Downtown Oakland’s Kon-Tiki is looking great for Halloween, thanks to a very cohesive set of Beetlejuice-related decor. It really looks great and festive for the best season of the year.
Some fun times last night hanging out with a Jeff and Dave, a couple Oakhana regulars, and Kon-Tiki owner Christ. Carlos, Kriss, and Daniel were efficient and helpful with drink orders and rum suggestions.
The amazing Kon-Tiki Burger only seems to be tasting better lately (change in beef supplier) and plenty of great vintage 70s and Yacht Rock tunes playing in the venue. Love you, Kon-Tiki.
I previously reviewed the Kō Hana bottled Mai Tai and found it to be quite forward with Kō Hana’s delicious Hawaiian Agricole Rum. The bottled Lilikoi Daiquiri is a little less bold and a tad less sweet, but it still a high quality bottled cocktail.
At 22% ABV, this bottled Daiquiri is plenty boozy. It tastes good on it’s own, shaken with ice or served over ice, though it was better when I added a little Demerara Syrup just to sweeten it up a bit.
I previously made a similar Daiquiri using Kō Hana Kea rum and Small Hand Food’s excellent Passion Fruit Syrup. A fresh cocktail with bright lime and Kō Hana’s rum is superb.
This rum recipe comes from Greg Easter and the book Advanced Mixology: A New Apporach. Easter’s family knew Trader Vic Bergerson personally and Easter claims to have sampled a bottle of the famed original Mai Tai rum, albeit a “doctored” version. Easter says that Vic would add a small amount of “Nastoyka,” an infused liqueur, to his rum bottles to give them a special flavor. Easter includes a Mai Tai recipe using this rum that he claims was close to the original.
Producing some Nastoyka for the rum blend always felt like a PITA to me, so we thank Brenda Gadow for being a mensch and doing the work to infuse rum with raisins, hibiscus, vanilla tea, and star anise. And then to combine that Nastroyka with five rums and one liqueur.
The Wray Copy is a very flavorful rum when sampled neat, quite reminiscent of the long finish and dark fruit flavors of Appleton 17 Legend (itself an attempt to recreate the original Wray & Nephew rum). At about 50% ABV, it is boozier than the original Wray but very close to Legend.
We tried this rum in our standard Mai Tai recipe, using 1 oz of lime juice ¼ oz of Demerara Syrup. To emulate the Giffard orgeat Easter calls for we used a split of Latitude 29 and Liber Orgeat. It wasn’t a bad Mai Tai but certainly felt too sweet, and the rum definitely got lost in the blend.
There’s a Mai Tai recipe in the book that varies from the standard proportions so we tried that. This goes heavier on the orange liqueur, less on lime, and no sugar besides the orgeat. This version was considerably better, and it turned out to be quite a nice Mai Tai. Not like the incredible ones made with Legend 17, but quite formidable nonetheless.
Starboard Tack is an off-strip restaurant and bar featuring a nautical theme with 1970s leanings, which we found to be delightful. There’s a long bar and some tables in the bar area, plus a nicely appointed lounge area. There’s even a shuffleboard area and some fabulous stained glass windows. Music on our visit was mellow 1970s which seemed utterly perfect.
We had lunch here and found the food and drinks to be superb. We ended up doing the all-seafood thing since we started with the incredible Crab Rangoon Dip and also the very good $5 Shrimp Cocktail from the Pu Pus menu. Both Mrs. Mai Tai and I ended up having the Poke Bowl that also was outstanding. We really liked the food options and all our items were prepared well.
There isn’t a Mai Tai on the menu, but the vast rum collection and an entry for “Mai Tai Ribs” on the food menu made me think that ordering one off-menu might work. For all those times when this scenario didn’t work out, I’ll always remember the amazing off-menu Mai Tai at Starboard Tack. Made with Jamaica rum, this was truly an outstanding classic 1944 Mai Tai – by far the best I’ve had in Las Vegas.
The best Mai Tai in Las Vegas
The rest of our cocktails weren’t too shabby either. I ordered a Port Light, asking for Wild Turkey 101 rather than the lower proof Jim Beam listed on the menu. This excellent cocktail was served up rather than on ice per usual, using Chinola Passion Fruit Liqueur, Grenadine, Lemon, and Ango. Mrs. Mai Tai enjoyed the Fu Manchu with rum, orange liqueur, lime, sugar, and a hint of Creme de Menthe. The mint was just subtle enough to be a supporting player rather than the usual role of featured spirit. The Fu Manchu was delightful. Similarly, the Brimstone and Treacle with rums, coconut treacle, and Ango also had a really crisp taste and had subtle flavors that worked well.
We were truly blown away by the quality of cocktails from this venue that isn’t much to look at on the outside and gives off “dusty dive bar” vibes on the inside. Our bartender Christopher really made some great drinks! Plus, two apps, two entrees, and four cocktails came out less than $100! Starboard Tack is open 24 hrs and definitely going into regular rotation for future trips.
RIP Lost LakeShuffleboardCrab Rangoon DipPlenty of Rum and SpiritsPort LightLounge
We’d been told by numerous people that the the best Mai Tai in Vegas is at Jammyland, a craft cocktail bar and restaurant located in the Arts District and featuring a Jamaica/Reggae theme. We finally made time to check it out on our trip, visiting at opening on Saturday.
We didn’t do food, apart from the delightful Fat Boy ice cream sandwich dipped in chocolate and rolled in coconut flakes. It’s really good. Music was a very bass heavy set of mostly reggae leaning songs. Pretty loud inside, not really to my taste. There’s a large patio outside that’s not shaded but I’m sure is a blast after dark.
The Mai Tai here is pretty good, a 50/50 blend of Appleton 12 Jamaica Rum and Clement VSOP. I normally like this combo, though Jammyland’s struck me as too heavy on grassy Rhum Agricole notes (though your mileage might vary). Orgeat is house-made. I was told some premium Mai Tais may make an appearance in the future, and for sure would be worth seeking out.
The craft cocktail menu is pretty large and nicely varied. I also tried the refreshing Anaconda Punch featuring Appleton Signature Jamaica rum, Drake’s Spiced Rum, fresh pineapple and lime, mango/hibiscus syrup, and Ango. I liked this light and subtle cocktail that leans more into the mango than hibiscus. Mrs. Mai Tai had the Hocus Pocus with Tequila, watermelon and lime, rosé cordial, and lavender bitters that we both felt was really great.
Anaconda Punch
There is a large spirits collection at Jammyland, though direct sunlight is a concern of mine. The service here was quite friendly and efficient. There are a few art pieces and some fine mural work outside, but the rest of the inside is “warehouse aesthetic” in a mostly good way. Not really transportive, but fits in very well with the eclectic Arts District neighborhood. Check out Jammyland on your next Vegas visit.
Rhumbar Ultra Lounge is a cocktail bar and patio on the southern side of The Mirage. We’d been walking for a while and decided to relax with a drink. Our bartender Ezequiel was super friendly and since it was kind of slow I decided to ask for some rum substitutions from their normal “Mai Tai Or Die” cocktail. I asked for Appleton 12 and Smith & Cross, a couple of fine rums from their well-stocked back bar of rum selections. Ezequiel encouraged me to also have some Clement Blanc in the mix and I trusted him with the recommendation. The Mai Tai here does use a little pineapple juice but it is not overly heavy and adds a nice tough of sweetness to the cocktail.
My Rum Sub Mai Tai was really great, better than the very good standard Rhumbar Mai Tai we had here on our last visit. The blend of flavors was truly balanced and the orgeat and pineapple did work well together to add sweetness to the cocktail. The skull mug is pretty cool, too.
The retro theme of Rhumbar is really nice, including heavy use of breeze blocks on the patio. Mrs. Mai Tai’s Save the Bees cocktail with bourbon and honey was also very good. I’m sure the Ultra Lounge vibe is different in the later evening on a weekend, but for Saturday afternoon it was totally chill with a relaxed vibe and friendly staff.
The Sunday Surf Brunch at Red Dwarf is our new tradition. We enjoyed this on our last trip and made sure to do this again. Red Dwarf is a dive-leaning tiki bar that’s off strip in Vegas. They serve Detroit-style pizza (crust, toppings, cheese, sauce) that is fantastic, along with a small cocktail menu and a large beer selection. Don’t overlook the light Dwarf Piss beer for only $4.
Dwarf Piss
Our pizza was really great, but the cocktails here are pretty good too. Not exactly craft in orientation, nonetheless I’ve felt the Red Dwarf cocktails are better balanced than at Golden Tiki and Frankie’s Tiki Room in my experience. The standard Mai Tai here is quite good with a lighter leaning rum blend that is not assertive and probably really good for the average Vegas resident or tourist. But there are some truly outstanding rums behind the bar that can elevate your Mai Tai experience.
Mai Tai
I also enjoyed the Trinidad, Not Your Dad that has Bourbon, Angostura Amaro, Lime, Lemon, Orgeat, Ginger Beer, Ango, and Absinthe. It leads sweet, in a good way, and is a good example of the kind of complete cocktail you wouldn’t necessarily expect in a dive bar. Similarly, Mrs. Mai Tai loved her I Just Blew Myself with Rumhaven coconut rum, Blue Curacao, cinnamon, coconut, pineapple, and lime. It’s really great.
There’s a TV above the bar that was showing classic Twilight Zone episodes, plus a screen showing surf footage including a surf-oriented episode of The Flintstones and the classic Hawaii Trilogy of Brady Bunch episodes. Music today was from Generic Surf Band, a tight trio of Vegas locals. Locals are friendly here and the staff are super friendly and work hard to serve everyone.
