The Saloon serves up countless drink concoctions
With a name like The Saloon, you might expect Coconut Point’s newest restaurant and bar to have an extensive drink program — and it does.
A leather-bound book contains more than 250 spirits, over 50 craft cocktails and dozens of beer and wine selections.
“You’re sure to find something that fits your flavor profile,” says General Manager Chris Principato.
Andrea Melendez
Drinks at The Saloon (clockwise from top left) include: Curse of the Leprechaun, Prosecco Smash, The Saloon Punch and End of the Rainbow.
Creating the inventive cocktails, at times, was a collaboration between the culinary team and the bar staff. The kitchen roasts peppers and grapes, and makes the syrups used behind the bar.
Owner Skip Quillen didn’t want to carry the same big name liquor brands that every other bar does, saying, “All kinds of people are making spirits, and we wanted to give attention to them, too; we want to have fun.”
The cocktail menu is smartly arranged with headings such as sours, mojitos, tikis, martinis, whiskeys and such. The bar stocks more than 20 types of glassware, so each drink is perfectly presented.
The Curse of the Leprechaun comes with a sidecar and strainer. Made with Pasote Blanco Tequila, homemade strawberry shrubs, hellfire bitters, roasted jalapeño syrup and muddled mint. It’s garnished with a charred “long hot” pepper, a fiery concoction with a near perfect balance of sweet and heat.
The End of the Rainbow is fresh with a great herbal quality. Made with gin, St. Germain elderflower and fresh citrus, it’s garnished with wood grilled grapes, making a superb Instagram photo.
1 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Devoted cocktail at The Saloon.
2 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Prosecco Smash has chilled prosecco, star fruit, fresh strawberry and homemade thyme syrup, sliced red grapes and fresh sage.
3 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The bartender mixes specialty cockatils at The Saloon.
4 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Curse of the Leprechaun is a fiery concoction of Pasote Blanco Tequila, fresh strawberry shrub, Hell Fire bitters, roasted jalapeño syrup, muddled mint and a charred "Long Hot."
5 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Saloon Punch is a mix of blueberry moonshine, limoncello, muddled fresh blueberries and lemon sorbet.
6 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The End of the Rainbow is a custom cocktail at The Saloon. It's a mix of Langly London dry gin, Saint Germain elderflower, fresh citrus and wood grilled grapes.
7 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Big Kahuna is a specialty drink with black magic spiced rum, passion fruit, falernum tropical liqueur, maraschino cherry liquor and citrus.
8 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Saloon famous bubble bread “bakes until it bubbles.”
9 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The Saloon at Coconut Point has nearly limitless drink options.
10 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The bar area of The Saloon at Coconut Point.
11 of 11
Andrea Melendez
The bar area was busy and fun. The Make it a Double feature for the February issue will be The Saloon at Coconut Point.
The Prosecco Smash is a beautifully layered cocktail with fresh strawberry and homemade thyme syrup on the bottom. Grapes are added next, then prosecco. The bubbles are lighter than the syrup, which enables the grapes to stay suspended in the middle of the glass. Star fruit and fresh sage complete the festive drink.
The Saloon Punch looks cool with a scoop of lemon sorbet floating in blueberry moonshine and limoncello. The Saloon Mary is more than a drink; it’s a meal with skewers of shrimp, bacon, a hamburger slider and more.
For such detail and care, the prices are affordable in this sophisticated yet casual bar with a happy hour that lasts all night with drink and food specials. Whatever you do, try the Bubble Bread; the seven-cheese garlic bread is decadent and delicious.
“We want customers to experiment, have fun and not be intimidated,” Skip says. “At the end of the day, we want people to be happy.”
By all accounts, he’s accomplished that.
Andrea Melendez