Exploration of Cocktail History and Evolution at TGI Fridays and Rainbow Room

The 1950s to the 1990s are often dubbed as the cocktail's Dark Ages where drinks like Long Island Iced Teas and Midori Sours reined supreme. The drinks from this time are often reviled or ridiculed, but they made important contributions to cocktail history, too. In this episode: How TGI Fridays, Madonna, and the Cosmopolitan helped define this era of the American cocktail.

Further Reading:

A Proper Drink by Robert Simonson

"1970s Ockctails & Disco Drinks" Difford's Guide

"History of the Nightclub" American Nightlife Association

"How TGI Fridays Has Influenced Modern Craft Cocktail Culture" in The Thrillist by Kevin Alexander

Spirits, Sugar, Water, Bitters by Derek Brown with Robert Yule

Straight Up or on the Rocks: The story of the American cocktail by William Grimes

"TGI Fridays Was Once The Hottest Bar In America—What Happened?" in Delish by Hannah Selinger

"The Legacy of Joe Baum" in Edible Manhattan by Nancy Matsumoto

The Oxford Companion to Spirits & Cocktails (Edited by David Wondrich & Noah Rothbaum)

"The Soviet Union Paid Pepsi With Vodka and Warships in Decades-Long Barter" in Vinepair by Ashlie Hughes (Illustrated by Gerry Selian)

"This is the Story of the Rainbow Room" in Punch by Joshua David Stein

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