DAWSON CITY, Yukon — A bar in Canada is furious over the theft of the establishment's iconic severed human toe.
The Downtown Hotel bar’s famous 'Sourtoe Cocktail’ involves drinking a shot of your choice of alcohol that has been poured over the toe.
The rule is, the drinker must finish the beverage and have the toe touch their lips.
How did this footy cocktail come to be? It all started during probition, with a case of frostbite.
The tradition allegedly began in the 1920s, when a rum runner put his foot through a patch of ice. Upon returning to his cabin, right foot was frozen solid.
To prevent gangrene, the man's brother used an axe to chop off a toe and place it in a jar of alcohol.
According to legend, in 1973, Captain Dick Stevenson found the jar (and the toe) in a remote cabin and started the Sourtoe Cocktail Club.
"We are furious," said the hotel's 'Toe Captain' Terry Lee told CBC News on Monday. "Toes are very hard to come by."
The hotel says it will be press charges “unless the toe is returned safe."
"Stunts like this adversely affect the whole community, not just the Downtown Hotel. We fortunately have a couple of backup toes, but we really need this one back," said Lee.
According to CBC News, more than eight toes have gone missing or been stolen or destroyed over the years, although a new replacement has been found every time.
The bar charges a $2,500 fee for customers who "accidentally" swallow the toe, this rule established after an incident when an American customer known only as 'Josh from New Orleans' chugged his entire 'Sourtoe Cocktail,’ toe included, and was given a $500 fine.
Oh, and if you’re wondering how the heck a toe ever ended up in a drink to begin with, here's the story on the legend.