Death & Co doesn’t merely dabble in dark delights. It was born from them. Molded by them. Steeped in them.
In the most transformative ways.
Since its creation in Manhattan’s East Village in 2006, the “restaurant” and “bar,” which has grown to include locations in Denver and Los Angeles, has redefined the meanings of those words. It’s taken cocktails from syrupy afterthoughts poured by shadowy figures wielding sticky spray nozzles to an artform that sparked a craft-cocktail revolution.
This is a bar that has moved the bar, a bar that has pushed the bar into realms previously unknown.
In 2014, Death & Co released Death & Co: Modern Classic Cocktails, a tome that’s come to be regarded as The Cocktail Bible, and that quickly became the best-selling cocktail book of all time. This fierce dedication to doing things properly extends to all Death & Co touches, be it a Sundial cocktail shaken with orgeat and egg white, or this classic burger recipe as shared by Death & Co Denver executive chef Jonathan Merrill on Instagram Live. No burger’s complete without fries, or in Merrill’s world, twice-fried tempura-battered fries.
And to wash it all down: a hand-made lime-ginger-raspberry soda infused with Mountain Valley Key Lime Twist Sparkling Water.
There’s that bar, being moved yet again.
The Death & Co Burger
How to build the burger (*recipes below):
- Season burger patties with salt and pepper, place over hot grill on high.
- Brush the bun with egg wash (whisked egg thinned with some water) and then dust the top with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, everything seasoning — whatever you have or prefer.
- Toast the bun in the oven, over the grill, or in an oiled pan until warm and soft.
- Turn the burger 90 degrees but do not flip yet.
- Once juices begin forming on the top of the burger, flip the patty.
- Top the patty with one spoonful of caramelized onion*, take a spoonful of the cheese sauce* and form it into a disc. Place atop the onion and add two slices of crispy bacon.
- Chop your favorite pickles that you have on hand.
- Take toasted bun and apply one tablespoon of hot-sauce aioli*, and then place the chopped pickles on top of the aioli.
- On top of the pickles, place the patty with the onion, cheese and bacon atop it. Stick a toothpick or wooden skewer through the top bun to hold it all together.
- Serve with tempura fries* and lime-ginger-raspberry soda*.
Caramelized onions
Ingredients
- 300 grams white onion, thinly sliced
- 9 grams canola oil
- 5 grams kosher salt
Directions
Heat a rondeau or brazier pan, or any large flat-bottomed pan, on a stove over high heat. Slice the onions into a large container to add to pan all at once. Add the oil to the pan, followed immediately by the sliced onions, and stir to mix so none burn.
Add the salt as the onions begin to sweat. Stir often (every 2-3 minutes), keeping the onions from sticking to the side of the pan.
Deglaze the pan with water as brown fonds form on the bottom (this is the flavor). Cook until the onions don't seem to be cooking down or shrinking anymore.(Note: the bottom of the pan should have nothing stuck to it.)
Let the caramelized onions cool in the pan with the heat off to continue absorbing the flavors. Store in the refrigerator.
Mustard Mornay
Ingredients:
- 100 grams white cheddar (grated)
- 75 grams whole milk
- 75 grams heavy cream
- 40 grams Dijon
- 8 grams prepared horseradish
- 5 grams cornstarch, slurried with 8 grams water
- 5 grams kosher salt
Directions:
Heat milk and cream together in a large pot; bring to a simmer and reduce by half.
Whisk in grated cheese, add horseradish, then thicken with cornstarch slurry and add salt. Remove from pot and let cool before storing in the refrigerator.
Hot Sauce Aioli
Ingredients:
- 100 grams mayonnaise, prepared
- 20 grams Cholula hot sauce
- 20 grams sriracha hot sauce
Directions:
Mix. Done. Boom!
Blanched Fries
Ingredients:
- 2 Russet potatoes
- 1 gallon canola oil
Directions:
For the first fry: Heat oil to 220 degrees. Cut potatoes into fries of whatever your desired thickness might be. Blanch potatoes for 8-10 minutes and cool on a sheet tray.
For the second fry: Heat oil to 360 degrees. Dunk fries in tempura batter. Fry the battered fries for 6 minutes with a good shake to break them free from clumping about halfway through.
Gluten-free tempura batter
Ingredients:
- 40 grams chickpea flour
- 80 grams rice flour
- 40 grams cornstarch
- 40 grams potato starch
- 240 grams Mountain Valley Sparkling Water
Directions
Mix all dry ingredients together. Whisk Mountain Valley Sparkling Water into dry mix until it forms a thin batter.
Lime Ginger Raspberry Soda
Ingredients:
- 360 milliliters Mountain Valley Key Lime Twist Sparkling Water
- 20 milliliters ginger syrup
- 40 milliliters raspberry syrup
- 20 milliliters lime juice
Directions:
Mix syrups and juice into the Key lime sparkling water.
Pour over large ice cubes and garnish with a lime slice and a raspberry on a cocktail pick.
**Photos provided by Death & Co, including lobby by @shawnxcampbell and food by @apartment_bartender.
