Curating an exciting cocktail menu takes more than meets the eye—it is about crafting an experience that tells a story, engages the senses, and reflects the drive behind a bar. From balancing classic flavours to considering seasonality of ingredients, a well-designed cocktail menu elevates any bar experience.
We speak to Nick Choo, the founder of Kuala Lumpur-based Reka, No. 41 in Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024, Yana Keller, beverage director of Singapore-based Atlas Bar, No. 49 in Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024, and Niko Tiutan, co-founder and beverage director of Ito Space in the Philippines. The three talents address how they incorporate local produce into their drinks programme, and ensure the menu caters to both connoisseurs and beginners.
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How do you balance creativity and familiarity when designing your cocktail menu?
Nick Choo: The approach that has worked best for us is to incorporate both elements into every drink on our menu. When we are introducing a far-out flavour in drink form, we try to blend in a familiar taste or sensory memory to impart a subliminal sense of comfort to the guest in their flavour exploration. Conversely, we always try to put in an unexpected flavour or reinvention to our modern spins on classic drinks such as Boulevardiers or espresso martinis.
Yana Keller: Designing a cocktail menu is about finding that sweet spot between innovation and comfort. I like to push boundaries with unique flavour combinations and techniques, but it’s important to anchor these with familiar elements that guests recognise. That way, even more adventurous drinks still have a connection to something they know. It’s all about crafting an experience where the unexpected feels approachable.
Niko Tiutan: In Ito, our beverage philosophy revolves around the produce and ingredients we work with. We like working with many local produce—both familiar and unfamiliar. Most of the time, we like presenting more unfamiliar produce in classic cocktail riffs, while placing commonly used produce into more creative drink ideas to balance what’s familiar and unique.
What role does your bar’s concept or location play in shaping the menu?
Tiutan: We designed Ito’s concept based on the space. My partner and I immediately fell in love with the space for its odd shape and how it’s situated in our favourite neighbourhood. We love hosting our friends at home, and since the area of the space was small, we imagined having a bar set-up where we could host intimate gatherings and be able to interact with our guests. Our initial menu was a structured form of Filipino hospitality, which often involved sharing a large amount of drinks and food with guests.
Choo: The concept of the bar is key in our menu ideation. As a future-focused “flavour lab”, both our signature and seasonal menus centre around themes of flavour exploration, evolution and sustainability. Our specific location does not play a role in our menu creation process, however, we are a proudly Malaysian bar and as such try to highlight outstanding products and artisans from around the country as much as possible in our drink program.
Keller: The concept and location are the backbone of the menu, setting the tone for the type of drinks we create. If we’re in a tropical, laid-back environment, the menu will reflect that with light, refreshing ingredients and perhaps local spirits. If the bar has a more urban, edgy vibe, we might lean into bolder flavours, modern techniques, and presentation. The idea is for the menu to feel like an extension of the space, creating a cohesive experience.
How do you incorporate local ingredients or cultural elements into your cocktails?
Keller: Using local ingredients is a natural way to ground the menu in its surroundings and give it a unique identity. I look at what's fresh and readily available and then find ways to highlight those flavours. Beyond just ingredients, I like to nod to local culture through storytelling in drink names or presentation styles.
Tiutan: Since our beverage philosophy is produce-driven, we often name our cocktails based on the main ingredients that were used, such as Carrot-Beet, Strawberry-White Pepper, and Yutokon, since it’s often what we want to highlight. An exception to this would be a crowd favourite drink of ours, called Turon.
It is inspired by a sweet Filipino snack that comes in the form of a spring roll—stuffed with a slice of banana, often with a bit of jackfruit, with a caramelised glaze. We replicated it by using Lambanog, a locally distilled coconut spirit, sous vide together with Lakatan Bananas. We then paired it with jackfruit syrup, arnibal (a caramelised syrup often served with silken tofu), lactic acid, bitters, and egg whites.
Choo: We love working with local ingredients and highlighting them in exciting and unusual ways! In one of our signature drinks, the Dusun, we take an iconic but challenging local fruit, the durian, lacto-ferment it to tame its pungency, and incorporate it into a cocktail that highlights the fruit’s beautiful esters to create an unexpectedly refined drink. Nods to Malaysian culture definitely surface in many of our drinks, either as overt homages or in more subtle details.
What’s your approach to ensuring a diverse range of flavours and spirits across the menu?
Choo: When designing the drinks on our menu, we try to ensure that the guest experiences a “full spectrum” of flavours and textures across the cocktails. To that end, we include every major category of base (whisky, vodka, tequila, rum, etc) and infusion (Gin, amaro, etc) spirit in our menu, and augment this curation of commercially available spirits with our in-house infusions and distillates. We then incorporate modifiers (juices, fermentations, etc) to provide a wide palette of flavours for the guest to enjoy.
Tiutan: My partner and I started with coffee before venturing into other beverages. In coffee, there’s a flavour wheel to help tasters describe what to expect within coffee. We try to take a similar approach with our menu – featuring a variety of flavours that can be found along that wheel. We tend to choose our produce first while pairing it with a spirit to complement the chosen ingredient.
Keller: A diverse menu needs balance. I aim to cover a broad spectrum of flavours—sweet, sour, bitter, and savoury—so there’s something for every palate. I also make sure to showcase a variety of spirits, from gin and tequila to rum and whisky, while incorporating liqueurs and aperitifs that add depth. Diversity doesn’t just come from spirits, though—it’s about playing with textures, temperature, and even the stories behind each cocktail.
What strategies do you use to make your menu accessible to both cocktail enthusiasts and newcomers?
Tiutan: We make our menu accessible in two ways—by providing different options in terms of both the level of booziness and flavour profiles. Additionally, as much as we love exploring funkier and unusual flavours, we still make sure to have drinks that are more familiar and are a bit more on the comforting side. More importantly, when we’re in the process of creating a drink, we tend to prioritise clarity. We don’t like incorporating too many ingredients within one drink and try to make sure that you can taste whatever we’ve placed in each one.
Choo: Going full circle, every drink should be delicious! Any cocktail we create should be a tasty, balanced tipple that anyone can enjoy while also being multilayered and complex such that the cocktail connoisseur can delight in its various nuances. Our menus also try to tell a story that provides a proper context for the inspiration behind every cocktail in a fun and catchy way.
Keller: I want the menu to be approachable for everyone, whether they’re cocktail connoisseurs or complete newcomers. This means writing descriptions that are clear and engaging without being too technical. I like to include a mix of familiar classics with a twist alongside more experimental offerings, so guests can either stick to what they know or be guided toward something new. The goal is to invite curiosity, not intimidate.
This story is part of the Tatler Best series, showcasing the finest in Asia across hotels, restaurants and bars. Tatler Best is in partnership with Tumi, Dusit Thani Bangkok, Mastercard, The Macallan and Tourism Authority of Thailand. For more information visit the website media.tatlerasia.com/list/best
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