We tried the BEST Mojitos in Miami to see who wins! (Little Havana, Ball and Chain, Cafe La Trova)
The classic mojito is a refreshing, minty, rum-and-lime-based cocktail invented centuries ago in Cuba. But we’re not in Cuba; we’re in the U.S.—and no place in the U.S. is more Cuban than the tiny village of Miami, Florida. So we left the kids with a sitter so we could drink our way through town in search of the best Mojito this side of Havana. It’s a rough mission, but we’re taking one for the team. So let’s start devouring—mojitos.
A classic mojito consists of white rum, sugar (typically sugar cane juice or simple syrup), muddled mint, fresh lime juice, and soda water. And with such a simple recipe, you’d think it would be hard to screw up, but that’s not the case. It’s all about the best ingredients and the ideal ratios.
By the way, our favorite mojito prior to this tour was in a little place in Seaside, Florida called Great Southern. It’s their signature drink and they have a bunch of flavors like peach, strawberry, pineapple, and others. But they’re not just adding a shot of schnapps for these. The peach, for example, has half of a muddled southern peach in there. So the flavors are real, fresh, and incredible.
Contents:
0:00 Intro
0:24 Miami Mojito Company
2:29 Old's Havana
4:37 Ball and Chain
7:20 Cafe La Trova
9:51 Terras
12:36 Making Mojitos at Home
Full Transcript:
Phil:
The classic mojito is a refreshing, minty, rum and lime based cocktail invented centuries ago in Cuba. But we are not in Cuba, we are in the US. And no place in the US is more Cuban than the tiny village of Miami, Florida. So Erin and I left the kids with a sitter, so we could drink our way through town and search of the best mojitos this side of Havana. It's a rough mission, but we're taking one for the team. So let's start devouring mojitos. Erin and I are amateur mixologists and cocktail connoisseurs. So we can tell you one thing, most mojitos suck because they're sweet, tart, and delicious, they're a very easy target for all those awful beach bars that like to underpour and overcharge. But when done correctly, this cocktail is legit and addictive and we're hoping we find at least one today that blows our minds.
Erin:
We're starting off at Miami Mojito Company, and it is not just the name. It is the thousands of reviews and articles I found where so many people said that this has the best mojito in Miami
Phil:
While Havana is the birthplace of the mojito, its exact origin is still the subject of debate. It's known that the South local American Indians had remedies for various tropical illnesses. So a small boarding party went ashore on Cuba and came back with the ingredients for an effective medicine. Another theory is that it was invented by Sir Francis Drake. That cocktail called “El Draque” was made with Brandy. And although it wasn't called a mojito, it was the original combination of these ingredients. By the way, you don't have to come all the way to this side of the planet to satisfy your mojito fix. An international market research company found that in 2016, the mojito was the most popular cocktail in both Britain and France.
Erin:
It's so loud. It's like a club in here. We're going to start it off. That has a really strong blackberry flavor.
Phil:
You didn't mention that it was blackberry yet.
Erin:
I'm so sorry. It's blackberry mojito. I have a flavored one. It's good. It goes down smooth and it's going to be a long night.
Phil:
And we're going to try to do a classic mojito at every place we hit tonight. So I went with the classic just to service the baseline. That tastes different from every mojito I've ever had. Is it good? Yeah. Does it taste like a classic mojito to me? It doesn't. So it'll be interesting to see what all of these other places are like tonight since we're going to be in Little Havana for every other stop. Maybe this is what they're supposed to taste like, sugar cane. Even though we have four more stops after this place, we hate the idea of letting a single drop of this goodness go to waste. This is going to be a fun night.
Erin:
Number one is done. Let's go. We have to include Old's Havana. I read online that it's a little touristy, but it is full of history and culture. So we got to check it out.
Phil:
Little Havana begins just east to the Miami River and across the bay from Miami Beach. It's packed with Latin galleries, restaurants, bakeries, music venues, cigar shops, obviously plenty of mojito and rum bars and Domino Park where locals gather to talk politics over intense games of you guess it. Domino Park is also where Old's is located. And in addition to some respected Cuban food, this place has probably served up more than a million mojitos since opening in, let's say, the '50s.
Erin:
Thank you. It does seem a bit popular here. We were only able to snag these seats at the bar because we promised to be in and out really quick. We're only getting one drink because they have reservation. So let's drink up. This one is much less sweet than the other one because it was flavored. This is a classic mojito.
Phil:
I think the most interesting thing that I noticed on this one is that he put some Angostura bitters on top and I've never heard of that. Also, you may notice that they actually use just white granulated sugar at the bottom and then stir it. So I wonder if that's going to be the standard for Little Havana. So again, unexpected because I would say that this is going to taste very typical for a mojito, but you really do get the bitters on top. So again, it's an interesting spin, just like the last place, a little bit unrecognizable. So far, very unique personalities for each one we had.
Erin:
Look at all this leafy mint. I love salads.
Phil:
So a classic mojito really consists of just five ingredients. It's going to be white rum and sugar, usually in the form of sugar cane juice or as simple as syrup, which is just equal part sugar and water brought to a boil and then left to cool. And in this case, again, it's just white granulated sugar, and then you can have fresh squeezed lime juice, muddle mint, and soda water. And in this case, they just added on that six with the bitters. Off we go.
All right, our next place is called Ball & Chain. And it's literally across the street, that street being Calle Ocho, which is basically the main street for Little Havana. And this place is cool because it was recommended to us by two of our really good friends, the Shevins, and they're friends with the owners. We're going to come in here and check out what should be one of the most stellar mojitos on the schedule tonight. Ball & Chain has roots all the way back to the mid 1930s and an ownership story that touches pretty much every part of the city's history. From gambling and the Teamsters to career felons and the KKK. But in the early 2000s, Burlington Group added this building to its Little Havana portfolio and turned it into the clean but authentic club that it is today.
Erin:
Here's a little PSA for you, never drink alone. I mean never drink without food. These are Chicharrones. Oh, this is very good. Oh, and there are these little things on the bottom and they are so delicious. And at first I took a bite, I thought it was a potato because it has that consistency, but actually I think it's fried fat and it's amazing.
Phil:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. The fried fat is delicious, but let's get down to business. So as you just saw, they made this one with granulated sugar again. So I'm wondering if that's actually the standard, even though I've always thought it was the other way around. Now this one, no additional ingredients at all. This is a classic mojito and this is a classic mojito bar in Little Havana. I suspect this is going to be my favorite one of the night so let's see. That tastes exactly like what I would expect from a real mojito. So much fresh lime coming through there, just the right amount of mint and you can really taste the rum. That's the most important part let's be honest. Love it. You got to try yours, babe.
Erin:
I should know this is not just our friends that said to come here, it's all over the internet that Ball & Chain has a phenomenal mojito. Maybe one of the best in little Havana, but we'll determine that at the end of the episode. Woo. Yeah. Limier. Yum.
Phil:
Definitely in first place so far, but we have a long way to go. By the way, I think that's what it is. What is fat fried another fat taste like? It's not just like a big dense chunk of fat, it's actually like very airy. It kind of puffs up just like the Chicharrones themselves.
Erin:
I'm trying to keep up. I think I'm doing okay. Okay. Let's go. I might be the most excited about this next stop. Cafe La Trova, it was voted one of the best bars in North America. They don't just have good mojitos. They have some good food and we know I need a lot of it because I'm getting a little drunk.
Phil:
Just this year, La Trova was named the best bar in the south US and the sixth best bar in all of North America. But you may have caught the owners in GQ, Esquire, Condé Nast Traveler, The Wall Street Journal, or even on live with Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest, in case you were wondering if this place is legit. Thanks to local culinary legend, Michelle Bernstein, the food program here has a reputation that's just as legendary as Julio Cabrera's bar.
All right. I got to tell you. I think I'm completely wrong because once again, they're using granulated white sugar, not any kind of fancy sugar cane juice or simple syrup. And I'm actually happy about that because that means at home, I can just use sugar straight from the pantry instead of having to go through the process, it takes hours of making simple syrup. So this is another classic mojito. And like the very first one you try, it does have a little bit of bitters on top, but other than that, it's very classic. Right away, I get the bitters because I'm not drinking it through a straw. I'm drinking it from the top. And that bitters basically tastes like a little float of Coca-Cola on top. But once you get past that, that's a delicious mojito. Well done.
Erin:
Huge benefit to doing this mojito tour in the early evening is that it's happy hour. So we are getting some really good deals on our mojitos and some bites. We're getting another bite. We got little ham Serrano croquettes. I'm a little worried they're hot. We had some of the best croquettes of our life when we went to Barcelona. Check out that episode. These pulled up to it. These are pretty good. It's mostly filled with potatoes so it's really mushy, but there's so much cheese and ham flavor in there. It's great. And there's a jam on the bottom.
Phil:
I'll try a croquette. By the way, you said they were the breast, not the best. I just want to make that clear.
Erin:
I said they're the breast?
Phil:
Yeah. You said they were the breast.
Erin:
I think I'm drunk.
Phil:
I'm sorry, what is the sauce?
Erin:
It's like a fig bourbon jam.
Phil:
Yeah, it's really good. That's way better than you said.
Erin:
I'm not as good at drinking as Phil is. So I'm trying to keep up. Doing a pretty good job. This is my favorite so far. Maybe it has more bitters. There's something about it that was less sweet. I don't like super sweet cocktails or maybe it's my favorite because I've had a couple so far.
Phil:
Having to get home to a babysitter really puts the pressure on. Very good. And our final place is Terras.
Erin:
It's a hotel. I was not expecting this, but restaurant bar is on the rooftop. And I'm excited about this place because it is the only rooftop bar in Little Havana. I feel like a local now.
Phil:
This hotel by the way is aptly named Little Havana and we hear that Terras has a great plant forward menu inspired by urban street foods found throughout numerous Latin American regions. But we are only here for one thing. What's this?
Erin:
Water.
Phil:
It's my favorite soundtrack so far from all the places we've been to.
Erin:
We're so old. For really, he said that because it's conducive to filming for you. So please do us a favor. Hit that like and subscribe button. It encourages us to keep making videos like this. And we have our mojitos here and I love these glasses. They're extra... Oh my God. It moved. They look like pineapples, but Phil says it's a piñas. Piñas, piñas. They all taste so good. I'll be honest, they tasted a little bit like Sprite but it's very tasty. I mean, it's like how many mojitos you can have in a day determines how great each one is each step of the way.
Phil:
Kudos to Erin for trying so hard, but she fades quickly. So let's do this the right way anyway. Classic mojito right here. And yeah, I'd agree with you. Not just Sprite, not just sweetness. I lost my straw. So pro tip, never let go of the straw. It's tasty, it's tasty, but I'm missing the rum flavor there. I love the glass.
Erin:
Sorry. I think I'm done. I can't do another one.
Phil:
Erin's got to stick to the food tours. Some people just aren't cut out for life on the road.
Erin:
I think we're done. I know I'm done. We have had five mojitos, which is a lot to judge all these amazing restaurants. We went to the best. We tried the best and let's see who's our favorite. Mine is Cafe La Trova. What do you think, babe?
Phil:
A couple of good ones in here tonight, but for me it is definitely Ball & Chain because I think that was the most authentic, basic, classic version of it and it was delicious. So I liked it the most. I don't think I'm a big fan of the bitters in it, honestly, but it was delicious. But stay tuned because we didn't show you how we make our mojitos at home based on a recipe that we have from one of our other favorite places that makes mojitos.
Erin:
And look, our car's here just in time. Let's go.
Phil:
Outside of Little Havana, Miami, our favorite mojitos in the entire world are from a little place called Great Southern down in Seaside, Florida. Here's how we make them. First, we've got some mint in here and we're just going to muddle that a little bit to release the oils. You don't want to pulverize it. You're just releasing oils. So all we have to do is a little bit, okay? Now we're going to take some lime and I'm just going to squeeze a little bit into each one of these. Toss that in there. And then I'm going to muddle again, just to get as much lime out of there as possible.
Now I'm going to do one more lime in each one of these, and then we're going to do two tablespoons of sugar in each one. And this is just regular fine white sugar. And then the little secret ingredient here for our favorite one that they had down at Great Southern were these little bad boys. And these are basically just canned peaches and I'm just going to put two of these and each one, and then we're going to muddle it again. All right now for the fun part, we're going to do an ounce and a half of white rum in each one of these. And now for some ice. Never have too much ice in a cocktail, not a real one. Next up, little club soda. And you can stir these if you have a really good stir, but somebody lost mine.
Actually, I changed my mind. So as I mentioned in the video, I'm usually doing the simple syrup instead of the granulated sugar here. And you can't really just do the shake and flip method. You got to stir this so that you can dissolve the white sugar. Really get in there, that's better. I'm going to throw a little more ice in here. And then the pièce de résistance. Dark rum. This is not traditional, but I love doing it. I think it really adds a nice element. So just a float and voila, two mojitos.
Erin:
Who's that other one for? Now that I have totally sobered up, I'm ready for more mojito. Cheers, babe. And that's the best mojito in this town. Make sure to follow us along. You can do that by subscribing and hitting that notification bell. It will tell you every time we have a new episode coming out, which will be at least once a week. So come devour more with us. Cheers.
