Stirred and Shaken: Komodo Pub's Nuclear Rainbow

Photo by Troy Fields

It didn't take long to realize Komodo's Pub (2004 Baldwin, 713-655-1501) is no dive. The Internet (specifically, Yelp.com) might have you believe that, but careful on-site analysis of the bar reveals that the Internet is full of bullshit. A real dive doesn't have "nice flow," unless that's referring to a plumbing problem. It doesn't have a bright-white bathroom and a drink menu. And a dive definitely isn't a place I can lose five bucks betting whether the Internet jukebox (strikes one, two and three right there) is blasting Kelly Clarkson or Pink. (It ended up being a Pink song called "U + UR Hand." I think it's about a drunken stripper punching a guy, which is definitely something that would happen at an actual dive bar.)

Dive rants aside, Komodo's is a pleasant weekday spot by normal standards, which makes it a bona fide diamond in Midtown. The bar is located in a spacious old house, and bartender Riger will be happy to mix you any number of drinks that sound like they were invented in somebody's kitchen. A friend and I went with Riger's recommendation, the Nuclear Rainbow. Do not take this drink lightly. We didn't give it the respect it deserves, probably because it's colored like an ice cream-truck popsicle, and we ended up downtown trying to sneak into a private party for Rice seniors at RöcBar. No part of that decision makes sense now. In the words of Mickey Mantle, "Don't be like me."

1 ounce Midori Melon liqueur

1 ounce Bacardi 151 rum

1 ounce DeKuyper Blue Curaçao liqueur

Splash sweet and sour

Splash grenadine

It helps to have two shakers for this. Shake Midori and sweet and sour over ice in the first, and Bacardi 151 and Blue Curaçao over ice in the second. Pour Midori mixture into a cocktail glass. Sink a small amount of grenadine to the bottom. Carefully layer the Bacardi and Curaçao mixture on top. Stick a straw in the red bottom layer and drink the entire thing in one try. Now you are become death, destroyer of worlds.