Mojito with a Twist of Phlegm

Over the weekend we decided to try the new British Pub near Nagoya station, OXO. British-style pubs are fairly popular in Nagoya, and tend to draw a lot of ex-pats, which can be a nice injection of western culture once in a while.

OXO is in a really great location right downtown near Nagoya station and Midland Square (Central Japan's tallest building). The atmosphere was great and any pub that serves a proper British pint is ok in my book. OXO uses a cash on delivery system of service. This card is placed at each table to explain:


Without cash on delivery, I would never have had the privilege of seeing the interesting technique adopted by the bartender responsible for our mojitos. I watched as he diligently prepared the glasses, taking special care with our drink regardless of the people waiting behind me (a trait I find common with most bartenders in Japan). Everything happened so fast, but here was his routine:

1. Wipe the glasses down
2. Carefully select the mint and place into glass
3. Crush mint
4. Add carefully measured Bacardi Rum
5. Place a healthy scoop of crushed ice in each glass
Here's where it gets hairy...
6. Take out the long stirring spoon and mix the ice, mint, and rum in each glass
7. Lick the spoon and set aside. ('Okay that was weird, but carry on...')
8. Add sugar, slice of lime, and kiwi juice
9. Take out the long stirring spoon - the same long stirring spoon - and stir the ingredients in each glass
10. Lick the spoon and set aside

I hesitated telling my wife, but in the end, I just couldn't resist. Clearly, this bartender took his job of making our drinks seriously. My guess is, he was taught to taste his creation to ensure it was properly mixed - like a good chef checking his or her soup. He was probably taught to do tricks like these to re-create some traits of western culture. Unfortunately, he was unaware of the now infamous unwritten rule about double dipping in our society.

Well, the mojitos were delicious, and we had a good laugh. Besides, the bartender made up for it later. As we were walking out, I noticed him call back a patron who had taken his Guinness prematurely. He called him back so that he could top off his proper pint after the initial pour settled.