AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2006

Yvan Lemoine Keeping it Clean

Yvan Lemoine likes his drinks clean and eschews cocktails that leave customers beyond satiated—making any thoughts of ordering dinner or appetizers disappear. “A cocktail shouldn’t be a muddled mess, it should be clean and food friendly,” Lemoine said. Lemoine, who’s worked in restaurants and bars since the age of 14, is the founder of iFood Studios, a consulting company for restaurants and bars. After being “raised in a kitchen” Lemoine sees cocktails as a compliment to the food being served, not a distraction.

Born in Venezuela, Lemoine relocated to Brooklyn at the age of 12. Two years later, the burgeoning chef landed an apprenticeship at La Caravelle with the patissier, Laurent Richard. Lemoine later on took over the position of Pastry chef. After stints at many of New York City’s finest restaurants, such as Le Cirque 2000, Union Pacific, Aix, WD-50, and Fleur de Sel, Lemoine decided to live the “age old cliché of being a bartender and writing music.”

Bartending at some of New York’s hippest bars, such as Viscaya, Milos, the Hudson Hotel, and most recently, Gilt at the New York Palace Hotel, Lemoine realized the need for bar-menu makeovers. When he joined the team at Gilt, he was given free reign to design the bar menu. Lemoine established iFood six months ago and now consults for several establishments including the recently debuted Subtle Tea, and P’Ong, scheduled to open in October. Both are located in New York City.

When mixing a drink, Lemoine likes to think of it as a recipe—with different ingredients combined to create something tasty. For example, instead of using vanilla flavored vodka (which, he claims tastes unnatural), Lemoine will use Square One Organic Vodka and shave off pieces of real vanilla bean, creating a simple but refreshing cocktail that would surely compliment a number of desserts that Lemoine might whip up!