BAR REVIEW: Berwick's Bird Of Paradise
Today marks a very special occasion... it's the one year anniversary of this website! That's right, in the past year we've had nearly 69 restaurant and bar reviews from Houston, Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, New York and points in between, and amassed dozens of loyal followers. So from everyone here at Adrian Reviews, from the C-suite to our editors and writers, to the mail room staff and our feng shui consultants, we'd like to say a heartfelt thank you for visiting this site and your continued support. It means the world!
This wasn't necessarily the spot that I had planed for this momentous day, but, while we cannot direct the wind, we can adjust the sails. I've really heard very little publicity from local sources about this place that's located on a quiet neighborhood street in the northern Heights, but it was surprisingly included in PUNCH's top 5 best new bars in the U.S. of 2025 alongside such venerable establishments as Denver's Mezcaleria Alma, so that was obviously excuse enough for me to check it out. The vibe is distinctly tropical, with greenery and bird statues throughout, some gorgeous marble-topped tables, vintage tiled floors and a cabana-esque wooden roof that all came together in way that was sort of reminiscent of a hotel lobby somewhere deep in the jungle. It was fairly empty on a recent Wednesday night... maybe everyone was worn out from watching Portugal draw DRC at Houston Stadium earlier that day?
In keeping with the theme, a play on one of the most classic tiki beverages was the Rye Tai, with Old Overholt Rye in the place of the usual rum (an improvement, in my opinion), Pierre Ferand 1840 Cognac, yuzu curaçao, orgeat, lime, and mint on crushed ice. There was plenty of citrus, and the almond syrup added an interesting nutty component. I've seen and tasted curaçao in many drinks before, but I never really took the time to learn anything about it, so in honor of Manchester United legend Tahith Chong and the boys making their first ever World Cup appearance, let's do a little deep dive: the liqueur comes from the peel of the laraha, an unpalatably bitter orange that grows on the eponymous Caribbean island. This results in a citrus-forward clear spirit, which is then imbued with coloring, either orange (dry curaçao) or blue (...blue curaçao) to add a bit of exotic character to the tropical cocktails which it is often a part of. It's unclear when exactly it was first produced, but what is clear is that nowadays you can't have a proper tiki bar without Willemstad's finest export. Hey Derek, if you could put one of those "The More You Know" graphics here it would really pull this unnecessary tangent together. Thanks buddy.
I can't resist any type of take on an old fashioned – the greatest cocktail ever invented – so the Day-O' Fashioned was a must for me. Comprised of Worthy Park 109° Jamaican Dark Rum, Old Overholt Rye, Giffard Banane du Brésil (a liqueur made from, you're not going to believe this, bananas from Brazil), cold-brew concentrate, orange peel, and Angostura bitters, this was garnished with a cherry and served over small ice cubes. Extremely boozy (just the way I like it, as well as I guess Harry Belafonte?), but the hints of coffee and the sweet notes from everybody's favorite phallic yellow fruit balanced things out a bit for a nicely sippable libation, though this isn't the drink I'd recommend using to introduce your children to the joys of mixology. One petty critique: if you call something an old fashioned, you simply must use a big 2" x 2" ice cube. It just doesn't hit the same when poured over numerous smaller hielitos (a word I just learned this weekend), something that my neighborhood, admittedly not-super-sophisticated bar does as well that drives me crazy. You could say it makes me wan' go home.
The unexpected yet undisputed champion of the night was La Bruja, a frozen concoction featuring Jamaican ginger with tequila and lime, topped with elderberry liqueur and finished with mint leaf. It was described on the menu as "super spicy" (emphasis theirs), and they weren't kidding, but not in the ghost pepper/Scoville/you'll-feel-it-the-next-day-from-the-other-end way... instead it had a massive amount of that sharp, pungent bite that makes the Jamaican variant of ginger so tantalizing, yet it was perfectly contrasted by the tart purple liqueur (not the much more well-known St. Germain, as that comes from the elderflower rather than the berry). This probably isn't for everyone, as the zing does pack a pretty big punch, but I'll absolutely be ordering this first the next time I visit.
An earlier dinner of good-not-great pizza at Gypsy Poet (no review, sorry, though that restaurant plus this bar were part of a massively postponed night that was originally going to be a low-key birthday celebration back in November but was cancelled due to a very threatening thunderstorm forecast situation that of course never ended up materializing) didn’t necessarily have me in the mood for food, and hearing a friend regale us with rather unanticipatedly NSFW dating stories didn’t exactly help whet the appetite either, but the Jerk Chicken Wings sounded too irresistible to pass up. Six smoked flappers and drums were generously coated in jerk sauce and green herbs, then plated with pikliz (a Haitian pickled condiment with carrots/cabbage/etc..), pickled red onions, crispy garlic, toast, and a honey cayenne buttermilk dip. These were absolutely bursting with heat from scotch bonnet chiles and warm, aromatic allspice flavor, that was cut through exquisitely by the highly vinegarized pikliz and onions. The dipping sauce was quite tasty as well, but honestly not really necessary, because the meat was so immaculately seasoned. Heavenly wings, on par with anything Buffalo has ever produced (probably... I've never actually been).
Overall this was overwhelmingly positive experience, a bar that I could see myself visiting again and again, especially if it was a bit closer to my neck of the woods. With its fairly unique "tropical-not-tiki" vibe, it's generally just a cool spot, leveled up with some stellar beverages and bites.
RANKING UPDATE: Berwick's Bird Of Paradise flies into the #4 spot on the Best Casual Cocktail Bars section of my Houston Drinking Guide, as well as the #16 position on the overall Best Cocktail Bar list!
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