Post #690471 by AdOrAdam on Sat, Aug 17, 2013 5:34 PM

First of all, thanks to TikiTacky for posting the whole menu for us to look at! :)

For me, its been really interesting - Ive not examined an old menu before. By no means am I an expert, I'm just enthusiastic :) All info is approximate:

I love the polite script in each section. About half of the 100 recipes in all sections are marked with a star, I think these are Trader Vics recipes... that's a lot! He must of been churning them out. In a scan several jumped out as Don The Beachcomber recipes (Zombie, Dr Funk, Tahitan Rum Punch, Rum Cow), they weren't marked with a star either.

Quite a few regular classic cocktails are on there too, everywhere should serve Sazeracs IMO. Also spot the 'Mr Nephews Daiquiri 15 year old Special Reserve Rum' is on there - quality rum name check! The most expensive drinks were the Samoan Fog Cutter ($1.25), Mai Tai ($1.25) & Colonels Big Opu ($1.50).

Its worth noting the splits between the different categories (small, strong, etc) - small & strong seem most popular (about a third of the menu each). There is no split on my current London menu, most of the drinks could be labelled 'Strong'.

To determine the age of the menu I listed the age of every drink I could determine in the 'Strong Section' - it makes sense each section would include the 'latest' drink (if one was available). To separate them out I used some classifications:

Straight up, I had some I couldn't find dates for:
Trader Vics Gin Julep, Trader Vics Own Punch, Trader Vics Sling, Trader Vics Tiare, Funa Futi Fooler. I'd like more on that last one, what a name!

I think the following are 'traditional' recipes - they don't have a real owner & have evolved over a long time:
Mint Julep, Queens Park Swizzle, Singapore Sling, Barbados Red Rum Swizzle, Gin & Tonic variations, Martinque Swizzle, Mojito, Pimms variations, Planters Punch.

Drinks with 'known' dates:
Post 1934 Zombie (Don the Beachcomber rip off)
Post 1934 Tonga (part strength Zombie rip off)
Post 1942 Suffering Bastard (Cairo recipe)
Post 1944 Mai Tai

The idea the menu is from the 1940s gets a bit cloudy with these drinks:

Samoan Fogg Cutter & Eastern Sour are circa 1950s Trader Vic recipe (per Mr Beachbum)
Dr Funk is suspected based on a polnesian absinthe /lemonade drink, a Don The Beachcomber recipe from 1953 (per Mr Beachbum)
Tiki Puka Puka is a circa 1960s Tiki-Ti recipe (per Mr Beachbum)
Sharks Tooth is a circa 1960s recipe (per Mr Beachbum)

As these aren't marked with a star, they are borrowed from other tiki mixolgists or drawn from 'traditional' sources. Bless Mr Beachbum, Im going offer 2 ideas - one that he's already seen this menu & factored it in to his dating of these drinks (i.e. maybe the menu is from the 1960s?) or this is the missing link that dates those tiki cocktails earlier than before! So it's from the 1960s? :)

The date is part of the fun of it but the menu does raise questions with me:
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Some of my Don Beachcomber favourites from the 30s / 40s (Navy Grog, Sumutra Kula, Missionarys Downfall, Test Pilot) aren't on there. If the drinks was popular & widely copied, given the rivalry reported between Mr Beachcomber & Trader Vic you would expect a version to feature on the menu (Trader Vic had a pimento Navy Grog) - any ideas where they might be?

Only 5 sharers are listed, I thought they were a big part of the Trader Vic repertoire - maybe they are just well photographed or popular? If they were more popular they might be further up the menu.

Id love to know how much of the tiki experience used to be the meal, there's very little chance Id go to a bar in the evening & order a coffee based drink unless I'd had a really big meal. Maybe they drank coffee 24/7 back them?*

I didn't see the point of collecting menus previously but I enjoyed being a researcher for a few hours :) Anyone else got an old menu they'd be prepared to PM me? Id like another go.

Like I said, cheers to TikiTacky for posting the whole menu for us to look at! :)