Cruzan Rum Bar

They say make lemonade out of lemons and this Delta wing is just a pile of lemons. Since this is the only bar, there’s no lemonade here, just a reliance on foot traffic.
The menu is pitiful.
There’s no drink menu printed.
Whatever it’s has booze and that’s the only thing it has going for it. Congratulations.

I like to catch a quick drink here before I catch my flight. No other options really

I read the reviews and saw they had food. I ordered a cubano. No cubano. I asked if they made pina coladas (since this is Florida). No mixed drinks. Grrrrrrrrrreat. I guess I’ll take my Dramamine with my wine.

Having our flight canceled in Miami, we headed to Ft. Lauderdale for our flight home to Chicago. Got to the airport a bit early, with time for one drink before our flight was to leave. Got a much coveted table for 4 quite by accident — right place, right time — and proceeded to order 4 glasses of wine for my friends and I. Uh oh, got the text about a delay. Wine was kind of cruddy, time to move onto the Grey Goose. Turns out the bartender is cool, giving very nice pours. I’m not going to say this place is cheap. It’s not, and you’re in an airport.
All in all, 7 hours later, we finally did get on the plane. Yes, we were drunk, but thanks to Cruzan, it was a fun relaxing delay!

this is the place in terminal 3 at ft lauderdale airport — it seems to be named cruzan bar & barbecue now & it most definitely serves food! the bbq sauce is delicious & i’d love the recipe. does anyone know it? we had the bbq chicken sw & beer — yum!
only prob is that some people take over the table & don’t leave — & it needs much better bussing — lots of usd bottles cluttering the place. still. it’s worth it for the food.

Seriously? Love the laws in some states allowing bars to be open and serving liquor during typical breakfast hours. A godsend. Once I accepted the concept of people imbibing at such an early hour, it was easier to just go with the flow here. The bartender was polite, funny and efficient but then I only stayed for a a short while. Typical bar at an airport: overpriced for what you get. It’s that captive audience thing, I guess. Add that to the lack of bartender discretion for the (regulated) liquor pour size, and you’ve got a time-​filler but a money waster.

This place is located right in the heart of beautiful Frt. Lauderdale Florida. You can run into such people as:
The Twice Divorced Wife
The Business Man/​Woman
The Screaming Child
The Guy You Don’t Want To Be On Your Plane
I was screwed over by Southwest and decided to get my DRANK on. I ordered two Apple Martini’s and chugged the first one. I then tossed the Second back all while munching on a Granny Smith apple.

I think I’ve determined I judge airports based on the ratio of fast food outlets to bars. If it’s less than 1:1, I don’t like that airport.
Ft. Lauderdale Airport (at least the end of it near my gate) seemed like 5:1. I was getting pretty damn grumpy when I finally found this place.
My grumpiness was not helped by the lack of seating. Apparently, some cruise had just returned and a fair number of its passengers decided to invade an airport bar with their children, take up a crap load of space and NOT drink.
I guess that’s not really the bars fault, but it sure doesn’t make me any less grumpier.
So I awkwardly try to order between two people at the bar, and the bartender goes to make my drink. But he does this funny thing, where he first slips the bottle through a ring attached to a wire.
Oh shit.
You’ve got to be kidding me. They have a pour monitor. An electronic top on all the bottles that keeps track of (or even controls) the amount of booze they put into a drink.
There are few things I consider sacred in this world, but bartender’s prerogative has got to be one of them. I’d like to think of bartending as a noble profession. Skilled practitioners who manage a finite domain. And one of their chief feedback mechanisms is the strength of your drink. Take that away, and the delicate bar ecosystem begins to break down. Why should I even tip, if Johnny Five over there has decided we are identical consumers. How long before the bartender IS a robot?
My cocktail was weak, so I switched to beer. Great. I’d be peeing a lot on this flight.
Things improved later. Finally finagled a seat at the bar, had a chatty guy next to me and another bartender appeared. This one had some lightning in her shoes, I never lacked anything for very long under her care.
Overall, a mediocre airport bar. Pour monitor, no one trying to up-​sell me shots. .. is this bar owned by Disney or something? I was going to go 2 stars, but that last bartender salvaged a positive rating. They should promote her, maybe even give her «real pour» privileges.
**For all I know, I am speaking of the same bartender as Kathleen. My receipt says «Mary», which could be short for Maria.

After a harrowing experience going through security– my 65 year old lady friend was practically strip searched– we were grateful to collapse at the Cruzan Bar. Our server Maria Di Benedetto couldn’t have been nicer. She was a professional server with the kind of personality that makes you feel like you’re with a friend. She calmed us down and we had some laughs about certain Illinois politicians. We were able to get some snacks from the little café that is adjacent to the bar and had our own little wine and cheese party. Delightful!