Despite kitsch, Lobby Bar delivers on drinks

Arizona Grand Resort (Credit: Mark Boisclair)

By Megan Finnerty
Metromix

It's happening again.

For the second time in a row, many are facing the prospect of a vacationless summer.

But these days, I'm not calling it a staycation. I'm calling it a good excuse to go to resorts, even if they're in my own backyard.

With that in mind, here is a tip on where to get the most tropically transporting cocktails in the city.

Like, if you really wanted to go to Hawaii, but your 401k got slaughtered, and you have to save an extra $400 per month for retirement, I've got you covered.

Or if you had to take a pay cut, a two-week furlough or anything else that means exotic destination dollars are gone, I have just the dark bar where you can drink your sorrows away and wear a Tommy Bahama shirt at the same time.

Arizona Grand Resort, formerly the Point South Mountain Resort, has been remodeled, opening April 23 with a new restaurant and bar in the new lobby.

They are cleverly named the Lobby Grill and the Lobby Bar.

The cocktail menu displays a similar affection for directness, but instead of coming across as unimaginative, food and beverage director Mark Bertolacini has designed a collection of nine drinks that are balanced and appealing as opposed to over-the-top.

Bertolacini used to live in Hawaii, which explains why he's serving $12 to $14 drinks with names like the Lava Flow, the Chi Chi and the Island Tease in the middle of the Sonoran Desert. It also explains why he doesn't think the only appropriate way to appreciate the bar's décor (rattan chairs, framed Hawaiian shirts, woven Lahala mat wall coverings) is by viewing it as kitsch.

As a member of Generation X, however, I can only see it that way. Fortunately for both of us, none of that kitsch was found in the cocktails.

My favorite was the Grand Piña Colada, a mix of Bacardi rum, pineapple juice and coconut cream, blended with ice and garnished with a pineapple wedge, a maraschino cherry and coconut shavings. It was the coconut shavings that got me.

After trying the drink, my first thought was, “I love this. Why don't I order these all the time?”

Then I remembered it's not the kind of drink you have every day unless you're married to Thurston Howell III.

The Island Tease is better than it sounds. It's made with Sweet Carolina Sweet Tea vodka, Patrón Citrónge orange liqueur and Sierra Mist. I know, Sierra Mist? It's light and sweet, but not sickly and is exactly the kind of thing you could drink all day.

I also adored the Prickly Agave, made with prickly pear-infused Patrón Silver tequila, Patrón Citrónge, and a float of Malibu rum. It's the signature locally inspired cocktail on the menu and it succeeds brilliantly among the other boldly flavored drinks. Sometimes prickly pear is too subtle to come across in cocktails, but here, the cactus fruit imparts a light sweetness and floral quality to the drink.