sams seafood drinkd and menu items

Wellwe just put together our first round in regards to our new food and drink menu.

Please, I really would like your imput and tell what food items you liked, the drink recipies we were using, did they work./ what you would like to see keptor removed or added to the menues we are putting together. I want your thougs. and we will reward the ones that do.

Hope to hear from you all. alan

Sent you a PM. Might be able to get some more info for you, too. I'll keep you posted.

Alan,

It might be a good idea to change all the food and drinks from the old Sam's.

I think some people liked the crab special they had at Sam's and the rest of the food can be improved. Forget any drinks from the old Sam's.

Get Jeff Berry's books and drink at Tiki-Ti for drink references. Tiki-Ti is the gold standard. In a recent issue of Tiki Magazine Jeff Berry did an article about Bob Esmino, now a drink consultant whose office is in Seal Beach. http://roskinincorporated.com

You are doing the right thing by having Tiki Farm mugs and Bamboo Ben work on the interior.

Coruba and Cruzan rums are excellent, use them as much as possible. Don't use Bacardi silver, use Cruzan instead.

Serve Trader Vic's style Mai Tais.

Copy the best:

Drinks: Tiki-Ti, Forbidden Island, Mai Kai, Trader Vic's, Jeff Berry, and kick_the_reverb (Ran)

Food: Trader Vics, Los Alamitos Fish Company, see the O.C. Weekly food reviews for more ideas.
http://www.originalfishcompany.com/
http://www.ocweekly.com/food/

Sam's Web site: get Humuhumu to design it
http://www.humuhumu.com/

Here are some more ideas from TC:

Humuhumu Mai Tai

The Mai Tai has a long and storied history, and has been subject to much debate. I sit solidly in the camp that believes only in the One True Mai Tai, the Trader Vic's Mai Tai. A Mai Tai does not have pineapple juice or grenadine. When properly made, a Mai Tai has a nice brown color -- a pink Mai Tai is an abhorrence before the Tiki Gods. The original Mai Tai recipe was created using a particular rum that is not available today -- 17-year-old J. Wray & Nephew rum. Thus, a bit of monkeying around has been necessary over the years. Even Trader Vic's restaurants make their Mai Tai from a mix these days (unless you order it "San Francisco style"). Here's the recipe I know, it has served me well:

1 oz. Martinique rum (I use Saint James)
1 oz. Jamaican dark rum (I use Coruba)
1/2 oz. Orange Curacao
1/4 oz. orgeat
1/4 oz. rock candy syrup
1-1/2 oz. lime juice (about one lime)

Shake and strain over ice in a rocks glass. Garnish with the one half of your spent lime, and a sprig of mint.
Balance is everything with a Mai Tai (or any good tropical drink, for that matter). Tweak the amounts to suit the particular rums and ingredients you are using. The quality of the ingredients in a Mai Tai can make all the difference -- opt for nicer rums, if possible, and resist the temptation to use "close enough" rums -- take the time to track down a Martinique rum. Mix this with Bacardi, and it'll taste like ass. The mint may seem like a minor detail, but the aroma it adds is the hallmark of the Mai Tai. And, per the Tiki Bar TV forum rules, always use fresh limes. Another important point about the Mai Tai -- the ice should be crushed.

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Beach Bum Berry's $100 Mai Tai
http://www.beachbumberry.com/100dollarmaitai/

Using the finest ingredients we could find, we came up with a palate-pleasing variation on Vic's original recipe. There's just one catch: It will cost you $100. Oh, all right, not really. A fifth of rum contains 25.5 ounces, which amortizes out to 25 drinks. So divide that C-note by 25 and you're actually paying a mere $4 per Mai Tai — about half of what you'd pay if you went to the mall and ordered one at P.J. McGillicuddy's Food 'N' Funnery. So here's your shopping list (prices will vary store by store):

One fifth Saint James 15-year Hors D'Age Rum $41.95
One fifth Appleton Estate Extra rum $23.99
One bottle Marie Brizard orange curacao $20.99
One bottle Trader Vic orgeat syrup $5.99
One bottle Trader Vic rock candy syrup $5.99
One pound fresh limes $1.29
One bunch fresh mint $1.99

TOTAL: $102.19

And here's what to do with it all:
To make one $100 Mai Tai, crush enough ice to fill a double old-fashioned glass, and put the crushed ice in your cocktail shaker. Next, pour in one ounce of Saint james, one ounce of Appleton, 1/2 ounce of Curacao, and one-fourth of an ounce each of orgeat and rock candy syrup. Then, pour in one ounce of fresh-squeezed lime juice (we know, the Grog Log specifies 1 1/2 ounces, but for some reason, with these rums, one ounce feels right — more and the lime dominates, less and the result is too sweet). Now, drop in a lime shell and shake everything like hell for around ten seconds. Finally, pour it all into your double old-fashioned glass, add more crushed ice to fill, and garnish with a sprig of mint.