It’s boozy and it’s bouffant. At the immersive Beauty and The Beast Cocktail Experience in San Francisco you'll be greeted by a French-accented hostess with a pink Marie Antoinette coiffure, and that's just where the fun starts. As you enter the hole-in-the-wall venue on Folsom Street, you’re immediately ushered into an aesthetically pleasing world of chandeliers, draped ivy, hanging flowers, and an ethereal purple glow.
But there’s no teacup, teapot, talking wardrobe or yellow-clad heroine to be found. The experience is based on the original Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont fairy tale rather than Disney’s interpretation. We had a little trouble identifying who was who, and there seemed to be two beasts at one point – one being adorably small with tiny horns. But maybe that’s because the drinks were flowing, starting with the glass of champagne upon entry, the two bespoke cocktails you make and our own 'pre-game' beverages.
The escape room aspect seemed nonsensical (I believe the words ‘charmingly half-assed' were uttered). Based on runes on the back of your chair, you must figure out what someone’s name is, consulting an impressively-aged ‘tome’ and a painting with slash marks, but the staff will outright tell you the answer in hushed tones if you evidence any sort of bewilderment. That’s nice?
Your first drink can be either a whiskey drink or a vodka drink to which you give a magical spritz with a special perfume bottle to add in love or good fortune, then spread atop it a soupçon of dried rose petals. At this point, you wish to ‘explore the castle,’ as the hostess had mentioned upon entry, but it is really only one room. The admission includes a ‘sweet treat,’ which was not offered but had to be located (maybe this was the true code-breaking part of the night): a mini-macaron on a tiered plate surrounded by displays of plastic pastries. Tricky.
The second drink was a gorgeous confection poured by ladle by our hostess. Stirring it with a dry ice spoon made it smoke and froth: quite the Instagrammable moment, and we all dropped everything to try to arrange nice shots next to the rose in a bell jar that adorned each table.
Overall, the beverages were sweet and potent, the characters were laugh-out-loud funny, and the experience was well worth the $47 ticket. The 90-minute Beauty and the Beast Cocktail Experience continues through mid-November in San Francisco. Book now as seating is limited to ensure an intimate experience in the castle! Must be 21 or over (although there are under-21 bookings available for ‘family friendly’ sessions).