Press
Martin Cate can be contacted at info@smugglerscovesf.com.
- Wayne Curtis, Travel + Leisure, May 1, 2011
- Camper English, Fine Cooking Magazine, August 1, 2010
- Megan Krigbaum, Food & Wine Magazine, August 1, 2010
- Andrew Knowlton, Bon Appetit, August 1, 2010
- Difford's Guide, April 26, 2011
- Nightclub & Bar Magazine, March 7, 2011
- The Wall Street Journal, March 5, 2011
- 7x7, May 22, 2010
- Associated Press, February 17, 2010
- SFoodie's 92, SFWeekly, April 28, 2010
- Beachbum Berry, September 27, 2010
- Chow.com, March 9, 2010
- Foodography, YouTube, August 31, 2011
- LA Times Magazine, May 24, 2010
“LA Times: I know my editor doesn’t like me talking about San Francisco, but I have to throw some love to Martin Cate’s Smuggler’s Cove, which opened this spring. What seemed cool about the place was that it was almost kind of divey—shamelessly tiki with the flotsam strewn everywhere. But mostly, I was impressed with the drinks, which are unapologetically tiki. How do you rate Martin’s work?
Jeff Berry: Spectacular. Right now his stuff is the best in the country. I can’t praise him enough. Martin was the first to take the principles of the craft cocktail and apply them to modern tiki drinks. I think Smuggler’s Cove is the first true neo-craft tiki bar, and what’s great is that the place itself is not trying to be serious, but the drink themselves are. ”
Jeff Berry: Spectacular. Right now his stuff is the best in the country. I can’t praise him enough. Martin was the first to take the principles of the craft cocktail and apply them to modern tiki drinks. I think Smuggler’s Cove is the first true neo-craft tiki bar, and what’s great is that the place itself is not trying to be serious, but the drink themselves are. ”
- San Francisco Bay Guardian, July 27, 2010
- San Francisco Bay Guardian, July 27, 2010
- Wayne Curtis, The Atlantic, September 1, 2010
- Matthew Rowley, Rowley's Whiskey Forge, August 31, 2010
- Paul Clarke, Serious Eats Drinks, December 29, 2010
“Other trends that took hold in 2010, and that I'd like to see more of in 2011, include tiki's comeback. Sure, we've been talking about it for years, but tiki's big move came in the final weeks of 2009, when Martin Cate opened the doors of Smuggler's Cove in San Francisco. A product of years of work and dedication by one of the most talented people (and it should be said, one of the nicest guys) working in bars today, Smuggler's Cove took the once-déclassé realm of exotic drinks and made them respectable, and proved that just because something comes in a volcano bowl adorned with flowers and erupting with flames, it can still be a delicious, well-balanced drink.”
- Humuhumu, RumDood.com, September 8, 2010
- Toby Cecchini, New York Times Online, October 6, 2010
- Tasting Table, December 31, 2010
- Jay Barmann, SFist, May 21, 2010
- Jack Robertiello, Nightclub & Bar Magazine, December 23, 2009
- Jack Robertiello, Nightclub & Bar Magazine, May 10, 2010
- Wayne Curtis, Liquor.com, January 7, 2010
- Examiner.com, January 25, 2010
- San Francisco Examiner, January 29, 2010
- Carolyn Alburger, Citysearch, February 11, 2010
- Food GPS, February 12, 2010
- Details Magazine Blog, April 8, 2010
- Scofflaw's Den, February 16, 2010
- The San Francisco Bar Experiment, April 22, 2010
- Oh Gosh! TV, May 8, 2010
- Rocky Yeh, NW Vivant, June 16, 2010
- Served Raw, June 14, 2010
- 7x7, July 20, 2010
- Liquor.com, July 19, 2010
- Paul Clarke, San Francisco Chronicle, July 25, 2010
- Bon Appetit Blog, July 29, 2010
- Beachbum Berry, August 8, 2010
- 7x7, August 13, 2010
- Melyna Huff, SF Examiner, August 16, 2010
- A Jigger of Blog, August 17, 2010
- Lisa Derrick, Huffington Post, July 15, 2010
- YouTube, September 1, 2010
- Associated Content, October 6, 2010
- Jay Barmann, Grubstreet, October 22, 2010
- Laura Beck, The Bold Italic, October 11, 2010
- Camper English, Fine Cooking Blog, October 22, 2010
- Hawaii Insider, SFGate, November 24, 2010
- Ryan Flinn, Bloomberg News, November 29, 2010
- Cocktail Slut, November 27, 2010
- Cooking With the Single Guy, December 9, 2010
- Weekly Cockail, December 9, 2010
- Camper English, San Francisco Chronicle, December 12, 2010
- AOL City's Best: San Francisco, December 31, 2010
- Lou Bustamante, SF Weekly, December 22, 2010
- Lou Bustamante, SF Weekly, December 30, 2010
- Lou Bustamante, SF Weekly, March 9, 2011
- Lou Bustamante, SF Weekly, March 14, 2011
- Tamara Palmer, SF Weekly, March 25, 2011
- Carolyn Alburger, SF Weekly, February 12, 2010
- Jonathan Kauffman, SF Weekly, May 7, 2010
- Tamara Palmer, SF Weekly, November 5, 2010
- Lou Bustamante, SF Weekly, October 18, 2010
- Elyse Glickman, Lucire Magazine, April 26, 2011
- Liquor.com, February 7, 2011
- Liquor.com, February 23, 2011
- Wayne Curtis, Liquor.com, February 2, 2011
- Reuters, March 13, 2011
- Weekly Cocktail SF, March 16, 2011
- Grubstreet, April 8, 2011
- Pete Wells, NY Times, December 1, 2009
“As much as Mr. Cate enjoys the fantasia of classic mai tai joints, he is rigorously academic about rum itself.”
- Jordan Mackay, 7X7 Magazine, December 4, 2009
“It’s truly a complete vision, and once you’re inside the windowless space you feel completely disconnected (in a good way) from the reality of Hayes Valley right outside the completely opaque door.”
- SF Bay Guardian, December 7, 2009
- San Francisco Chronicle, December 8, 2009
- San Francisco Chronicle, December 13, 2009
- SF Weekly, December 14, 2009
- Matt Bloom, San Francisco Magazine, December 14, 2009
“Smuggler’s Cove has tons of potential to be the kind of cheesy bar you’d find at Disney World. But it’s not. You can tell that Cate put a lot of thought, time, and effort into his brainchild.”
- Camper English, Alcademics, December 5, 2009
“There is so much history in the place I’m considering asking Martin to train me as a docent to give regular tours.”
- Jordan Mackay, Diners Journal, New York Times, December 4, 2009
“The opening has been much anticipated as Mr. Cate is an acknowledged master of both the rum cocktail and of tiki culture.”
- Married…with dinner, December 4, 2009
“What sets Smuggler’s Cove apart from the tiki pack is its focus on top-notch bartending talent...quality ingredients, and solid technique. It’s a serious rum-focused bar with retro-tropical decor, but there’s refreshingly little of the tongue-in-cheek cheesiness that you might expect.”
- The Inadvertent Gardener, December 7, 2009
“It’s a little bit of rum-soaked escapism, right in the heart of the city.”
- Grub Street, December 1, 2009
- Tablehopper, December 1, 2009
- Eater SF, December 4, 2009
- Trinidad & Tobago Express, December 5, 2009
- A Gentleman’s Manifesto, December 6, 2009
- SFist, December 8, 2009
- Mister Archer, December 8, 2009
- NBC Bay Area, December 11, 2009
- Jay Barmann, SFist, November 13, 2009
- See a how-to video of one of Martin’s best drinks! Filmed at his home bar, January 9, 2009
- Joe Ruvel, Beer at Joe’s Blog, August 8, 2009
“How does something with all those ingredients not taste sickly sweet? Tiki Magic!! And a world class bartender. Can’t wait for his new place to open.”
- Chuck “Gumbo Pages” Taggart, Tales of the Cocktail blog, July 29, 2009
- EaterSF, September 24, 2009
- Matt Robold, RumDood, October 5, 2009
“Smuggler’s Cove will be a rum haven run by one of the great advocates of the spirit.”
- San Francisco Examiner, July 2, 2009
- Jordan Mackay, 7X7 Magazine, June 3, 2009
“Given Cate’s reputation in the industry, his hand with home-made tiki drinks, and his unparalleled knowledge of the history and culture of the drinks, Smuggler’s Cove will probably be, it’s no stretch to say, the greatest tiki bar on earth.”
- San Francisco Chronicle, August 12, 2009
- Jon Bonne, San Francisco Chronicle, June 4, 2009
“Though the Tequila onslaught continues, rum has been quietly making gains as the must-drink spirit of the moment. Now comes news that Bay Area rummies will have a new watering hole of their own, from none other than neo-tiki master Martin Cate.”
