Franklin Bar’s Upstairs Will Become a Mezcal Bar and Cantina

Upstairs Tiki | Facebook

Franklin Bar’s second-floor tiki spot is getting a conceptual revamp. Upstairs Tiki, which took up residence above the Rittenhouse cocktail bar in 2017, will close after service this Saturday, June 29th. After a quick refresh, it’ll reopen as Encima, a mezcal bar with a cantina-style Mexican menu, on Friday, July 5th. Franklin Bar will continue to operate as usual.

Upstairs Tiki isn’t so much closing as it is heading south of the border, Franklin co-owner Jason Elliott told Foobooz. His business partners in Guadalajara are reopening the concept there this summer as a 200-seat tiki bar. The space above that? It’ll become a second Franklin Bar later this year.

Those partners in Mexico designed the menus at Encima (the name means “on top of” in Spanish). “The food we are serving is authentic versions of things you would find in local cantinas, street food carts and peoples’ kitchens,” said Elliot. “It’s simple and fresh.”

Look forward to a mezcal-focused drinks menu at Encima — and, for the first time in the space above the Franklin, food. Think cantina fare like tacos, guacamole, and eventually tamales (the opening menu below is about a third of what they’ll eventually offer). They’re also planning a mezcal education series, with producer visits, tastings, and workshops through summer.

Encima is located on the second floor of the Franklin Bar at 112 South 18th Street. To start, hours will be Wednesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. until 1:30 a.m., with a daily happy hour from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. and the kitchen open ’til close. They’ll add Monday and Tuesday service soon. Check out the opening food menu below.

Botanas

Mexican Fruit Cup
Watermelon, jicama and cucumber with fresh lime juice, salt, chili

Chili Lime Peanuts
Peanuts, chili, lime

Papas Con Salsa
Potato chips served with lime wedges and hot sauce

Elote Corn
Fresh corn, cotija cheese, crema, butter and chili powder, served off the cob

Tostada
With spicy pickled vegetables and crema

Chips and Salsa
With salsa fresca and salsa verde

Guacamoles

Plain with just lime, salt and olive oil

With salsa fresca

With chicharron and cotija cheese

With fried hibiscus

With a little bit of all three

Tacos

Avocado, lime and salt

Chicharron and panela cheese

Chorizo and potato

Deja De Sufrir

Guadalajara Dog
Bacon-wrapped hot dog with salsa fresca, crema, lime mayonnaise and panela cheese

Sonoran Dog
Bacon-wrapped hot dog with pinto beans, salsa fresca, crema, lime mayonnaise and avocado