While numerous U.S. cities boast signature dishes – such as the well-known Chicago-style hot dogs, Philadelphia cheese steaks, and Baltimore crab cakes – city-specific cocktails don’t share the same popularity. Indeed, New York has its Manhattan and New Orleans its Sazerac, apart from that, what else? Maybe the beer that put Milwaukee on the map? (To clarify, this characteristic beer is Schlitz, a previously idle beer brand that made an unexpected comeback in the 21st century.)
Nonetheless, Oklahoma City does claim a lesser-known cocktail as its speciality: The Lunchbox. This unique concoction is a spin on the beer-mosa as it’s prepared by blending beer with orange juice. And not any random beer, but specifically Coors Light, which is brewed in multiple locations (including Milwaukee, former home of Schlitz), but not in Oklahoma. The Lunchbox also includes a hint of amaretto which adds a note of sweetness to the libation and marginally ups its alcohol content.
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Oklahoma City firmly states that the Lunchbox is its signature cocktail. However, the claim is slightly more localized than it first appears. This distinctive drink is the official beverage of a local bar named Edna’s. The signature cocktail was allegedly created by the namesake owner, Edna Scott, back in the early ’90s. While attempting to create a different drink, Edna supposedly stumbled upon The Lunchbox – although the details of her original intent are unclear. Speculation from her daughter, Tammy Lucas, suggests it may have been a boilermaker. Still, the true story remains uncertain as Edna passed away in 2014.
Edna’s Mistake is a popular drink that gained prominence in the ’00s when it went viral. By now, Edna’s bar is best known for this drink, with more than 2,789,251 sold by the end of 2022. The bar is hopeful that they have surpassed their 3 million milestone.
Known as the Lunchbox, this simple drink consists of Coors Light and orange juice mixed in equal proportions with a splash of amaretto. The defining aspect of the Lunchbox is its presentation in a frosted mug, a factor credited by Edna’s grandson, Michael Whitney, for the drink’s success. There is such a demand for these chilled mugs that two entire freezers are dedicated to them.
There have been several interpretations of Lunchbox with 14 different variations available at Edna’s. Some of the popular versions include the Zombie Box, the ’80s style Sex on the Box with an addition of cranberry juice, the Docbox which swaps the orange juice with cranberry, the Mauibox that opts for pineapple juice, and the Tootsie Roll Box which has a hint of crème de cacao. A non-alcoholic version, called the Boombox, is also available.
Find out more about non-alcoholic beer here.
While Edna’s claims originality, the Lunchbox is available in other bars, particularly in Oklahoma City. For those interested in a more sophisticated spin, Jimmy B’s offers an Anime Lunchbox that retains the amaretto but replaces the regular orange juice with yuzu and beer with shōchū. A topper of Sapporo foam adds a beer-like frothiness to the concoction.
Read more on the intricacies of regional cocktails here.
Other locations, such as Bellingham, Washington, also serve their unique variations of the drop shot. Their specialty is the Peruvian Bearf***er, a twist on the Lunchbox, but with Captain Morgan’s in place of Amaretto. However, the ratio of beer to orange juice can vary according to the individual preparing the drink. Generally, beer is preferred over orange juice. An alternate form of the Lunchbox, introduced in Baton Rouge in 1993 by a bartender named Pam Sandoz at the Gold Club, an adult entertainment establishment, incorporates peach schnapps into the beer-orange juice blend, and Bacardi 151 rum into the amaretto drop shot.
To know more, read the original article on Mashed.
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