St. Regis Toasts the Anniversary of the Bloody Mary

December 1, 2008 at 12:08 PM | by JetSetCD | 1 Comment

Put down that Red Bull and celebrate today, a landmark date for both cocktail enthusiasts and brunch boozers, as the NY Post points out that it's the 75th Anniversary of the Bloody Mary cocktail. Now for a tall, cool glass of history: the Bloody Mary was originally invented by bartender Fernand Petiot at Harry's Bar in Paris in the late 1920s, then perfected with the addition of Tabasco when Fernand headed up King Cole Bar at New York's St. Regis Hotel shortly after the repeal of prohibition.

At first, the St. Regis was wary of the drink's gory name and instead introduced it as the "Red Snapper," but Fernand's veggytale told a story of its own and soon became the favorite lunchtime beverage of the New York set. In a 1964 interview with Fernand at the St. Regis, he measured the cocktail's popularity: "We serve a hundred to a hundred and fifty Bloody Marys a day here in the King Cole Room and in the other restaurants and the banquet rooms.� Now adjust that number for inflation and you can imagine how many will be stopping in today to tipple at the St. Regis.

If you have the good fortune to be in New York right now, then make a detour into the TGI Friday's at Times Square for a pleasant surprise in honor of the anniversary; today they'll be serving Bloody Marys at the 1930s price of 99 cents. Like you need any more motivation to drink during a weekday.

[St. Regis image via Starwood; Bloody Mary image via thebar.com]

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