- King Cole Bar at the St. Regis hotel in New York City claims to be the first bar in America to serve the Bloody Mary.
- The cocktail was renamed the Red Snapper because the name Bloody Mary was too vulgar for the upscale clientele.
- I tried the classic drink, which dates back to 1934 and costs $25, and was surprised that its only garnish was a lemon wedge.
- I found the bar's complimentary snacks to be more exciting than the traditional Bloody Mary.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
The Bloody Mary cocktail is known for its savory, acidic, and polarizing taste that people tend to either love or hate.
The drink, made with tomato juice and vodka, has become a mainstay of bottomless brunches, and based on the popularity of DIY Bloody Mary bars, many people love customizing the beverage with their own salty garnishes.
Recently, I visited the bar that claims to have introduced the tomato juice cocktail to America: King Cole Bar, which is located inside the St. Regis New York.
Keep reading to see what it was like to try the Red Snapper, its original version of the Bloody Mary that has been concocted the same way since 1934.
King Cole Bar is located in the St. Regis New York and is arguably one of the city's most iconic and extravagant places to get a drink.
The establishment's name comes from the mural that sits behind the bar, "Old King Cole," painted in 1906 by artist Maxfield Parrish.
The bar and its famous mural have made several pop culture appearances, including "Gossip Girl," "The First Wives Club," and "The Devil Wears Prada."
The upscale spot doesn't take reservations, except for an exclusive table that can be reserved 48 hours in advance for $2,500. (Spoiler alert: I did not sit at that table.)
The St. Regis New York says its bar was the first in America to serve the Bloody Mary.
Its signature version of the drink is the Red Snapper, created in 1934 by a famous bartender named Fernand Petiot.
The name Bloody Mary was deemed "too vulgar" for the clientele that graced King Cole Bar, so the cocktail was renamed the Red Snapper, which is how it's known today.
The tomato juice and vodka-based cocktail is considered the signature drink of the St. Regis New York's upscale bar, a representative for the hotel told Insider.
Arriving at the St. Regis New York, I knew I was stepping into luxury. Just outside King Cole Bar was a lobby restroom with a sophisticated vanity and lilac-tinted lighting.
Naturally, the restroom in the St. Regis lobby was posh.
Inside the bar, my eyes slowly adjusted to the dimness, and I placed my order: the classic Red Snapper.
The Bloody Mary has become a symbol of the hotel chain, and King Cole Bar serves five variations of the drink (including the Red Snapper).
In addition, St. Regis locations around the world have a signature version of the tomato-flavored drink — from The Sangrita María at the St. Regis Mexico City, to The Hibiscus Mary from the St. Regis Cairo.
When I ordered the Red Snapper in February, it was $25, making it one of the least expensive drinks on the menu.
It was served in a rounded stem glass, which differed from the promotional image that showed the drink in a tall tumbler.
Visually, the cocktail was no-frills — it had a lemon wedge and a St. Regis drink stirrer, as well as a straw.
I noticed around the bar that most people's glasses looked similar to mine, so I figured the glass engraved with "St. Regis New York" may have been used just for promotional purposes.
My first sips of the Red Snapper tasted refreshing yet rich, and well-seasoned.
All in all, the taste of the cocktail was smooth, refreshing, and salty, and I could tell it was made with high-quality ingredients — considering the drink didn't make me want to cough from a lingering taste of alcohol.
The St. Regis publishes the famous recipe for the Red Snapper on its website. The Bloody Mary mix portion of the drink seems to be rooted in simplicity; it's made with the juice of three lemons, tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, freshly ground black pepper, ground cayenne pepper, celery salt, and black peppercorns.
But as a fan of Bloody Mary garnishes I'm used to seeing at other bars — like celery, olives, and lime — I was slightly saddened by the lack of toppings.
The Red Snapper's recipe does, indeed, call for one embellishment only: a lemon slice.
Still, prior to trying the drink, I was expecting a bit more of a shock factor or exciting element from what's considered the nation's first Bloody Mary.
The lemon was a nice citrusy touch, but I felt sad squeezing it into my drink knowing it was the only added component beyond the mix.
I found myself missing the crunchiness of a celery stick and the joy of finding a lone olive at the bottom of the glass.
I never thought I'd find myself longing for the seafood-filled Bloody Mary I tried from Red Lobster (which offered a limited-edition version of the cocktail earlier this year), but for a moment, I did reflect on how bare the Red Snapper was compared to Red Lobster's adventurous version.
To me, the snack trio that the waiter brought to my table was more intriguing than the drink.
At least you can munch on some free snacks while contemplating life and your (at minimum) $25 cocktail at the ritzy bar.
The cheese crisps were the tastiest of the three, and the cashews were delightfully salty. The dried vegetables were an odd addition but surprisingly addictive.
The Red Snapper wasn't the only thing that seemed unchanged since 1934. The bar's service and candlelit atmosphere made me feel like I had traveled back in time to another era.
Normally, at bars and restaurants in the city and all around America, I feel hard-pressed to get a waiter's attention to refill an empty glass of water.
At King Cole Bar, however, our waiter was constantly checking on my friend and I. We found it hilarious but charming that the waiter refilled our snack platter after we had eaten only a few crackers. It was just one indication of the high-quality service one can expect at the establishment and the St. Regis.
I respect that the Red Snapper was groundbreaking at the time of its inception, but in my opinion, the Bloody Mary has evolved for the better since 1934.
Call me a millennial with a penchant for the over-the-top, but I'm a proponent of a customizable Bloody Mary filled with skewers of colorful olives and a glass dipped in flavorful salt — and, in general, cocktails that are brimming with some sort of interest.
For me, the Red Snapper was incredibly well-made but was simply a foundation for what the savory beverage has become (and what it should be).
That being said, I think it's possible to appreciate a classic for what it is and still prefer a modern take.
I love that the bar makes the drink just like it did in 1934, but for now, I'll happily clink glasses to a 2020 version of the original Bloody Mary.
- Read more:
- The most popular cocktail in every state
- 11 popular cocktails to try from around the world
- How 10 popular cocktails got their name
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7o8HSoqWeq6Oeu7S1w56pZ5ufonywvsigoKeZnGKvrbvOnbBmpZGnxm6%2F02apnp%2BZqHqvsdZmsKiqm2KwqsDYZmlpamBifw%3D%3D