Somersault Innovative Cocktails

Great people, great atmosphere and great drinks! Perfect for a little quiet rendezvous for two and yet a great spot to meet a group of friends too. You must ask for Ashita! She is the best! Oh yeah, you also have to eat an edible cocktail or three or four or five! While we miss Tim the new crew with Nick, Geof, and Britain have been fab!

This is an interesting place which distinguishes itself from the other places in the Domain somewhat. The alcohol infused ice cream is worth trying. I’m probably not going to go out of my way to seek it on a regular basis, but it is different. Otherwise, it’s set up nicely as a place to go with one other person.

As an ex bartender, I don’t often come across bars that impress me. The lady of the evening had a Serrano Blueberry Margarita and I had a Daiquiri Fresco and both drinks were made very well. We both had an edible each and they were both fantastic although I can’t quite remember what flavors! There is plenty of room to lounge and the atmosphere is very relaxing. Overall, I’ll definitely be returning to Somersault and you should stop in for a drink if you haven’t!

This used to be my favorite place for specialty drinks. Not sure what happened, but the service is awful.

Great happy hour drinks if you’re near the domain/​north Austin. I totally recommend getting a White Russian here if you love drinking that. Their happy hour is between 5 – 7! You won’t be disappointed coming here!!!

Hooray! We get a cool craft cocktail place up north! This is an Eastside style spot transplanted to Domain. They are creative and inventive with their cocktails and take the hosting demeanor of tending bar seriously. My new favorite thing is cocktails serrano flavour, and they’ve come up with a great one. Next time I want the feel of the Eastside but need to stay near my hood, I’ll dash over the Somersault and have another hand crafted cocktail.

Get the Pacifica! What a fire show. And it’s tasty. The Whiskey Sour Sorbet is a sweet, boozey dessert-​like drink. Really enjoyed the Champagne Jello Shots, mostly because I love pop rocks.
Took a star off because the ambiance felt a little disjointed. Smelled a little like a street deli. Seating wasn’t very conducive to group conversation. Wasn’t sure what the décor theme was supposed to be.

I’m sure this cocktail bar has a theme — but I’m not sure what it was. Thick ropes looping across the ceiling with lights. Old style bar stools. And turquoise painted wicker chairs. Oh and let’s not leave out the dead cockroach in the women’s restroom!
The drinks were interesting with «molecular caviar» pearls floating amongst the bubbles. But the flaming drinks were a bit much — especially when the rosemary sprigs were set ablaze and the entire bar smelled bad.
Not a great place for an intimate cocktail conversation. I’d recommend Firehouse or Midnight Cowboy over this place.

Disclaimer: I am 31 and therefore probably 8 years too old for this bar.
There’s a scene in the wonderful NBC show Parks & Rec where all of the guys go out and celebrate their respective bachelor parties. Tom Haverford recommends a new bar and Ron Swanson says, «Son, there is no wrong way to consume alcohol.» Moments later, a bartender serves Andy a beer in the form of a cloud, and chisels an aromasphere for Tom. Ron declares, «THIS is the wrong way to consume alcohol.» (Do links work on Unilocal?Here’s a Youtube video of the clip:
start at 1:00)
That is how I feel about Somersault. It feels like a bar that (Entertainment 720-​era) Tom Haverford would think up on P&R. Outside of the main door there’s a velvet rope to nowhere. Inside, it is very dark and decorated like a circus or a ship, with oodles of rope creating a tent to the middle of the single room, where the bar is situated. Tiny globe lights hang from rope «like vas deferens,» my husband noted. Cute, young bartenders will make your experimental drinks, some of which they will light on fire. Here is a sampling of their ridiculous menu:
— Dragon’s Tail: Bacardi Dragonberry, peach, mango, pineapple juice ghost pepper, Luxardo molecular caviar
— Serrano Blueberry Margarita: Serrano Pineapple Blueberry infused Cazadores Reposado, Gran Marnier, fresh lime, agave syrup, fresh blueberries, whole Serrano, lime fresco salt
— Pinched Cactus: Herradura Silver, Cointreau, press with cracked black pepper and lime
Who wants to pull black pepper corns out between their teeth while sipping a drink? Who wants a spicy blueberry anything?
The only thing I thought was cute were the Jell-​O shots served on phở spoons, displayed in a cake case.
The bathroom lacked toilet paper, soap, and paper towels.
The music was not pirate-​ship-​like, or circus-​like, but an over-​loud DUNSK-​DUNSK-​DUNSK of thumping beats like we were in a club. Conversations bounced all over the bare walls. I unfortunately was stuck there for a birthday party; we saw an older couple (40s) poke their head in the door, look around, and quickly withdraw. Me too, guys. I feel your distaste.

We dropped in this place on a recent visit to Austin. Honestly… I would have never came through the door if it wasn’t for Unilocal.There are no windows… just a door with the name on it. Once you come in you see how cozy it is with bar seating in a full square and seating around the outer wall. We came in only for the vegas bomb jello shot and the mule. We quickly ordered both and so happy with our order. The Vegas Bomb was taken first and it was so tasty and funny to have the pop rocks still popping in your mouth when I was trying to tell my husband how good it was. and the mule once all stirred up was VERY good. If I hadn’t been so full from dinner I would have ordered another.

Really cool cocktails, nice hangout spot with a date or a small group of friends, awesome find up in north Austin!!!

This place is definitely the coolest bar I’ve ever been to. The décor of the space if very warm and inviting. There is also a lot of space around the bar, which is great when trying to order a drink. On to the most important part: What are the cocktails like? They are DELICIOUS! They pair combinations of ingredients that you never would have thought would work. They have a drink with roses; I never imagined that such a thing would taste good. It was definitely the most refreshing drink I’ve ever had. It was slightly sweet with a very fresh taste. All of their cocktails focus on the flavor of the alcohol rather than the alcoholic content. They pair all of their ingredients with that in mind, so you know you are getting a quality drink.

Very cool vibe, intimate and great bar tenders. This is a great place for an out of the way meeting in a small setting.
The drink menu is limited by our own imagination but you don’t have to worry, they can think up a drink for you.

Somersault:
Tried your fancy Jell-​O shots. Very tasty. Loved the caramel apple especially.
Didn’t love the attitude one of the bartenders gave a girl in our party when she wanted to order a simple Malibu and Coke. She was told they make fancy cocktails or something along those lines and basically shamed for ordering her Malibu and Coke. She’s a fresh 21 year old so I won’t hold it against her. And neither should you, Somersault.
Being rude to customers based on their order is not a part of your job description.

I’m from Houston, believe me I know my craft cocktails. With places like Anvil in my backyard, I understand what it takes to put into it, also with service with a smile.
We had a large group come in on Saturday night, and yes the place was fairly busy, but not crazy. Half of us went one way, the other half went the other way. I easily found a seat at the bar with a girlfriend, and we waited. and waited. and waited. and waited. They had at least 5 bartenders behind a smallish square shaped bar, and waited at least 15 minutes before we were even acknowledged. After basically us flagging down a bartender, he gave us attitude, and that’s all I needed to walk next door. A friend that was with us who works for a well known Vodka company said these are the type of bars that need Bar Rescue. It was actually a shame since the cocktail menu looked fairly solid, but bad service and not even attempting to be acknowledged is a no no. Highly doubtful I will give this place another shot when in Austin.

Had the worst experience @ Somersault last night. The worst. Total waste of time. The service was atrocious. Completely rude. Had a flight and a Violet Crown. Which mind you have a sprig of rosemary in the drink, that’s supposed to be lite on fire. They were having none of that, but didn’t try & stop me. So I lite it on fire myself. More of them having none of it. Said they didn’t want the place to smell burnt. Puf! Then don’t sell the damn drink anymore. Of course I was totally building this place up to be super legit, and my friend whom I was introducing Somersault too. will likely never return. At this point I’m totally over it. Such a let down. what a shame.

Great. Another place to get an overpriced cocktail by a guy with a terrible attitude.
Austin needs less artisan drinks and more places to get a cheap beer. Save your money and go to the Hideout.

I think this place is more flash than substance. While the idea of their main cocktails is intriguing, execution is just OK for me.
On our visit, we had the Broken Down Tibetan Mule (spin off of Moscow Mule), Whiskey Sour Sorbet and a regular margarita. The Tibetan Mule comes with a spoonful of fig jam, which didn’t really add much to the drink. Besides the jam, the drink was tasty, but nothing special. The Sour Sorbet was boozy enough but lacked the sourness for a sour drink. The margarita was on-​point.
The décor is sleek but the teal chairs feel like they should be on a patio. The menu is physically awkward (a large wooden board). Can’t I just get a paper cocktail menu?
Service was initially good for us, but no one ever came back to check if we wanted a second drink.
Most drinks were around $ 10, which is on par for a cocktail lounge.
I can’t say I’ll be a regular here, but it’s nice to have this option at the Domain.

This bar tries too hard to be innovative, but fails to deliver in my opinion. If I’m paying ~$ 14 and up for a cocktail, I expect it to be great. We ordered the specialty Jell-​O shots. They weren’t my favorite, and I was especially disappointed that is was more sweet than boozy. If you don’t like to taste alcohol, then you will love it.
The bartenders don’t seem to be as excited about their craft as other speciality cocktail bars. We ordered a couple of old-​fashioned drinks. Our drinks were made quickly, too rushed, even though the bar was empty.
I’m extra picky about my cocktails after being introduced to the book, Liquid Intelligence.

The fact that I’ve waited so long to visit Somersault Innovative Cocktails is ridiculous. On Fridays commute home I decided I wanted my most favorite things for dinner. Cocktails!
Tucked away in the hustle and bustle of The Domain, I was shocked when we arrived to an empty bar. Truth is, it was only 5:30 pm and Austin was prepping for an anticipated Ice-​mageddon. We cozied up to the bar and took in the dimly lit room. Made friends with our new favorite Austin bartender, Tim, who welcomed us to the menu, the bar and all of it’s goodies. We each enjoyed 3 different drinks, some off the menu, and braved the entire list of edibles. Calm down, it was only 4 :) Each was impressive in different ways, but what meant the most was the thought invested into every detail. We tasted molecular caviar, drinks dusted with cinnamon and gawked at the display of ingredients and infusions. This isn’t your grandpas beer joint, folks.
Needless to say, we enjoyed the divinity this place serves in a glass. All 5 stars earned!