Nelson German & Andréa Lawson Gray Author Talk • Caribbean Cocktails: Drinks and Bites from the Afro-Latino Diaspora

Nelson German is the Dominican American chef-owner behind Oakland's alaMar Kitchen & Bar, the Afro-Latin cocktail lounge Sobre Mesa, and Meski, a soulful Afro-Latin brunch and dinner destination in San Francisco. A Top Chef Season 18 contestant and one of Plate’s “2020 Chefs to Watch,” Nelson's unorthodox culinary style blends his Dominican heritage, African roots, and Mediterranean and Asian influences with a deep love of local, sustainable California ingredients. His work has been featured in the New York Times, SF Chronicle, Ebony, Forbes, KQED, KRON, and more.

Andréa Lawson Gray is a James Beard Award–winning food writer who has shared the richness of Latino culture, history, and cuisine through her cookbooks Convivir and Celebraciones Mexicanas.

Sip and savor the bold flavors and vibrant culture of the Afro-Latino diaspora with over 40 drink recipes and 20 food recipes from Top Chef alum and acclaimed chef-restauranteur Nelson German, the culinary visionary behind Meski, Sobre Mesa, and alaMar Kitchen and Bar.

For Afro-Dominican chef Nelson German, drinks and food are about connection—whether it’s sharing stories over cocktails on a stoop in Washington Heights or gathering with friends under the warm, buzzy lights of his restaurants. In Caribbean Cocktails, he brings the rich culinary history of the Afro-Latino diaspora straight to your home bar and kitchen, blending tradition, personal storytelling, and modern mixology. Inside, you’ll find cocktail recipes easy enough for home bartenders yet inventive enough for seasoned mixologists, along with an ingredient index to help you make the most of every bottle on your bar cart, tips for batching drinks, plus low-ABV and alcohol-free variations for every kind of celebration.

Reflecting the vibrant drinking and food culture of the Afro-Latino diaspora, Caribbean Cocktails presents a rich selection of recipes from celebrated bartenders and chefs, spanning refreshing spritzes and bold island classics to tasty small plates.