Garnishes take center stage at these Atlanta cocktail bars

When the drink arrived at my table during a recent dinner at Roswell’s Tipsy Thaiger, my friends immediately eyed it. I’d chosen the Pad Thai Highball, which was topped with a light orange shrimp cracker. After giving it a sniff, I crunched into it, and the zesty lime flavor of the drink was cut with salt, accentuating the bubbly lime essence as I took my first sip. I could imagine I was actually enjoying the namesake dish on a plastic stool in Bangkok.

In Atlanta’s cocktail bars, elaborate garnishes are taking center stage as much as the glassware and ingredients. And we’re not talking about anything as run-of-the-mill as olives or cherries.

Clear Intentions at Jagger Suite is made with Patrón Cristalino tequila and citrus-forward yuzu foam, garnished with a vanilla bean and crisp lemon tuile. (Courtesy)

What do cocktail garnishes actually do? Atlanta bartenders explain.

Bold garnishes catch the eye, both in person — as they did for the patrons sitting with me who soon ordered their own Pad Thai Highballs — and on Instagram and other visually driven apps. And that’s not all.

“It can be edible and consumed, so actually partake in flavor, but it also could serve as an aromatic element,” said LP O’Brien, winner of Netflix’s “Drink Masters” and global creative director of beverage for F1 Arcade, which recently opened an Atlanta outpost. “(The garnish) aromatically is the first thing you’re going to smell. That will impact the way that you perceive flavor on your palate.”

The garnish can also add texture, as it did with the shrimp chip at Tipsy Thaiger. Co-founder Birdie Niyomkun said she and her team were inspired to create the drink as a way to offer Pad Thai, a dish not on their food menu.

“It was the last drink on the menu because it takes so many tries (to develop a drink). We still thought like, ‘Hey, it’s still missing something,’ like something savory. We had (shrimp chips) laying around, and we fried them up, and it came perfectly together,” Niyomkun said.

A Colombian bittersweet chocolate gun garnishes the Good Shot cocktail, part of a "GoodFellas" themed omakase at Tiger Sun. The shovel is not edible but can be used to scoop up the affogato-style drink. (Courtesy o Luke Beard)

How creative cocktail garnishes tell a story

Elaborate garnishes are especially popular in Atlanta’s pop-up scene, including at cocktail omakases — curated, themed multicourse drink menus — at Tiger Sun and Lucky Star, adding to the storytelling component. Tiger Sun draws inspiration from movies; its recent themes include “The Karate Kid” and “GoodFellas.”

“When we design these cocktails, we’re always looking for things that will surprise and delight. Things that almost spark the same joy as when you’re a kid,” said Heather Rule, Tiger Sun’s bartender and supervisor.

The Clarified Espresso Martini at Lucky Star is garnished with a creme brulee croissant and black sesame tuile (Courtesy of ChingYao Wang)

At the James Beard Best New Bar semifinalist Lucky Star, the cocktail menu is an extension of the pastry program, with miniature desserts that change based on the theme. It’s one of several bars that create garnishes through collaboration with the kitchen.

“There’s a great working relationship between (the team and) myself of what are the ways that we can elevate this cocktail through pastry or through dessert techniques,” said Kirk Gibson, Lucky Star’s beverage director. “You develop the flavor that you want the cocktail to have and then go from there as kind of a collaboration for what that garnish will look like.”

At Marcus Bar and Grille, general manager Joy Wilford gave me a preview of an Atlanta-coded drink called the Samuelsson Smoke Show coming to their menu April 4. It’s an Old-Fashioned garnished with bacon and a piece of cornbread, toasted tableside. The cornbread and bacon are already on the menu, so the kitchen will just have to prepare a bit extra for the garnish.

“If you don’t like bourbon, it’s a good introduction to her, because you don’t have to drink it super fast. You can sip, bite, sip, bite,” Wilford said.

A peanut butter and jelly crisp helps Füm's PBNJ live up to its name. (Courtesy of Andrew Thomas Lee)

The appropriately titled PBNJ at Füm is modeled after the Uncrustable, a lunchbox staple. The spin on the Manhattan is made with peanut butter fat-washed bourbon and rye with sherry infused with strawberry. It’s topped with a strawberry jam and peanut butter wafer to provide an added crunch.

The Cantaloupe Pink Peppercorn Spritz on a former Gunshow drink menu was garnished with a tiny cantaloupe ice cream bar . (Courtesy of Blake Studwell)

Creative cocktail garnishes attract the eyes

Gunshow frequently upgrades its drinks with funky extras like cantaloupe ice cream bars and carrot-shaped cookies. The newly opened Jagger Suite’s Clear Intentions comes with a vanilla bean and crisp lemon tuile. And Zephyr’s Real McCoy has a “caviar bump” in the form of a homemade chip and caviar placed atop the Champagne flute. As general manager Thandi Walton said, “What goes together better than caviar and Champagne?”

The Real McCoy at Zephyr Southern Brasserie is garnished with a house-made potato chip and caviar. (Courtesy of Andy Lee)

Although you’re sure to see these over-the-top prepared desserts and snacks as garnishes, sometimes a simple garnish gets the job done. For example, on a recent visit, the Bridge Troll drink at Burle’s Bar was served with a snap pea, while Okay Anny’s embraced nostalgia in its Hubba Bubba shot with a strip of the namesake bubble gum. After all, a garnish is an added component and cost for the bar or kitchen to prepare and can slow down service, added Rule.

“One thing will sound like a really great idea. And then as we’re working through the tastings, we’re like, this will never work in our day-to-day service. We have to pivot a lot.”

Why edible cocktail garnishes are trending

So why are you seeing more of these unusual accoutrements in your cocktail? Social media plays a role, as aesthetic cocktail photos can inspire patrons to check out a bar or order a unique drink. But that’s not the only reason.

This nationwide trend has become a way to engage more of the consumers’ senses while allowing bartenders to flex their creativity. And perhaps bars can increase interest in the post-pandemic economy with these clever garnishes. But it can also easily become a distraction or a gimmick. “I think when we’re making drinks in general, it’s really important to think about the meaning and the intention behind it,” O’Brien said.

The Samuelsson Smoke Show, finished with a pepper, maple bacon and torch cornbread skewer, will be available on the regular cocktail menu beginning April 4 at Marcus Bar and Grille. (Courtesy of Marcus Bar and Grille)

When the Samuelsson Smoke Show came out at Marcus Bar and Grille, I found myself drooling at the garnish. The crunch of the bacon. The salt of the cornbread. I looked around at the other patrons before pulling the glass to my face and taking a bite. I may have ended up with crumbs on my face, but the combination was perfectly satisfying.

Atlanta cocktail bars serving creative garnishes

Füm. 660 11th St. NW, Atlanta. 404-975-0969, fumatl.com

Gunshow. 924 Garrett St., Atlanta. 404-380-1886, gunshowatl.com

Jagger Suite. 329 Marietta St. NW, 10th Floor, Atlanta. 470-961-9998, jaggersuite.com

Lucky Star. 1055 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. 678-994-6016, luckystaratl.com

Marcus Bar & Grille. 525 Edgewood Ave. SE, Atlanta. 470-890-1700, marcusbarandgrille.com

Tiger Sun. 904 Memorial Drive SE, Atlanta. tigersunatl.com