I'm sure you're asking yourself what's up with the title to this blog. Well, it's aptly describes one of the coolest tiki bars I've been to, Three Dots and a Dash (get it now?). This place is an underground gem in Chicago. I had the pleasure of visiting not one but twice in my recent trip. For those who are newcomers to the cocktail scene, tiki is definitely one of those throwback subcultures in today's craft cocktail boom. The original Tiki style originated in Hawaii during WWII, when the available spirits were masked in juices and other modifiers to make them more palatable for customers, mostly soldiers at that time. The drinks were also done up with some Polynesian garnishes and decor (including paper umbrellas, ugh) to add a "tropical" vibe as an gimmick to attract patrons. Elaborate "tiki mugs" depicting totems, and Polynesian style designs were used to spice up the presentation. For years, Tiki was viewed as tacky and "commerical" due to it's use of these flashy gimmicks and bad spirits masked by those juices. Have you ever had a Mai Tai at a big luau at a hotel in Hawaii? It's a guaranteed trip to "headache city", but who am I kidding, it's bottomless so we're going to drink it anyway. In recent years however with the repopularization of craft cocktails and craft cocktail bars, tiki bars have also made a triumphant comeback. But these cocktails aren't your usual mass produced, sugary drinks with bad spirits (with paper umbrellas, ugh). The same care and craft have been applied to these cocktails and they've rebooted many of the iconic tiki cocktails with natural and very delicious ingredients.