How to Create a Bloody Mary Bar
Creating your own bloody mary bar at home is far easier than it sounds! Take help from your favorite market and buy store-bought garnishes — shrimp! bacon! olives! — to take your bloody marys from drab to fab with minimal effort. Totally acceptable to make a double batch.
How to create a classic bloody mary
What’s in a bloody mary anyway? There are hundreds of recipes out there, but I think the key takeaways are:
- tomato juice
- vodka (like, duh)
- a bit of spice (horseradish AND tobasco, please and thank you!)
- added acidity from lemon juice or lime juice
- a kick from Worcestershire sauce
- a boatload of garnishes to please each and every guest — more on this below
Why a bloody mary bar is the easiest brunch cocktail
Okay, let’s be honest. Mixing up a pitcher of bloody marys takes approximately no effort. And everything else is store bought or pre-made except for the fresh lemon juice. Nothing beats fresh citrus!
The best part is that everyone gets to create their ideal cocktail by adding the garnishes they love best. Personally, I like to drink my brunch, so topping it with shrimp and bacon is my go-to.
Feeling fancy? Garnish the rim of each glass with a mix of salt and finely chopped celery leaves. The extra zippy flavor is perfect alongside the tangy bloody mary mix.
Fresh tomatoes or canned tomato juice
Girl, please. Buy that juice in a can. Nobody’s got time to be juicing a bunch of fresh tomatoes on a lazy Sunday morning.
Bloody mary toppings
GO CRAZY! These are my top suggestions, but the sky’s the limit!
- Celery
- Bacon
- Cornichons
- Shrimp
- Fresh dill
- Pimento or blue cheese stuffed olives
- Lemon wedges
- Cheese
- Pickles
Just make sure to follow these simple tips:
- Have skewers or toothpicks on hand for guests to assemble their own garnishes.
- Keep the bloody marys on ice until serving — no one wants a warm bloody!
- Leave a jar of tobasco on the side so guests can add more if they like it extra spicy!
- Don’t run out.
- Sit back, relax, refill that glass.
Okay, so we’re good to go, right? Yes! Game on.
If you create your own Bloody Mary bar, please let me know by leaving a review below!
And make sure to sign up for my newsletter and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook for more Well Seasoned recipes!
Looking for more brunch recipes? Check out the following!
How to create an epic bagel board
Whole wheat morning glory muffins
Southern fried chicken and waffles
Cheddar and sage biscuits
Smoked salmon breakfast tacos
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Creating your own bloody mary bar at home is as simple as mixing a few key ingredients and letting your guests build their own cocktail with their favorite garnishes. Everyone wins!
Ingredients
For celery salt:
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp celery leaves, finely chopped
- juice from 1 lemon
For bloody marys:
- 8 oz vodka
- 1 oz lemon juice
- 1 oz Dijon mustard
- 1 oz prepared grated horseradish (slightly less if using fresh grated)
- 10 dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 10 dashes Tabasco sauce
- 12 oz tomato juice
Optional garnishes:
- Celery
- Cornichons
- Green olives with pimento
- Lemon
- Roasted shrimp
- Bacon
- Fresh dill
Instructions
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Combine kosher salt and chopped celery in a small bowl. Place lemon juice in a separate bowl, then dip the tops of each glass into the lemon juice. Immediately dip each glass in the celery salt. Set aside.
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Pour all bloody mary ingredients in a large pitcher, then stir to combine. Fill glasses with ice, then evenly distribute mix between glasses. Top with as many optional garnishes as desired. Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 drink
- Calories: 154
- Sugar: 3.7g
- Sodium: 342mg
- Fat: 0.4g
- Saturated Fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 4.6g
- Fiber: 0.7g
- Protein: 1.1g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
Keywords: bloody mary, how to make a bloody mary, bloody mary bar, how to build a bloody mary bar, bloody mary bar toppings, bloody mary garnishes
