Top Five

Iced Tea

Any southerner will say iced tea should be strong and sweet, but some Yankee versions get their oomph the old-fashioned way—from booze.

By Rob Patronite & Robin Raisfeld

How'd You Like a Nice Hawaiian Punch? The iced-tea cocktail at Flatiron.

(Photo: Carina Salvi)

1. Flatiron Lounge
Julie Reiner’s superb Hawaiian Ice Tea, made with Absolut Mandarin infused with a floral black tea, can be deceptively strong. Three could inspire you to stick the flower garnish in your hair and dance the hula.
37 West 19th Street
212-727-7741

2. Bemelmans Bar
Audrey Saunders’s lovely, frothy MarTEAni is like a pisco sour interpreted by Jeeves: fresh lemon, simple syrup, egg white, and Earl Grey–infused Tanqueray.
35 East 76th Street
212-744-1600

3. Gramercy Tavern
The Tea Whiskey Highball here, made from Glenlivet, black mint, and Russian tea, is as deliciously sweet and smoky as southern barbecue.
42 East 20th Street
212-477-0777

4. Otto Enoteca Pizzeria
Like the Long Island version, Otto’s Sardinian Iced Tea hasn’t a drop of actual leafy brew—just a thirst-quenching mix of amaro and sweetened lemon juice topped with prosecco.
1 Fifth Avenue
212-995-9559

5. Franchia
One for the teetotalers: Franchia’s delicately sweet wild green iced tea can undo any damage incurrred by overindulging in the above-or so we like to tell ourselves.
12 Park Avenue
212-213-1001