The outdoor seating at Cabana Bar taunts you with fantasies of what the front deck will look like come summer, the empty metal buckets atop the tables look forlorn and hungry to be filled with ice and bottles of beer. As you walk inside, a wave mural on the wall greets you mockingly, serving as another reminder that you are definitely not in a foreign paradise.
In spite of the cartoon scene, the atmosphere inside is warm and inviting. The front deck sets the space back from the street, removing you from the chilly fright that is New York these days. The lighting is low, the crowd maintains an unobtrusive hum and the vibe is convivial and casual. Everyone seems to be having a grand old time. Except for my friends and me. If you are going to bill yourself as a tiki bar, it’s my opinion that you should serve proper tiki drinks; yet few of the cocktails offered at Cabana Bar are actually from the tiki tradition. Margaritas and Cuba Libres all come from warmer climates south of the border—and are popular in tropical destinations I suppose—but none have the Polynesian influence a proper tiki drink should have. The strawberry margarita ($8) isn’t very good: It has an artificial taste that would be hard to peg as anything other than “vague red flavor,” and was weak to boot. The Playa Juice ($7) is Bacardi Peach and “tropical juices” that tastes mostly like fruit punch. The Cabatini ($8) is satisfying, and the Pisco sour ($7) is frothy and fine—my favorite of the bunch.
The cocktail that turns everyone’s heads is the Bonfire Bowl ($10) and is being billed as big enough for three or four people. But in our estimation it serves two average New York bar-goers— has a few rums, tropical juices, pineapple, some more of that “strawberry” ingredient and is set on fire. It’s strong enough to worry about drinking it while it’s on fire, but it lacks the subtlety of true tiki drinks made in the Don the Beachcomber tradition.
Cabana Bar is attached to Playa restaurant next door, and the nibbles available from their kitchen are all worth a taste if you’re hungry. My favorites were the oyster empanadas and a surprisingly spicy vegetable quesadilla. The establishment offers a nice respite from the punishing winter weather and is fine place to grab snacks and sangria with friends, but
if you come here expecting to exclaim “Zombie Punch, take me away!” you will only end up disappointed—but drunk.
> Cabana Bar 648 President St. (betw. 4th & 5th Aves.), Brooklyn, 718-399-2161
It’s always summer at Cabana Bar
anonymous
