#43 | Rumba, Seattle, USA
Last Visit: Summer 2024
The US is not only known for bourbon and rye, as well as classic whisk(e)y drinks such as the Manhattan or Old Fashioned, but it is also the birthplace of the Tiki community, which is still influential today. More than 75 years after the start of the Tiki craze, Tiki bars are still scattered all over the country and sometimes new ones open too. In Seattle, the city's first “rum bar” opened over 10 years ago. This means you won't be overwhelmed by an almost surreal tiki decor. Everything is more modern, brighter, but still with a tropical touch, than in your old school Tiki joint. Rumba, which opened in September 2012, is run as a combined bar and restaurant (which is much more common in the US than here in Germany) and so you can expect not only great drinks with the main focus on rum, but also Caribbean food to match.
The bar is just a stone's throw away from the Starbucks Roastery, already discussed here, on the border between Seattle Downtown and Capitol Hill, and is therefore very easy to reach thanks to its central location.
Copyright: Rumba Seattle
What you don't immediately notice when standing in front of the Rumba's large window front is that there is a second fully-fledged bar with a separate entrance inside the premises. When you enter, you are immediately greeted in a friendly manner and, if you have not made a reservation, kindly asked whether you would like to take a seat in the Rumba, where you are already standing, or in the “Inside Passage”. After the reception, you could enter the “Inside Passage” on the left through the separate entrance and enter a completely different world. You leave the still rather relaxed, streamlined Caribbean and enter the deepest, darkest tiki jungle already mentioned in the intro. But back to the actual Rumba we are discussing today.
The first thing you notice when you enter the bar is the long, curved counter made of dark solid wood, which can seat up to 10 people, with a sea of bottles as a backboard. The style is classically solid, with dark wood tones generally dominating the look of the bar and aquamarine blue accents in the form of bar stools and seating to match the tropical theme.
Copyright: Rumba Seattle
The longer you let your eyes wander, the more there is to discover. From countless postcards attached to the wall, the interesting decor or an integrated window, including a view of the ocean and harmonious island accessories that give you the feeling of being able to linger and relax.
Warm light and soft sounds underline the ambience and the feel-good factor. There is a matching collection of books by Ernest Hemingway that tempt you to read. However, I don't know whether you are actually allowed to take the books off the shelf. One would strongly suspect so, given the otherwise relaxed atmosphere on site.
As the name of the bar suggests, the main focus here is on sugar cane-based spirits in the form of r(h)um, which is also reflected in the bar menu. Starting with Rumba's signature drinks, the menu expands to include simple categories such as stirred, tropical, no-proof cocktails and classics.
If that's not enough, you can have a flight put together from the extensive rum menu with more than 700 different r(h)ums from all over the world. If you can't find what you're looking for on the rum-heavy bar menu, you can ask the competent bar team or service team for advice, which in our experience leads to top results.
Copyright: Rumba Seattle
In-house blends, home-made cordials, syrups and of course freshly squeezed juices are the cornerstone of high quality in any bar and here as well, so it should be easy to get a nice alternative recommended for your specific mood during your visit.
Due to the size of the bar and especially as it is actually two bars, reservations are not absolutely necessary. Larger groups can also celebrate here, whether weddings, birthdays or company events, and information on this can be found prominently on the homepage. As we will be returning to Seattle at some point, I am already looking forward to a visit of the aforementioned “Inside Passage”, for which we have not yet found the time.
The transition between the two bars is fluid, with many Rumba events being held in the Inside Passage for a more classic tiki flair. These include regular masterclasses, and there is even the not-so-serious “Rumba Rum University”, aka a series of training courses on rum and individual rum-producing nations. We are always pleased to see bars that actively strive to educate interested guests and do so with a lot of fun and entertainment, as is the case here. The courses seem actually quite packed with knowledge, sometimes 4 classes take place in one month, but they all highlight different aspects or countries, and you can even buy a total ticket for all 4 (2 hours each!).
In addition, there is a small, “secret” society of its own, as these also exist at other tiki greats such as Smuggler's Cove in San Francisco. If you want to join the society, there is a “rum passport” with over 75 rums from over 15 nations, and you are only accepted once you have got all those stamps. If you are a member, your name is immortalized on a wall, you are invited to a private Instagram page and can attend exclusive events and so on. Absolutely nerdy and certainly hard to imagine in Germany, for example, but as already mentioned, it's quite common in at least the big tiki bars. And we at LT consider this nerdiness to be a great feature of bar culture.
But let's get more specific about the signatures we had!
Midnight Snack
| Roasted Peanut Infused Tequila
| Aged Mexican Rum
| Blackberry
| Coconut
| Banana
| Lemon
| Walnut bitters
The name fits the drink perfectly, something hearty, something for the soul. A fresh, fruity start with restrained acidity and full, rich blackberry. The whole thing is then paired with typical rum/molasses notes that could be a little more intense and a hint of banana.
The transition in the middle is formed by notes of intensely roasted, earthy peanut, which linger longer and harmonize well with the black walnut bitters. The coconut notes were not too noticeable. All in all, a fruity, slightly complex and voluminous drink that is reminiscent of a nice, creamy milkshake, but unfortunately has a somewhat quick and simple finish. A solid, expanded crowd pleaser.
Red Wedding
| Mezcal
| Overproof Jamaican Rum
| Aperol
| Spiced Hibiscus Tea
| Passionfruit
| Lime juice
Mezcal and overproof Jamaica rum kick things off in a showdown, which the mezcal initially wins before the rich ester notes catch up with everything. The entire thing is accompanied by a harmonious acidity and a beautifully tart spiciness, which, together with the typical Jamaican ester notes, keeps reappearing and forms the middle section.
The long finish is formed by dry smoke from the agave spirit, together with a hint of passion fruit and a pleasant herbal note, as well as a subtle spiciness. This is surrounded by hibiscus tea, which lends a fruity lightness to the whole body of the drink and tends to linger for some time in the background. A very drinkable cocktail with a pleasant depth, which is not immediately noticeable, although it got that overproof rum in there.
Smoking Room
| Chairman's Reserve Forgotten Cask Rum
| Peated Scotch Blend
| Brucato Orchard Amaro
| Apricot
| P.X. Sherry
| Black Lemon Bitters
The start is characterized by a great full-bodied taste with a lovely sweetness made up of dried fruits, peach and citrus notes accompanied by the rum. The middle section and finish are formed by a slightly dry herbal note, wrapped in beautiful peat/smoky notes, including saltiness, which give the drink another deeper level. Overall, the cocktail could be a little more concentrated and intense for me. Nevertheless, it is a harmonious cocktail in its own right, perhaps a little too harmonious for the intense sounding ingredients.
Daiquiri No.1
| Cuban Rum
| Lime
| Sugar
A classic that couldn't have been done better. The daiquiri was one of the highlights here, which is really cool since many bartenders love to use it to test other bars they visit in private. Intense, fresh, with a nice sweet and sour balance and fresh, full-bodied rum notes that round everything off. Probably one of the best daiquiris I've had so far, and an absolute recommendation if you're ever in this rum-focused bar.
So what can we conclude about the Rumba? The informal, cheerful vacation atmosphere with a feel-good factor and friendly staff will definitely be remembered. The cocktails themselves could have been a little more expressive and intense for my taste, a little more to the point, especially when it comes to the signature drinks. The well-rounded and drinkable ones may be well received by the more mainstream audience, but especially with the selection of strong, characterful spirits, you want them to be really present in the drink, at least for me and the rest of us at LT.
The exception concerning that more nerdy point of criticism are the classics, both the Daiquiri and the Mojito, which wasn't mentioned here, were on point, intense, fresh and an absolute recommendation. We learned that the bar uses the so-called House/Daiquiri blend (one of its numerous house rum blends) for those two drinks, which combines rums from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, Jamaica and even multi-island rums. So this is obviously one of the bar's great talents: mixing the perfect blends for the various classics in-house.
It's worth coming back for that alone. Due to the presumably even more intense tiki experience in the Inside Passage, we will come back on our next trip to Seattle and then report on the second bar in this cool location for sure.
/tg
Parts of the menu (click for original size):
