The Most Adorable Cocktail Garnish
While not necessarily novel, especially in the realm of refreshing summertime drinking, banana drinks are enjoying their time in the spotlight this year thanks in large part to a quirky garnish. The banana dolphin, with eyes marked by cloves and the stem standing in for the beak, can now be found at no less than three drinking destinations in Chicago.
The banana dolphin first made a splash at Three Dots and a Dash, the perpetually popular subterranean tiki bar in River North. The bar lays proud claim to that point as well, boasting “The Original Bunny’s Banana Daiquiri” on its cocktail menu. Served in a tall, thick glass, the drink is made with a blend of Jamaican, spiced, and overproof rums, coconut liqueur, banana, lime, and nutmeg. Altogether, it tastes like a banana smoothie, capped off with a bouquet of garnishes. Among them is the banana dolphin, arguably the most popular cocktail garnish in Chicago, with a cherry in its mouth.
A similar formula can be found at Logan Square’s Lost Lake, operated by famed mixologist Paul McGee, who originally opened Three Dots. Not surprisingly, the formula for this banana daiquiri reads similar, complete with that quintessential dolphin.
The latest banana dolphin to hit the scene can be found at the Terrace at Trump. The rich banana Cognac cocktail tastes drastically different, more like a spiced, slightly breakfast-y dessert beverage with Courvosier, Giffard Banane du Bresil, banana puree, fresh cane syrup, angostura bitters, and canella. The crown jewel is a banana dolphin that is slightly smaller than its cohorts. Perhaps a banana porpoise would be more fitting a name.
Three Dots and a Dash
435 N. Clark Street, Chicago
(312) 610-4220
Website
Lost Lake
3154 W. Diversey Avenue, Chicago
(773) 293-6048
Website
The Terrace at Trump
401 N. Wabash Avenue, Chicago
(312) 588-8600
Website