The Absolute Best Espresso Martinis In Town, According To New Yorkers

What is it about the combination of caffeine and alcohol that gets people so addicted? You know, besides the fact that both substances are like, literally drugs? There was Four Loko when we were teenagers, Vodka Red Bulls in college, and, now that we've grown into sophisticated adults, the Espresso Martini. 

Typically consisting of vodka, espresso, and coffee liqueur, and ideally topped with a layer of foam and a sprinkling of coffee beans, the dangerously delicious cocktail certainly does what it's supposed to - and then some. So the story goes, it was first created in London in the late 1980s when "a young model who’s now famous" walked into a London bar and asked for a drink "that will wake me up and then f*ck me up." And boy, has the legacy lived on.

Following its big moment in the '90s, the Espresso Martini has obviously made a major comeback. The New York Times did a whole feature on it, and New Yorkers have declared it the Sip of the Summer (sorry, Aperol Spritz). And since our fellow New Yorkers (influenced, perhaps, by Australian expats) have been gulping them down this season in a frenzy, who better to tap when it comes to finding the absolute best version in town?

We asked, our Instagram followers answered. Consider this your official NYC Espresso Martini bucket list.

[Photo via @dsemanoff]