the writing and photography of Neil Kramer

Are Mojitos Gay?

I am writing a screenplay with another writer back in Los Angeles.  We get along well, but waste a lot of time getting into ridiculous arguments on the phone about the direction of the scenes.  The problem is that we have different word views about men, women, and relationships.  I am married.  He is not.  I have interests that could be considered “metrosexual” — like enjoying Broadway musicals.  He is more of a guy’s guy who watches sports every night.  I find many of his ideas sexist and filled with stereotypes.  What bothers me the most, is that I have a nagging feeling that his views better match that of the average American movie-goer, who is usually an idiot.

We are working on a comic scene where our two lead characters go to a bar, try to talk to two hot babes, and then get rejected for some funny reason.  He calls me with an idea:

“The two guys are talking to the hot girls, both with great tits, and everything is going well, and then the bartender brings the guys over their drinks — and it is two mojitos — and the girls look at them funny, as if they are gay, and then split.”

“What?  I don’t understand.” I ask.  “The girls with the tits LEAVE because the guys ordered mojitos?”

“Yeah, they think the drink is gay.”

“That is ridiculous.  I like mojitos.  I thought they were supposed to be trendy.  And no girl is going to leave because a guy ordered a mojito.”

“You haven’t been to the bar where I go.”

“That’s because you go to some stupid redneck bar.  Which is a little weird, considering that you are Japanese.  But our characters live in Hollywood.  They’re cool guys, like the guys in Swingers.  They would have no problem ordering mojitos in a hip bar.  And no girl would have a problem with a mojito, or think they are gay.  I’m not putting that into any script with my name on it.”

“Ok, so let’s make it like they order two of those fruity drinks with the umbrellas?”

“Like Mai Tais?”

“Exactly.”

“I like Mai Tais, too.”

“They’re pretty gay.”

“What is the matter with you?    Are you saying that if I go into a bar and order a Mai Tai, everyone around me will think I am as gay as Clay Aiken.”

“Yes.”

“That’s bullshit.”

“What do you know?  You never go to bars.”

“Well, make believe it was a Tiki bar, like Trader Vics.”

“Our scene is not in a Tiki Bar.”

“Still bullshit.  And I don’t appreciate these lame gay stereotypes.”

“Why, are you gay?”

“No, I’m not gay.”

“So, what do you care?”

“Because it is stupid.  You know, the next time I am in a bar, I’m going to order a Mai Tai just to f*ck with your mind.”

“Not with me there.”

“Are you homophobic or something?”

“No, but if I am in a bar wanting to get laid, I’m not going to give off the message “I am gay” to the girls by ordering a mai-tai.”

“So, what are you saying — that if you order a scotch, you’re sending the message, “I have a big dick.”

“Even gay guys will say a mai-tai is gay.   Ask one.”

“You want me to ask some gay guy if he thinks a mai tai is gay?  That’s insulting.   There is no such thing as a “gay” drink.  There are gays who like lemonade and gays who like Diet Coke.”

“Ask around.  Ask all the women on your blog.  I guarantee that they’re all going to say that if they went out on a date with a guy and he ordered a fruity drink with an umbrella — that something is different about this guy.”

“What if I was Hawaiian, a manly Hawaiian, but this drink reminded me of home.”

“Even Hawaiian guys don’t drink those fruity drinks with umbrellas.”

“What if I just came back from Hawaii, where I f*cked seven different girls, and I am drinking this Mai-Tai because it reminds me of how manly I was while I was there, and how I f*cked a different girl every night, and I tell this story to one of the girls, and she gets totally turned on by me drinking a fruity drink with an umbrella, because she knows it means I am a total stud.”

“Sorry.  She will still think it is gay.”

“What if after I finish the drink, I take the umbrella and stick it in my arm without showing any pain, to reveal how manly I am.”

“OK, you got me there.  Then she would f*ck you.”

“Great.  Let’s write that scene.”

Three Years Ago on Citizen of the Month:   The Funeral

83 Comments

  1. Kyran

    I think you should just go Kaufman with it, and make this dialogue the scene. Reminds me of Vince Vaughn and Jon Favre in that Vegas movie.

  2. Annika

    How the hell can a drink be gay? Does it fuck the other gay drinks? I mean, come on.

  3. Linsey

    Oh man, I love Mojitos!

    If there were a drink called a Judy Garland or a Liza Minelli, then it might be a gay drink.

  4. paintergirl

    Hey man drinks with umbrellas are the drinker’s drink. My husband and I drink mai tai’s and mojito’s all the time. We also drink beer in a bar that has a deer head in it. And let’s not forget “Werewolves of London”, and he was drinking a pina colada at Trader Vics.

    Now if they ordered 2 strawberry Daiquiri’s then we’re talking gay.

  5. always home and uncool

    Hemingway drank mojitos. Don’t think many called him gay. Least not to his drunken face.

  6. natalie

    i agree. this scene sounds perfect! i’d fit it in somewhere.

  7. V-Grrrl

    LMAO.

    Comedies are all about bending stereotypes and assumptions and making them funny. I’m with your partner on this one. I think having the guys order fruity drinks with umbrellas in them and the girls raising eyebrows at each other and walking out would be funny, but probably not as funny as this post.

  8. Avitable

    Mojitos and Mai Tais are not gay. He probably thinks guys shouldn’t go to the movies with each other, either.

    Now an appletini, on the other hand . . .

  9. sarah g

    hmm.. I think if I were on a first date, and he ordered a fruity drink… i’d be amused but would be okay. if it had an umbrella… and he didnt make ajoke about it.. then I’d be telling my friends for weeks to come, and not answering his calls. A guy who ordered just whiskey or scotch, I would return his calls either. My experience is they dont turn out like good guys.

  10. Rhea

    Get a different screenwriting partner.

  11. Marinka

    So gay. Or at least bicurious.

  12. Dagny

    Tell him there’s nothing wrong with mojitos or mai tais. The only issue that I might have is the umbrella because I stopped thinking it was cute to put an umbrella on a drink when I was about 12 or so.

  13. Chris

    I recently had dinner with my brother (who doesn’t happen to be gay) at a nice, hip hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona – The Mondrian. He ordered a mojito and I questioned it. What the hell are you doing? He said, “It’s good, and they’re IN.”

    I don’t think mojito’s are gay. But I do think when adults order a Blue Hawaiian with big chunks of fruit hanging on the side, an umbrella, and dry ice – it’s a little – unusual.

    The average American movie-goer would get the joke. I’m sure it’s frustrating to write for the lowest common denominator sometimes. That would be me.

  14. Neil

    Avitable — I never had an appletini before, but I just googled it, and it sounds pretty good. But I will drink it in the privacy of my own home.

  15. paintergirl

    You know, when you order the drinks, you never ask, “hey can I have large pieces of fruit”, that’s the crazy bartenders. I always take them out. I heard they were soaked in some terrible chemical.

  16. nancypearlwannabe

    I think if a dude stuck a mini-drink umbrella into his arm I would definitely not f*ck him.

  17. AnnieH(the other Annie)

    For this girl, it’s all about the tips. If the guy leaves a bad tip–no sex. Big bucks for an Appletini–in like Flint.

  18. SciFi Dad

    Comedy is 50% situation, 50% events.

    The question isn’t whether or not a woman on a date with a man would find his ordering a mojito questionable. It’s what TWO men having mojitos together appears to the average person. In that situation, the men would certainly appear to be gay.

  19. John

    Hahaha. Consider this angle: Guy orders Mai-Tai, then extinguishes cigarette on his tongue. Girl with great tits is confused.

  20. Memarie Lane

    Mojitos are so gay that I’ve never even had one, and I’m a girl. I also would never order a margarita without the salt, I might even be disinclined to ask for it to be “frozen” when in mixed company.

  21. Fiesty Charlie

    As one of your resident “lesbo” readers… I hate to bust your bubbles!!

    ALL and I mean A-L-L of our gay male friends, drink one thing and one thing only….

    Bud Light!

    I was a bartender for many years in DC and worked at a gay bar, called “The Circle.” We ran out of Bud Light before any other beer or drink in the place.

    Love me some stereotypes… Funny blog though!

  22. Astrogirl

    LOL Fiesty Charlie, I think I have a little bit of a girl crush on you.

    As for drinks – I’m more inclined to be impressed with a guy who orders whatever the f*ck he wants, mojito or mai tai or whisky sour or straight scotch, than one who worries about what other people will think of his drinks.

    That kind of guy, I know is secure enough in his manhood to not freak out when I take him home and f*ck him.

  23. brettdl

    Forget the whole gay issue. The gag is to — how should I say it? — cliche. Neil, you are the king of unexpected. That’s what you need here.

  24. Neil

    I think I need to drink more to become a real writer.

  25. Nedra

    I think it would be even funnier if he ordered a Shirley Temple and specified that the bartender stick an umbrella in it.

  26. Kate

    If the two guys look very metrosexual and order mai tais in a biker bar – then the joke might make sense. Otherwise it’s a stretch.

    I’m married to a man that often have takes the meathead perspective of what is gay. But he loves mojitos. I think that it’s less a matter of gayness and more a matter of sophistication and exposure to different cultures.

    Mai tais though? They’re an old lady drink.

  27. DCchick

    Neil, I laughed out loud at my desk reading this! I will never look at a mojito again (and I LOVE THEM!)

    I’m going to agree with Fiesty Charlie. I went to a gay bar in Chicago with a friend who works for Budweiser to do a promotion…. It was like moths to a flame!

  28. Danny

    I love mojitos and I’m not gay but I think your partner is right on with the original scene. Having the women leave the table because the guys ordered mojitos is way funnier than if they ordered a more obviously gay drink like a cosmopolitan. Your descriptions of your writing partner have scared me in the past but now I’m convinced that you two make a great team. I think you should trust his instincts about the demographic you are going for which I assume is more Judd Apatow than Diane English.

  29. Neil

    Danny — I am afraid the demographics may be even lower than that.

    DC Chick — I would never have guessed that Bud Lite is the beverage of choice.

    Nedra — In all my life, I have never seen or heard anyone ordering a Shirley Temple.

  30. Anissa@Hope4Peyton

    That’s a Kevin Smith dialogue if I ever heard one. I vote THAT be your scene, way funnier than big titty broads with snarky faces.

  31. Peeved Michelle

    Mojito = bisexual
    Mango mojito = gay
    Mai-tai = gay

    The reason I know this is that I caught the mango mojito banging the mai-tai while the regular mojito was having a three-way with a daiquiri and a scotch.

  32. patty

    I say skip writing the scene and find a way to use THIS dialogue instead.

  33. Arjewtino

    A mojito or mai tai can only exacerbate the drink orderer’s prevailing image.

    If a biker ordered one, it would be comical because of its inherent incongruity.

    If you or I ordered one, people would think, “Figures.”

  34. Kate

    HA! Great post, Neil.

    I like how the two options for the woman in this scene are, 1. Walk away in disgust because the guy trying to pick her up is surely gay, or 2. Fuck the guy.

    I wouldn’t judge someone’s sexuality based on the mojito, but I would judge them for ordering a drink that’s such a pain in the ass for the bartender to make. I think a savvy knowledge of bar/bartender etiquette is foxy.

  35. Neil

    Kate – there are other options? Remember, a movie is only about 90 minutes.

  36. Doug

    I agree that the dialog between you and your co-writer would make a good scene, perhaps after the hot babes have walked away after seeing your gay drinks.

  37. Neil

    Doug — It is a sad truth that the real dialogue between the movie and TV writers in Hollywood is always way more interesting than the crap they actually write.

  38. ZooKeeper

    ROFL. That is good. The dialogue should definitely be in the movie, all of it.

  39. Kate

    Kate – there are other options? Remember, a movie is only about 90 minutes.

    Well, you could do a fast montage where she carefully gets to know the guy, she writes about him extensively in her journal, talks at length about him with all her trusted girlfriends, goes then on three dates with him before making tender love to him on the beach under the stars.

    But if you want your female characters to be stereotypes, then yeah, she shouldn’t fuck a guy who orders a mojito. 😛

  40. Nat

    Do you even the comments when we get down here?

    Well, most movie-goers are stupid. That’s your answer right there… I think you’d do better with something orange or purply and very slushy — and served with plastic animals though…

  41. Ginger

    So you’re asking which drinks are gay?

    Let me consult my ex-husband, and I’ll get back to you.

  42. Kelly

    Ditto Kyran. This is the scene. Or at least this is the conversation before the girls-with-racks show up.

  43. Backpacking Dad

    The problem isn’t with whether or not the drink order is gay; the problem is that the girls leaving because they think the guys are gay is just too damned predictable. I know you’re writing for a stupid audience, but are you going Larry the Cable Guy stupid?

    You want the girls to react somehow RANDOMLY or otherwise unpredictably to shake up that moment. Not “Airplane” randomly, but something a bit out of left field. As out of left field as a couple of dudes sipping on mojitos would be.

    And mojitos are not gay, if you are drinking them WITH women. Or even by yourself. But “Hey, bra, let’s go to the bar and drink mojitos” is gay. But as I said, that’s all irrelevant.

  44. maggie, dammit

    Gay.

    (Not that there’s anything WRONG with that….)

  45. better safe than sorry

    i would never have thought that what you order for a drink would have a bearing on your sexual orientation.
    my kids always ordered shirley temples when we went out to dinner until they were about 10 or so.

  46. dan-E

    i work at a restaurant in miami and i can tell you that at least here, straight guys who order mojitos are quite common. i haven’t had anyone ask me for a mai tai in a while, though.

    that dialogue was great. it reminds of a chat i had with a friend a while ago. we were at a steakhouse waiting for a table and i ordered a beer while he ordered a cosmopolitan.

    mojitos are okay. hell, even the occasional umbrella drink is okay. but if you’re a guy that orders a bright, pink cosmo and you’re not gay, you should be.

    maybe that’s just me.

  47. Jennifer

    Two guys drinking mojitos at a bar = gay! Mai Tais are too obviously gay, I think.

  48. the slackmistress

    I can’t bother to read the other 47 comments ’cause I’m self-important like that, but two things:

    1. I once dated someone for nearly five years who everyone was convinced was gay. His desire for foofy beverages was one of the reasons.

    2. But mojitos are safe if you’re at a place that specializes in mojitos. Daquiri would be over the top. Or anything that requires a blender.

  49. patois

    I just can’t get past the line, “I have a nagging feeling that his views better match that of the average American movie-goer, who is usually an idiot.” Sorry, no help.

  50. piglet

    this is really funny. i especially love the idea of a person sticking a toothpick in their arm. i’m twisted.

  51. chantel

    Mojito’s are gay. Only men in stable relationships should order mojito’s. Even men who order Mojito’s or Mai Tai’s look gay even if they look like Jimmy Buffet. But margarita’s and males are a whole other story.

  52. headbang8

    Feisty Charlie is right.

    Gay guys drink Bud Light because they’re all weak and sensitive and can’t take a real man’s drink with hard liquor in it.

    Just remember, if a man can’t hold his liquor, it’s a sure sign he won’t lick the….oh, never mind.

  53. churlita

    I’d be a lot more willing to date a guy who ordered a Mojito than one who told me he just went to Hawaii and f*$#ed 7 women.

  54. Danny

    Is it wrong that I’m now craving a Mojito? And that it’s only 9:30 am?

    (Did I just come out on your blog?)

  55. Caron

    The women are confused. Knowing that a mojito is a borderline gay drink, dependent on other extenuating issues, they take off for the bathroom together. There, they consult “The Flow Chart of Mixed Drinks Preference as Compared to Sexual Preference.” It’ll need a better title.

  56. Miguelina

    The fact that people think mojitos are “gay” or some sort of frou-frou drink is pretty damn hilarious. I’m gonna have to invite some internet people over for a cocktail party.

    You know what’s funny? That men think that women will sleep with them based on what they’re drinking. I agree with everyone – this should be the scene. Maybe the girls overhear them and walk away.

  57. Kellie

    I don’t think mojitos are gay. My hubs orders them right along w/ me at bars and he’s a manly man. If you want a gay drink go w/ the strawberry daquiri (or really anything blended for that matter). Unless you are on a vacation in Mexico there is no excuse for anything blended.

  58. PocketCT

    Mojitos mean the guy isn’t going to have nasty beer breath. But don’t bother ordering a mojito at a bar that won’t crush fresh mint for it. Why bother.

    Mint is usually and invasive plant that gardeners won’t plant because it spreads everywhere. My every present love of that drink however means that I have to plant a new patch every year. They are refreshing without the rum and killer with!

  59. Annie

    I am with you Neil, the whole thing is stupid and if I saw that scene in a movie I would likely call the movie stupid. Stick to your guns on this one.

  60. Ari (Baking and Books)

    What a conversation! I’m with you, the whole idea doesn’t make any sense.

  61. mckay

    your scene needs to be about the two guys arguing about what to order when they are out at the bar.

    mck.

  62. Avitable

    Appletinis are most famous from Scrubs.

  63. Nedra

    I’m a little late coming back to see your reply to my comment, but can’t believe that when you were a little kid and went to a bar mitzvah or wedding you didn’t get a Shirley Temple (it’s 7-up or ginger ale with maraschino cherry juice). My kids live for Shirley Temples. My mother-in-law’s drink of choice when younger was apparently a “pink squirrel.” No idea what that was, but the thought of ordering that from a bartender cracks me up!

  64. Baroness von Bloggenschtern

    Mai Tais? SO not gay.

    Jack Lord used to drink them all the time on the set of “Hawaii 5-O”.

    Quite the ladies’ man, and could also rock the lei, if you get what I’m saying…

  65. Linsey

    Janie loves, loves, loves Shirley Temples while I prefer a Roy Rogers.

    Also, the Appletini is totally out.

  66. brettdl

    Would it be funnier if the men ordered really manly drinks — whatever the heck that means — and THAT scares off the women?

    I’ll have a double scotch everclear on the rocks in a cement tumbler with spikes sticking out of it. Oh, and light that baby.

  67. Randy

    I believe the adding dialogue between you and your friend after the maitai scene would be a hilarious way to court bizarre stereotypes people live with. Then the characters can run into one of the girls later in the story to discover the REAL truth. Good luck!

  68. Gramps

    Maybe mai tai the drink isn’t gay, but mai tai the word is totally gay.

  69. Di

    Some of my best friends have been delicious gay men however … in my worldview, you can drink whatever you like without any judgement from me, although I can’t promise any of the written rewards 😉 being married and all that.

    I love mojitos and they’re not gay in Europe … how bizarre is your screen writing buddy, just btw. Nice compromise. There … I think that’s all on this stream of conscious comment.

  70. G. Savant

    It’s a sad state that when a man begins to develop good taste he is labeled ‘gay’.

    Besides, everyone knows that the gayest drink a man can order is a “rough-butt-sex on the beach”. That’s where the bartender stirs a regular “sex on the beach” with his penis, then, when he gives it (the drink, not the penis) to the customer, the bartender blows him… a kiss.

  71. Postmodern Sass

    No wonder it’s taking you so long to finish your screenplay, sweetie. You have to learn not to sweat the small stuff. The set designers will pick the drink when the time comes. All you need to decide is whether it’s funny that the girls blow the guys off because of their choice of drink. (It is.)

  72. Christine

    Okay, if I was at a bar with a friend and we spied a couple of guys that both ordered some trendy drink, we’d roll our eyes and silently telegraph to each other stupid trend-following f*cks.

    And scout around for guys who aren’t trying to impress others that they are aware of THE new drink.

  73. followthatdog

    Mai Tais and Mojitos are not gay. I don’t even thing cocktails, despite the name, are capable of having sex. Not even straight sex…but I could be wrong.

  74. dea

    Tell your writing partner that in a bar I wouldn’t think twice about a guy drinking a mojito or a mai tai and wouldn’t reject him for it. On the other hand, I’d absolutely walk out on a guy who told me he thought another guy was “too gay” because of what he was drinking.

    I knew two uber-testoterone-fueld men who had a bet going once, and the stakes were whomever lost the bet had to loudly order a shirley temple at a bar. I saw the order happen. So apparently that is considered a humiliating drink to order by manly men. It’s also not really a “drink” because there is no alcohol in it.

    I agree that the dialogue as is would make great movie dialogue, if they were just contemplating making a move before the girls even see them.

    Also potentially funny would be the men trying to be macho enough to attract women down the bar and ordering a big manly scotch or something hoping the women will notice and having the butch lesbian bartender loudly shout to the bartender down the way “two scotches for the overcompensating closet gays.”

    Or getting rejected by two gay guys when they weren’t even hitting on them.

  75. dea

    that is, being rejected by gay guys as being “too gay.”

  76. Whit

    I see my Hemingway point has been made. If Hemingway drank it then it is only slightly less manly than pure testosterone.

    Mojitos are for men that appreciate leisure.

  77. Whit

    Oh, and if you want a gay drink, you’ve got to go with a white wine spritzer.

  78. kris

    Wait . . . are you sure you aren’t married to this guy?

  79. RJLigier

    Hemingway was gay with children. Like Brian says, “I do not think mojitos are gay. MO-JI-TO.”

  80. Julia

    Mojitos are snobbish and pretentious. Maybe even gay! 😉

  81. Old man

    I “innocently” ordered a Mojito for lunch on my birthday. You do realize that a Mojito it nothing more than a white rum version of a mint julep, with lime?? Does that make you gay? If this gets out, a lot of Kentucky land owners who own prized horses are going to shoot themselves.

  82. Will

    Mojitos are not a gay drink – just don’t get one with an umbrella. Its a summer drink for those in temperate climes and a year ’rounder for those who live, like me, in the tropics. Try walking into a bar in Cuba and telling everyone that a Mojito is a gay drink….

    On a side note, I prefer mine with a dark rum, lime, mint, soda water and almost no sugar syrup, drier the better.

  83. bgood429

    That conversation I just read was hilarious. You should remake the scene about the two guys fighting over whether or not their drink order is gay. That’s funnier.

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