A fruity drink calls to mind all sorts of pleasant associations: cocktails on the patio, refreshments on the lake, and nourishment after exercise. After all, a fruity drink epitomizes all that is treasured in a beverage; it’s thirst-quenching, delicious and celebratory. Whether a vitamin-boosted post-workout smoothie, a boozy boat quaff or a refreshing summer ade, Woodbury has a vast array of fruity-licious liquids—a riotous parade of vibrant colors, clever garnishes and charming glassware. Sip, slurp and chug your way to a fully-hydrated sense of well-being.
JUMBO STRAWBERRY MARGARITA
Las Margaritas
Las Margaritas Mexican Restaurant cheerfully slings the strong stuff for happy patrons who are thirsty from all those nachos and tacos. This treasure is relentlessly festive; it’s hard to come here and not imbibe. One of the most popular (and most classic) drinks is the strawberry margarita (24 oz. $8.99). Drop any cheesy associations with The Love Boat; this is especially good stuff, for good reason. For one thing, Las Margaritas stocks an impressive selection of tequilas, and everyone knows that the quality of the margarita depends on the quality of the tequila. We like a silver tequila, hopefully the top shelf Patron, but regular old Cuervo is ok too. Strawberries, both sweet and tart, are tequila’s best friend. Frozen or on the rocks. 10150 Hudson Road; 651.340.3524.
LEMON DROP
Lakes Tavern and Grill
Woodbury’s “happiest happy hour” is ready to serve you the fruity drink of your dreams at a mere pittance. One of the benefits—or drawbacks, depending on who you ask—about fruity bar drinks is that the fruit masks the taste of alcohol, creating a yummy but dangerously drinkable concoction. With that in mind, go to town with a classic lemon drop ($6.50), a spin on one of the most popular fruit drinks of all, lemonade. It’s a simple preparation of vodka, sugar and lemon juice, served in a martini glass with a sugar-frosted rim. It’s elegantly spare in ingredients, full of pucker and very gluggable. Happy hour is 3-6 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close daily and all day Sunday. 9240 Hudson Road; 651.287.2000.
TASTE OF THE TROPICS MOCKTAIL
Bonfire
Inhale this joint’s heavenly hickory smoke while wetting your whistle with a spry mocktail. Bonfire’s drink list is full of cleverly-named concoctions; on martini Wednesday, try the blackberry-infused seven year itch ($11, $9 during happy hour). The menu also boasts a mocktail and refresher section, increasingly popular for all the designated drivers. There’s a mockjito and mockarita; we happily slurped a tall taste of the tropics ($4), a heady swirl of sunny fruits: pineapple juice, orange juice and the choice of strawberry, raspberry, pomegranate, mango or blackberry, garnished with an orange slice. We chose mango, as tropical as fruit can be. 1424 Weir Drive; 651.735.0085.
MANGO-CUCUMBER PRESS
Osaka Sushi and Hibachi
Don’t let the unassuming exterior fool you. Step into Osaka and you’re magically transported to a festive and exotic setting. Bedecked with red lanterns swaying overhead, the warm red wooden bar feels like you’re sitting in a ceremonial tearoom, with benefits. There are many fruity libations to choose from here; we asked the hostess to recommend her favorite. The mango-cucumber press ($8) was as bewitching as she said, and every bit as refreshing as it sounds. It’s a simple-but-brilliant combination of fresh cucumber muddled in mango rum, with mango puree, Bacardi rum, Sprite and club soda. The cucumber adds a melon-like accent and keeps the cocktail from overwhelming sweetness. 9000 Hudson Road; 651.731.3333.
THIRTEEN SIX MARTINI
Danny’s Bar and Grill
A fruity drink would go down really, really well after a day of golfing. Danny’s Bar and Grill at the StoneRidge Golf Club is ready to quench that well-earned thirst with any spunky, fruity drink that you crave. Bar manager Bill May is always ready for the “Thirteen Six” which is a deceptively potent, charmingly pretty concoction of Ketel 1 orange vodka, St. Germain elderflower liqueur, ruby red grapefruit juice and a final flourish of Champagne ($8). It’s simply served up in a martini glass and it’s full of vitamin C. Relax and sip at leisure; the windows allow you to keep an eye on the fairway. 13600 N. Hudson Blvd., Stillwater; 651.436.2144.
POMEGRANATE PICK-ME-UP SMOOTHIE
Jamba Juice
Times have changed, for better or worse. A “liquid lunch” no longer leaves you soused for the afternoon; three-martini marathons a la Mad Men have been supplanted by the smoothie. The smoothie craze has died down a bit since the 1990s, but luckily we still have Jamba Juice. There are many fruit concoctions to choose from here, including the “specialty smoothies” that are exclusively fruit-based and guarantee three full servings of your fruit RDA. We liked the pomegranate paradise smoothie ($4.80 for a small size), a.k.a. the “antioxidant Shangri-la,” with peaches, strawberries, mango and pomegranate. It tastes like pure, healthy energy in a cup. Add extra potions and powders for weight loss, extra energy or cold-busting, if you dare. 8362 Tamarack Village; 651.731.9412.
PINOT NOIR
Swirl
We would be remiss not to include some vino here, since red wine is the original fruity drink, made from fermented grapes. It’s centuries old and more popular than ever, with more and more restaurants like Swirl touting the vino as much as the food. Swirl is a wine club, shop and bar with a neat little menu of wine-friendly food. Discover a wine that you love? Pick up a bottle in the shop to share with a friend. There is no snooty-tooty wine lingo here, it’s simply about what tastes good to you. We are partial to the pinot noir grape and loved the restaurant’s Anne Amie from Oregon’s Willamette Valley (bottle $19.99). It’s got a bunch of fruity notes in its depths: a bit of black cherry, perhaps some blackberry and definitely some raspberry. Mingling with something woody, something spicy (our wine-speak fails us here), it’s both infinitely sippable and intriguingly complex. 3291 S. St. Croix Trail; Afton; 651.436.2010.
