Best Cocktails in the Florida Keys: Where Locals Drink

The best cocktail and the best sunset are different questions There's like a best cocktail and a best sunset that you're looking for in Marathon. The best sunset experience isn't actually going to even be found in What makes a good bar in the Keys A bar at all. Full disclosure, my name is Matt Sexton. I'm the owner of Grassy Flats Resort in Grassy Key. I am the owner of two bars and a marketplace and somewhat of a cocktail snob, if you will. My standard for a good bar is pretty simple. If you're going to be making cocktails, we want fresh citrus squeezed that day. All of our syrup should be made in-house. You want to be using quality spirits and if a sugar goes into the glass, you know, it should be going in measured. Sugar is a mediocre bar's ability to hide just about everything in a bad cocktail. The What makes a drink worth ordering in the Keys Question is what makes a drink worth ordering in the Keys? There's nothing quite like a shitty beer that really just slaps on a boat, whether it's going to be a Mexican lager or camo can Busch Light. That's going to make me feel like I'm out there with the boys and some good music or going out there trying to get bloody on the boat, swinging the mahi's in and having a good time. Why small places protect quality I'm not going to say it's the downfall of the Keys, but the deciding changing factor that really has changed the experience of the Keys over the last 10 to 15 years is the fact that big business has come in and consolidated a lot of mom and pops. If I have all of these mom and pop businesses, you know, there's a few of them that still pull it off. It's hard to do anything quality on scale. Now, that being said, you go to Sparky's Landing and you're bumping uglies with, you know, 200 other Keys folks that just had a great day on the boat, there's a vibe. You can't go wrong with that. Great place to watch a sports game. But when it comes to fresh food, fresh ingredients, the experience that I truly want to have, you got to find the small joints that can pull it off. And we might run out today because I want to guarantee you that it's fresh and that's the only way you can The El Padrino and Hot Hendrix Do that. As far as the best cocktails, I've got my things that I order, whether it's a El Padrino, which is like a tequila old fashion at Sparky's, not on the menu, you got to know. Florida Keys steak and lobster, people love it. Hot Hendrix is like a jalapeno muddled martini, that's definitely, you know, fun to suck down Old Seven Mile Bridge at sunset One or two. If you've never been on Old Seven Mile Bridge, one of the ninth wonders of the world, this thing was built turn of the century, 1900s. Get on a bicycle, get on a one wheel, get on your shoes and your flip-flops and walk down there. You can grab a little nipper, that's going to be your best cocktail in your best sunset to experience in Marathon without a doubt. Beauty of being Why local ownership shapes the experience A restaurateur is that there's absolutely nothing beautiful about being a restaurateur. It is a self-sacrificing brutal day where I got a call this morning that 6:00 a.m. our chef doesn't show up to the market, so I put on an apron, went in there and made a couple bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches on croissants, and that's the life of a restaurateur. That was the reason that we got into the restaurants. We wanted to be able to put food on the table that I'm willing to feed my family, my friends, my neighbors, my visitors, something that I can feel proud of, something that I personally feel comfortable eating every day, and a representation to me of what the Florida Keys was when I first came here, and the cuisine I've had the pleasure of enjoying throughout the Caribbean and the tropics my entire life. Probably not the most fun decision, but worth it, and I'm happy to do it every single day for people to enjoy what we have available Bongos and the Rhum House Here. End goal here is where is the best drink in Marathon? Bongos Botanical Beer Garden, a grassy Gatorade, a mangrove margarita, you just can't go wrong with those kind of cocktails in a day drink setting. The Rhum House, if you want to get spicy basil Rumi or passion rita, it's the best cocktail without a doubt. Robbie makes clarified bushwhackers, nobody else makes clarified anything in Marathon. The Rhum House has this blend of decadence and approachability. You want to get a burger and a Coors Light, you can do that for under 30 bucks. I love our establishments, I love our bartenders, I love our team, and I love our cocktails. There's also places that Sunset Grill, Keys Fisheries and Sparky's You can't deny. Sunset Grill, I'll go there, get a Dark and Stormy. It is iconic to sit there and have a cocktail at sunset. You're not going to find a better location. You'll probably find some better cuisine. As far as Keys Fisheries, these are the kind of grungy places that make the Florida Keys the Florida Keys. Kind of stinks because it's a dock and there's a lot of dead fish and crab traps and lobster traps around and it stinks in an amazing way. Going up there, seeing Rachel for a sunset shot, they're doing a nice little cheers. Feels great. Hang out with the captain, see what catches are coming in, get yourself a beer. Sparky's Landing, off the menu. Go up there, talk to my boys Rusty and Coop. Order yourself an El Padrino. You're going to get a couple craft beers. More local beer, rum and nightlife stops Bongo's got over 100 beer selections available daily, but so does Herbie's Chowder House. They got a lot of incredible stuff. Want to suck down a rum cocktail on a glass that feels like a tipsy barrel that's falling over all the time. Go hang out with John Mirabella. He's an actual Navy submarine operator that opened up a great restaurant over on the other side of town for us. When we wanted to go party, we went to Islamorada, Hog Heaven, the Whistle Stop. Get home before it gets ugly and then always want to get a good night downtown, which is going to be an hour 15-minute drive, hour drive from Marathon. We're going to do the Duval crawl. Everything from Sloppy Joe's, Irish Kevin's and Rick's to Mallory Square sunset celebration, something you still got to do every time. It's Earn your margaritas on the water Fantastic. The best thing I can say is earn your margaritas by, you know, getting on the water, whether you're fishing, diving, kiteboarding, any of those kind of things. Best way to have a couple cocktails tonight in the Keys is to get out there and I've loved to see how wellness has kind of kicked back up over the last few years and that's something we incorporated our properties too with saunas, cold plunges and a lot of active lifestyle stuff.