FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM NOVEMBER 14, 2019 • THE QUEENS COURIER 63
buzz
Astoria’s Thirsty Koala crowns its
third-round winner in mixology contest
BY ANGELICA ACEVEDO
Th e Th irsty Koala crowned yet another
winner in the third round of Th e Th irsty
Challenge, their second annual mixology
contest that attracts bartenders and mixologists
from all over New York City, on
Nov. 4.
Th e lively event took place at the local
Australian restaurant, Th e Th irsty Koala,
located at 35-12 Ditmars Blvd. Chef and
owner Katherine Fuchs told QNS that
she’s thrilled the competition has taken
off .
“We were talking about how to get the
whole neighborhood involved in a competition
because we felt like Ditmars was
not properly represented at the time,”
Fuchs said about creating the competition
with fellow bartender and mixologist
Matt Stannah.
“But then people from other areas
were like, ‘What about us? We want to
participate too!’ So we brought them in,”
she said.
Th e evening was hosted by the hilarious
Jacklynn Hyde, who took her spot right
behind the bar with the contestants.
During the competition, four mixologists
— John Olivo of Jack Jones, Keith
Pust of Watawa, Zahin Sakib of Vintage,
and Th e Th irsty Koala’s very own Fahad
Hossain — had 10 minutes to come
up with a cocktail using two secret
ingredients of Australian origin
and whatever else they could fi nd
in the bar.
Th eir secret ingredients were
Starward Two-Fold Australian
Whisky and the Australian chocolate
cookies, Mint Tim Tams.
Once they created their drinks
— with some even naming theirs,
such as Olivo’s Coff ee Cookie
Monster — a panel of four judges
critiqued them based on taste,
presentation, showmanship, eff ective
use of the ingredients and creativity.
Th e panel of judges was composed
of Georgy Zaydenman, a
market manager for spirits brand
company Redwood Brands, Josiah
Dandren of Burke and Wills, former
bartender Nicholas LaManna
and James Cook of Th e Crooked
Knife.
But the night off ered more than
just an entertaining mixology show.
Th e upbeat music made for a
fun environment, where guests also
got to compete in a raffl e for their
own Starward Two-Fold Australian
Whisky, Tim Tams, gift cards and
several other prizes.
Photos courtesy of Noel Martinez
There was also the Angry Wings
competition, a hot wings eating contest
in which a guest, Hossain and
LaManna had five minutes to eat six
chicken wings made with Fuchs’ tasty
but spicy Carolina Reaper sauce.
In the end, Hossain didn’t just win the
hot wings challenge (by a landslide),
but he also won the third round of The
Thirsty Challenge and took home the
Muddle of Honor. This means he’ll join
Antonia Joannides from Queens Room
and Filup Groft from Albatross in the
championship, which will take place
some time in January.
The final round before the championship
will be held on Dec. 9 at The
Thirsty Koala.
Fuchs, a lifelong resident of Astoria,
sees the competition as a great way
to introduce guests to the restaurant’s
Australian-inspired cuisine.
“We want to convey the Australian
experience also, because we use a lot
of indigenous Australian ingredients,”
Fuchs said. “We used Vegemite in one
competition. We’ve used Australian
Flake, which is a chocolate candy
that’s flaky from Cadburys. It’s amazing
stuff.”
For more information about the competition
and the restaurant, visit their
website at www.thethirstykoala.com.
Fahad Hossain won the third round of The Thirsty Challenge at The Thirsty Koala on Nov. 4.
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