Post #528977 by Martiki-bird on Sun, May 9, 2010 9:08 AM

Oh. My. (tiki) Goodness. A NYC tiki bar worth it's weight in gold has arrived!

There are many gifted NYC bartenders with strong interest in tiki cocktails. We often travel from bar to bar, seeking out these tiki-focused individuals to satisfy our craving for mai tais, zombies, and bowl drinks. We could stop by Dylan Prime for a Jet Pilot; PDT for off-menu drinks such as the Beachbum; Death & Co for their unique take on classic tiki cocktails.

The trick had been to know when and where to find these tiki bartenders.

Now there's a place where all the focus is tiki. Painkiller.

The decor is a wonderfully-interpreted blend of NYC street style and Polypop decor. The handmade bamboo bar seats about 14 with ample room for standees. Split bambooo paneling at chair rail height line the walls in classic tiki style. In the back room there are comfortable booths which seat about 4-6 and small booths for 2. Gaffiti art stating, "mahalo" and "Ohana" grace the walls where panoramas of island life would normally be featured. LED cove lighting throughout the space adds a dynamic element.

The cocktails are superbly crafted with excellent ingredients, but that's no surprise coming from folks who have worked at places like Milk and Honey and Dutch Kills. Our bartenders were owners Guiseppe and Richie on Friday, and Richie and Amanda on Saturday. We could not have been in better hands.

Painkiller's menu is unique in that most drinks mentioned by category. The Mai Tai and Painkiller are individually listed (and were fantastic, but there are generic listings for 'frozens' (aka flash-blended), 'zombies', 'swizzles', 'daiquiris', 'the bastards' (suffering, dead, dying). When you order a 'swizzle' for example, your bartender will suggest one based on your preferences. We tried the Bermuda Swizzle, which was spot-on.

There are 'tiki flights' (Friday's flight was fresh fruit daiquiris, served up), a 'cradle of life" (flaming bowl drinks) and something called 'Painkiller's Choice', where the customer specifies their spirit of choice, and the bartender creates a cocktail of their choice using that spirit. Choosing 'demerara rum' resulted in a delightful frozen drink called a 'Kapu Kai'.

This is a must-visit place for both tikiphiles and cocktail aficionados alike. Painkiller is open from 5p-4a seven days a week.

See you there!

~Gina (and Jack)

[ Edited by: Martiki-bird 2010-05-09 09:12 ]