Summertime in New York City is the actual living worst. It’s overheated, over-crowded, dirty, muggy, humid, and nowhere has central air. (But really though – what the hell is that about? Central air, y’all.) There’s a moment, while standing on the train platform, just PRAYING for the warm breeze when a train comes into the station just to MOVE THE AIR, when all you want in life is a cold drink.
A frozen one.
Full of booze.
And that’s how a girlfriend and I found ourselves at the Times Square Hard Rock Cafe after a long hot day at the beach.
The Hard Rock Cafe has rolled out a Mason Jar Cocktail program for the summer full of sweet, boozy, COLD drinks that should not be missed.
The non alcoholic option, the Summertime Blues, is a blueberry lemonade spiked with Red Bull. It’s delicious and fresh (and dangerous with the caffeine addition!)
For the beer drinker, there’s the Shocking Shandy. A Shandy, for those who don’t know, is a British lemonade-beer drink. THIS one, however, has the added benefit of Bacardi Rum. And it’s made with an excellent beer – Shock Top.
For those who can’t get enough of wine (like ME) there is a Sangria Rose option. The glass is liberally filled with sliced and fresh strawberries and blueberries, and the cocktail itself is made with rose wine, Bacardi Orange Rum, and fruit juices. (I, personally, always want a sangria. There’s something about alcohol-soaked fruit that just speaks to me.)
If you want the run without the wine, there’s the Paradise Punch – a pomegranate flavored tiki-styled rum punch. It’s garnished with a stick of sugar-cane, which is always my favorite addition to a cocktail.
While a rum punch gets close, nothing will make me feel more like I’m on a Caribbean island (instead of Manhattan Island) faster than a Frozen Pina Colada. The Hard Rock Cafe version of this has a banana/raspberry twist to is that adds a little complexity to an already awesome cocktail.
JUST IN CASE the Pina Colada isn’t your thing (for reasons passing my understanding), but you still want a frozen drink, you can’t miss the Frozen Black Cherry Lemonade. The sweetness of the lemonade blends perfectly with the tartness of the black cherry flavors.
If you need a break from the absolutely atrocious heat, pop on over to the Hard Rock Cafe and treat yourself to a a delicious urban version of classic tropical cocktails. For more from my time at The Hard Rock Cafe, follow me on Instagram at @whitneygentile, or use the hashtag #manhattandigest. And for more information about Hard Rock Cafe, check out their official site. Happy drinking!