Tiki Bar – Page 23 – The Search for the Ultimate Mai Tai

December 3, 2024December 3, 2024

Return to Boo Loo Lounge, Orinda’s Small but Stellar Tiki Bar

Had a great visit to the small but formidable Boo Loo Lounge, located in central Orinda adjacent to the Orinda Theater. I helped organize a meetup of the Patreon community members of the Make & Drink YouTube channel and we had a nice little group there in the afternoon on Saturday. Boo Loo remains such an interesting space due to its small size. A few of us opened the place to secure some seats for the meetup but we were followed by four other couples and this place was actually pretty much full right at opening. But an hour later it was just our group inside, perhaps due to the ebbs and flows of the movie theater attendees.

I’m pleased to report the Mai Tai is once again pretty great here, after a past dalliance with the Hamilton Petite Canne Shrubb Orange Liqueur that imparted far too much of a grassy flavor from its Rhum Agricole base. I found the Mai Tai to be plenty rummy, thanks to the Jamaican and Demerara rums, but also very approachable for the casual visitor who might have never visited a tiki bar before. We also heard great things about the Zombie, said to be the best a few had ever tasted, and we thought the Lady of Singapore was a fruity and light cocktail that was very satisfying. The Ruby Daiquiri remains a stellar entry.

One of the guys in our meetup mentioned a rum from Alabama and I inquired with Boo Loo’s manager, Maxton Kennedy. He showed me the two expressions of Rum Trails rum they have, including a Tequila Cask which I didn’t love the taste of. But the Red Wine Cask was full of flavor, so much that it reminded me of rums from Jamaica. The Daiquiri I had with this rum was fantastic.

The interior remains immersive and cozy, with the music still on point as well. Maxton mentioned the cocktail menu is expanding soon, along with a new bar program feature that some folks will find very… intoxicating. Look for those announcements coming soon.

November 28, 2024December 3, 2024

The Rum Curious Club Happy Hour at Forbidden Island

We had a nice afternoon of rum exploration in Alameda a couple weeks ago at Forbidden Island, an event produced by the Rum Curious Club and sponsored by Flor de Caña rum. I’d attended a couple previous Rum Curious events locally that had different formats, but this one seems to be the right scope.

This Happy Hour event had free registration and was held in the afternoon on Forbidden Island’s tented patio that’s still a great place to gather. Rum Champion Bryan Inman led the event and the discussion of Flor de Caña rum, including samples of five expressions including their 25 year old rum. Brand ambassador Melissa Borras also discussed Flor de Caña’s production methods and rum line, with Dan Marshall from Alameda’s CRAFT Beer & Wine in attendance for people to order rums for pickup at discount.

Whereas some of the previous Rum Curious Happy Hour events were paid, this one was free for rum tastings and the option to purchase $10 Flor de Caña cocktails from a special menu. This seems like a great balance and doesn’t require everyone to pay up front especially if they’re not drinking (or not drinking much). And it really helps when those cocktails taste great as they did on this day – shout out to the Forbidden Island team for preparing these delightful drinks.

This was a well-run event, and I think this is the best format for these Rum Curious Club Happy Hour events. You get to try some rum without an upfront cost, there are modestly priced cocktails for those who choose them, and an option to purchase the rum if you like it. This is one of those cases where everyone wins.

November 27, 2024December 3, 2024

Sugar Plum Mai Tai at Sippin’ Santa

We had a great time in downtown Pleasanton’s Beer Baron for their first year hosting the Sippin’ Santa holiday popup, produced by Miracle and Jeff “Beachbum” Berry. The tropical and holiday decor was nicely done, including a Beachbum nutcracker! We were seated in the upstairs room, so much more quiet than the main room and patio.

One of the new additions to the Sippin’ Santa menu this year is a Sugar Plum Mai Tai, featuring Haitian and Nicaraguan rums, lime, orgeat, cinnamon syrup, and plum mix. The cinnamon is dialed way down and this tastes like a standard Mai Tai with a mild fruity finish from the plum mix. The rums here are approachable but they’re still appropriately forward in the drink, making this a really great Mai Tai to try. The shark mug doesn’t really have anything to do with the cocktail, but its pretty nice and priced to sell at $20, so we took it home.

Other cocktails were generally excellent also, including a rich and creamy Tom and Sherry, a White Russian riff called Holiday on Ice, and the sweet and mild Frosty the Merman. We thought the icy texture of the Choquito left the rest of the drink a little bland.

Our food was really great at Beer Baron including a Bavarian pretzel with queso cheese and I loved my burger and fries. Even on a Tuesday night before Thanksgiving there was a sizable crowd, but our server was so friendly and attentive we hardly noticed any delays in drink orders. Given this is the first year for the holiday pop-up, expect large crowds through the holiday season.

November 17, 2024December 15, 2024

Dr. Funk Tiki Mug and Marketplace

Downtown San Jose was the place to be today for the inaugural tiki marketplace at Dr. Funk at San Pedro Square. There were a number of notable tiki and retro vendors, and the pedestrian-friendly locale meant there was a lot of great visibility for the market and also for Dr. Funk being the city’s premiere tiki destination.

We saw folks from as far away as Petaluma, Sacramento, and SoCal for this event, including DJs, cocktails on the patio, and a full menu for those with reservations and seating. Dr. Funk seems to be learning that you do have to work a little to maintain awareness of your business and this event portends of good things to come. The event was the brainchild of Jill Robeson and Amanda Hastings, so kudos to the pair at putting together a great event with the team from Dr. Funk.

There’s also an inaugural mug that’s a likeness of the actual Doctor Funk himself. This Tiki Farm mug looks great and is priced to sell at $45. This is a huge step up from the logo-printed glasses that have been on sale for a while and again seems to provide evidence they appreciate that the business needs to do more than open doors to maintain their core clientele.

One of the items available today was an amazing Grog that I was told was still in development but if what is in the glass is any indication I think they’ve already got what they need. Featuring plenty of juicy grapefruit plus spicy cinnamon and a ton of allspice to go with some funky rums, this thing is a boozy beast and absolutely fantastic. Kudos to Justin and team, lock in that recipe and put it on the menu!

Dr. Funk will be celebrating their third anniversary in December, so stay tuned for further events and celebrations.

November 17, 2024

The Best Mai Tai in Marin County at California Gold

Still catching up on somewhat old news, but I didn’t want to skip highlighting the fabulous tiki takeover weekend at California Gold in downtown San Rafael. This was appended to the weekend after Halloween and was a tiki/horror theme with a special menu of exotic cocktails. The overall decor was a pretty nice overlay on the “history of California” theme that California Gold already has and which I enjoy.

We’ve always had great experiences with the cocktails here, and their rum collection shows they know and appreciate our particular favorite cocktail genre. The takeover featured a number of classics but also recently created tropical tipples mostly from California Gold’s Isaac Shumway. The Mai Tai features a nine-rum blend. Not two or three or four, but nine! The flavorful blend was full of flavor and one of the best of the year for me.

We hear California Gold is considering doing this menu occasionally starting in 2025, so keep an eye out and make plans to visit San Rafael’s charming downtown.

November 14, 2024December 3, 2024

The Best Mai Tai in New Orleans

If you were expecting me to tout Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29, you’d be right. And if you were expecting me to tout Cane & Table, you’d also be right.

Because what is my best Mai Tai may not be your best Mai Tai, as I’ll explain.

Latitude 29: Approachable All-Star

Latitude 29’s Mai Tai was fantastic when I visited in 2018 and remains a stellar entry, combining rums from Martinique and Jamaica, plus a small amount of a secret rum, and Berry’s signature Latitude 29 Orgeat. The rich cocktail has a lot of flavor but it doesn’t hit you in the face with grassy or brine notes that can be a big turn-off for many cocktail drinkers. Even after dilution there’s still a lot of great flavor.

Cane & Table: The Rum Lover’s Flavor Bomb

I was totally blown away by the rich and potent flavors of the Cane & Table Mai Tai that features three rums: Appleton 12 Jamaica rum, Rivers Antoine from Grenada, and Paranubes aged from Mexico. The barrel notes from the Appleton combine with the vegetal flavors from the sugar cane juice rums in a way I’ve seldom experienced, with brine notes and only subtle grassy notes. The heavy rums really worked for me, because I like heavy and boozy rums in a Mai Tai. But I suspect many cocktail drinkers would not share the sentiment.

Different Audiences

I know that not really picking a winner seems sort of like a cop-out, but I do think these are made for two different audiences.

Latitude 29 challenges the casual NOLA drinker with elevated cocktails that are so much better than the frozen Daiquiris on Bourbon Street. But this is still a safe and mainstream option, a perfect introduction for tiki newbies.
Meanwhile, Cane & Table’s Caribbean-inspired culinary menu bleeds over into the cocktails, challenging customers with flavors they may have never experienced before. If you know, you know – but not for everyone.

They are the best Mai Tai in New Orleans.

November 13, 2024November 14, 2024

Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29 – Best Tiki Bar in NOLA

We bookended two visits to Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29 during our visit to New Orleans, making sure to visit more than once to the preeminent restaurant and tiki bar from acclaimed author and cocktail historian Jeff “Beachbum” Berry. Look at the menu of nearly any tiki bar and you’ll find Berry’s original cocktails or more likely cocktails whose recipes were lost until uncovered by Berry. Check out his books Potions of the Caribbean or even better the 10th anniversary edition of Sippin’ Safari for all the historical details written in the Bum’s inimitable style, but suffice to say that every single fan of this genre owes the Bum a huge debt of gratitude.

Inside Latitude 29, there are tables and booths on one side and bar / hi-top seating on the other, and we got to experience both on the trip. There’s a smallish food menu her and while I loved the burger and pimento cheese rangoons, it was tough for Mrs. Mai Tai to find something she liked between the fishy catfish bao and Korean fried chicken. Our service was generally good, though it appeared staff was one server shy of a full crew both times.

But nobody comes to Latitude 29 for the food; we come for the immersive tiki bar decor and the amazing cocktails. We’ll talk more about the Mai Tai tomorrow but we’ll say that overall the standard cocktail menu items were really great, including the Navy Grog (the Bum’s favorite), Zombie, and a fab Rum Barrel with a ridiculously over the top garnish. A top-notch Cobra’s Fang was on the special Halloween menu which also featured some other impressive cocktails. You can even get drinks to go, which we took advantage of with a to-go Mai Tai!

Latitude 29 was well-decorated for Halloween and it is great to see special decor and the standard stuff mixed in between, complete with a killer spooky soundtrack. There’s a cabinet of historical items in the bar area, plus Beachbum Berry merch if that’s your thing. We loved our visits to this wonderful bar and must-see destination for any NOLA visitor interested in cocktails.