Tiki bars and more generally tiki culture are on the rise in Toronto. Although some still view this cocktail style as a collection of syrup-laden girly drinks in silly glasses, many of the best bartenders around the city have embraced them as a re-emerging trend in the last couple years. Whilst a few spots have dedicated menus, ask your local bartender, he or she's bound to have a secret recipe or two stashed up his or her sleeve.
Tiki drinks originated in the 1930s, with the opening of legendary California bar Don the Beachcomber, followed a few years later by rival spot Trader Vic's. Both bars were trying to recreate Polynesian culture for the many service men, who, upon returning from duty in the South Pacific, had a hankering for something different. The exotic flavours and syrups associated with Tiki cocktails fit the bill perfectly, and Donn and Vic waged war as they attempted to best each other's creations, each new drink becoming stronger and more elaborate.
Tiki bars fast became a popular tropical retreat, providing an elaborate and fun way to experience a different culture that many were not familiar with. After going out of fashion in the 70s, Tiki was once again brought back in the 90s, when kitsch vintage products and lifestyles were once again popular.
Toronto was no exception, and a number of spots, like the now defunct Sutra clad themselves in bamboo to celebrate the culture. Replaced by Souz Dal a couple years ago, the beach patio in the back still remains. Elsewhere a tiki experience can be found at the dive-y Hawaii Bar on Dovercourt or on the rooftop patio of the Bovine Sex Club.
However, if you actually want a real tiki cocktail, here's a list of 5 bars keeping the spirit of Donn and Vic alive.
Toronto Temperance Society
Oliver Stern of Toronto Temperance Society has put together a full Tiki menu, with classic drinks including the Mai Tai and Bermuda rum swizzle. All drinks come in authentic tiki glassware accompanied with funky straws. Try the Painkiller: a blend of 3 different rums, coconut cream, pineapple syrup, orange and lime juices, topped off with Angustora orange bitters.
Salt
Nick Kennedy at Salt on Ossington not only loves to wear brilliantly bad Hawaiian shirts on occasion, but also makes his own Orgeat and Don's mix - integral in many great tiki drinks. Try his Pina Colada or the fantastic Corn'n'Oil, a blend of black strap rum, Angostura bitters, and house-made falernum (a syrup with flavors of nutmeg, allspice, ginger and lime, it is commonly used in tropical drinks).
Ursa
Bar Manager Robin Goodfellow makes some the most inventive drinks in the city, and though he isn't known for being a 'tiki guy,' he can certainly make you one when asked. Although not a traditional tiki drink, the Trinidad Sour incorporates orgeat (a sweet almond syrup used to make the original Mai Tai), lemon juice, rye, and 1-1½ ounces of Angostura bitters, giving it a beautiful rich red colour with a taste of cinnamon clove and cherry.
The Miller Tavern
The Miller has a massive cocktail program utilising a vast range of different styles and techniques. Bar Manager Rob Montgomery has been on the Toronto cocktail scene for more than a decade, so it's no surprise that the Zombie on his menu incorporates the differing variations on the drink, depending on which cocktail legend you side with (Vic or Dale Degroff), the classic style is a blend of light, dark, golden and overproof rums, with lime juice, pineapple juice, apricot brandy and grenadine. Most bars have a house limit on how many of these you can be served in a visit, such is their potency.
Cocktail Parlour
This cocktail bar located in the Storys building (a converted warehouse space near Adelaide and University) has that swanky private members bar vibe, but without the pretension. The bar program boasts some of the rarest liqueurs in the city, Bar Manager Wes Galloway makes all his syrups and tinctures in-house and loves to explore with new flavours, especially tiki drinks. His Old Fashioned, made with all the flavours of a Mai tai using dark rum, Amaretto, Cointreau, Angostura bitters and lime ticture is one of his best sellers.
If you want to learn more about tiki culture or drinks, bartender extraordinaire Trevor Burnett, of cocktail events company Tipicular Fixin's, is the man to see. known around Toronto to be the authority on such things, he gives cocktail classes on the subject and will even host your next special event, bringing the South Pacific to you, a true Tiki maniac.
When you want to go the DIY route, BYOB have an extensive array of vintage glassware to help you get started, including a massive 42oz volcano bowl, should you want to make one of these. Also on hand are a plethora of tiki syrups and bitters.
Don't forget the gnarishes!
by Jen Hunter via blogTO
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