Author: Kevin Crossman

Following up on yesterday’s post, I found this recipe online and it seems to be much closer to what I remember of the potent Mai Tai from the Bali Hai restaurant in San Diego.

This version omits the Orgeat, the key ingredient in a Mai Tai, and suffers for it. This tastes like the Bali Hai Mai Tai that I remember though, so I’ll compare this to the one served there when we visit on April 5th.

Bali Hai Mai Tai (redux)
2 oz Sweet and Sour Mix
1 oz Triple Sec
2 oz Light Rum (I used Cruzan)
2 oz Myers’s Dark Rum 

The Bali Hai says that they have sold over 2.7 million Mai Tais since they opened in 1953. Good thing for us is that we’re staying within walking/stumbling distance of the restaurant.

See the Official Bali Hai Mai Tai Recipe

We’re heading to San Diego after Easter, so I’m trying to get into shape to prepare for the legendarily lethal Bali Hai Mai Tai.

We visited Bali Hai in 2017 and one of their potent Mai Tais nearly killed me. They famously “don’t contain any fruit juice.”  This recipe was published so I thought I’d give it a try:

Bali Hai Mai Tai
1 oz Sweet and Sour Mix
½ oz Trader Vic’s Orgeat
½ oz Triple Sec
1 oz Light Rum (I used Cruzan)
1 oz Myers’s Dark Rum 

Unlike my experience in 2017, this wasn’t bad. Though, it must be said that I used Cointreau as the triple sec and fresh lemon juice in my Sweet & Sour mix, plus Latitude 29 Orgeat, so possibly these are “top shelf” compared to what’s actually used at Bali Hai. Still, I’m thinking that this isn’t the real recipe. I would have noticed that orgeat in the cocktail, even back in 2017 when my palette was less refined and when my booze tolerance was less.

Time to search for the true recipe.

See the Official Bali Hai Mai Tai Recipe