Dayna’s Bloody Mary

A Bloody Mary is a lot like a real lady—you find the best ones in bars in the daytime. That’s when everybody else is at their real jobs and the rest of us can do some living. Red Room is a decent daylight drunk—the sun can’t get in the door—but when Dayna is working, it’s another level better, and when Dayna is making Bloody Marys, then you have found for yourself what we call a “commitment.” A lot of sweaty ice makes a bad (and weak) Bloody Mary, and not enough horseradish makes an anemic Bloody Mary, and a couple flabby olives heaving against the cocktail straw makes an ugly Bloody Mary (and complicates my phytochemical intake), and Dayna does none of those bad things. Her afternoon meal floats a traditional garnish—celery and olive and maybe something else; not a side salad that clogs up the drink—over a classically proportioned mix. Stiff enough to make the point, strong enough to hold the straw straight up, not too sweet (the tomato) or too stringent (the Tabasco) and confidently heavy that dinner understands not to stop by later—you’re busy.

THE RED ROOM, 1229 E 4TH ST, LONG BEACH 90802. 562.432.4241.

Tags: bloody mary, phytochemical intake, red room