Princess Bride pop-up features 24 cocktails pulled from the Kingdom of Florin

January 31, 2023

Tyler Schneider,

Princess Bride pop-up by Apparition at Deep Roots. // Photo by Sherry Lockwood

“Farmboy, fetch me that liquor.”

“As You Wish,” Apparition’s third pop-up bar at Deep Roots (4601 Shawnee Dr., Kansas City, KS), is where drink-smith Matt Smith has found his stride. His robust drink menu includes 24 cocktails (and six shots that, like the 1987 cult classic, The Princess Bride, offers a little something for everyone.

Open every day of the week starting at 4 p.m. and set to run through Feb. 25, the space that previously featured Nightmare Before Christmas and Hocus Pocus themes in the fall is now home to a cozy, dimly lit space where one can enjoy the soft splendors of Medieval instrumentals while whispering small words and countless quotes with fellow Warthog-faced buffoons.

The small foyer leading into the dining room is a keen recreation of the sick grandson’s room from the film—down to the stray bag of chips above the bed and the poster of Refrigerator Perry from the mythical ‘85 Bears. Just through the door is an endearingly crude sculpture of Fezzik (Andre the Giant), who beckons guests to their seats.

The art and design of the interior, crafted by the likes of Colleen King, Dominic Bautista, and Sky Heath, take advantage of and find balance within Deep Roots’ careful, dark ambiance. At our lantern-lit booth, we were free to gaze upon several of the most enduring and memorable lines scattered across the walls, take photos with an ROUS and other such surprises, or otherwise pretend we weren’t just some slobbering drunks who couldn’t buy brandy (as it wasn’t on the menu).

My first order was the “Six Fingered Manhattan,” made with rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, maraschino liqueur, blackberry syrup, and grapefruit bitters and featured a small plastic rodent of underwhelming size frozen in an ice cube. I wouldn’t say I was mostly dead after this one, but I was definitely feeling a nice buzz.

My cohorts ordered two bangers in the “Buttercup Buttered Rum” (spiced dark rum, butterscotch schnapps, and coconut milk) and the “Prince Humperdink”—an aesthetic mix of cherry liqueur, naranja, orange juice, lemon juice, and egg white topped with champagne.

The latter is just one of several oddities mixed by Smith, who says he watched the film several times over the course of a weekend while sampling and refining drink ideas with friends.

“We found one of those old Mr. Boston’s cocktail guides back from like the ‘50s or ‘60s, and we ended up just kind of messing around with it one night. We came up with that,” Smith says, motioning to the “Prince Humperdink.” “And we thought it was so weird because it was like it had an egg in the cocktail. I’d never done something like that before.”

It turned out pretty great. Shortly thereafter, when we decided to take one of the five shots, Smith talked me into getting the inconceivable “Shrieking Shot”—eel-infused tequila with a “dash” of Tabasco. I dabbed a bit of the “buzz berries” from the rim of the shot glass on my tongue, which produced a slight numbing effect, and downed the vile thing like a champ, according to those at my table. Tequila is pain, highness. Anybody who says differently is selling tequila, probably.

The remaining four shot options were perhaps more desirable for the average patron and included “Flame Spurts” (Fireball and jalapeño syrup), “Shortage of Perfect Breasts” (Butterscotch Schnapps and Bailey’s served with whipped cream and topped with a cherry), “Iocane Powder” (vodka and silver luster dust), and “Shots of Insanity” (Kahlua, vodka, and Sprite).

Other orders we had the time and tolerance to sample included the “Dream of Large Women” (gin, blueberry-mint shrub, blackberry syrup, and ginger beer), the “Miracle Max’s Martini” (gin, lemon, Lillet blanc, Medjool date syrup, and creme de cacao), and the “Life Is Pain, Princess” (pomegranate, dark rum, velvet falernum, lime, coconut cream, spices). It’s safe to say we couldn’t even get a quarter of the menu down in a single outing.

We also indulged in two of the nine food options from “Fezzik’s Feast” in “The Sicilian” (ham, pepperoni, mozzarella, pepperoncini on ciabatta) and the “Have Fun Stormin’ the Castle” (literally chicken tendies).

Larger groups can try a few specialty options such as the “Brute Squad,” which serves two to four people (again dependent on your table’s collective level of alcoholism) and is made with coconut rum, blue curacao, lychee, pineapple juice, champagne, and Sprite served with dry ice.

“As You Wish” features music bingo every Tuesday, karaoke every Wednesday, and “True Love’s Trivia” on Thursdays. Individuals under the age of 21 will be allowed Sunday through Thursday, where they can take part in 14 of 25 cocktails that can be ordered in a non-alcoholic format.

My final take on an Apparition pop-up that I would rank rather high among those I’ve attended: It’s not that bad! Well, I’m not saying I’d like to build a summer home here, but the drinks are actually quite lovely (and strong).

Photos by Sherry Lockwood