Post #66999 by martiki on Tue, Dec 30, 2003 6:27 PM

Name:Martini Monkey
Type:bar
Street:Terminal C, 1661 Airport Blvd. #3B
City:San Jose
State:CA
Zip:
country:USA
Phone:408-925-9376
Status:operational

Description:
Martini Monkey is possibly the most unlikely neo-tiki bar you will find. Located in the food court in the old terminal of San Jose International Airport, it is a recently redesigned lounge that features interior design by the same firm responsible for Backflip, Red Room, and Sno-Drift in San Francisco. It's very modern and sleek. But, there is a spectacular 20 foot mural behind the bar of Mark Ryden's "Exotica". The owners have the rights to reproduce this image in all future ventures as well.

The other wonderful part of Martini Monkey is the drink menu, full of classic cocktails, perfectly prepared. The head bartender, Jay, is a nice guy who is an absolute cocktailian. He goes to cocktail conventions twice a year to hone his craft and learn new recipes. You'll find a stellar mojito, hemingway daquiri, and a mai tai that (while it does have a small splash of pineapple) otherwise has all of the proper ingredients and is damn tasty.

If you find yourself flying in or out of San Jose Airport (say, if you're coming up for the SF Tiki Crawl), it's a must visit. Heck, you should check it out if you're anywhere near the South Bay.