When bartenders returned to their pulpits this year, without the buffer of six-foot social distancing rules, they found that some on the other side of the mahogany had forgotten their virtues. Patience, for example.

“During the pandemic people kind of had whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. Whereas when you’ve come to the bar, you’ve put yourself in my hands. Just be patient, good things will come,” says Quinn Taylor of The Moonroom. With twelve years of experience, including time at Riviera and Fogo Island Inn, she’s one of the city’s leading cocktail makers. 

“There are so many different things that go into serving someone that perfect beverage,” says Taylor. “I think a lot of people maybe take that for granted, but hopefully there is more of a respect now that people had to make their own over the past couple years.”

At the Moonroom, riffs on classics such as the Boulevardier are elevated with the use of premium spirits and an intimate atmosphere of dim lighting, gauzy draping, and a pitch-perfect playlist. The mood is carried further into a unique set of house rules that can be found on the cocktail menu. The commandments range from the playful (“gentlemen will remove their hats”) to the more pointed: “no fighting, play fighting, no talking about fighting”. Given the recent rise in political polarization, the team at The Moonroom have considered adding to the house rules. 

“So far, the house rules don’t say anything about politics, or getting into debate, but we were recently discussing how to add that into it,” says Taylor. “It goes into creating a safe space where everyone feels comfortable.” 

A good cocktail bar can offer sanctuary from the stressors of the outside world. So, the next time you find yourself at the Moonroom, or at any bar, come with your heavenly virtues in tow — patience, kindness, humility, and charity. Temperance be damned.