Meet Ritz Carlton’s New Mixologist in the K Lounge

BOB PETERS, the Punch Room’s daring and skilled head mixologist, has a lot to say about the Ritz Carlton, Charlotte’s newest mixologist, Shane Small, at lobby bar K Lounge. The pair have known each other for a decade, since they worked together at now-closed Alley Cat. But the thing that sticks out most to Peters about Small? He’s just a happy guy. “It’s no fun to get a drink from someone who’s in a bad mood,” Peters said. “And Shane’s never in a bad mood. He’s hilarious.” So Small’s arrival at K Lounge is a bit of reunion, bringing together two skilled barkeeps, one who largely learned from the other.