With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Raise Your Glass: It's National Mai Tai Day!
Photo of a Mai Tai by Sarah_Ackerman via Flickr
We don't make this stuff up, but we don't mind abiding by it. Today is National Mai Tai Day, and though it's just a fraction too early to really get into your long weekend drinking, if you opt to cap the day off with this Tahitian-inspired classic, well, we won't object.
Your pre-swilling history lesson is a reminder that Mai Tai is Tahitian for "good" and it was invented in California. However, whether it was by "Trader" Vic Bergeron in Oakland, or Ernest Raymond Beaumont-Gantt aka "Don the Beachcomber" here in Hollywood remains a debate of the ages.
Check out the recipe for Trader Vic's Mai Tai, first made in 1944:
2 ounces of 17-year old J. Wray & Nephew Rum over shaved ice.
Add juice from one fresh lime.
1/2 ounce Holland DeKuyper Orange Curacao.
1/4 ounce Trader Vic's Rock Candy Syrup.
1/2 ounce French Garier Orgeat Syrup
Shake vigorously.
Add a sprig of fresh mint
Sponsored message
You can definitely get your classic Mai Tai on at Trader Vic's (though not in its classic layout) at the Beverly Hilton. Other spots for Mai Tais include the Tonga Hut and Tiki No, both in North Hollywood, or Tiki Ti in Hollywood. For an award-winning variant on the classic, head into the Hollywood Roosevelt and up to the Spare Room for Aidan Demarest's "Evening Glass Off," which is one of our favorite cocktails being mixed these days.
At LAist, we focus on what matters to our community: clear, fair, and transparent reporting that helps you make decisions with confidence and keeps powerful institutions accountable.
Your support for independent local news is critical. With federal funding for public media gone, LAist faces a $1.7 million yearly shortfall. Speaking frankly, how much reader support we receive now will determine the strength of this reliable source of local information now and for years to come.
This work is only possible with community support. Every investigation, service guide, and story is made possible by people like you who believe that local news is a public good and that everyone deserves access to trustworthy local information.
That’s why we’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Thank you for understanding how essential it is to have an informed community and standing up for free press.
Your support for independent local news is critical. With federal funding for public media gone, LAist faces a $1.7 million yearly shortfall. Speaking frankly, how much reader support we receive now will determine the strength of this reliable source of local information now and for years to come.
This work is only possible with community support. Every investigation, service guide, and story is made possible by people like you who believe that local news is a public good and that everyone deserves access to trustworthy local information.
That’s why we’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Thank you for understanding how essential it is to have an informed community and standing up for free press.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
