Get Ready to Rhumbar

Don't be fooled by the wall of booze-slurpy machines just outside of Rhumbar -- the cocktails served up inside this new establishment are seriously good. The interior of the place (all white glass bar, all white barstools, floors and walls and strange looking shiny silver alien-robot things in glass cases along the top of the bar and the ceiling) combined with the music (mostly latin-flavored world music while we were there) give it the feeling of a tiki bar. In the future. In outer space.

But it's the drinks that really drive the tiki feeling home. Our visit started with a Spanish Trampoline (pictured right) and a Daiquiri, and for me, it was love at first sip. The Spanish Trampoline is a magnificent concoction of tangerine, mint, pure cane sugar, lime and Sagatiba cachaca. It may be my new favorite cocktail, the one I've been waiting my whole life to find. The drink was perfectly balanced, light, fresh and citrus-y, and went down like a tangerine-infused mojito. I normally dislike overly sweet, sugary drinks, but the Spanish Trampoline was so refreshing I believe I could drink 100 of them.

Likewise, the daiquiri was perfectly balanced, and much to our great happiness was not a blended drink, but a simple and tasty mixture of rum, lime and syrup over ice. Maybe I haven't been looking hard enough, but I haven't found many bars serving up a true, classic daiquiri.

For our second round, we went with the Spicy Lover and the 1944 Mai Tai. As a fan of (almost) all things spicy, I was pleased with the combination of tequila, cucumber and Tabasco sauce in the Spicy Lover. It goes down smooth, the cucumber and tequila mix nicely, and the spicy kick at the end is a treat. My date wasn't quite so enthused with the spicy-tequila-cuc combo, but his deliciously booze-y Mai Tai (again, not too sweet or fruity but well balanced) made up for it.

We didn't sample any of the establishment's cigar offerings, although the people next to us at the bar indulged. Early in our visit, the bartender had explained the three-week old bar's fancy air filtration system, and sure enough, I barely noticed the smoke from just one stool over. Unfortunately, slightly chilly weather also kept us from venturing onto Rhumbar's outside patio, but it looked like an excellent place to pass an hour or two. I will certainly be returning to the Rhumbar, and when I do I'll take on the Zombie.