#208: Recreation

The Bar

Recreation. 1630 E 6th St #100, Austin, TX 78702

Visited 4/5/2025 @ 8:30pm.

The Drink

Figgy mule. Tito's, fig/ube syrup, ginger beer, lime. $14.

It's been years, but I have finally gotten over being given 96 oz of Moscow Mule at Unbarlievable - the misery of that sustained assault on my tastebuds has faded, and I can drink mules without the hateful scent of ginger beer triggering my gag reflex, so I promise never to mention it again. I probably wouldn't need to anyway, because Recreation's take on the venerable mule is far superior, not only because it's much lighter on the ginger beer, but also due to the combination fig/ube flavored syrup in it. Ube is of course the purple yam flavor that is popular in Filipino cuisine, and its mild sweetness pairs well with the flavor of fig, and naturally, Tito's pairs well with basically anything. I haven't discussed Tito's much lately, since there's not too much to say about a consistently excellent vodka other than they continue to set sales records and throw their weight around in the unglamorous but extremely lucrative distribution tier of the alcohol industry. It's surprising to me that as late as the 21st century there was still room for a new challenger in the vodka category, a drink which is by definition tasteless and indistinguishable, but if there had to be a vodka Standard Oil, I'm glad it's from Austin.

The Crew

Aaron, Ishani, Elijah.

Notes

I noticed that Drop Kick had been replaced on our way to meet up at Mother's Ruin, so we made this stop #2 of the evening while waiting for our reservation at OKO. I am not sure exactly why Drop Kick closed, and the bartender wasn't too sure either, but Recreation (which is unrelated to Recess on the other side of I-35) only replaced it fairly recently, having opened in August. The new owners also own Ma'Coco a few blocks away, which serves San Diego-style Mexican food (a cuisine which is sadly under-represented in Austin). The new joint is a bit less of a straight up cocktail bar than Drop Kick was, which makes me curious to know more about the success rate of cocktail bars as compared to other types of bars - do you have to go for the very highest of high end atmospheres or else you won't stand out enough, or is the labor supply of those bartenders more constrained than that of "regular" bartenders? - but I didn't see anything to dislike, and in fact the atmosphere reminded me of a sports bar or West Sixth club more than anything when we were here. We stayed to watch some of a ridiculous Houston vs Duke March Madness game, and then it was time to hit up OKO.