House-made tinctures don’t really matter to that many people. They might matter to me, but I’m a certified geek when it comes to this stuff. For most guests at a bar, the vibes are more important than the drinks, and sipping on something tasty with a funny name while not sparing a thought about what it was or wasn’t fat-washed with is more than enough to satiate that cocktail craving.
While the majority of bars in the first wave of the modern craft era cocooned themselves within a formal, hushed setting — these were serious places of education and instruction, admiration and introspection, more so than they were mere watering holes — a growing lineup of today’s best cocktail bars are leaning hard in the other direction.
It’s the era of controlled chaos, and the bars and bartenders doing it best are the ones having all the fun.
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Serving Vibes With a Side of Controlled Chaos
Bubble guns, frozen drinks, and disco balls are more common at these bars than printed lists of house rules, garnish tweezers, and old-timey mustaches. “Chaos is that thing you’re allowed to play with once you’ve become really good and really comfortable with what you’re doing and who you are as a professional,” says Kristine Gutierrez, general manager of New York’s Mister Paradise.
Mister Paradise is the type of place where a bartender might pour a customer’s drink into a sippy cup if they’ve spilled, because why shouldn’t everyone be having a good time? And they can get away with that because the banter and jokes are underpinned by veritable hospitality chops. “Together, we know enough rules to finally allow ourselves to break a few of them, if not all of them; chaos without a foundation of trust, organization, and safety is just a mess,” Gutierrez says.
New York’s controlled cocktail chaos era was perhaps ushered in by Katana Kitten‘s opening in 2018. Masahiro Urushido’s lighthearted, giddy approach to service heralded the city’s entrance into a sillier and more casual stage. There are any number of examples in town these days but consider a six-block corridor of chaos down First Avenue in which Mister Paradise can be found alongside partners in chaotic cocktail crime Superbueno, as well as the forthcoming Schmuck.
“There’s a movement happening, as the industry has evolved from the days of buttoned-up, ultra-refined cocktail bars where you felt like you were in a library,” says Schmuck’s Moe Aljaff. “People want to drink top-tier cocktails in a space where they can laugh out loud, move around, and just enjoy themselves without feeling like they’re breaking any rules.”
At Service Bar in Washington, D.C., co-owner Chad Spangler refers to an in-house ethos of “RAH,” or random acts of hospitality, even from within the belly of a bustling and chaotic beast. “Our music is loud, our service is casual, we encourage our staff to joke around with guests, and approachability is always at the forefront — that’s where the controlled chaos comes in,” he says. “We just don’t take ourselves too seriously, and remember that hospitality is really what we are here for.”
Elsewhere around the world, the reigning queen of controlled bar chaos is no doubt Tokyo Confidential’s Holly Graham. “Of course, Holly Graham is the party,” Gutierrez says. “You never know what may happen when you’re with her, whether at her bar or in her company, but you know it’ll always be a good time.” But there are shining examples in almost every market, such as Maybe Sammy in Sydney, Sweet Liberty in Miami, Creps Al Born in Barcelona, and the Bar In Front of the Bar in Athens, to name a few.
“All these places understand that it’s not just about what’s in the glass, but how people feel when they’re drinking it — just an unbearable force of strong hospitality mixed with care and affection,” Aljaff says. Yes, high-end cocktails can come with a low-key vibe, amid an approachable and even irreverent setting. “We train our team to be super approachable, friendly, and maybe even a bit cheeky, but always with that foundation of strong hospitality,” Aljaff says.
The Bar as Entertainment Venue
A vibe doesn’t just exist on its own, of course, and what many of these bars do best is adjusting and tweaking the chaos as the night moves along, with bartenders and managers rejigging conditions like theater stagehands working behind the scenes to deliver a seamless performance.
“There is no set recipe for this; we adapt to the room each day for every service.”
Ignacio “Nacho” Jimenez takes on the role of master of ceremonies at Superbueno, interacting with guests and orchestrating different lighting and music to steer the collective whole of the bar in the right direction. “There is no set recipe for this; we adapt to the room each day for every service,” Jimenez says. “We constantly listen to our customers and tailor the experience accordingly. My staff and I are always present, ensuring each day provides a unique opportunity to take guests on a journey.”
At The Odd Couple in Shanghai, named for the duo of Shingo Gokan and Steve Schneider, the bar is draped in neon lights, and a giant, wall-sized digital screen displays a customized Pac-Man game that guests can play. “The focus is not only on cocktails here,” says bar manager Roger Yamagishi. “It’s the vibe.” He’ll adjust the bar’s lighting and 1980s soundtrack as the night progresses to ensure the vibe stays on point.
At REM in Rome, the bar’s entire concept is centered on shifting its environment as the hours tick away until the early morning. The bar shifts between four moods mimicking stages of sleep, from awake to light sleep, deep sleep, and the namesake REM, or rapid eye movement. The bar’s lighting, music, and even the drinks being served evolve as the night progresses.
This type of orchestration creates an experiential environment in which the drinks are only one component. “The cocktails are definitely important, but it’s the experience we build around them that really brings the magic,” Aljaff says. “We play around with music, lighting, and even the way we design our menus to make sure there’s an element of surprise and spontaneity in every visit. It’s that mix of take your work serious, don’t take yourself serious, that does it for us.”
Toronto’s Bar Mordecai has a main floor bedecked in Wes Anderson pink and kitschy animal statues, and a basement consisting of four thematic karaoke rooms. Yeah, it’s a bit chaotic over there. “We’re the definition of that, we might have four or five different concepts raging at one time,” says manager Dylan Maloney. Romantic dinners give way to dance floor parties, with karaoke revelers singing away in the basement and cocktail lovers sipping slowly at the bar.
Drinks have names such as Girl Math and New Rizz; there are house-canned cocktails and boozy soft-serve ice cream; and when in doubt, the trusty bubble gun is ready to be deployed. “How do we make ourselves seem not lame? Bubble gun, boom,” Maloney says. “If the mood matches, it happens.”
Inclusiveness at the Forefront of Chaos
Just as chaos is best backed up by hospitality, irreverence is best matched with inclusiveness, and it’s a near-universal ideal that these vibe servers adhere to. “At Superbueno, everyone is welcome,” Jimenez says. “Our dedicated staff, vibrant music, and inviting atmosphere are integral to the community’s fabric.”
At Milady’s, jello shots and grownup Appletinis are served under strings of pink Christmas lights and bartenders may wield — what else? — a bubble gun while pouring a batched drink. It’s a beloved aspect of the schtick, but owner Julie Reiner cares first and foremost about fostering a community. “Our goal was to create a space that offers a complete experience: somewhere with excellent cocktails and food and hospitality, but also somewhere everyone is welcome and can just have fun,” she says. “Milady’s is a neighborhood bar at its core; a place where folks feel at home. Anyone and everyone is welcome.”
The fact that there happen to be excellent cocktails might be what attracts a first-time visitor to any of these spots. But it’s likely the bar itself — the hospitality, the service, the vibe, the chaos — that turns first-timers into regulars.
“Our concept is, simply said, a party: a really good party, with great drinks, attentive service, and constant refills of water. It is wild, safe, and inclusive.”
“Service Bar’s mission statement is to be a neighborhood bar first and a cocktail bar second,” Spangler says. “In a way, we do the cocktails because it is what we love and find interesting, but that doesn’t mean our bar exists solely for those that agree. We focus on creating hospitality and inclusion as much as we preach about education surrounding cocktails and spirits.”
Throwing Out the Rule Book
There’s no cocktail industry manual that dictates serious drinks must be served in serious settings, and on a daily basis, more people are looking to relax and unwind than anything else. “I feel like the general desires of the drinking public tend to be more casual; most people don’t want to sit in what feels like a museum for their weekly tipple,” Gutierrez says. “Our concept is, simply said, a party: a really good party, with great drinks, attentive service, and constant refills of water. It is wild, safe, and inclusive.”
The formal bars that ruled the prior decade — of which many still exist, and of which many remain excellent — paved the way for their more freewheeling descendants. Guests don’t need a Cocktails 101 lecture because they’re familiar with the idea and are able to sit back and enjoy the ride in a way they may not have been before. “As craft cocktails become more prevalent on menus, they are shedding the image of stuffy, overwrought cocktail dens and are instead focusing on creativity, innovation, and fun,” Jimenez says. “This shift appeals to consumers who appreciate a more relaxed and engaging experience.”
Chaos, cocktails, and community can go hand-in-hand, it seems. “I think the world is craving comforting and warm experiences across the board, which includes where to eat and drink,” Reiner says. “With everything happening in the world, people want to feel safe and taken care of.”
These bars become community staples, authentic places where everyone — and their bubble guns — is welcome. “At Paradise, we’re exactly who we all wanted to be when we found a home in the industry,” Gutierrez says.
“We’re weird, wild, and after all, we’re the people who rejected a normal life and schedule. By being ourselves, we invite you to let go, too,” she continues. “That’s some good chaos. That’s who we are at Paradise.”