of December in that Moscow Mule", as well as "They all look like claymation figures, all drippy and stuff" and of course the perpetually smooth "Hi, Gloria, it’s Nancy, boy are these guys looking pretty bad!" While we were all busy taking this Martini Tour very seriously, Nancy Ryan could do nothing but think of herself and the fact that she had to get up at 3:30am for her morning radio show, and she PACED HERSELF; CHEATER. (But, God bless her for taking care of us, she’s the Martini Tour Den Mother.)

The last stop on the MODE Official Martini Tour of Harrisburg, and the only one with live entertainment, was Cantone’s. We were served by bartender Sandy Calderone. I have to admit that a few of the tourists weren’t concentrating as intently as the others, but we managed to enjoy a tremendous "traditional" gin martini, followed by the "house specialty" a Dirty Martini made with Stoli Vodka, olive juice and Martini & Rossi Dry Vermouth. Definitely a martini drinker’s martini, traditional and strong, in every sense of the words. Finally, Sandy prepared a French Martini consisting of Stoli Vodka, Chambord, and pineapple juice. This "wild or unique" entry was a pleasant end to the evening and, everyone agreed, the perfect apéritif.

So, as we faded in and out of consciousness between our respective drop-off locations, we, the tourists, unanimously agreed to talk more about our conclusions the next morning. Amazingly, four out of the six of us had neither a hangover nor dizzy spells the next morning. This can be attributed to the excellent quality of the liquors we were drinking. (As the quality decreases, the hangover increases, remember that.) But, all of us did have a great time and the real conclusion drawn from this very scientific experiment is that martinis are probably the widest ranging alcoholic beverages served in a drinking establishment. From almost nothing but vodka, to something that didn’t even have any vodka, the martini is alive and well in Harrisburg, PA.

Our final words of advice are that everyone should try something different from time to time. Not to the extent that we did in one evening, but at least once in a while. These few establishments we visited in Harrisburg had more to offer in just martinis than we ever, ever expected. And we never would have discovered the fun (and wallop) of martinis if we hadn’t tried something different. If you’re a confirmed beer drinker and you always go to the exact same two places to unwind, we suggest you go someplace totally different. Bring a few friends and order up a course of different martinis. We’re sure you’ll have as much fun as we did and remember… please drink responsibly.

In closing, I want to tell everyone that I haven’t had this much fun since I woke up in my dorm room shower my Junior year. But, seriously, the Martini Tour visited only a few of the many great places in Harrisburg. I know we didn’t hit any hotels, and we didn’t even venture onto the West shore (shouldn’t it be bank, if it’s a river?) Anyway, there’s only so much time in one evening, and we feel the establishments we patronized were a pretty good representation of the mix available in Harrisburg. If you want to see more pictures or, have suggestions for next year’s Martini Tour, check out www.MODEmagazine.com/CoolStuff/MartiniTour.

Watch out this Summer for MODE’s Official Margarita Deck Tour of Harrisburg!

Stop #5
Garrason’s Tavern
400 Forster Street, Harrisburg
232-2028
Tourists’ favorite: Moscow Mule