UPDATE: The winner of the weeklong competition is The Sanibel Sunset which will be 50% on Friday, Aug 16 with the purchase of food.
Yo ho and more than just one bottle of rum, this week. Local rum and seafood favorite Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille announced that it will be hosting a weeklong celebration for National Rum Day, with competitions and specials taking place at both St. Pete locations from August 10th-15th. Doc Ford’s locations in the Burg are on the St. Pete Pier (610 2nd Ave NE) and in Jungle Terrace (8790 Bay Pines Blvd).
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It’s a fitting reason to party for the restaurant whose menu is inspired by rum and the flavors of the Caribbean, while the bar serves up a famous collection of rum-fueled cocktails, flights and more. The highlight of the Doc Ford’s celebration comes on National Rum Day – Friday, August 16th – when one rum cocktail chosen by the fans will be 50% off (with purchase of food) from open to close at all Doc Ford’s locations.
However, the fun isn’t limited to one day, and those who want to extend the celebration into a full week will be able to help select which of the specialty Doc Ford’s cocktails is the champion – and just as importantly, available half-off. The drink of the day will be determined by a weeklong in-store and online poll featuring three of Doc Ford’s most popular rum cocktails. Polling began Aug 7 and continues through August 15 via QR codes in-store and online, with the winning drink offered at half price (with food order) on Friday, August 16 at Doc Ford’s four locations.
Each of the three cocktails in the running has been selected on the basis of being a perfect summertime drink. Each one is blended to perfection and served ice-cold, offering the exact type of cool treat needed to beat the summer heat. The three contenders for best rum cocktail are:
- Doc’s Rum Runner: a tasty concoction of whiskey barrel-aged Mount Gay Eclipse rum, blackberry and banana liqueurs mixed with tropical fruit juices, a splash of grenadine and finished with a dark rum floater.
- Toasted Coconut Colada: the ultimate piña colada perfected with Hard Truth toasted coconut rum and a toasted coconut rim.
- Sanibel Sunset: a beautiful blend of color and flavor, featuring spiced and Don Q coconut rums with orange and pineapple juices, a splash of amaretto and grenadine.
“The contest is a fun way to recognize National Rum Day and our best rum drink according to our customers,” said Joe Harrity, a partner with HM Restaurant Group, which owns and operates Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille. “It’s going to be an interesting vote. The rum runner, colada and sunset are our three top-selling rum cocktails.”
In fact, the Rum Day celebration is just the latest in what has been a tasty summer of specials at Doc Ford’s. They also had gift card and mojito glass giveaways for National Mojito Day in July, and celebrated their specialty dish with YETI cooler drawings for National Yucatan Shrimp Day in May. We always appreciate local spots making summer more entertaining.
Doc Ford’s showcases creative seafood favorites
Doc Ford’s Rum Bar and Grille, a regional favorite, is a local success story, and any visit shows why the literary-inspired restaurant has had so much success. Their opening alongside the St. Pete Pier in 2020 was met with so much fanfare that the need (and demand) for a West St. Pete location quickly became evident, now giving them two beautiful waterfront locations in town.
Of course, it isn’t the waterfront views that have made the restaurant so popular. Doc Ford’s Caribbean-inspired lineup of food and drink keeps guests coming back for more, and it was the star of our recent visit, as well. The expansive menu can make selecting which dish (or dishes) to choose quite the brain teaser, but we’ll admit: the rum helps with that.
The menu, open for lunch and dinner, places an emphasis on fresh seafood, including a shellfish bar. The extensive offerings include a wide variety of appetizers, sandwiches and fish-driven entrees. The main attractions on our visit were the Yucatan Shrimp and the Macadamia Nut Crusted Grouper, both of which are exemplars of the restaurant’s seafood-forward experience.
For something more snackable, the buffalo shrimp are always a hit, and their new flatbreads are surprisingly light (and delightfully tasty). We’d also recommend steamed mussels, crab cakes, fish tacos, or their seared tuna appetizer plate.
Enjoy a rum-soaked literary paradise
While it’s the food and drinks that keep people coming back, Doc Ford’s is perhaps best known for its literary history. It’s not often that a rum-soaked restaurant has such ties, but thanks to local author Randy Wayne White and his series of novels starring a baseball-loving, tropical adventurer named Doc Ford, the bar and grille is a destination for shrimp lovers and book lovers alike.
As for the edible parts of Doc Ford’s success, the restaurant has been on the receiving end of several notable accolades recently. In 2021, Trip Advisor ranked the company’s four restaurants as the No. 1 place in the country for “everyday eats.” Just last year, Trip Advisor also ranked their location on the pier as St. Pete’s No. 1 restaurant.
The airy and bright locations all feature combination indoor and outdoor seating with views of the water, as well as full bars and plenty of TVs for catching any live sports. The Jungle Terrace location even has two full bars: one tiki-style bar on the patio, and another indoor/outdoor combo tying the entire dining room and patio areas together.
Learn more and see their full menu here.
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