Post #301227 by mattesq on Mon, Apr 23, 2007 10:40 AM

As for fancy bottle designs being a "gimmick", sure, any packaging of rums is designed to appeal to a certain demographic to drive sales. Clean modern design happens to be a gimmick that appeals to me in particular, since my bar is an important part of my decor. Of course I don't advocate an "image is everything" philopsohy. When the design is combined with a quality liquor, that's a home run in my book. I mentioned 10 Cane and Corzo as positive examples, and Pyrat as a negative (although there are clearly opinions on both sides of that one). The jury is still out on Oronoco for the time being.

As for Tommy Bahama, I agree on the namesake rums. Not so good. I do applaud them for their cafes, in particular the drinks served in them. They offer an extensive rum selection (so you don't have to drink theirs), and many of their drinks allow you to mix and match from the list. Rum focused drink menus are rare, particularly for a chain such as this. The mojitos there are a personal favorite of mine, and are served with a stick of sugar cane as a swizzle, which is a nice touch. They offer a relaxed Carribean island vibe, and often employ live steel drummers. The food is decent as well although the dinner is heavily overpriced, so stick with the lunch. I've been to several and must say that the Scottsdale, Arizona location is a favorite.