The “world’s first cereal cocktail lounge” opened in Philly last week. The new spot at Foundation, a basement bar and event space underneath Divine Lorraine, is put on by Bucket Listers, a company that creates themed experiences in U.S. cities, such as a “Boy Band Project Brunch” and a “LEGOLAND® Discovery Center.”
What is a cereal cocktail, you may ask? Billy Penn went to the latest pop-up spot to find out.
The vibe
There is a certain uncertainty stepping into a bar centered around artificial sugary confections, descriptors that are typically at odds with a delicious and balanced cocktail.
“As someone who enjoys both of these things separately, this makes me feel vaguely nauseous,” said one skeptical Reddit poster.
“This is what happens when all of your friends lie to you when you ask them if it sounds like a good idea to open up a cereal-themed cocktail bar,” wrote another.
Still, for all the skeptics, we’re here to say that after trying a few cocktails, the results, while somewhat mixed, were actually kind of tasty.
Walking into The Cereal Cocktail Bar, customers are hit with kitschy nostalgia. The fronts of cereal boxes are adhered to walls and cereal slogans are hung in neon signage.
The space is optimized for generating social media content. Guests can take their picture in front of a wall of cereal or sit by framed posters of beloved mascots. A projector plays vintage commercials on a screen, with some forgotten cereals of the past like C-3POs and Smurf Berry Crunch. The playlist consisted of aughts guilty pleasures like Potential Breakup Song, Lipgloss and Day ‘n’ Nite. The staff was friendly and fun to chat with.
The cocktails
Every cocktail on the menu is inspired by a beloved cereal, and some actually do have cereal in them. Despite the childhood associations, the cocktails are strong.
Our bartender mentioned that the place was packed with about 150 people over the weekend and he was swamped as the only server at the bar who could show up for their shift. This weeknight was more low key.
He recommended the “Killer Bee,” a Honey Nut Cheerios-inspired drink made from mezcal, honey, lemon and ginger beer. The cocktail is yummy, citrus-forward and not too sweet. It also comes with a honey wand and stick for those who want to up the sugar levels.
This cocktail may have been the best we tasted. Still, it was a drink that you could probably find at another bar and wouldn’t necessarily know was cereal-themed.
That wasn’t true of all the drinks we tried. The “Lucky Russian” and the “Apple Jack Lady” both came with cereal in them.
The former is a chocolate milk spin on a White Russian made with Nesquik and Lucky Charm marshmallows on top. The drink feels both childish and adult-ish, which perhaps is the point. While we experienced a type of cognitive dissonance when flavors from our youth were mixed with alcohol, we came around to it, with this caution: This should only be ordered if you enjoy a full glass of chocolate milk.
The “Apple Jack Lady” is tart and on the sweeter side. It’s made with gin, lemon, grenadine and egg white. The drink is hot pink, girly and Apple Jacks loops float around on top as an added garnish.
Our favorite drink was called “They’re Great!” after Tony the Tiger’s signature catchphrase. The spelling on this name seemed like a bit of a missed opportunity. Is there a legal reason why it’s not “They’re Gr-r-reat”? (To that point, “Old Fashioned Fruit Loop” spelled “fruit” correctly instead of “froot” like the cereal name.)
Regardless, the drink doesn’t disappoint. The cocktail managed to taste good and delivered on the “cereal cocktail” concept.
“They’re Great” is mixed with spiced rum, vanilla almond milk, simple syrup and malted milk powder. It’s hard to make alcoholic almond milk sound yummy, but this drink was soothing, mild and well-balanced. It came in a milk-carton shaped glass, with a straw and a shot glass of Frosted Flakes, upping the fun factor.
We felt tempted to pour this cocktail in a bowl, dump in the Frosted Flakes and eat it with a spoon. While we didn’t do that, guests can choose their own adventure and pour their Frosted Flakes in the cocktail or nibble them on the side.
Should you go?
The Cereal Cocktail Bar runs until April 27 in Philly. Overall, the bar was a silly and nostalgic, albeit somewhat expensive experience.
To order off the cereal cocktail menu, you need to buy a general admission ticket in advance. This costs $20 and provides a 90-minute night-time slot inside with one complimentary cocktail. The cocktails themselves were priced from $14 to $18, but only three (“The Killer Bee,” “They’re Great!” and “Put Your Milk in My Cocoa Puffs”) were included with the ticket, according to our bartender (even though the menu said that the ticket offered five options).
While the included roundup had our favorites, it seems a bit unusual that the menu is restrictive given the $20 ticket price.
There is also food on the menu from Natalie Maronski, a former Top Chef contestant and Foundation’s executive chef. Guests can try items like a “corn flake fried chicken thigh” and an “Apple Jack and ginger glazed pork ball hoagie.” What’s more, you can order a bowl of cereal for $5.
For those simply looking for the perfect cocktail, this spot might not be your lucky charm.
However, for cereal enthusiasts not worried about the ticket price, this bar is far from trendy, but it is a silly conversation starter and fun place to bring a date or a friend. Thinking about it more as an “experience” is the right way to go.
