Golden Gate’s period cocktails transport you to a golden age
By Jim Begley
Flaming Side Car
The Golden Gate Hotel & Casino has undergone a renaissance as of late. Numerous design changes hearken back to its heyday: Pit bosses don fedoras while cocktail waitresses and dealers wear clothing dating back to the casino’s roots.
Surrounded by the vintage design, it’s only appropriate the Gate’s Casino Bar has unveiled a lineup of Prohibition-era cocktails, allowing you to imbibe in secrecy at the same bar Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Louis Armstrong were rumored to have snuck in a cocktail or two.
One of the menu’s highlights is a classic cocktail with a flair twist—the Flaming Side Car. The drink is equal parts showmanship and savory: Flaming Bacardi 151 rum and talented flair bartenders provide the spectacle whose ultimate result is a well-balanced combination of the rum, Grand Marnier and Hennessy cognac. The sweetness doesn’t overwhelm but rather provides a fine drink.
Another Prohibition selection to seek out is the Ain’t She Sweet Tea. House-brewed sweet tea combines with Canadian Club whiskey and peach schnapps for a cocktail that may sound cloying but in reality is an outstanding sipper. If only there were a wooden porch swing available to round out the Southern hospitality.
The Old Fashioned is an all-time classic, which, not unlike the Golden Gate, has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years, too. The Gate’s version, aptly named the Prohibition, is an admirable representation of the one of the most storied cocktails—a simple combination of bourbon, bitters, water and sugar that is certain not to disappoint.
To add to the ambience, the prohibition drinks are served in plain white coffee cups designed to hide your libation from curious passersby. Skirt the long arm of the law in the most enjoyable of environs at the Golden Gate.
Golden Gate
1 Fremont Street. 702.385.1906
