🧟‍♂️ The Spread — A Maple Pancake Cocktail Inspired by The Last of Us - Spoilers Ahead

The Spread

Pour one out for Joel.

Let’s be honest — by post-apocalyptic standards, the man lived a long life. So I made a drink to mark his very first near miss… the meal he didn’t eat.

This cocktail is inspired by the pancakes not had — the quiet little moment in Episode 1 that ended up meaning everything. No breakfast. No infection. Just impending doom.

🍞 Flour? In this economy?

I gotta admit: if I were in The Last of Us, I’d be infected by 10 a.m. There’s no surviving a world where I can’t have flour-based carbs. I’m a goner the minute someone offers a croissant.

So to celebrate the return of The Last of Us Season 2, we’re raising a glass to the pancakes not eaten — with a cocktail we call:

🍄 The Spread – Maple Pancake Cocktail with Mushroom Syrup

A cozy, bourbon-forward tribute to the end of the world.

🧪 Ingredients:

• 2 oz Bourbon (Four Roses, Jack Daniel’s)

• 1 oz Real maple syrup

• ½ oz Lemon juice

• ¼ oz mushroom-inspired syrup — we used a maple + cinnamon simple syrup for easy prep, but if you're feeling bold, infuse it with mushroom tea for apocalypse-level accuracy

• 2 dashes cinnamon

• Optional: Splash of oat milk or cream for richness

• Garnish: Mini pancakes

🧃 Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice.

2. Shake like you’re trying to outrun a clicker.

3. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice.

4. Garnish with mini pancakes.

5. Drink. Reflect. Try to watch golf again.

Final Thought:

Joel may have missed the pancakes — but you don’t have to miss the cocktail.

The Spread is sweet, slightly unhinged, and perfect for your next Last of Us rewatch, season premiere, or mild existential crisis while Ellie makes increasingly questionable choices.

But hey — we’ll save those hot takes for another blog.