Category: Mai Tai

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Frozen Mai Tai at Bahama Breeze

After my conference in Redmond was over around Noon, I had a few hours to kill before heading to SeaTac airport for the trip home. After a few twists and turns I found myself in Tukwilla at the Westfield Southcenter, at which point I realized there was a Bahama Breeze restaurant in the back parking lot.

Entering Bahama Breeze was a tropical respite from the cold Seattle rain, and I found a table in the bar and free WiFi to actually do a little work before my flight. The place was pretty busy for a Friday afternoon with several large groups and a bunch of people meeting up in the bar as well.

Scanning the menu I spotted the Ultra Chill Mai Tai in the frozen section, featuring Appleton Signature rum, orgeat, pineapple, passion fruit, and lime juice – plus an Appleton floater. This seemed like an elevated version of what you might expect at a place like this and I’m pleased to report this frozen Mai Tai was pretty damn great. It tasted like a Mai Tai and there was plenty of booze in there, too. The Ultra Chill Mai Tai is highly recommended.

For a second drink I noticed they had Appleton Estate 8 on the list of premium rums, so I asked for their “Ultimate Margarita” but to sub the Appleton 8 for the tequila. The result was pretty close to a 1944 Mai Tai and plenty of flavor (should have asked no salt on the rim, though). The server was super fast and responsive and the island vibe inside was inspired.

It is too bad there aren’t any Bahama Breeze locations near me, but I’ll never skip this place on the way back to SeaTac.

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Completing Dr. Funk’s Rum Asylum Level I

I finally completed the first level of Dr. Funk’s rum club list, the Rum Asylum. I’d have finished back on March 11 had they not run out of my last rum, Real McCoy 12 year from Barbados, and finally returned after a couple weeks of heavy travel.

Level I is a very good overview of the various styles of rum, including unaged expressions all the way to heavily aged ones, plus distillate from more than a dozen different countries and regions. There’s a little bit for everyone, from those who like it sweet and light to those who like boozy funk bombs. I love Jamaica rum above all others, but best of all there’s not a dud in the bunch.

Dr. Funk Rum Asylum: Level I

1-3. Rum Flight (incl. Planteray Pineapple, Paranubes, Appleton 12)
4. Bacardi 8 Ocho
5. Barbancourt 8 yr
6. Planteray Xaymaca
7. Rhum JM VSOP
8. Santa Teresa 1796
9. Myers’s Single Barrel Select
10. Privateer Queen’s Share
11. Real McCoy 12 Yr
12. Lemon Hart 151
13. Wray & Nephew Overproof
14. Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva
15. Kō Hana Kea
16. Chairman’s Reserve Spiced
17. Appleton 21
18. Denizen White 5 yr
19. Pusser’s British Navy
20. Worthy Park 109

When you complete level I there’s a small pin awarded, plus the list for Level II and the goal of future rewards. Thanks to Justin for initiating me and letting me ring the bell.

The best way to celebrate the completion of the list? A fantastic Dr. Funk Mai Tai, of course.

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Mai Tai Shakeup at Inside Passage and Rumba

Ray suggested checking out Seattle’s “almost tiki bar” Inside Passage, so we popped in around 9:00 on Thursday to find a few spots at the bar and a couple open tables. As I scanned the menu I saw they have Kiki’s Premier Mai Tai, made with a symphony of rums including house barrel-aged Rivers Royale, Appleton 15, Chairman’s Reserve 1931, Rhum JM Terroir Volcanique, and Saint James 110 – plus two orange liqueurs. This premier Mai Tai has a premium price, $26, though the quality and price of the rums used means this is still a great value.

Rumba and Inside Passage Mai Tais

Having previously loved the Rumba Mai Tai that’s in the same venue as Inside Passage, I was looking forward to trying this monster and it exceeded my expectations in every way. So rich and flavorful, a Mai Tai that’s worth savoring every sip. I was very impressed.

I decided to order a Rumba Mai Tai to do a head-to-head comparison and the sister cocktail was delivered in short order. The richness of the Premier wasn’t present in the Rumba Mai Tai that really leaned into Martinique Agricole as the predominant flavor. The menu says this includes aged Rhum JM and a house barrel aged Wray & Nephew, but I didn’t taste oak or Jamaican notes as I would have expected. The overall mouthfeel wasn’t as great as I remember and I kind of ended up being disappointed with the Rumba Mai Tai.

Commitment to the bit

So, sadly, we’re going to remove the Rumba Mai Tai from our list of Top Mai Tais in the world – to be replaced by the Inside Passage’s Premier Mai Tai! Sometimes you have to pay a little extra to get a lot better Mai Tai and Inside Passage really delivered.

Inside Passage remains impressive on the eyes, with nods to Seattle landmarks such as the World’s Fair and the old Trader Vic’s, even though it technically isn’t a tiki bar. Lots of fun and nice to see you might not absolutely require a reservation.

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Power Outage at Nui Nui / North Shore Lagoon

Thursday was a night out with Tiki with Ray and wanted to visit again the McMenamins Anderson School location in Bothell, where there’s a tiki bar now called Nui Nui that sits over the North Shore Lagoon indoor pool. Once again I was so impressed by the quality and quantity of the Polynesian artwork, and the overall bamboo-heavy decor. We took a table by a window overlooking the busy pool.

Mai Tai

Shorty after receiving our first round of drinks, the power went out in the entire building – with some skylights, emergency lighting, and candles being the only thing illuminating the venue. The staff did an exemplary job reassuring customers and stated that while no new food orders would be taken they were still ready for additional drink orders. Turns out someone hit a telephone pole right outside the venue, toppling the pole and sending wires to the ground. The pool remained busy for a while and then was shut down a little while later.

I very much enjoyed the Mai Thai Steak Salad and paired it with a pretty reasonable Mai Tai made with light leaning McMenamins’ North Shore Lagoon rum blend and house orgeat. I followed that with Fashionably Tiki, an excellent and satisfying Old Fashioned riff made with the same rum, house Falernum, tiki bitters, and an orange peel. I really enjoyed both cocktails.

By the time we left it was well past sundown and some portions of the venue were extremely dark, a bummer for me because I couldn’t appreciate the vast artwork as well. Nonetheless, the patrons seemed to be in great spirits and once again we have to salute the staff for making the situation comfortable in the darkest of dark tiki bars.

The pool after the power outage
Emergency Lighting
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The Devil’s Reef Remains SEATAC’s Stellar Tiki Experience

The main draw for Mrs. Mai Tai’s inclusion on our Tacoma weekend was to finally visit Devil’s Reef, which she’d missed through a series of circumstances in the past. The tiki bar and restaurant remains a stellar representative of the genre, featuring a dark theme, superb music, and amazing cocktails.

Over the course of two evenings, we opened the bar and got to experience some amazing drinks. The cocktail program is the brainchild of co-owner Jason Alexander who was on hand overseeing the shift both nights. We were honored to receive a special Mai Tai prepared by Alexander himself featuring Rare Cane Jamaican Rum and perfectly balanced with some funky 68% ABV rum, shooting straight to the top of our running Best Mai Tai of the Year list.

The cocktails at Devil’s Reef have a bit of variety but are mostly rum-based and served on crushed ice. We really loved the Gilman House Special, featuring berries and pineapple rum, and the delightful grog variant called Red Right Returning with passionfruit, cinnamon, and Mister Fogg Navy Rum. Julie tried some that I’d loved before including Captain Obed’s Grog that includes spices and maple syrup, plus the coffee-forward Eldritch Cartographer. We also loved the Serannian Sling, a gin cocktail with spices and Cassis.

We must salute the bartenders who work so fast but deliver consistent quality. Generally, you have got to bar to order drinks that will be delivered to your table, and we found the turnaround to be unexpectedly quick even after it started to get busy. We enjoyed sitting at the bar for a portion of our visit, though the booths are more conducive to conversation with locals who we met up with. Be sure to check out the drink mixer for a little memento of our visit, place there by the staff.

Like we always say, the best tiki bar in Seattle is in Tacoma.

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Tiki Bar and Mai Tais at Da Tiki Hut

There’s a small tiki bar in the back of Da Tiki Hut in Tacoma that opens a little after the restaurant does. After our lunch we went over to Gig Harbor for more beachcombing and then swung by Da Tiki Hut to sample some cocktails on our way back to the hotel. The bar opens around 1:00 on Saturdays and features three booths and a few stools.

The menu at Da Tiki Hut features many classics, including two Mai Tais. There’s also a smaller classic cocktail menu that’s only available if you’re drinking in the bar itself, such as the Zombie and Shrunken Skull. There’s a pretty nice selection of rums and other spirits on the back bar and the staff were super friendly and accommodating.

There are two Mai Tais on the menu, starting with the Classic featuring Smith & Cross Jamaica rum and Rhum Clement from Martinique. Mrs. Mai Tai found this cocktail to be too dry and the rums to be too assertive, so keep in mind if you aren’t a fan of funky and grassy rums. We also want to highlight the creative presentation of the traditional “island and palm tree” garnish that was unlike any other Mai Tai I’ve seen.

The Okole’ Maluna Mai Tai is a version that was developed by Jason Alexander and served at the now-shuttered Tacoma Cabana bar years ago. This features both lemon and lime, plus light rums and Jamaican rums and is overall better balanced and more palatable than the classic.

Nonetheless, both Mai Tais were pretty good considering the venue’s scope and we do think Da Tiki Hut is a worthy destination for tiki tourists.

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Double Tais at Trader Vic’s SJC

Mrs. Mai Tai is joining me in Tacoma for the weekend and we got things started over dinner and drinks at Trader Vic’s San Jose Airport. In our case we went with the standard Original Mai Tai for me and the Guava Tai for Mrs. Mai Tai, both wonderful.

I was intrigued by the Angry Bastard cocktail which is described as being “A spiced concoction with coconut, orange and pineapple” which sounds like a Painkiller. Our server Maria said it wasn’t a Painkiller and indeed it was anything but with some very pleasant and sweet fruity flavors (guava, likely) to go along with that coconut. Really great, nicely served in the classic Suffering Bastard mug.

Trader Vic’s was really busy at dinner, so the extra seating they added last year really came in handy. The Spam Musubi and the Vic’s Chicken Salad were prepared very well and we enjoyed some exotica music playing in the bar too. I looked at the back bar and spotted a Mount Gay 1703 but sadly SJC is unable to make an alternate rum Mai Tai.

TV SJC remains the greatest airport bar in this writer’s opinion, and we are so looking forward to the Vic’s location at the Oakland Airport supposedly coming later this year.