Tag: Forgotten Tonic

6-Pack To Go, Season 4, Travel - Where to Drink

Episode 082 | 6 Pack To-Go Series: St. Augustine Bars with the Boozy Bros

The Boozy Blondes

Hello lushes! The Boozy Blondes are asking the Boozy Bros to fill their 6-packs with their favorite St. Augustine bars in this 6 Pack To-Go episode. Rainer and Phil have plenty of experience enjoying libations around their town and break down their favorites for you.

Rainer leads the episode through downtown St. Augustine and eventually moseys over the bridge. What do you think of his 6-Pack?

  1. Forgotten Tonic | upscale drinks and food with an intimate environment. Big fans of the owner John (listen to John’s interview from Season 1! It’s Episode 004) and love the holiday theming around Halloween and Christmas!
  2. Casa Reina | located right on the bay front downtown, great tequila drinks, upscale but relaxed atmosphere (if you like tequila drinks, listen to the most recent 6-pack episode with Jose of 4 Ever Acres Kitchen!)
  3. Barley Republic | Irish pub downtown with a great happy hour and live music. Bars upstairs and downstairs with music on both levels.
  4. Stogies | cigar bar with a great outdoor space. Big fans of the owner Jeff and love the amazing bands he brings in to play here! This is an OG and the group really appreciates how it’s remained a classic downtown for over 25 years!
  5. Tides Grill & Oyster Co (AKA Dunes Cracker!) | This bar is super nostalgic for Rainer from when he first lived on the beach across from here in the mid-2000s. Listen to Episode 023 | Pub Pedal: St. Augustine Beach Bars: Jack’s BBQ, Salt Life, Beachcombers, Sunset Grille, Mango Mango’s and More! for more details about Tides and other great beach bars!
  6. Conch House | Restaurant + bar + marina, this place is another classic. Between Reggae Sundays, killer painkillers and goombay smashes, tree house dining and crow’s nest bar space, Conch House always dishes out a great time.

    Rainer throws in a “bonus beer” to his pack and gives Jack’s a honorable mention – a definite group favorite. You can hear more about this episode in the above mentioned Episode 023.

Phil takes the mic next and fills his 6-pack with any place that serves beer and food.
#priorities
How do you rank his 6-Pack?

  1. Ice Plant | step back in time at the Ice Plant which shares a space with the St. Augustine Distillery. Enjoy amazing craft cocktails and delicious food in this swanky spot!
  2. Dog Rose Brewing Co | smack dab in the heart of Lincolnville, Phil loves the location full of bar games like shuffleboard and darts. Now hosting a permanent food truck, this place meets Phil’s criteria of must serve beer + food. Listen to Episode 062 | St. Augustine Craft Brewers’ Festival to hear an interview from Dog Rose owner Courtney Murr! The Boozy Blondes also dish about this spot in Episode 003 | Pub Pedal: St. Augustine Craft Breweries: Bog, Dog Rose, Ancient City and Old Coast Ales – jump in the way back machine to hear about these local haunts!
  3. Bog Brewing | The group agrees this brewery has the best logo in town – and also a great outdoor space, and of course, beer! You can hear more about Bog in the above mentioned Episode 003. Pro tip – order the torta from the permanent food truck on site, Taco My Blessing.
  4. It’s a match with Rainer! Conch House!
  5. It’s another match! Forgotten Tonic! Phil dares to say, Forgotten Tonic serves THE BEST cocktails in town! (The group agrees!)
  6. Old Coast Ales | Dog friendly and serving delicious brews, this brewery is at the top of Phil’s list. Order a “Christina!” It’s half kombucha, half light beer! The group loves Osprey Tacos next door too. Listen to Episode 003 to hear more about Old Coast and the infamous guac drop by the crew’s bestie, Elias!

So you heard it from some locals – these are the favorite bars in St. Augustine, and the Boozy Blondes agree! The boys filled great 6-packs! Have you visited their town? What are some of you favorite places to stop? Email the Boozy Blondes with your favorites!

Behind the Booze - Interviews, Season 1

Episode 004 | Behind the Booze – Forgotten Tonic Interview with John Moore

The Boozy Blondes

Listen here!

Wander off the beaten path and join the Boozy Blondes as they interview John Moore, the owner of Forgotten Tonic in St. Augustine, Florida.

Forgotten Tonic in St. Augustine, Florida

The DOE is a Chai Espresso Martini featured on Half Baked Harvest (vodka, kaluha, espresso, coconut milk, chai-honey syrup). The girls chose this drink in honor of all the tasty craft cocktails the team at Forgotten Tonic serves up.

Forgotten Tonic is a great locals bar and hidden gem for tourists on historic Aviles (pronounced Av-ah-lees) Street. John was in the process of rebranding this location when the pandemic hit, so when restrictions were lifted in June 2020, Forgotten Tonic celebrated its re-opening and has been a favorite for the blondes.

Chrissy meets John for donuts (and Boozy coffee) to learn more about John and his bar. Surprisingly, he wasn’t always in the food industry. He went to college for Electrical Engineering and when he started working after graduation, he soon realized he did not have a passion for it.

He went to work at PF Chang’s and loved it! He started as a busboy, moved to bartender, then national trainer and he opened new locations, and then went into management. After PF Chang’s John went to work with a former coworker who opened his own bbq restaurant in Jacksonville. Here he learned all about whisky and helped open more restaurants around Jacksonville. Soon after, he decided he wanted to open his own bar and restaurant and found the location on Aviles Street.

Before Forgotten Tonic was the trendy bar and restaurant featuring “modern twists on comfort food, an extensive wine list and craft cocktails,” it was a bicycle shop, sailboat sail material shop, art gallery, a few other restaurants and one of the first public schools in the country!

Miracle Christmas-themed Pop Up Bar Party

John talks about the reality of owning a bar. What the guests see is 1% of reality. In the interview, hear some of the other 99% of what happens and things John wished he knew before opening.

Forgotten Tonic was chosen as a Miracle Christmas-themed pop up bar again (2020 first year). This is a huge honor as only about 100 bars around the world are chosen (105-110 in 2020). Forgotten Tonic was referred by Annie of Death or Glory in Delray Beach. The Miracle bar is like National Lampoons house threw up inside Forgotten Tonic – so many fun decorations, themed drinks and glassware. All Miracle Pop Up bars donate a percentage of retail purchases to a specific charity, this year the James Beard Foundation, Open For Good Campaign. Forgotten Tonic donates 10% of Miracle retail sales to this cause.

Boozy Blondes with Their “Nice” Shots

The Wolfpack went before Christmas and got two SanTaRex drinks (blanco tequila, mezcal, melon liqueur, almond orgeat, lime, tiki bitters), Yippee Ki Yay Motherf****r (Barbados rum, rhum agricole, overproof rum, ube & coconut orgeat, acid-adjusted pineapple juice) and Elfin’ Around (prosecco, gin, mulled wine reduction, grapefruit shrub, aromatic bitters, orange bitters). Plus Nice shots. 🎅

You still have time to check it out this year! The Miracle bar is open November 20, 2021 – January 31, 2022. Please share your pictures with us if you go! Keep up with Forgotten Tonic through its Facebook and Instagram accounts. Reservations are accepted and recommended by booking through its website or calling directly.