From Brunch to Bucket List
BY JENNIFER PRIMROSE | PHOTOS BY JESSICA BRATTON
In Holly Springs, something wildly unexpected has been happening, and we had to get to the bottom of it—a bloody mary revolution!
Enter Joshua Self, proprietor and manager at The Blind Pelican, who, alongside assistant bar manager Brianna Scott, has been turning heads with the restaurant’s classic bloody mary—piled high with bacon-wrapped scallops, lobster tails, grilled cheese sandwiches, filet mignon or whatever you might find on their current menu. What started as a necessity during the pandemic has now grown into one of the Triangle’s most viral culinary experiences.
“We originally started with a beach theme,” Self says, recounting the restaurant’s early days. “We had a couple of mojitos on the menu, and then Covid hit—and things went south fast. The place was like a ghost town. We had to figure out something else to do.”
That something else became a bloody mary menu unlike anything else in the region. First came bacon and shrimp. Then grilled cheese sandwiches. Then, one night during service, a lobster tail. “I was working the bar and just building them one after another like a conveyor belt,” Self remembers. “Then someone shouted from the kitchen that we were out of lobster tails and said to throw some crab legs on. I put it together—totally backward—and when I set it on the bar, people stood up from their tables to take pictures. That’s when I knew we were onto something.”
The drink went from creative to outrageous. A staff contest was held to see who could be the first to sell a bloody mary with a filet mignon. They’ve since included raw oysters, shrimp skewers, even side dishes. And now? Guests can add just about anything. “We’ve done everything from simple waters and mocktails for the kids to smoked old-fashioneds with food pairings,” says Scott.
The evolution has turned the bloody mary into a blank canvas. Patrons customize them with a full food menu—everything from okra to lobster claws. The highest tab to date? A jaw-dropping $2,122. “People come in and say, ‘I want to spend $2,000—just surprise me,’ and we do,” Self says with a smile.
It’s more than just the toppings. The house-made bloody mary mix is a secret blend of 17 ingredients, spicy and bold enough to stand on its own. “You can tone it down with Clamato or pickle juice, but most people want the full kick,” says Scott.
In 2022, their concoction earned the title of Best Bloody Mary from The Indy’s Best of the Triangle awards—a win so commanding that the category was removed the following year. “We would’ve won it every time,” Self jokes.
But their creativity doesn’t stop with tomato juice. The Blind Pelican was initially conceived as a bourbon bar, and the cocktail menu reflects that DNA. Take their signature old-fashioned: made with Woodford Reserve bourbon, cinnamon bitters and house-made orange simple syrup, smoked on a cedar plank and finished with a charred orange zest. “We age our own cherries in a bourbon molasses combo—usually for 60 to 90 days,” Self adds.
The drinks have become a performance piece. “It’s like a show,” Scott says. “People gather around to watch. It’s not just a drink—it’s an event.” And then, as if scripted by fate, a visitor from Maryland walked in during the interview, unknowingly reinforcing the story being told. Her timing was serendipitous.
Nicole Brooks, a visitor from Eldersburg, Maryland, had just driven over 300 miles after seeing the restaurant’s bloody mary on her Facebook feed. “I was scrolling and saw this insane bloody mary with a lobster tail on it,” she said, laughing. “I told myself, ‘I need one of those in my life.’ I was on vacation anyway, and I have some friends in the area, so I just decided to come down.”
When asked if she had already ordered, Brooks admitted she was still studying the menu. “I’m leaning toward The Kraken,” she said. “But I also heard I can build my own old-fashioned. So I might need to do both. I just need to make sure I can still drive afterward.”
“We’ve had visitors from over 30 countries,” says Scott. “Germany. Australia … It’s gotten to the point where we had to start writing in names of countries around the borders of our U.S. map on the wall.” For many, it’s more than just brunch—it’s a pilgrimage.
Self recalls one guest in particular. “He showed up in full Tennessee orange and said, ‘I’m going to take up your bar all day, but I’ll make it right in the end.’ He was drinking, buying rounds for strangers, asking for pictures with the staff. And then he took his shirt off, pointed to our merch wall and said, ‘I want one of those shirts!’ Turns out, he was dying of cancer. This was part of his bucket list—he just wanted to come here, sit at the bar and watch us build bloody marys. His wife sat patiently next to him the whole time, letting him enjoy it. That’s when it hit me—what we’re doing here actually matters to people.”
Not every story is as heavy. Scott recalls the day she built her record-breaking $2,050 bloody mary. “It was this group at a community table, and one guy said, ‘I just want something big.’ He didn’t even like bloody marys. I convinced him to go for it and we started adding more and more items. By the time we wheeled it out, the entire restaurant was watching, cheering and taking pictures. It felt like this communal moment—people from different states, maybe countries, all bonding over this crazy drink.”
Building one of these monsters takes time—up to 25 minutes depending on the complexity. The restaurant has even reorganized its kitchen and bar to function like a conveyor belt. A dedicated bloody mary bartender comes in each weekend to keep the process flowing. “This is all we do,” says Self. “We’ve trained our staff specifically for it. We had to shut down for a couple of days and retrain everyone when we realized how big this was getting.”
The kitchen team prepares the ingredients, but it’s the bartenders who assemble these masterpieces right at the bar—often on a stage in full view of the dining room. “It’s become a part of the restaurant’s identity,” Self adds. “We’ve designed the whole service model around it.”
But don’t forget the food. The Blind Pelican is also a full-service seafood restaurant, offering dishes such as lobster and shrimp, cavatappi pasta and Cajun grilled mahi-mahi. Chef Tyren Parker, with over 25 years of experience, helms the kitchen. And weekly specials—like Taco Tuesday and Lobsta’ Night—keep the menu fresh and approachable.
As the drinks go viral and the flags on the wall continue to grow, Self and Scott remain focused on one thing: making people feel welcome.
“Whether you’re from down the street or across the globe,” Scott says, “we want you to leave here with a story.”
