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Louie & Chan beverage director Nesha Korak is no stranger to big cities. He was raised and educated in Belgrade, the largest city in Eastern Europe, where he attended business college before becoming involved in the world of finance. It didn’t take long for him to realize his heart wasn’t in crunching numbers, and soon enough he moved to New York and landed a job at Olio in the West Village. It was here that he met and trained under Dushan Zaric, the cocktail pro behind Employees Only and Macao Trading Co. After a mere two weeks, Zaric called in Korak to work at Macao Trading Company, where his career began to take off. Most recently Korak has been behind the bar at Louie & Chan and its subterranean Chan’s Cocktail Lounge, where he displays his bartending prowess in components like spicy apple gastrique and a housemade tonic packing 14 herbs. Here, Korak discusses his cocktail test runs, why tiki is king when it comes to creativity, and why he wants to know your favorite candy.
BoozeMenus: How do you put your stamp on a cocktail?
Nesha Korak: My first rule when I create a new cocktail is to call friends who are in the business and let them be the judges. I use them as my test subjects for new recipes, crazy ingredients, classics — whatever I want! Sometimes there's fire, fruits I find in Chinatown, things we've ordered on the Internet. We get creative. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. If my friends say it's good, then that is a promising start.
BM: Why do you bartend? What is its biggest reward or constant lesson for you?
NK: Fundamentally, it is the source of all that I am today. Bartending made me a better person, and I still learn from every shift. I still feel the excitement before every shift. Before I started bartending, my jobs were just the opposite. I didn't feel that excitement every time I went to work and I didn't look forward to moving forward. As a bartender, I get excited about coming to work and creating new cocktails and getting to know customers. Louie and Chan is a place full of unique customers, and I get excited about making them drinks and helping them have a great night.
BM: Which cocktail was the most fun to create?
NK: Every tiki drink is so much fun! You have all the freedom to add your personal little touch on drinks with fun garnishes. Tiki is all about so many flavors and different interpretations, bits and pieces from so many tropical countries. It's like making a customer a mini-vacation with each cocktail.
BM: Which cocktail was the most difficult to perfect?
NK: Sazerac, Manhattan, negroni, and so on. The Classics are the hardest to perfect, especially when you are a free pour bartender. It takes so little to completely mess up the drink, so I always give extra attention to the classic cocktails. People are usually more judgmental of the classics because they assume all bartenders should know how to make them perfectly. It's like when people expect basketball players to make every free throw and football kickers to make every extra point.
BM: When someone asks for "dealer's choice," what's your process for creating their perfect drink?
NK: I always try to navigate my customers in the direction that will make them choose the right cocktail. I ask them what they usually like to drink, and it doesn't have to be a cocktail. They can talk about food or their favorite juice, or even a candy.
BM: What are you always stocking at your at-home bar?
NK: Wine, because I have all the booze at my bar — almost every night!
BM: What's the last cocktail ingredient you discovered that you're really fond of?
NK: Chan's Tonic. It is the house blend of different spices and some secret stuff. I'm hooked on it.
BM: What are you craving post-work, and where are you going for it?
NK: I finish my shift with a negroni. If I'm too lazy to make one for myself, I go and have the best one at Attaboy.
BM: When's the last time you were inspired in your work by a travel experience?
NK: Greece! I met some great bartenders from the island of Zakhintos. There was fresh citrus everywhere, and the best tiki drinks!
BM: What time do you wake up in the morning, and what's for breakfast?
NK: Between 8am and 9am, and I do my usual six egg-omelet with goat cheese and spinach. I chase that with a pint glass of fresh tomato juice.
By Nicole Schnitzler
(Photos by Filip Wolak | From Left: Interior; Nesha Korak; The Hummingbird cocktail)