A Cold Shoulder On A Cold Night

On Sunday, February 1st, 2026, I was filming in Hollywood, FL. I was down in South Florida for a few days and wanted to get some footage for my YouTube channels. I had landed late the night before after a day of snowstorm-related cancellations in Charlotte. Thankfully, I was lucky enough to get out of Louisville by way of Dallas, TX, and landed in Fort Lauderdale instead of Miami, as originally planned. Once I arrived at my preferred hotel, Aloft in Aventura, I called it a night and planned to hit up Hollywood for Sunday night. I had a few spots I wanted to visit, including the subject of this review, Elixir Kava Bar | Hollywood. I’ve long been a fan of kava as a supplement and have wanted to visit this shop the last few times I was in the area.

Whenever I go to South Florida, I usually frequent Hollywood. After filming for about an hour, I decided to make a stop at one of my favorite spots, Octopus Garden Bar. Sadly, my favorite bartender wasn’t there and the patron next to me was a chain smoker. Octopus Garden is a standalone bar so smoking is allowed. I love the mellow lights, the pirate themes, and the music selection. Unfortunately, as an ex-smoker (quit back in August 2005), the smell of cigarette smoke is highly annoying to me. So after downing my Blue Moon, I decided I’d get out of there. I figured I’d down a couple of slices of pizza at MAURO’S (my favorite pizzeria in FL) and then visit Elixir Kava Bar, which is just a couple of blocks away.

Much to my chagrin, Mauro’s apparently closes at 10pm on Sundays. I had always banked on the fact that Mauro’s stayed open for all the closing bars so drunk patrons could scarf done delicious slices and garlic knots while waiting for the rideshares. So much for that. But even if that were the case, it was particularly cold this night and staying open meant losing money.

Mind you, when I landed the night prior, good ole Siri told me the temperature was just north of 30 degrees. It felt just as cold on Sunday night in downtown Hollywood. Plus, the place seemed like a virtual ghost town. Even though I made it into Mauro’s at 9:54pm, I was told they couldn’t make me a couple of slices. They probably started cleaning early and wanted to get home. No big deal.

Even though I was 0-2 by this point, I kept hope alive for visiting the Elixir Kava Bar. Just to be sure, I checked their hours. I could’ve gone to Twin Peaks, but it’s never been my cup of tea. Oddly enough, I’d go there after Elixir and absolutely loved it. My waitress, April, was so awesome I returned Monday night, too, but that’s for a separate article. Let’s talk about my visit to Elixir Kava Bar | Hollywood.

First and foremost, I love the location and the exterior signage. Upon entering, I fell in love with the decorating theme. They have some comfy couches, relaxing chairs, nice dim lighting and a really cool bar. I saw an empty stool and asked a redhead seated at right if the stool was taken. She said it wasn’t. There was a laptop section corresponding to the stool to the left of the open stool. It’s screen was active so I wanted to be sure I wasn’t taking anyone’s seat. Once I sat down, I made eye contact with the bartender. He looked to be in his late 20’s, maybe early 30’s. He seemed somewhat busy, attending to people who’d come up to the bar to order, then talked to the redhead (seemingly about job interview tips), and also helped people lined up by the front of the bar. I set my GoPro down and read news on my iPhone. The last thing I wanted to seem like was a travel vlogger.

After about five minutes, a long-haired guy approached the bar and talked to the long-haired bartender about how much his words of encouragement meant to him. They had a cool moment and I tried not to say anything. This was about ten minutes in. The crowd had died down and the long-haired bartender then focused on the redhead. By this point, I had made eye contact with bartender about at least a half dozen times. Ultimately I was just staring at him, not in a hard way, but in an obvious way. He just kept talking to the redhead, refilled her drink, and never looked at me. He never greeted me either (like the others) when I came in, never said something like “I’ll be with you in a minute” or “go stand over there to order.” It’s as if I didn’t exist.

What’s interesting is that I’m 6’4 and change and weigh 340lbs. I’m also bald and cleanshaven, so I really stand out. Although I’ve been told numerous times that I look like a police officer, I’m actually a full-time, licensed, practicing attorney. I don’t have long hair, I don’t dress trendy, but my money is green just like the next person’s.

After about fifteen minutes in, I got up when the bartender left and asked the redhead how one went about ordering. She was very dismissive, saying “no one’s against you” and “i don’t want to argue” when I made the point I felt ignored. When I politely told her I wasn’t arguing just inquiring about how to get service, she waved me off with her hand like one would an annoying child.

At that point, I left.

I wanted to feel like a total zero, but the attorney in me wouldn’t allow it. I’m not a narcissist, but I certainly don’t have any self-esteem issues. It was clear from the moment I walked into Elixir Kava Bar that I didn’t belong. They didn’t want me there and ignored me until I left. This isn’t my first rodeo. I have a travel blog and have visited many U.S. states and foreign countries. Part of what I do with this website is shine the light on places like this. There’s no doubt in my mind this is the kind of trendy/hipster place where there’s very much an in-crowd. It’s the sort of junior high school cliquishness that many of us hope we left long behind during adolescence. This kind of treatment goes beyond mere bad customer service. And ironically, the bartender promoting this mindset was also fostering it because he was advising a prospective employee on how to have a successful job interview. Who knows, maybe he’ll train her in the ways of being hipster snob. She seemed to bring her own talents in the regard to the table.

I really wanted Elixir Kava Bar to be the Hollywood, FL version of Dazed! Dazed! is an amazing THC bar located within Planet 13 in Las Vegas. I visited Dazed! everyday during my recent trip to Vegas in November 2025. Granted, Elixir is a kava bar, but when I walked in, their layout made me nostalgic. Sadly, I was TOTALLY MISTAKEN. As I said on a video I made after leaving, I give Elixir Kava Bar ONE (1) STAR. Even though I’m almost positive the longhaired bartender is an employee (as opposed to an owner), it’s no coincidence that I stuck out of the busy clientele like a sore thumb. If you’re longhaired, tatted-up, pierced up, or have a really stylish clothing style, I’m sure they’ll trip over themselves to serve you. If you look me, don’t expect to be greeted, much less served.

I’ll never give this place a second look.