Is Smuggler's Cove the new Gold Standard?

I just returned from San Francisco and two evenings spent at Smuggler's Cove. My reverence for Tiki Ti is no longer one of dogma and absolute devotion. Tasting polynesian drinks through the unfiltered lenses of hand-crafted syrups and fresh ingredients has revolutionized my respect for what these drinks can be.

Martin Cate has improved upon the efforts of both Don and Vic in terms of drink quality.

The vision of the rum drink at Smuggler's Cove is neither revisionist or reimagined, nor is it one of revival. It is a vision of purity and potential that forces rum drinkers to redefine the baseline for what constitutes a good tiki drink.

Martin's approach is not one of replication, and I believe this helps set him apart from most others.

To those who have visited the Cove, what do you think?

On 2010-12-31 09:10, telescopes wrote:

...My reverence for Tiki Ti is no longer one of dogma and absolute devotion...

…To those who have visited the Cove, what do you think?

A question ! :)

Hmm…. I can understand your comments regarding Tiki Ti in this current "New Cocktailan" boom we're experiencing. With our alcoholic palates having been raised with places like Smuggler's Cove, Tropical drinks NOT leveraging fresh juices and top-shelf rum do seem like 2nd-best.

I would argue however that the significance of Tiki Ti extends far beyond just those two things. It's much more than just a bar serving cocktails. Remember Tiki Ti has family lineage going back to Pre-Tiki ground zero. On the West Coast, it single handedly carried the Tiki torch during the bad old devolution days of 1970's-1990's. No net new Tiki Revival place will EVER be able to make that claim which essentially makes Tiki Ti teflon-proof IMHO.

Also no other Tiki bar will knock me off my ass better than the Ti. After one Uga Booga and Jim's Special, I usually have to take a nap in my car before being able to drive again. I can't think of any other Tiki bar that can inebriate me to that same extent with just 2 drinks.

And where would Tiki be today if it hadn't provided the spiritual inspiration for so those who spearheaded the Tiki Revival movement in Los Angeles ??

Yes, Tiki Ti still deserves your (and our) dogma and absolute devotion !! We should all be bowing down and praying in its direction on a daily basis. :D

There is no doubt Smuggler's Cove has the greatest recent visibility and reputation when it comes to Tropical mixology excellence (and deservedly so). If we had to chose a #1 place, it's certainly an excellent candidate but remember there are many other great places. Case in point…

1. Forbidden Island - I felt the Jet Pilot I had there (always a good litmus test) was even better than Smuggler's Cove.

2. Tonga Hut - On Saturday and Sunday afternoons, Kelly "Hiphipahula" O'Reilly mixes up some of the best Tropical cocktails around. Yes, she maintains 100% faithfulness to the Grog Log (I'd hate to be the customer to ask her to put pineapple juice in their Mai Tai), but like a Tiki "Dr. Frankenstein" she's always devising up new Tropical concoctions in her Tiki mad scientist laboratory. I'd stack some of her original drinks like the Shaka Hula Bossa Nova, Zorrorro, and Velvet Taboo against any of the classics any day.

3. Don the Beachcomber - I believe Marie King has moved on, but when she was the bar manager there she instilled a faithfulness and consistency to the Don Beach recipes which I prefer to Trader Vic's. The drinks at Don's are still pretty good and I encourage them to stay faithful to the blueprint that Marie put in place.

4. Mai Kai - I heard the drinks there are pretty good. :)

[ Edited by: JOHN-O 2010-12-31 16:50 ]

Very nicely put, John-O. It had tried to voice my concern a while back that now that craft coctailians are going way back to even pre-Don The Beachcomber times to make ingredients true to their original state of inception, the two bulwarks of Polynesian cocktail mixology, the Tiki Ti and the Mai Kai, who carried the tradition of undiluted Tiki mixology into the 20th Century, may fall behind the new breed of cocktail alchemists.
And that while ironically the folks who were instrumental to the new cocktailian movement, Jeff Berry and Ted Haigh, took their inspiration and pointers from the Tiki Ti for years and then flew with it.

But ultimately I believe there is enough room for all kinds, and there is no reason to say yay or nay to one or the other:
I like both, Smuggler's Cove AND Tiki Ti, for their individual reasons (mentioned in the two posts above)....and La Descarga and La Cana and ...and...

Also, pragmatically speaking, the Mai Kai is on the other side of the country, the Cove in another city, and the Tiki Ti 8 minutes from my house. :)

On 2010-12-31 18:24, bigbrotiki wrote:
h, Smuggler's Cove AND Tiki Ti, for their individual reasons (mentioned in the two posts above)....and La Descarga and La Cana and ...and...

Also, pragmatically speaking, the Mai Kai is on the other side of the country, the Cove in another city, and the Tiki Ti 8 minutes from my house. :)

Both you and John O addressed the question in an extremely thoughtful and respectful answer. I appreciate your insight. In truth, I never fail to stop at the Ti when in LA. The quality of drinks there are unimpeachable. When near Sunset Beach, I never fail to stop at Don the Beachcombers for a Rum Barrel. The decor is so refreshing. And, the Tonga Hut is without a doubt a neighborhood bar that goes well beyond the extra-mile.

When I speak of gold standard, I refer only to the handcrafted nature of the drinks. I was simply blown away. I love Forbidden Island and regret that I didn't make it there this time. The rain put me off.

We in California are fortunate to have so many places to chose from.

On 2011-01-01 14:21, telescopes wrote:
We in California are fortunate to have so many places to chose from.

We in Colorado are SOL. :P

I think the best thing about SC is that it's much more ambitious than your average Tiki bar. Yes I know that's the aesthetic of choice here on TC, but we shouldn't pigeonhole it as such. Tropical (i.e. Polynesian-inspired) cocktails (I hate the term "Tiki drink") are just 20% of the menu.

Telescopes, I know you don't consider SC, "revival" but to me that's its greatest strength. We're talking about the reintroduction of some drinks which probably haven't been served in a bar in over 200 years. At SC, we can imbibe it really OLD-school, just the way Benjamin Franklin and Blackbeard did.

Also SC allows us to enjoy rum cocktails that we normally wouldn't enjoy in the Tiki bar like the Prohibition-era Havana selections. Rum drinks that are popular in other parts of the world (but unheard of in the US) are on the menu. I thought the Wray & Nephew and Ting was really interesting, I always considered that overproof fire water as a float and not the main ingredient (Those crazy Jamaicans !!).

Also the availability of Flights isn't something you normally see in the Tiki bar. This is elevating rum not just as a cocktail ingredient but as the main course, just like fine scotch. The last time I was there, I had a $120 shot of super rare rum (Vegas winnings should be spent accordingly :)). Was that really worth the equivalent of 15 Ray's Mistakes? It was at that moment, and at what other bar could I have experienced that?

I know I ignored the original intent of your post but you did allude to an opinion which has only been whispered about in casual Tiki bar conversation (every culture has its sacred cows).

So to get back to your original question "Is Smuggler's Cove the New Gold Standard" (when it comes to rum mixology)?…

Yes, I think it is. (For now) :)

[ Edited by: JOHN-O 2011-01-03 11:02 ]

Now, I think Forbidden Island is.

Telescopes, Your post was one of the most thoughtful, well crafted posts that I have read in some time. Bravo. I can't wait to visit FI. I finally made it to the Mai Kai last fall, and it was the best Tiki experience that I have had. Food, drink, service & ambiance were beyond reproach. I suspect that Martin will top it however when I make to SanFran this fall.

On 2011-02-19 23:31, CincyTikiCraig wrote:
Telescopes, Your post was one of the most thoughtful, well crafted posts that I have read in some time. Bravo. I can't wait to visit FI. I finally made it to the Mai Kai last fall, and it was the best Tiki experience that I have had. Food, drink, service & ambiance were beyond reproach. I suspect that Martin will top it however when I make to SanFran this fall.

Thank you CincyTikiCraig. I can't wait to see the Mai Kai myself - hopefully this June. Here is what I was referring to when I add that now I think Forbidden Island may have topped the list: (I hope this response is not considered a cross post).

"Not long ago, I visited Smuggler's Cove on one of my many tikiquests. I was amazed and awed at the caliber of what they have accomplished. So overwhelmed was I, that I started a thread, Is Smuggler's Cove the next Tiki Ti.

In my opinion, it was.

But then... while I have been to Forbidden Island many times before, my last visit on Friday absolutely blew me away and has caused me to rethink some things.

First, FI is eye candy extreme. While Tiki No is no back show number itself, FI reeks of authenticity from top to bottom, from the old movies to the music.

And then there was Suzanne, the bartender who waited on me. Her expertise and skill rivaled the best that I have seen. The Navy Grog that I began with was so balanced and nuanced - the spices played before me but they didn't rush to the forefront. That was saved for the rums.

The Mai Tai, a luau happy hour version, went down like silk. The flavors played with each other the way you would want a group of preschoolers to do. Nicely and without anyone being selfish.

Next, and this is where Forbidden Island exited into greatness, the Sazerac Cocktail absolutely and completely remade my concept of what a cocktail could and should be.

Using a rose syrup and the St. George Absinthe as well as a small batch Kentucky Bourbon, the Sazerac was put together the old fashioned way. The glass was iced down, the liquids were stirred with ice until the right amount of melt had occurred. And then, it was put together and a new universe was born.

I quite chasing the perfect Sazerac along time ago, because no one, and I mean no one, could put one together that allowed all of the flavors to walk together in peace. Always, one flavor or the other predominated.

Not this time. No, not this time. I tell you here and now that I have had no finer cocktail. Suzanne created something that surely must be what people a hundred years ago thought about when they had a cocktail. It was heaven.

I didn't believe a cocktail like this could exist. Only once before had I tasted something almost as good and that was at the Tram Bar high above Palm Springs. An odd fellow - a true cocktail enthusiast, made me the perfect Old Fashioned. But here at Sea Level, ten thousand feet less, I was not in hell or purgatory. I was in Forbidden Island drinking the concoctions of a gifted artist.

Forbidden Island wins because they have raised the art of the drink beyond simply high quality tiki drinks. They have brought art back to drinking. My final drink was a spin on a sweet martini called a Howards End (if I have it right). Again, this gin cocktail soared to new levels with the addition of lillet and a few other ingredients.

So, there it is. Forbidden Island wins.

For now any way. Do you agree?"

[ Edited by: telescopes 2011-02-20 07:02 ]

Telescopes, I think the real winner is YOU.

:D

[ Edited by: JOHN-O 2011-02-20 10:40 ]

Forbidden Island wins because they have raised the art of the drink beyond simply high quality tiki drinks. They have brought art back to drinking.

So, there it is. Forbidden Island wins.

Telescopes so happy to see you have seen the light :)

the gold standard is my kitchen counter.

Because that's where I mix, and that's where I drink me a drank...

On 2011-02-20 11:46, leleliz wrote:

Forbidden Island wins because they have raised the art of the drink beyond simply high quality tiki drinks. They have brought art back to drinking.

So, there it is. Forbidden Island wins.

Telescopes so happy to see you have seen the light :)

After leaving Forbidden Island that night, I drove to Smuggler's Cove, thinking I would have a drink for comparison. Upon entering, I was happy to see the place was busy and doing well. I went upstairs and looked down upon the place. The crowd was young and upscale - hip you might even say. I journeyed down stairs and I saw the same. But something was missing - or rather - something was not missing.

I was satisfied. My longing for the perfect drink had been fulfilled. I made a few more rounds up and down the stairs and gave SC one more look over - and then I left without a drink or a word to anyone.

I had one more visit to make before getting to my hotel. I traveled to Trader Vic's to see the remodel and to purchase my daughter a shell bowl. I was impressed with what they had done. While I waited for the bowl, I ordered some Bongo Bongo soup - also served in a shell bowl and engaged the bartender in some conversation.

I noticed they had a bottle of Saint James H'ordage and asked her how much a Mai Tail would be with the Saint James and some Appleton 12 year rum. She laughed and said no one would mix those two rums together. They wouldn't really taste that well mixed.

I laughed again and couldn't resist the urge to order a $100 Mai Tai.

Her skills were lacking and her inexperience showed. But, there I was, drinking a a Mai Tai in Trader Vic's in Emeryville, all the while sipping my Bongo Bongo soup.

I paid for my Shell Bowl, drink, and soup. As I left, I looked around once more and was thankful for such a great evening. But it wasn't visions of Trader Vic's beautiful restaurant or Smuggler's Cove Rum concept bar that guided me home - it was the intimate playful beauty and the smooth and silky handcrafted cocktails of Forbidden Island that like a star upon the horizon carried me home to a beautiful sleep.

And so ended what for me was a perfect evening.

[ Edited by: telescopes 2011-02-20 16:21 ]

I have to say that I have never before, been so bummed out to not live close to a particular bar... Forbidden Island far exceeded my expectations. The mixology was perfect, the music and ambiance were perfect, and what other bar has such an eloquent bloviator as Will the Thrill as their door guy?? I'm not saying this stuff because of how welcoming, Michael and his staff were with the Hula Girls, but because the place really is amazing!

I had a traditional mai tai, a Forbidden Island signature drink, a jet pilot and tasted a suffering bastard. They were ALL so delicious and so well balanced. I HAVE to go back and sample some of the other drinks that I missed...

Next trip to SF with include Smuggler's Cove. I've heard too many good things about that place too. But for now, Forbidden Island is at the top of my list.

Speaking from the opposite coast, I am curious to see what Martin Cate makes of (and takes back from) the Mai-Kai, as he's scheduled to be on a discussion panel w. BBB at this year's Hukilau in June. Here in SoFla, we get a lot of the high-craft Prohibition era Havana rum cocktails, but Tiki is really relegated to the Mai-Kai...which simply has to be seen to be believed.

I'll have to hit FI & SC to make a fair assessment, cocktailwise. (How I suffer in the name of science.)