6-year-old ‘Shirley Temple King’ goes viral for adorable drink reviews

Alan Bernal

Young Instagramer Leo Kelly, better known as ‘theshirleytempleking,’ is going viral for some of the most adorable but honest reviews of his namesake, the Shirley Temple.

The simple drink that combines grenadine, Ginger Ale or lemon-lime soda, ice, and Maraschino cherries isn’t always as straightforward as it seems. In fact, according to the Shirley Temple King, there’s a ton of factors that can easily break a Shirly Temple’s claim to fame.

From the perfect ratio of grenadine used to not enough cherries in the cocktail, there’s a lot that can go wrong for a mixture – and don’t even get him started about using plastic cups.

Shirley Temple cherry cocktail
A lot can go wrong with a Shirley Temple, and the King will certainly spot it if it does.

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But the 6-year-old Instagram reviewer obviously caught onto something great, with a following of less than 600 as of January 27 to over 26,000 just a day later.

The premise of his account is simple, he goes around “rating Shirley Temples (non-alcoholic duhh) across all sorts of establishments,” according to his Instagram bio.

It seems like Kelly has his method of review down: take a look at the Shirley Temple in front of him, take a single sip, and off to calculate its place on a 10-point scale – 10 being the highest rating.

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He told CTbites that the perfect Shirley Temple consists of “a glass, 3 cherries, and a good balance of grenadine.”

His Instagram followers are treated to his pursuit of finding the perfect sip from restaurants or resorts in his local Connecticut area and beyond. And he doesn’t hold back either.

“That just tastes like cherry-flavored Ginger Ale,” he said in his August 26 review for the Friendly’s chain. “That doesn’t even taste like a Shirley Temple, it tastes like a cherry-flavored Ginger Ale.”

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But the man can be pleased.

“That is so good I’m going to give that a 10,” he said in a December 16 review for Lotte New York Palace’s mix. “Because A, I never get to have these gourmet cups; B, there’s so much cherries; and C, it’s so good.”

Kelly is making major headway on the Instagram social ladder, and his keen sense of taste might have restaurants improving their cocktail in case they get a visit from The Shirley Temple King.

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About The Author

Alan is a former staff writer for Dexerto based in Southern California who covered esports, internet culture, and the broader games/streaming industry. He is a CSUF Alum with a B.A. in Journalism. He's reported on sports medicine, emerging technology, and local community issues. Got a tip or want to talk?