Cold Hard Rock Cafe Shot Glass FAQ's

More than you ever wanted to know... 

Lingo:

Huh?! (What's that mean?)

Asian Yellow:

Refers to a bright yellow logo that was only printed for Asian cafes and has been discontinued.

Canadian Blue:

Refers to a blue logo that was used by Canadian cafes during the years when they weren't owned by HRC, Inc.  There is one non-Canadian location with this logo:  Beirut.

Canadian Orange and Yellow:

Refers to the orange or yellow logo that was used on some Canadian cafe shot glasses during the years when HRC, Inc. first acquired the cafes.

Event:

Refers to a shot glass that was released for a Pin or Shot Glass Event.  Check out the Event page.

Large "Cafe":

Refers to the yellow or orange logo where the word Cafe is larger than previous releases.  In some cases, the logo itself is larger.  These are different than the STP large cafe releases as these don't have STP above the logo and were released much later.  Not all cafes have had a large "cafe" logo where as some cafes released this as their first logo when the cafe opened.

Red Circle:

Refers the thick red circle around the logo, which is the newest HRC logo.  Previous HRC logos had 2 thin black lines around the logo.

STP:

Refers to shot glasses that have Save The Planet above the logo.

Bottoms Up!  (Turn the shot over)

Banawe Canada:

When the Canadian location first opened they were owned privately - not by HRC, Inc.  During that time, the shot glasses were printed by Banawe Canada.  These shot glasses had their name stamped on the bottom of the shot glass, most commonly in white but some where in red.  There were also some glasses that did not have a Banawe stamp. 

The Banawe stamp appears on Blue, Old Canadian Yellow and Montreal Gold logo shots... but not all.

Part of the challenge in collecting the Banawe Canada shot glasses is getting a quality rendition of the stamp, which is worn or scratched on many versions of the shot glass.

Further, there were HRC shots made by Banawe for a private collector long after HRC had bought the Canadian cafes and are fake - the stamp is a smaller than the originals.

Flat Bottom: 

The bottom of the shot glass is flush. 

Key Hole Bottom:  

The bottom of the shot glass has a slopping "C" shaped indent.  It may also have Taiwan embossed in the middle of it. 

Taiwan Bottom: 

The bottom of the shot glass has a slightly curved indent and most often has a Made in Taiwan or Taiwan embossed within it.

Location, Location, Location!  (Where did the shot come from?)

Original Hard Rock Shot Glasses:

Refers to shot glasses sold through a amusement park, bar, cafe, casino, hotel or museum (Vault) operated by HRC, Inc.  Locations throughout the world are either owned outright by HRC, Inc. or are a franchise location.  Either way, the locations serve almost identical menu items and/or merchandise and display all kinds of music memorabilia.  The shot glasses are genuine and there are over 2500 shot glasses to collect if all sizes, logos and variants were acquired.

Renegade Shot Glasses:

Refers to a Hard Rock Cafe location that is not owned by HRC, Inc.  Current and past locations include:  Athens, Crete, Frankfurt, Heidelberg, Mykonos, Saigon.  Renegade shots are different from fake shots as there is an actual cafe where the shot glass was obtained.  The debate on these shot glasses is that these are not real HRC, Inc. merchandise and depending on the collector, may also be considered fake.  For a list of renegade shots, check out the fake page.

Attendee Only Shot Glasses:

Special mention as attendee only shots are released to collectors attending a HRC Shot Glass Event and are made in very limited quantities.  The tradition started in 2003 when many collectors went to the Lake Tahoe cafe following the Shot Rush Event and were sold a special shot for coming out.  The shot glasses are not sold at the cafe and are normally released during the pre or post event party.  The money raised by the sale of this shot glass is donated to a local charity in the event host city.  However, the shot glass is considered fake as it isn't produced or sold by HRC, Inc.  For a list of attendee only  shots, check out the fake page.

Fake Shot Glasses:

Refers to shot glasses that were not sold through a cafe, whether renegade or owned by HRC, Inc.  Basically, these were made by private sellers such as a street vendor.  Some fakes were made for group events (attendee only), while others are purely creative, also known as fantasy shot glasses.  Unfortunately, some fake shots have been made to capitalize on the rarity of the original shot and are almost perfect replicates.  For a list of fake shots, check out the fake page.

Fantasy Shot Glasses:

Refers to shot glasses that were not sold through a cafe, whether renegade or owned by HRC, Inc.  These shots are creative in the logo design and most were from cities that did not have cafe at the time or were unlikely to get a cafe.  Most, if not all, were created by a manufacturer known as Helio.  Fantasy shots are also considered fakes but have a more favorable connotation due to their creative designs and are more widely collected.  One of the more popular shots from this series is from the Moon.  For a list of fantasy shots, check out the fake page.

Helio Shot Glasses:

Special mention as this seller manufactured a number of fake HRC shot glasses.  Some are purely fantasy locations (Kabul, Moon for instance) but others were replications of official releases.  The designs are creative and the printing is well done.  Many collections contain some or all of his shot glasses but they are officially fake.  For a list of shot glasses by this manufacturer, check out the fake page.