Story by Cara Devine. Cara is our Melbourne-based drinks writer. She is the manager of Bomba in Melbourne and the face and talent behind the cocktailing youtube channel Behind the Bar. You can email her at behindthebarchannel@gmail.com
After serving a long apprenticeship around the world from Royal Dornoch in Scotland to some of Melbourne’s finest bars, Andy Chu goes out on his own.
Hospitality workers in Melbourne will have long been familiar with Celestial Avenue, even if they don’t know the name. Situated in the heart of Chinatown, it is home to Supper Inn – a late-night institution that has satiated the hunger of many a bartender after a night on the tins. Now, though, there is another reason to visit: One or Two, a self-proclaimed ‘small bar’ owned and operated by Andy Chu.
Chu was mostly raised in Hong Kong, despite being Sydney born, and first started reading up on booze history before deciding to take a step into hospitality as a career. After getting his foot in the door at a Japanese restaurant (at the time managed by Kelvin Low of the Elysian, which might explain Chu’s subsequent enthusiasm for whisky!) he landed a job as a barback at The Everleigh, one of the most well-respected bars in Melbourne which is renowned for their rigorous training. He ended up spending almost four years with the Made in the Shade group, working in their ice company Navy Strength as well.
“[Chu] worked at Royal Dornoch, a golf course with a restaurant and bar about an hour outside of Inverness where he took the opportunity to immerse himself in whisky culture, eventually collaborating with Dornoch Distillery to do a bottling exclusively for One or Two.”
As well as improving his bartending skills immensely he also credits the company with helping him improve his confidence in speaking English, which was probably very helpful with his next move – first to London, and then to remote Scotland (where even this Scottish writer would struggle with the accents!). He worked at Royal Dornoch, a golf course with a restaurant and bar about an hour outside of Inverness where he took the opportunity to immerse himself in whisky culture, eventually collaborating with Dornoch Distillery to do a bottling exclusively for One or Two.
Coming back to Melbourne via Canada, Chu became “the playboy of Melbourne” (bar wise!), helping out at an impressive roster of bars such as Byrdi, the Black Pearl and Above Board while formulating the plans for his own place. “The lease was signed in May, but the bar didn’t come together until October – it took five months to get all the paperwork approved, even though we had it ready to go when we got the lease – we weren’t mucking around! It was a bit frustrating but better late than never.”
They opened at the end of October, without too much in the way of fanfare. “We’d rather let people enjoy themselves and then spread the good word”, says Chu. The idea is to embody his conception of hospitality: “At the end of the day, it’s how you’d treat your Grandma… your smile, your attention, those things are free to give and you can earn guests’ trust.”
He doesn’t want One or Two to attempt to be all things to all people, though – they have a thoughtful but small selection (offering only two beers, for example), and they only make the cocktails listed on their menu. “Hospitality, for a while now, has forgotten to say ‘no’, especially through Covid times…my aim is to be a small bar that people are coming to for a reason. You wouldn’t go to a pizza shop and ask for the best Indian rice they have. I have to pick what I can do, and provide quality over quantity.”
“Hospitality, for a while now, has forgotten to say ‘no’, especially through Covid times…my aim is to be a small bar that people are coming to for a reason. You wouldn’t go to a pizza shop and ask for the best Indian rice they have. I have to pick what I can do, and provide quality over quantity.” – Andy Chu
This is the entire idea behind the name One or Two, says Chu. “The options are one or two, the company should be one or two, you should be here for one or two hours and stay for one or two rounds.” He wants to be a pit stop in guests’ nights, not the main event. “When you go to a park, there might be a chair you sit on for 15 minutes then keep moving. We are that chair in your night – have a quiet moment and refresh yourself.”
He wants people to eat as well as drink, and keep moving to help limit intoxication – hence the location in Chinatown with some of the best casual snacking in the city. He enjoys bar hopping culture, saying “don’t sit in one bar and drink six cocktails. Go try another bar, have a reference – maybe some things will be better, some things not, but it’s all personal. There’s no such thing as the ‘best bar’, nothing is perfect.”
This philosophy comes from the concept of ‘wabi-sabi’, a Japanese worldview which advocates accepting the imperfection and transience of life. “It means things are always moving, things naturally happen,” explains Chu. He incorporates this into the design of the bar, using textures like ceramics and wood because these will wear and even break, but can be repaired. “Every time you come to the door, some small thing will be different – the lighting, the music, the decoration…you’ll never have perfection, but that’s good because if you have perfection you might not have innovation – there’s no space to improve which means you’re stuck in the same cycle.” It also means attention to detail – Chu has a keen eye for the flow of the space and how people will use it, as well as going out of his way to minimise waste and single-use products. He commissions custom pieces like artwork, knives, coffee cups (yes, they do pour over coffee as well) and the aforementioned exclusive whisky bottling, with the aim being to provide an experience that can’t be replicated.
With this much consideration and effort, it’s not surprising that when I ask what he does on his days off his response is “sleep!”. His thoughtfulness and willingness to be flexible ensures that One or Two will be a stellar, and constantly evolving, addition to Melbourne nightlife. “Things are always moving. Who knows, 20 years ago no one was drinking in a bar like this – they would go to TGIF and drink a big Blue Hawaiian. It’s about following the trends but also creating a new trend.”
I asked Chu if he has any final thoughts. “I just want people to come and experience the bar,” he says. You should.
TUE – SAT : 4PM – 12AM
18 CELESTIAL AVE, MELBOURNE VIC 3000
oneortwo.com.au