New Orleans Drinks (weekly column):
Scholarship honors bartender Woodard
New Orleans Times-Picayune
June 11, 2010
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Bartender Floria Woodard signed on at the Court of Two Sisters in 1967. The regulars, from returning tourists to celebrities such as Tyler Perry, all called her Flo.
"I was heartbroken," Tuennerman said. "She was such a fabulous woman."
Tuennerman partnered with the Crescent City School of Bartending to honor the late bartender with the Flo Woodard Memorial Bartending Scholarship. Each year, a local bartender will receive a 12-week course taught by Daniel Victory, the head mixologist at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
Woodard belonged to a generation of bartenders that valued customers more than creativity.
"They always thought about the service end and being a great host," Tuennerman said. "We need to remember today, as we start getting into fancier techniques and we have more tools available, that you never forget that it's not just about serving a good drink, it's about being a good host."
Woodard also could hold her own with the young guns of the cocktail world. In 2007, she entered her Crescent City Cooler in the Tales of Cocktail annual drink competition. It placed second.
In 2009, Woodard told The Times-Picayune what it takes to do her job.
"A good bartender," she said, "must have the personality of an ambassador, the attitude of a leader and the ability to be a great listener. That is the winning combination. And, of course, you must love people and talking to them."
For more information about the Flo Woodard Memorial Bartending Scholarship, e-mail flowoodardbarscholarship@crescentschools.com Applications are currently being accepted. For a recipe for Woodward's Crescent City Cooler, visit nola.com/drink.
Retrieved from Lexis-Nexis on June 18, 2010.