It’s been a while since I’ve written about Liquor Lab, the Second Avenue amateur mixology school that offers entertaining classes for visitors, locals, date nights and group events. The company opened strong in 2019, expanding its list of classes and partnering with local restaurants to provide meals to accompany thematic cocktail classes.
Then … 2020 arrived, bringing with it a devastating tornado, a global pandemic, a derecho that knocked out power to the city (again) and finally the Christmas morning bombing, when a man blew up an RV less than a block away from Liquor Lab’s 144 Second Ave. N. location. On the plus side, Liquor Lab’s classrooms are subterranean, so they suffered less damage than nearby above-ground storefronts.
However, that end of Second Avenue was closed to cars literally for years, and pedestrian traffic was drastically reduced. Liquor Lab soldiered on, although the original school in New York City closed in the wake of the pandemic. (A Louisville, Ky., outpost is still operating in the hip NuLu neighborhood.)
More than three years since the Christmas Day bombing, the historic downtown district enters the home stretch of its rebuild
So if anyone understands the difficulties faced by hospitality workers, often due to circumstances beyond their control, it's Liquor Lab. And that makes it even more apt and admirable that they have established a new series they’re calling Cocktails for a Cause, in which the company will donate $10 of every class fee from selected classroom sessions to specific charities.
Even better, Liquor Lab has chosen Giving Kitchen as the first beneficiary, specifically from a class on Thursday, June 26. The Atlanta-based organization has provided thousands of dollars in direct aid to Nashville food service workers in crisis over the past few years, and proudly states that it has never failed to provide some sort of assistance to a qualified request from a hospitality worker anywhere in the country.
Tickets for the class are just $65, and you’ll learn how to make two inventive cocktails and enjoy consuming your handiwork as part of the class. Plus, you’ll be contributing to the industry that quietly faces hardships while providing so much joy to the community. It’s a win-win, so put together a group of friends and make a reservation for June 26!
