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Old Waldorf Bar Days
assistance, carried them himself over to the Men's Cafe,
and passed the tray.
Yeats eyed the novel pink drink warily. At first, he
was for waving it away, but yielding to persuasion and,
possibly influenced by the appeal in anxious Kennedy's ·
eyes, he took one.
Kennedy stood back to await results. Yeats, glancing
about, noted in surprise that his table companions han–
dled the concoction in what seemed to him a precipitous
and summary fashion. All they did was to lift their
glasses, open their mouths, crook the elbow and then
set down an empty·glass.
YEATS ON COCKTAILS
This was not a poet's way. Yeats tasted the cocktail,
and smacked his-lips. Another taste. His eye gleamed
and his face lighted up. But, to the surprise of his hosts,
he declined to gulp. This thing must be taken slowly.
It was filled with a variety of flavors, and it must be
tasted all the way down to the bottom of the glass. So
he just sat and sipped that Clover Club Cocktail. When
wine was brought and proffered him, he waved it away.
"Another of
th~
same,"
~e
said, in effect, and he kept
sipping Clover Club Cocktails all the way through the
meal. And the delighted Kennedy felt it was a great
day for Ireland.
*
*
*
*
During most of its history, the Bar opened at six
o'clock and closed at any time the next morning, though
one A. M. was official closing time. Sixteen bartenders
were employed, and often ten of them were on duty
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