There’s never a bad time to gather with friends around a punchbowl, but in the summertime, it almost feels like a necessity. Part team-building exercise, part picture-perfect display, part ideal way to cool off, large-format drinks are some of the most extra cocktails to be found—often arriving in enormous, showy structures that are always ready for a photo op. Whether you’re looking for a flowery unicorn take on tipples or a refreshing drink held aloft by a terror from the deep, here’s where you and your friends should be quenching your thirst.
Release the Kracken at Lono
Forget the classic shark-attack tiki mug: This summer’s boozy, aquatic-themed nightmare arrives in a silver punch bowl held aloft by an octopus. Things take a turn for the tropical when an entire bottle of pear Grey Goose meets fresh young coconut water, Thai basil, mint, lime and falernum plus a few orchids for good measure. Are you sure you’re not on a beach instead of Hollywood Boulevard?
$350. Serves 8-10.
Salon cocktails at Rudolph’s Bar & Tea
Afternoon tea takes on a whole new meaning at the Freehand Hotel’s lobby bar, where cocktails inspired by international tea ceremonies often arrive in silver teapots—but turn your attention to the trio of multi-person salon cocktails to make it a real tea party. We love the charming and Deep South-inspired Louisiana Teapot Julep, made with Egyptian mint tea, rye whiskey, peach syrup and Peychaud’s Bitters, garnished with fresh mint, naturally.
$25–$60. Serves 2–4.
Photograph: Courtesy Harlowe
Unicorn’s Fancy at Harlowe
This summer, 1933 Group’s French brasserie–inspired spot is adding color to your cocktail. Look for lead bartender Blaze Powers’s new seasonal punch bowl, the Unicorn’s Fancy, which tops an enormous mix of vodka, Aperol, lemon, orange bitters and champagne with a rainbow of fresh flowers and herbs. Très magnifique.
$250. Serves 6–8.
Photograph: Courtesy Honeycut/Olivia Frescura
Disco Bowl at Honeycut
Disco isn’t dead: Just head to cocktail-lounge–cum–neon-plastered-nightclub Honeycut for proof. Speaking of proof, you’ll find a lot of it in this punch made of vodka, soda, house vermouth, house orange syrup, house pineapple gum, and house-clarified lemon cordial that’s been sustainably concocted from leftover garnishes—all stirred and served in a hollowed-out disco ball. Now that’s dance-party fuel if we’ve ever seen it.
$150. Serves 6.
Photograph: Courtesy Tam O’Shanter
Giant Moscow Mule at Tam O’Shanter
One of the first spots in L.A. to popularize this copper-mugged classic, the historic Tam O’Shanter is now living large with a scaled-up version of its vodka and ginger-beer drink. Sure, you can order individual Mules, but why not go big with this gargantuan gleaming vessel? We recommend sharing it on the newly renovated patio, which just reopened after more than 70 years.
$50. Serves 4–6.