By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Nightlife Editor
I first I heard of the Giggling Marlin bar at a house party in Manhattan Beach, CA. One of the hosts had made a batch of a concoction called the Skip And Go Naked. Loving the name, I asked him where he got it from and he said, “the Giggling Marlin in Cabo. It’s the bar’s signature drink!”
Eventually, I make it there myself, had a few Skp And Go Naked drinks – never daring to ask what was in them – got tied upside down on the marlin scale and fully experienced one of the iconic and “go to” bars in Cabo San Lucas. The Cabo San Lucas bar “routine” was to go to The Office, then the Giggling Marlin and then onto Squid Roe.
So it is with much disappointment that I must report that the Giggling Marlin was destroyed by a fire in June. Reports from Cabo are that it is a complete loss. Opened in 1984 it was the first bar in the marina area and quickly caught on as a hangout for locals and a party destination for tourists.
That’s because it was more than a bar. It was a fun bar. Being lifted upside-down on a marlin scale – something the ever-observant crew from Sharkeez in Manhattan Beach implemented in that iconic bar – was just a part of it. So was having a drink called the Skip And go Naked; how could you NOT have it with that name!? It also had this on a sign: “If our food, drinks and service aren’t up to your standards, please lower your standards.”
That’s my kind of bar!
When I heard the news, I went on the Giggling Marlin’s website, expecting to see some type of “we’re coming back strong” message, but all I saw was a regular page. Perhaps owner Goya was too distraught to change it and wanted to leave it as is, tho it would have been nice to see the fire mentioned somewhere on it.
Still, I am fortunate to have been to this legendary bar.