MIXING MUSIC
AT HIS NEW BAR, TREVOR FRYE CAN MAKE YOU A DRINK BASED ON YOUR FAVORITE SONG.
MIXING MUSIC Mixologist Trevor Frye shakes it to the beat with music-inspired cocktails.
Any mixologist worth his weight in cocktail napkins can make you a drink based on a few flavor preferences, such as bitter, sweet, or citrus. But Trevor Frye, formerly of Jack Rose and Dram & Grain, will customize a drink to your tastes in music—a rare talent and one of the many reasons his new bar’s opening has been so highly anticipated.
“If someone tells me they’re in a Tom Waits mood, I’ll make them something dark and stirred to sip on,” says Frye, founder of Five to One, a new music-themed bar on U Street that is, coincidentally, in the location of a former music store.
The three-level space is designed to mimic a music hall. Concert posters deck the walls, and the lighting is dim with music to match the menu. Featured drinks are in frequent rotation, influenced by the bands performing at the 9:30 Club just around the corner.
Five to One celebrates the similarities between attending a concert and enjoying a cocktail at a favorite watering hole; guests looking for that front-row experience can even reserve a seat in advance at the bar.
“When you go to a concert, you have a shared commonality,” says Frye. “Same with bars. There’s already a little bit of a rapport built in.” 903 U St. NW, 202629-2877; fivetoonedc.com