CBD-Infused Drinks With Whipped Cream Served At Astoria Bar

ASTORIA, QUEENS -- Weed: You can puff it, you can eat it and now you can sip it in your favorite cocktail -Well, sort of.

CBD - or cannabidiol - is a legal, non-psychoactive compound of marijuana that's become all the rage to put in everything from lotions to lattes. Now, the calming extract is the main ingredient at a cocktail bar that recently opened in Astoria.

Adriaen Block opened last week at 19-33 Ditmars Blvd. The cocktail bar, named after the first white man to set sights on Astoria in 1614, revolves around CBD.

"It's a new trend we're trying to create," Lenard Mokus, the bar's manager, told Patch.

The extract is primarily infused into aptly named cocktails such as the "Rolled Fashioned" and "Stoney Negroni," but it can also be found in the eatery's signature sauce and whipped cream, Mokus said.

The bar's owner, Zsolt “George” Csonka, was brainstorming ideas for a cocktail bar that would stand out amid New York City's booming restaurant and bar scene, which eventually led him to CBD.

"We wanted to do what we could to make ourselves different and be conscious about health and everything," Mokus said. "CBD has been coming up as a new trend, but not many people know about it yet."

The bar's cocktail menu is split between CBD-infused drinks - half of them nonalcoholic and half with low alcohol levels - and regular drinks.

CBD-infused drinks, each $15, are limited to two per patron, Mokus said. The bar uses THC-free extract in the drinks, which a disclaimer atop the website's menu explains won't cause a high, but may give drinkers "a calming sensation."

That didn't stop the eatery from having a little fun with its cocktail names, which range on the menu from the "Stoney Negroni," to "Bakin' & Eggs" - garnished, of course, with a crispy slice of bacon - and the "Rolled Fashion." But despite its influence on the names, you likely won't taste CBD in your beverage.

"It won't really change the taste of the cocktail unless it's infused with something," Mokus said.

As for the food, patrons can pair a CBD-infused sauce with menu entrees such as steak, duck or the signature Adriaen Block burger. Those with a sweet tooth can add the extract in whipped cream to key lime pie, crepes or molten chocolate cake.

Mokus noted CBD infusions for both the food and drinks is still time-consuming and difficult to master, often taking between three hours to prep, but the end results have been worth it.

"We've been full since we opened last week," Mokus said. "We've gotten a lot of positive feedback, and people are really happy about the cocktails.

"They're special in their own way, and I think people are going to have a really great experience."

Photos by Lily Brown/Adriaen Block