To Zig Zag, with love, from Drink.

When I was in Boston visiting family earlier this fall, I treated my little siblings to a few nights out. We started one of those nights indulging at Sibling Rivalry and ended it with cocktails at Drink, a hip little bar on Congress. It's the kind of place that's the perfect amount of crowded (thanks to the doorman, also known as Joey Bag of Doughnuts), has a cool candlelit ambiance and drinks that are for real.

I'd first come across the spot in a Bon Appetit article featuring the bartender, Misty Kalkofen. She's got kind of a cool story, getting into bartending by way of Harvard Divinity School (slinging cocktails to fund her education). Misty was actually working the night we went in, and I couldn't resist asking if it was her and about the article. She laughed, admitted it and gave us the scoop on photo shoot. She was totally friendly, amazingly cool and mixed me one of the best cocktails I've ever had. (No clue what it was called, something with gin and Chartreuse, which sounds not so great but was actually oh so great.) When we told her we were from Seattle, she lit up, asking if we'd ever been to Zig Zag and if we'd ever met Murray.

We answered, well yes, of course we'd been to Zig Zag, and that no, we'd never met Murray but know him as a local legend of sorts. Things get a tad fuzzy from there, but the night essentially ended with this:

• My boyfriend and little brother sampling some of Drink's finest Chartreuse and Mescal with Misty and the staff.
• Misty signing a $20 bill that we promised to deliver to Zig Zag on her and Drink's behalf.
• Us leaving feeling like the coolest kids in school.

We finally delivered on our promise last week and headed to Zig Zag for after-work drinks with Kate (the Violet in Orange Violet) and Joe, a couple of friends who absolutely love and make a habit out of frequenting the place. We met Murray himself, handed over the $20 along with our story, and he laughed as soon as my boyfriend uttered "Boston."

Murray then explained more about how the money trading started. It's apparently a thing the two bars, on opposite sides of the country, have had going for awhile. They send customers going from Seattle to Boston and vice-versa to each other's spot, sharing business and stories in the process. So cool. He genuinely seemed to appreciate our participating.

The whole thing was one of the more memorable exchanges I've had in Seattle. Loved it, and partaking with people I knew would dig it as much as I did made it all the better.

The lovely Orange Violet has the play-by-play and the photos, including one of Murray, here.