You might not notice the miniature drinks at first: a petite Pandan Colada in a stemmed cordial glass at SEA; a shimmering jello-shot square at Milady’s; an elongated shooter glass filled with crisp, pale green apple-and-Armagnac at Le Veau d’Or.
But you will notice the group receiving them — they’re the ones having the most fun.
In New York’s bars and restaurants, shooters are having an upscale moment. To be clear, they’re different from mere shots: “A shot, to me, is a shot of straight booze — a shot of whiskey, a shot of tequila,” says Julie Reiner, co-owner of SoHo cocktail bar Milady’s. “A shooter is a mixed drink of some sort.”
Cocktails writ small have become big business, driven by a confluence of inflation-pinched consumers seeking gentler-priced pours and, somewhat ironically given the binge-drinking baggage of shooters, the growing movement toward drinking less.
It being 2025, social media and celebrity culture play a part, too. (See Kim Kardashian’s 2023 “baby Guinness” Instagram story, spotlighting coffee liqueur with an Irish cream float, which in turn launched a TikTok trend.)
At Milady’s, which sells about 350 shooters a week, including a liquid PB&J Uncrustable with a sparkling wine chaser (US$9 or $12), the bestseller is the Peach Pit “jiggler”, one of two jello-shot options. Made with Ketel One peach and orange blossom flavored vodka, mango, lime and tajín spice by Brooklyn’s Solid Wiggles, a high-end purveyor of boozy cocktail jellies and cakes, they cost US$85 for 10 or US$9 for a single.
See also: Looking to boost your home bar? Here are three bartenders' top tips
“We serve them almost like oyster service,” Reiner says. “They come in crushed ice, on a little half shell. People will order them as a group at the end of their time or in the middle,” often as a way to mark a birthday or another celebration — a “woo-hoo moment”, she continues. “People don’t often order one by themselves.”
Even drinks that appear casual — such as the Aries, billed as a Fancy Fireball at Brooklyn’s Grand Army Bar — tend to have serious cocktail chops.
See also: Party-ready potions: Bartenders share the best drinks from their menus for your next dinner party
While it references the popular cinnamon-flavored whiskey, the US$8 shooter is an elaborate mix of rum, apple brandy, sherry, pomegranate, cinnamon distillate and Firewater bitters, among other ingredients, and served straight from the freezer. The bar sells about 50 to 60 shooters per week, estimates general manager Ally Marrone.
Most customers order them when asking for the check, she notes, for a cheers “right after they paid their bill and they’re about to make moves”.
“They’re a nostalgia thing, they’re a fun thing,” says Iain Griffiths, co-owner of the East Village glam-dive Bar Snack, which has three on its current menu, including the popular Soft Start (Fernet-Branca, Branca Menta and coconut — a nod to a similar shot, the Hard Start, devised by Grand Army) as well as a snack-size Snaquiri.
From a bartender’s point of view, they have also become a flex. “I view shooters as an extension of a way to be creative, and a different way for people to enjoy our bar,” Griffiths says.
Mini-moment, maxi-impact
Of course, this is not the first time shooters have trended. But what’s different this time around is they are often finding their way into more high-end presentations, reflecting a broadening culinary palate.
For more lifestyle, arts and fashion trends, click here for Options Section
For example, at French restaurant Le Veau d’Or in Midtown Manhattan, bar manager Sarah Morrissey may deliver a round of Trou Normands (equal parts frozen blanche Armagnac and fresh-pressed green apple juice) to tables between dinner and dessert. The restorative, US$10 palate-cleansing shot is akin to a sorbet course, and with a single ounce of brandy, it’s just enough to settle the stomach, digestif-style.
Patrons order anywhere from five to 25 rounds per night, Morrissey estimates. The slender glasses are arrayed in a cut-glass ice bucket almost like a bouquet. It’s a casually elegant presentation that fits right in what’s become one of the hottest — and hardest — tables in town.
“One goes out, then everyone wants one,” says Morrissey, referencing the “fajita effect”, as at chain restaurants where one sizzling fajita plate attracts keen interest throughout the dining room. They’re a particularly popular order with younger customers, she adds.
Meanwhile, at SEA, a casual Southeast Asian restaurant from the three-Michelin-starred Jungsik team, the top seller on the three-item shooters menu is a US$26 Banana Cream Martini Shot for two, made with espresso, amaro and vodka, each stemmed cordial glass topped with a creamy float and banana chip. (And yes, it only comes as a duo.) On the weekends “we easily sell 10 a day”, estimates General Manager Jean E Lee.
Most often ordered as a “bonding moment” at the end of a meal — and in typical caffeinated espresso martini style, to jump-start the party — these minis don’t replace full-size serves, Lee notes. “Guests who start their meal with a cocktail usually end with shooters.”
Kancil, a Malaysian restaurant on the Upper West Side, sells about 10 to 15 shooters daily. The most popular order: the US$12 Rempah Fire, made with white rum and rempah spice bitters (rempah is a chile-pepper-driven paste, often used as a base for Malay curries) and misted with peated Islay Scotch for a smoky kick.
“It’s a popular happy-hour treat,” says head bartender Xeo Velasquez, though it is sometimes requested during dinner service as well.
Kancil also offers an array of non-alcoholic shooters (US$10), such as the Sweet & Sour Punch (tamarind and palm sugar reduction with a hint of sea salt) and the Tropical Remedy (fresh coconut water, turmeric and lime).
The NA shooter has entered the chat
Yes, you read that correctly: Low- and zero-proof shooters are increasingly popular options, the antithesis to booze-only shots and fishbowls of stiff martinis.
Given the growing moderation movement, this makes sense. According to a study from NCSolutions, almost half of Americans (49%) say they plan to drink less in 2025 — up from 41% in 2024 — but even those dialing back the booze still want to participate in a communal moment and post it to social media. (No doubt the photogenic cuteness of these mini-drinks is part of their appeal.)
Bar pros are happy to accommodate.
Bar Snack added a low-proof option to the menu just four months after its November 2024 opening. Noting the popularity of a fizzy green tea shooter topped with champagne — but also fortified with whiskey and peach shochu — “The staff turned around and said, ‘We need a low-ABV shot’,” recalls co-founder Griffiths.
“People say, ‘I don’t want a shooter, I don’t want to get drunk. But they would participate if they could,’” Griffiths says. The result: the Tuitti Cutie, a shooter mixing orange wine, agave and kiwi distillate, plus a splash of aperol. Bar Snack sells about 50 shooters a night, primarily on the weekends. And “summer is definitely shooters season, so we’re expecting that to go up a lot,” Griffiths adds.
Most guests order a round of shooters as the entry point to their orders, Griffiths says. That’s not always true, though; during my visit, a toast with the now-off-menu 7th Chakra Purple M&Ms (Derrumbes mezcal and Montenegro amaro) was the capper to our evening — and even the bartenders participated.
After all, no matter what’s in that tiny glass, one universal truth remains: No one drinks shooters alone.
