The Florida Room cocktail lounge brings the best of the '80s to East Hill

Swigging your illuminated Neon Technician cocktail under the lavender-hued fluorescent light of The Florida Room , you forget that the 450-square-foot cocktail lounge is joined at the hip to East Hill brewery , Alga Beer Co. at 2435 N. 12 Ave.

“As soon as you step into it - you are completely transported,” said Alga co-owner Brett Reid.

Reid and co-owner Thomas Grier set out about a year and a half ago to seep the electrifying spirit of the ‘80s into the small space, which wasn’t an easy feat. It took a series of intentional touches - neon lights, tropical drinks, hot pink wallpaper and breezy open-air garage doors - to give the space a cohesive sense of time and place.

“Everything has to make sense … If one of these (elements) doesn’t work, the whole thing doesn’t work,” Reid said.

Luckily, once the music was pumping and the drinks were flowing, topped with sprigs of botanicals and freshly sliced citrus, Reid saw all the pieces of the vision pull together.

“It’s very quintessential ‘80s and it really does set the mood for the whole room,” he said.

The design process was very personal to them, which is while you’ll notice eccentric artwork gifted to them from regulars and The Florida Room’s bar made from the familiar composite material, terrazzo, used in Alga’s taproom floor.

While Alga is not licensed to serve liquor, it is licensed to serve malt-based hard seltzers, which can be flavored to resemble the liquor of the staff's choosing. With botanicals infused to resemble a gin, or a seltzer-based "tequila" perfectly paired with a margarita - they can then mix any juice, syrup or puree to create a cocktail where the seltzer will respond just as any traditional liquor would. With their homemade hard seltzers clocking in at 17% to 18% alcohol, The Florida Room’s hand-shaken and stirred concoctions should hit harder than your 5% grocery store canned seltzer.

“It will still taste and feel like a cocktail,” Reid said.

When developing their list of signature drinks, they wanted to put a couple twists on the classics, like the signature Square Grouper, made with a boiled down Mexican Coke combined with local Big Jerk Soda Co.’s key lime seltzer.

While the drinks are expertly crafted, they also don’t want you to take the experience too seriously and offer hard seltzer slushees, Jello shots and Sunday bloody mary bars.

While Alga is family and dog-friendly, the more confined Florida Room is reserved for those 18 and up, and service-dogs only. Those bringing children or their furry friends along for the trip are welcome to order Florida Room cocktails over the counter from the outdoor courtyard, where they have access to the full menu.

Previously: The '80s are calling at new Pensacola cocktail bar coming to fan favorite brewery

Since there a variety of fun flavors to experience, here’s what we recommend ordering on your visit:

Four Florida Room cocktails you have to try:

Mai Tai

• Menu description: “ Nutty, citrus and a Tiki classic.” ($10)
• Note from Reid: The Florida Room’s Mai Tai is a riff on a classic tiki cocktail that infuses the familiar flavors of fresh lime and nutty almond with Underberg bitters dropped in the glass as a floater that seep into the drink, making the cocktail experience an interactive one.

Neon Technician

• Menu description: “Boozy, herbal, slightly sweet.” ($9)
• Note from Reid: Prepared with a glow-in-the-dark ice cube, the Neon Technician is a “special one” and “brings together the whole concept” of The Florida Room’s ‘80s atmosphere.

Mojito

• Menu description: “’Rum,” lime and mint.” ($9)
• Note from Reid: This Mojito brings all the flavors of fragrant mint and fresh lime muddled in the glass, infused with pure cane sugar rather than a traditional simple syrup.

Square Grouper

• Menu description: “Our 'Rum’ and Coke, but better.” ($10)

• Note from Reid: Named after the '80s slang term for a bale of marijuana washed up on the beach, the Square Grouper brings a lighter and more refreshing take on a rum and Coke, which can typically taste syrupy and sweet.

The Florida Room is open from 4-10 p.m. on Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday. For more updates and information, follow The Florida Room on Instagram.

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This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: The Florida Room cocktail lounge brings the best of the '80s to East Hill