Rum is waiting in the Gold Coast.
Drink of the week: Hotel Nacional ($12) at Sparrow
12 W. Elm St. 312-725-0732
Let’s take a mental trip back in time to 1930s Havana, to a monstrous building on the coast called the Hotel Nacional de Cuba. It’s the kind of place that’s practically made for a postcard: A clean white exterior with art deco accents and Hispano-Moorish architecture all set against a watery blue backdrop. Royalty, celebrities and mobsters alike were said to have rested their heads in the hotel’s rooms. And you better bet the bar staff had a legit cocktail program to keep everyone entertained.
Though I’m not sure Sparrow, a newish bar in the heart of Gold Coast, entertains gangsters and princes on the regular, the bartenders there are slinging the luxury hotel’s namesake cocktail, conjuring thoughts of white sand, sunshine and palm trees with every sip.
The drink goes by several names—Hotel Nacional de Cuba, Hotel Nacional Special or even just National—but at Sparrow, you’ll simply ask for the Hotel Nacional. A mix of Plantation Stiggins’ Fancy pineapple rum, apricot liqueur and fresh pineapple and lime juice hits your senses like a sophisticated tiki drink without any of the extra frills. Perfect for nights when you don’t feel like wrestling a bright pink bendy straw and banana dolphin for your booze.
“I wanted these cocktails to be clean and streamlined in look and in flavor,” said beverage director Peter Vestinos (The Betty, Sepia), who curated the menu. “I wanted Sparrow to be inviting without any pomp, and the drinks to be the same.”
The Hotel Nacional is certainly clean but also dangerously sippable and perfectly boozy. At first glance, all those fruity flavors may turn some away, but the acidity of fresh fruit juice plus heavy rum that’s made with pineapple flesh and husk keeps the cocktail from tasting like a tropical Jolly Rancher.
After knocking back a few rum-drenched cocktails at Sparrow’s dimly lit bar, it might dawn on you that The Hangge-Uppe is right next door. We’ll let you decide if that’s a good or bad thing.
More Top Picks Best Raclette Grills For Parties
@morgancolsen | [email protected]
Want to learn how to brew beer or make a craft cocktail? Click here for cocktail classes in Chicago.