Cafe Fables & Bar Stories

For full review and photos, please visit http://shirlynnyang.blogspot.com/2012/05/thousand-tales.html

Nice and quiet place for a drink but comes with a price. The catch of this place is that drinks are customized to suit your personal taste. If you love alcoholic drinks, this place is worth trying!

For full review, visit wanderlustannamolly. 

It’s no secret that I’m addicted to Bar Stories and with good reason too – good banter, tinkling laughs topped with cocktails fixed to your crave. Find me another place that can afford that level of personalised service or I’m not moving. Period.

On my first encounter, we were seated on couches by the window and I was expecting a menu of some sort listing available ingredients for selection. Refreshingly, no menu was produced and instead I was queried on my taste preferences to which I shared – sweet, refreshing, hint of mint and Jeremy, declared the Black Forest Mojito the first drink of the night for me. I’m not used to not knowing what to expect and was a little peeved when I tried to request for a drink that was more out-of-this world only to be put in place by Jeremy with a simple ‘The drink will surprise you enough.’ So I resigned myself to the order and allowed the eyes to roam before the first sip..

.. and Jeremy was right. The refreshing burst of berry flavors with the cool of mint leaves danced in my mouth and I was in ecstasy. The sorbet provided a sour twist of coolness on the tongue and I was thrilled till the very last sip. Fortunately, we managed to get our seats ‘upgraded’ to bar side and I would recommend for everyone who visits Bar Stories for the very first time [and subsequently as well] to always sit by the bar. Full access to bar side entertainment, drink creation and even the occasional test taste of concoctions. It be sheer delight.

The second drink I had that night was a specific request for something with cucumber and a refreshing twist. Lead bartender/ mixologist, Jeff, fixed me a Cucumber Saketini of sorts that included the following ingredients – crushed cucumber, sake, galangal and lemon. It did not live up to what my palette was craving but I give him full credit for creating a drink in mere minutes from my ridiculous request. Call me a snob, but I do believe that same drink would have tasted better if he had used Japanese cucumbers instead of our regular species of cucumbers which lacks that certain level of freshness and flavour.

On my next visit, I sat myself right at the bar counter and challenged Big Zach to give me a drink to pick-me up, specifically, a recreation of liquid toasted marshmallow. I saw him register the challenge, I felt myself place faith in his skills and on a delightful journey he brought me on. Watching him create the drink was as fulfilling as tasting it, indeed the journey is as rewarding as the end result. There were points I thought to myself this is not going to work out as he pulled out cream and milk which were products I shy away from every single day of my life but in his hands, magic. After layering the flavors in a glass to create the body of the drink, he frothed a good amount of milk and gently topped the glass with it before flambéing the concoction before me. You know that feeling of warm love, of contentment and satisfaction? I experienced all of that in that one glass.

That same night, I was blown away by another of Big Zach’s creation. I was going to go down the regular route after being satisfied with the Toasted Marshmallow Flambé with aKyoho Grape Martini but Big Zach challenged me back with a taunt. Why go for something regular? Licking my lips, trying to make sense of what my palette craved, I was struggling to come up with words/ ingredients to guide Big Zach on the next creation and so I said – ‘Go crazy, create me something you think I’d like.’ Silence. A serious look crossed his face and again, ingredients flew. It was a blur, I didn’t quite manage to register all the ingredients but I noted rose syrup [another ingredient I absolutely loathe], organic apple juice and topped with saffron. Viola, he placed the drink before me and declared it The Lover. I smiled, took a sip, felt my smile grow wider as I savored the nuances and notes of the different ingredients. Sheer genius this one, sheer genius the creator, sheer genius the place.

Since then, I’ve been back numerous number of times, each time with different folks as I shared my excitement at discovering this gem of a place. Bar Stories brought out the alcoholic in me, so much so I returned there 3 nights in the same week. I did tone it down and my most recent visit on Saturday reminded me of the simple joys this place brings me.

Turning up on a Saturday is never wise and I was glad Jeff opened the space downstairs, belonging to A Thousand Tales to accommodate us. Settling ourselves at the counter, I declared my want for something sour and refreshing and Jeff declared a Mai Tai [pictured above] to start. Jeff then proceeded to recommend the Mangosteen Martini [pictured below] for my pal as the fruit was in season. What bummed me was that I couldn’t watch them create that Mangosteen drink. Nevertheless we were off to a good start.

We tackled our next drinks with flourish. Anything with Pimms for the pal and a cocktail of gooseberries and passionfruit [pictured below] for me. By then, we were a good way intoxicated and I was itching to get bar side.

Patience paid off and Jeff arrived triumphantly announcing we’ve been upgraded bar side and I trooped on in glee. Seated, we picked up the pace with an order of Kyoho Grape Martini each and that sweetness, well, it’s unrivaled.

Whilst polishing off our martini’s, we spied a concoction of strawberries and frangelico in the mix and our curiosity was piqued. A quick query and we learnt that the drink in progress was a dessert in a glass – Strawberry Shortcake and an order was placed. I must say, these guys are good at recreating desserts in a glass. Now the question I have is, which do you think holds lesser calories? – The actual dessert or the liquid recreation? Any case, be sure to give the strawberry shortcake a shot.

Having craved that Toasted Marshamallow Flambé for a week-ish now, I was not going to be denied the drink and signalled to Big Zach for two orders of that wondrous creation that lifted me on that dark day. Unfortunately, recreation is not one of his fortes and that spirit of inspiration was amiss that night. Nevertheless, I am confident that that magic touch will return.

We rounded off on a good note though. Despite being on break, Big Zach went back behind the bar to create a Jam Donut Shot and I urge you to give it a whirl if you’re seeking something sweet. I do have a person in mind who I know will fall head over heels in love with this shot.

Oh and if you’re looking for some chow to keep the alcohol at bay, don’t fret. Bar Stories serves up a simple menu of bar foods and even desserts to keep the hunger pangs at bay.

So you see, I’m addicted. While the concept of bespoke cocktails is definitely not new but the experience is rare on this little red dot of ours. I’ve since learnt that there’s another establishment along Telok Ayer that serves bespoke cocktails but till I visit, Bar Storieswill remain a staple for me. And oh! What makes Bar Stories unique? The place is kitted out with designer pieces and you can purchase any of the furniture there or below, at the A Thousand Tales furniture store to take a piece of the pleasure home with you.

PS. As the boys chime, I repeat, ‘Please avoid Fridays and Saturdays!’

Seriously? this place is still open?

1st I get told what to order by the pretentious waiter. My wife wants a Mojito... "so you like something refreshing and sour"... no, She wants a Mojito! don't be a smart-a**. "We'll serve you something 'like' a mojito".

My friend wanted a Gin and Tonic? No. "we don't serve that, we'll serve you something you will like." so he gets a potted plant in a glass with some alcohol around it. a massive rosemary bush stuck in a glass floating in some ungodly mix. Even the waitress serving it was embarrassed. Who put rosemary in a drink??? it only needed a rack of lamb to go along, and it would have been perfect.

Then I ask for a simple Jack daniel's and soda.. "so you want something stiff and..."... lost for words? no, I want a Jack and Soda! "we only serve cocktails". what do you call a mix of 2 drinks? you serve other mixes of 2 drinks, don't you?

No, "i'll make you something stiff". Great startto a night, I'm forced to drink something I'm not going to like... and guess what? No, I didn't like the uber sweet bourbon Manhattan served in a martini glass with a silly piece of orange peel in it!

A complete miss! you want to be a pretentious "mixologist"? then know your craft and your flavors. a jack and soda is light and NOT sweet. a bourbon manhattan is an extremely strong and extremely sweet drink and should be served on ice in an old fashioned glass. not a martini glass at room temperature.

And not to be sexist, but since when does any bar serve a man in a martini glass???

To top it all off, the silly drink cost 30$ ++. good thing it was so strong that by the time the bill came i was already tipsy... (from one drink.)

Never presume you know your customers taste better than they do!

Thanks, but no thanks. I want my money back.

For photos and an adult-friendly review, please visit Rubbish Eat Rubbish Grow.

14K and I passed by a furniture shop called “A Thousand stories.” WE LOVE IT and decided our future apartment should be exactly like this. Being “sfuntaneous,” I said, “Let’s go to the bar on the second floor here.” Climbed the stairs and woah! so crowded upstairs, you couldn’t tell from the quietness on the street. It was a different haven.

It was crowded so we didn’t sit at the bar. We sat in the next room with a long wooden table, like those used in a medieval setting. 14K likes the decor very, very much. It is sleek, modern, white and wood, minimalistic.

I, pretending to act manly, ordered the “Old Fashioned” ($30) and he had thesorbet mojito ($28), or as Hookerlily pronounces it, mo-chee-to. The Old-Fashioned is a drink with bitters, sugar, a rind of orange and an alcohol of your choice. We couldn’t appreciate it and I thought it was too bitter. The sorbet mojitowas interesting: a lime sorbet, sour and very sweet, in mojito. If you don’t like sweet things, this one is not for you.

While I didn’t appreciate the (pretentious) decor as much as 14K (the bar’s decor is slightly different from the furniture shop which is more coordinated and homey and less pretentious), I like it that it’s gay-friendly. Pamphlets of Pink Dot were left at the entrance for people to take. Seriously, how can any pretentious bar that wants to be successful not be gay friendly? So we returned the next day, bringing Hookerlily.

It was without doubt a disaster. Hookerlily and I got a seat at the bar because we went for pre-prandial drinks. I told the bartender I wanted something banana in it. And he pondered for a long time, and concocted a banana chocolate with foamed milk. The photo you see at the top is the bartender flambe-ing the banana. It tasted great, but where was the alcohol? $20 something is too expensive for a smoothie.

Then, we made a reservation for the bench seat at the bar, and went for dinner. When we came back with 14K, the bartender actually gave our seat away. Seriously?

Then I saw the bartender making the same banana drink for others. Why did he pretend to ponder so long when I ordered it since he already had a ready-made formula? 

14K wanted just whiskey, because that’s his usual drink. The bartender said, “Are you sure? Ordering whiskey here is like entering a treasure cave and leaving empty handed.”

14K said, “Ok, I’ll have a whiskey first. Maybe a cocktail later.” I’d have thought it was a very strong indiction of what 14K wanted – but the bartender went ahead to make a cocktail!!! Being proud of your creation is one thing but giving what the customers want is another.

I forgot what Hookerlily ordered this time, but I ordered something with melon, pointing to the honeydew. The bartender said, “You mean honeydew?” I said, “Yes, the melon.” He said, “There is no melon, only honeydew.” That pissed me off because 1. you don’t correct your customers and 2. honeydew is a melon, and it was the only melon on display there. I don’t mind being corrected–ask 14K and Hookerlily–but at least if you correct me, make sure you’re right. Dude, know your fruit taxonomy.

Again, not much alcohol.

But since we were chatting and lazy to move, we had our 3rd round of drinks. This time, the bartender was busy. 14K said to wait for him, I said to give the malay bartender a chance. I was too kind, the two drinks the Malay bartender concocted were horrible. And he didn’t follow instructions. I wanted hazelnut but he made the drink with amaretto, almond syrup.

Then more trouble in paradise.

Actually, the day before when 14K and I were there, we already noted how pretentious the people are. The day before, when 14K and I sat on the long table, two girls were so pretentious and irritating at the other end. “Oh I just bought a bag.” “Oh do you know so-and-so?” SHUT UP ALREADY. 

So, Hookerlily, 14K and I encountered some very, very bad manners when we sat at the bar. A young girl, about 22 or so, kept emphasizing she is a lawyer. It was the way she said it…”Oh I’m a lawyer…” after a while, “oh my law firm is nearby..” after a while.. “Oh I am studying for the bar…” NOBODY ASKED.

And her friend with a heavy jaw. She was like “When I was sturdyingggg in australiaaaa” with her fake australian accent. You studied in Australia for 4 years and you live in Singapore for 20 years, and you come back speaking with so obviously fake accent.

And then the waiter. Speaking with a mixed accent. So strange. It sounded mostly like American, but also Singaporean, Australian, British. Then in the course of the conversation, he has lived in Singapore ALL HIS LIFE.

It’s fine if these people were sitting in the next table but trapped in the same space at the bar with them, it was sheer torture. You may argue that the patrons of the bar has nothing to do with the bar itself but it's the vibe of the bar that attracts such people. And that's why different bars attract different crowd.

I like the ambience;

the drinks were fun but so-so and exorbitant;

while the service was good, the bartender should have less hubris, his drinks aren’t that great and original;

the pretentious crowd made sure I won’t return.

Initially opened by the pioneers who brought us Klee, Bar Stories too, functions without a drinks menu with fresh cocktails specially mixed to individual tastes. Although none of Klee’s pioneers currently operates Bar Stories, their concept remains, the concept of having friendly mixologists interacting with guests, the concept of being able to chat with random friendly strangers across the bar, the concept of being just so un-Singaporean. Say goodbye to the dark dodgy pubs that we are so used to, Bar Stories has an open concept with a soft tune playing in the backdrop, making it easy for catching up with old friends whilst sipping the night away.

Jeff, one of the two mixologists for the night, whipped up a sweet Honeydew Mango Sake ($22++) for CW. Really awesome stuff, and it reminds me of a drink called “Nothing” which is available in Zouk and made with Melon Liquor. But then again, comparing cocktails from Bar Stories with Zouk’s is like comparing steak from Morton’s with Jack’s Place. The difference is simple yet evident. Bar Stories makes its cocktails fresh from scratch, meaning no fruit syrups or concentrates are used. This gives a fresher feel to the cocktails and lends a taste that isn’t too sharp and artificial.

For myself, I was presented with a Pomegranate Passionfruit Martini ($22++) which appeals more to those who prefer their drinks sour rather than sweet. I’m more of a sweet cocktail person but it’d still be my pleasure getting high on this.

Bar Stories, a cocktail adventure? Definitely.

Bon Appetit!

For the full review/pics, do visit http://yumyumformytumtum.wordpress.com/2011/04/22/cafe-fables-and-bar-stories-a-cocktail-adventure/

Stumbled upon this cocktail bar one night after shopping at haji lane. It was rather packed around the bar but we got a nice spot next to the windows. The bartender who served us introduced us to the concept of the cocktails only bar and suggested a few drinks based on our preferences 'sweet, sour or refreshing'.

I got a honeydew sake martini ($22) while the boyfriend got a rosemary cooler($20) and both drinks were really interesting. I like the froth of the honeydew, reminded me of the freshly squeezed ones and the rosemary cooler was really unique. At first sip, it reminded us of meat because of the common association of rosemary as a herb to complement various cuts, but thumbs up for the interesting drink!!

We then shared an apple pie martini($25) which had cinnamon sugar around the edges and fresh apple juice in it, it was really sweet but didn't taste completely like apple pie as the tastes were rather detached, a pleasant experience nonetheless.

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barstories is a rather unique concept and don't expect to be served anything but cocktails after 8pm! The ambience is warm with dim lights and a mural of an octopus (sketched with a pen!) and very distinct pieces of furniture (apparently they sell furniture too!)

Its a nice place to head down to before parties or simply to catch up with people you love.

Do make reservations if you're intending to head down on weekends, as they tend to be rather crowded!

Opened by a group of friends who shares the same passion for design and good living, the Scandinavian-inspired furniture shop on Haji Lane radiates an unspeakable homely charm.

Its walk-up gastrobar Café Fables occupies a significant portion of the three-storey pre-war shophouse.

The bitter green tea flavour of the sponge of our Matcha Red Bean balanced out the layers of butter cream which would otherwise seem too heavy. The azuki layer on the other hand, lent a savoury sweet note to this pairing.

Both of us were taken aback by this samsui-hat-looking object (called Banana Surprise) when it first showed up on our table. For a moment, I thought someone had left a plasticine sculpture on my plate. This banana really surprised us by being a crêpe of some sort, but it was not something I would expect a banana-sounding item to be.

Made from white chocolate and other unknown sweet ingredients, the spongy outer layer of the cake itself resembled a yoga mat that had rolled gracefully out of the oven. Filled to plumpness was banana in heavy cream. Finally, the banana had made its appearance. A pleasant surprise.

As the name of the shop implies, everything here tells a story, whether be it the vintage handmade furniture or the one-of-a-kind art piece by Japanese sculptor Sumio Suzuki. Nothing short of stylish.

With its bar serving cakes and tailored cocktails with character, it's clearly café-type goodness for the sweet-toothed with not a single savoury item on the menu. I figure that they may need to include some light bites soon.

The next time you are at Haji Lane to check out your favourtie shop-stops, why not pop by level two of A Thousand Tales to see what it has to offer.

For more photo, feel free to visit me at Amasou-Umasou :)