The Original Mai Tai

Revered mixologist, Jeff Berry, who spent more than a decade decoding the drink menu from the original luau designed the cocktail menu.

Party guests enjoyed classic luau cocktails like the Mai Thai (made from the original 1944 recipe). The "secret ingredient" in the Mai Tai is the orgeat, its flavor should be present, but not overly so. If you have trouble finding orgeat in your area, you should be able to find clear almond syrup anywhere that they sell coffee syrups and flavorings.

The only real difference between orgeat and almond syrup is that orgeat is usually slightly cloudy, and usually has a little bit of orange flower water added to it.

Ingredients

1 ounce light rum
1 ounce gold rum
1/2 ounce orange curaco
1/2 ounce orgeat (almond syrup)
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1 ounce dark rum (optional)

Directions

Shake all but the dark rum with ice. Strain into old fashioned glass. Top with the dark rum. Garnish with a maraschino cherry, and a sprig of mint. Serve with short straws