The Haunting’s official 2026 promotional cocktail photograph. Supplied campaign image; not photographed at Strandhill Public.
Image: Miracle Cocktails / PR Newswire · Image source · Usage rights
A drink named Poison Apple could easily coast on its name. The Haunting’s version puts apple brandy beside rye, sherry and miso. That ingredient list is a better introduction to the Halloween pop-up arriving at Strandhill Public in Tampa Heights than a photograph of a novelty mug.
The Haunting runs at Strandhill from October 1 through November 1, according to its official location directory. Its appeal rests on two different things: the spectacle that gets a group through the door, and a cocktail menu with enough detail to help each person choose a drink.
The Haunting borrows a proven holiday format
Miracle Cocktails Inc., the company behind Miracle and Sippin’ Santa, announced the new concept in August. Its launch release names vice president Joann Spiegel as the menu’s creator and describes collectible glassware, Halloween decorations and spirit-free drinks. Miracle began in 2014; the company says its seasonal concepts have reached more than 300 bars worldwide.
For a participating bar, that supplies a recognizable seasonal identity. For a guest, it creates an occasion to visit a familiar room again. The useful question comes after the decorations: which drink would you order if the glass were ordinary?
Read the ingredients before choosing the mug
Melissa Dowling’s October 1 menu report for Beverage Information Group gives the drinks substance beyond their horror names. Poison Apple combines calvados, bonded rye and fino sherry with bitter apple and miso. Its published recipe is stirred and served over a large ice cube, a useful distinction for someone choosing between a short drink and a longer, citrus-led order.
Scream-sicle follows another route: blanco tequila, spiced vanilla liqueur, carrot-orange cordial, habanero and lemon. Liquid Lobotomy uses rum, falernum, pumpkin-spiced pineapple and lime. Those descriptions give a tequila drinker and a rum drinker separate starting points; neither needs to guess from the name alone.
Clown Pear-anoia pairs mezcal with pear, fennel, yogurt and lemon. The spirit-free Hollow Threat also uses pear, fennel and yogurt, with white verjus. A guest avoiding spirits therefore has a named cocktail to ask about. Anyone avoiding dairy should ask about the yogurt before ordering either drink.
These are the announced recipes, rather than a tasting verdict. The menu can guide an order, but it cannot tell you which drink you will like most. Tell the bartender the spirit you usually choose, how you feel about heat or sweetness, and any ingredients you need to avoid.
Plan for the Tampa location
The official directory lists Strandhill’s pop-up hours as 11 a.m. to 3 a.m. daily, with reservations through Resy. Each partner manages its own bookings, and the organizers warn that hours can change for holidays or private parties. Use Strandhill’s Tampa Heights page when arranging the visit; the brand’s national schedule does not replace the local listing.
A reservation also gives a group a reason to settle the practical details early: party size, arrival time and who wants a spirit-free drink. For a daytime Halloween outing elsewhere in the bay, Halloween on Central runs in St. Pete on October 25.
At Strandhill, start with the ingredient list. The glassware can be the souvenir; the drink still has to be the order you wanted.
