An effortlessly cool bar tucked away in the Dr. Phillips area of Orlando, Pharmacy is a great spot to visit if you are trying to impress. Not too hard to find with great drinks and food, this speakeasy-style establishment has a lot to offer.
We were slightly disappointed upon arrival as it is not near as hard to find this place as people made it seem. For one, pulling into the plaza there are signs directing to each store and Pharmacy was listed in the directory as well as embellished on the outside of all their glass doors. The catch here though is, if you didn’t already know it was a bar, I suppose you aren’t going to assume “a pharmacy” means adult watering hole. But I digress, a bar that promotes itself as a hidden speakeasy should be a little more, well, hidden.
As we parked in the garage and made our way over to where the signs pointed, we knew the actual entrance was not through a typical door but through the facade of a vintage elevator. Press the elevator button and wait to be allowed entrance. There are two elevators in the hall, one a real working elevator and one opens to reveal the Pharmacy, so if you find yourself in a real moving elevator go back and pick the other elevator. (On our trip, they had a vintage mural just in front of the entrance elevator and it gave it away completely…supposedly this went up for a recent event, I certainly hope they take it down. Put it inside if you want people to share pictures but don’t spoil the fun of the hunt!)
Once let inside, the space transforms into a highly modern, industrial looking establishment. It was not particularly themed like many speakeasies we find, but it was very upscale and classy; and this is where our disappointment ended. The staff were very welcoming and knew so much about their menus and mission as an establishment. Many of the ingredients for both drinks and food are homemade or come from local farms. The dinner menu is quite expensive but it all looked amazing. What we couldn’t pass up on was their 100 year old sourdough garlic bread, and let me tell you, it is worth a trip to the Pharmacy for JUST this bread.
As for the drinks, first we ordered their more popular libation, the Blonde Donkey II.This drink was described as a smoked whiskey margarita. It was the classiest margarita I’ve ever seen, and possibly my favorite to drink as well! Brantley, our bartender, was kind enough to make it right in front of us so we could document the making of this spectacular concoction. Second we ordered the “My Martini is a Beast”, and where I expected to have punching flavors, it was a soft and subtle drink, blended to perfection with a singed rosemary stick for garnish. Both drinks shared unique tastes and wonderful craftsmanship. We look forward to returning and trying many more!
So whereas the Pharmacy is not as hidden as we expected or would have liked, it more than makes up for it in its class, wonderful flavors, and skilled mixology. You can’t go wrong with tasty food, a great cocktail, and friendly staff to lead the way.
Signed,
Your freshly medicated PLIs (visited March 2019 9)