Six Cocktail Bars to Hit Up in Broward and Palm Beach This Weekend

Need a stiff drink this weekend? No problem, there's plenty of spots in South Florida where you can whet your whistle.

Earlier this year, we rounded up our favorite cocktail bars in South Florida with two lists encompassing Broward and Palm Beach County establishments. A few of our favorites are highlighted here, six spots to belly up for everything from a perfect Old Fashioned to the ultimate tiki drink.

Cheers!
6. Sip The Perfect Zombie at The Mai-Kai in Fort Lauderdale
Since opening in 1956, the Mai-Kai has been the type of place where you can drown in a flaming scorpion bowl, order a potent tiki drink, or watch a live Polynesian dance show all while listening to tunes from from a real ukulele. Today, the bar's mixologists are serving a drink that's as close to the original Don the Beachcomber drink recipes as you'll can get around these parts, according to Tim "Swanky" Glazner, cofounder of the annual Hukilau in Fort Lauderdale. That includes a solid rendition of the Zombie, one of the first tiki libations created by Don the Beachcomber, who opened what is considered to be the world's first tiki bar of the same name the day after Prohibition ended in 1933.
5. Tiki Ono Serves Tropical Cocktails By The Beach
If you like your tiki cocktails on the beach, look no further than the beach pier in Lake Worth. The now permanent pop-up tiki bar dubbed Tiki ‘Ono operates several days a week at the entrance to Benny’s on the Beach, where you can order up a number of potent, tiki-style libations, and creative cocktails. Our favorite is the one served from fresh-cut coconuts.

4. A Beer Garden Meets Speakeasy Cocktail Bar at C.W.S. in Lake Worth
Six months ago, the founders of Fort Lauderdale-based 3-J Hospitality — the group behind popular South Florida venues including Revolution Live, America's Backyard, and Stache 1920's Drinking Den — headed to Lake Worth to debut the new concept dubbed C.W.S. Craft Cocktails and Kitchen. The name is short for Stache's fictional proprietor, Charles William Stache, and offers a sophisticated establishment serving craft cocktails (and a large selection of microbrews) alongside contemporary fare.
3. Kreepy Tiki, Our Favorite Spot For Authentic Tiki Libations
Right now, one of Fort Lauderdale's best under-the-radar cocktail bars isn't some swanky watering hole. It's Kreepy Tiki, equal parts rockabilly and South Pacific suave, hidden inside a tattoo-shop and music venue located in an ominous black cinderblock building at the nexus of one-way Miami Road and South Federal Highway. Stop by before they relocate to a larger space, and have owner Ayme Harrison make you one of the creative concoctions that got her a spot on Condé Nast Traveler's "22 Best Tiki Bars in the United States."
2. Pizzacraft's Adjoining "Hidden" Cocktail Bar Offers A Private Escape in Fort Lauderdale
Accessible via a near-hidden entryway from Pizzacraft, Apothecary 330 is creator Marc Falsetto's crafty answer to Himmarshee's imbibing scene. Here, a short copper bar with seating for up to 15 is mirrored by a cozy lounge area where bottle service takes place on weekends.

1. Next Door To Sweetwater, Saxon Is Palm Beach County's Hottest New Cocktail Bar 
In 2011, Sweetwater co-founders Clint Reed and Sean Iglehart helped change that when they opened the area's first Prohibition-style speakeasy in Boynton Beach. Last year, they delivered another unique concept when Iglehart and his barmen devised the region's first mobile mixology catering company with Craft Cartel. Now, Reed and Iglehart are shaking things up with their latest concept, Saxon, a 30-seat bar and lounge accessible through Sweetwater.

Nicole Danna is a food writer covering Broward and Palm Beach counties. To get the latest in food and drink news in South Florida, follow her @SoFloNicole or find her latest food pics on the BPB New Times Food & Drink Instagram.