First Call: Ozzie's
A weekly Voracious feature in which we walk into a bar unannounced and ask the bartender to make us his or her favorite drink.
Watering Hole: Ozzie's Restaurant and Lounge on 105 W. Mercer St.
Bartender helping Seatteites get drunk since . . . 2000
Name: Darrick Bourgeois
Wait a sec. That is not your name.
I fucking swear. No Proletarians in my family. It’s all bourgeois—like the upper-class of France. We made that shit.
Where did you enjoy this privileged upbringing?
Laughs. Federal Way.
That doesn’t sound very bourgeois.
I know. I actually owned a house there and was commuting to work until last weekend. I just got an apartment in upper Queen Anne, so now I’m from Seattle. I couldn’t keep commuting with the price of gas.
I’ll drink to that. Let’s get started.
I’ve got the perfect summer drink. My preference changes according to the season. When it gets warm out, I have a Caipiroska.
Can you spell that?
No, but I can Google it.
What’s in it?
Muddled lime, simple soda, and plum vodka. In Brazil they drink a cocktail called Caipirinha with a rum-like liquor. This is made with vodka instead. So it's Caipiroska, the Russian cousin.
It’s delicious. Do you down a couple of these before you sing? (Ozzie’s is a karaoke bar.)
Oh, I don’t sing. The last time I went up there on a really slow night. It was six months ago.
Fine. If you got sloshed enough, what would you sing?
Probably Billy Joel’s "For the Longest Time.” Or Stevie Wonder's “I Just Called to Say I Love You.”
I bet you've seen heard interesting song renditions while you've been here... any advice you've got for drunks who step up to the mic?
Oh man. There was this one guy who used to come in here every week and sing Billy Paul’s “Me and Mrs. Jones.” He was so good. I loved hearing him sing. But then there’s the 10 people a night who sing “Sweet Caroline.” It makes me wanna shit. Nobody ever seems to get that one right. Find another song, people.
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