The Modern Bar Cart Podcast

In this fascinating conversation with Max Well and Alex Lamb, directors of The Donn of Tiki, some of the topics we discuss include:
How a COVID-era YouTube short on the history of Tiki in LA snowballed into a full-length feature film on one of the most iconic bar entrepreneurs of the 20th century: Ernest Gantt, AKA Donn Beach, AKA "Don the Beachcomber."

The way that stop-motion puppetry and clever era-appropriate animations were used to give Donn an embodied presence in his own story, with audio unearthed from a single set of tapes uncovered at the University of Hawaii.

The interesting ironies that run through Donn's life, including his propensity to build big and lose everything and the very different love interests who came and went, changing his trajectory and altering the arc of tropical drinks history in the process.

We also explore the two seemingly opposed natures operating at the same time in Donn Beach: his unwavering pursuit of authenticity and quality, on the one hand, which was often masked by his flair for showmanship and his trickster-like talent for tall tales and misdirection.

Along the way, we revel in Donn's ability to create freak evening thunderstorms with a hose atop his LA speakeasy, speculate about how he might feel about super juice, and even take the time to appreciate his unexpected role in the revival of authentic Hawaiian culture in the 20th century.


When this episode airs, Alex and Max will still be touring and doing screenings around the country, so head over to TheDonnOfTiki.com to check out their schedule, and be sure to keep your eyes peeled for when this film hits your favorite streaming services in the near future.

Eric kicks off 2026 with an audio essay rant targeted at the ham-fisted "percentage" math that people use to answer the question:
"How much of a whiskey's flavor comes from the barrel?"
In the censored words of George Carlin: "It's all BS, and it's bad for ya." To demonstrate this, we sift through GC-MS whiskey sample results, human neurobiology, and behavioral economics.
In the end, it's a poorly posed question invented to solve a problem that doesn't exist, and it colors our expectations about flavor in harmful ways.

This time around, we'll be taking a look at drinking rituals from around the world.
A few months back, my friend Reece Sims asked me to write an article about drinking rituals for her new publication, The Flavour Report. She has graciously agreed to let me read the article on-air and give you all a bit of a "Director's Cut" version of the article, entitled: Sacred Serves: The Rituals That Make Drinking Human.
For those of you who have the opportunity to enjoy a few drinks with family and friends this holiday season, I hope some of these thoughts about the importance of ritual, hospitality, gratitude, and the sometimes radical act of coming together can help you to appreciate some of those moments even more.
Please remember, as always, to drink responsibly and experiment boldly.
Additional Resource: Video of Queimada Ritual (WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT AT HOME)

Eric interviews Toby Maloney (@tobycocktail) about his award-winning book, The Bartender's Manifesto.
Some of the topics covered in this conversation include:
How Toby thinks about cocktail development, including the importance of inspiration, intention, comfort, and curiosity
The importance of curated attention in the creative process, allowing you to notice aspects  of the world around you that can be used as inspiration and structural components for cocktail building
A live cocktail development case study, where Toby and Eric riff on a menu prompt and create their very own custom cocktail worthy of inclusion on a seasonal menu.
Along the way, they explore the Fall-friendly flavors of pisco and tequila, the strange betrayal of curried potatoes, the speculative physics of anti-gravity cocktails, and much, much more.

In this modern classic conversation with bartender and beverage consultant Toby Maloney, some of the topics we discuss include:
Toby's journey through the food and beverage world, from bussing and dishwashing, to culinary school, to tending bar, eventually landing gigs at famous venues like Milk & Honey, and Pegu Club, and going on to open The Violet Hour in Chicago.
The decisions and philosophies (plus the techniques and ingredients) that allowed Toby and his cohort at The Violet Hour to open the hearts and minds of the people of Chicago to the paradigm shift that was the Cocktail Renaissance.
What it's like to open a bar in 2025, specifically with respect to the ingredients and philosophies that carry over well from the last 15-20 years, and which practices and vibes might need a refresh.
Then, we take a close look at how Toby is setting the tone at The Elbow Room with pre-batched "Flavor Booms," free pours, dirty dumps, a Hawthorne strainer moratorium,  and other service speed innovations.
Along the way, we learn why people hated The Violet Hour Team at first, how to "David-Chang-ify" a food or beverage program, why Gen Z is primed for their "Fern Bar" moment, and much, much more.
If you like this conversation with Toby, well buckle up for part 2, where we dig even deeper into how he develops cocktails, complete with a live, on-air cocktail building exercise. But for now, please enjoy part 1 of this super fun interview with Toby Maloney.