Is there a building more iconic in television or film than the Nakatomi Plaza? If there is, I haven’t heard of it. Die Hard, the Bruce Willis/Alan Rickman 1988 action film—and yes, holiday classic—ranks high in my heart as one of the best films ever made. Imagine my surprise when I found out Michigan stalwarts Madcap Coffee are paying tribute with a signature drink that is as explosive and spectacular as the film itself.
Film buff Chris Bernstorf, manager of the Madcap Coffee Parker’s Alley Cafe, helped the drink come to life. “I’m a big fan of Die Hard. I also love how Jake Peralta in Brooklyn Nine-Nine and seemingly everyone else on the planet loves Die Hard,” Bernstorf tells us. “I enjoy good pop culture references and solving drink puzzles, so figuring out how to recreate the iconic rooftop explosion scene in drink form without alcohol felt like a great creative challenge. I spent a lot of time on the steam wand thinking through how we could capture the scene and how many references we could thoughtfully build into the drink.”
“I created it with my boss, Trevor Corlett. The concept and general build were my pitch, and Trevor helped bring it home with a fantastic syrup made with warming spices and a crushed maple candy garnish. Our coworker Rachael realized the garnish also nods to the moment when John McClane walks across the broken glass—the references run deep on this one.”
We spoke with Chris Bernstorf to learn more.
Are there any unique or locally sourced ingredients used in this drink?
We use a custom rice paper disc from Signature Drink Labs to create our mini rooftop explosion. Pege from SDL was incredible to work with. I was familiar with rice paper from burn-away cakes, but I hadn’t worked with it myself. She gave me a call, walked me through the basics, and helped set us up with the right thickness to achieve the effect we wanted. The disc reads “Yippee Ki-Yay” with a ring of our Madcap lighting bolts around it. I like to say a little “Yippee Ki-Yay y’all” as I light it.
How did you work to balance the flavors and create the perfect taste profile?
The syrup is really the star. As much as I love a fun presentation and pop culture references, the drink has to be delicious on its own. I’ve been excited to see how many people have connected with the spice profile. Our Detroit location has limited seating and sits right downtown, so a lot of our business is grab-and-go. Many guests order Nakatomi just as a drink and don’t realize it’s served on fire when ordered here—they simply love the flavor. The syrup is made with demerara sugar, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and anise, creating something familiar and approachable while still layered and complex.
What kind of coffee is used in this drink?
A double shot of our espresso blend, Eureka.
Does this drink work as both hot and iced? Did that influence the recipe?
It works beautifully both ways. We skip the maple candy on the iced version so it doesn’t harden too much, but otherwise the build is nearly identical. We didn’t need to change the recipe to make it work iced.
Would you recommend any food pairings to go along with it?
Die Hard–obligatory Twinkie aside, it pairs nicely with most fall or winter pastries.
What are people saying about it?
It’s connected with people exactly the way we hoped! Die Hard fans love spotting the references, the shape of the glass, the maple candy, the Yippee Ki-Yay disc and explaining them to their friends. We’ve also had near-universal agreement that Die Hard is, in fact, a Christmas movie.
The flavor has been a big hit too, especially the warm spice profile. But the presentation is what really gets people excited. Tossing a bit of cinnamon onto the flame to create the rooftop explosion moment always gets a reaction. People are constantly filming it, and many say they’ve never seen a coffee drink served on fire! Especially one this dramatic.
It’s been incredibly fun to serve and connect over. Nakatomi Plaza feels like an approachable way into specialty coffee. A familiar spice profile, a playful pop culture reference, and a lot of craft and intention behind the scenes.
Thank you!
The Nakatomi Plaza is available at Madcap Coffee locations until April 20, 2026.
On The Menu is an original feature series on Sprudge curated by Zachary Carlsen, and presented by DONA Teas & Tisanes. Read more On The Menu features here.
