On a short, but sweet work/pleasure trip to San Francisco this weekend, I was able to soak in some of the amazing food, drinks and culture that the oh-so-casually-chic city has to offer.

We had a fantastic, oddly light, rice dish at King of Thai, Dolce De Leche (that I would possibly die for) at Ben and Jerry’s in Height Ashbury and downed local beers all over the city – Anchor Steam (of course) and Prohibition Ale to name a few.

One of our favorite stops was for Asian Fusion at a lively, modish, curbside restaurant on Union, Betelnut. We opted for a tapas-style dinner, which just means that we couldn’t make up our minds, so we ordered appetizers until we were stuffed – scallops over coconut rice, spicy endemame, hand made chicken dumplings - all delish.

I loved the eclectic bar menu – a laundry list including everything from house-brewed rice beer, to Asian inspired cocktails, to modern martinis. It was here that I took note of the infusion of an ultra-modern twist on the classic cocktail comeback that’s all the rage right now. We sipped on sweet Mojitos, while watching a flurry of Scorpion Bowls being cast off from the bar. Although we, ourselves, did not try one (They serve 4 – 5, and we were a party of 2). The oversized, cherry red cocktail looked more than fabulous, garnished with pineapple, cherries, oranges, flowers, straws and a flurry of colorful umbrellas served in a large volcanic shaped bowl.

So, back at my desk this morning, missing cold California, I did a bit of research to pass along this chic party drink. I think it would be amazing at a late night poolside tiki bash, a trendy Asian themed dinner party – or a Tuesday morning at the office.

Scorpion Bowl 2 oz Gin 1 oz Dark Rum 2 oz 151 Rum 2 oz White Rum 2 oz Vodka 4 oz Orange Juice 4 oz Pineapple Juice 2 oz Grenadine 1 ½ oz Orgeat Syrup

Blend ingredients in a large bowl with ice. Garnish with orange slices, cherries, pineapple and orchids – and tons of straws. Serves 4-6.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 1st, 2007 at 2:19 pm by Jm and is filed under Drink Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.