You hear the words Jungle Bird, and you’re probably thinking it was a Don the Beachcomber drink from California circa the 1950s. But this one actually hails from the Aviary Bar, at the Hilton Hotel in Kuala Lumpur in 1978.
Tag: Piccolo Bar
“It will be the perfect place to sit and enjoy some oysters freshly shucked for you right at the bar, a few ice-cold martinis and live jazz piano tunes.” – Dave Spanton, Owner, Spanton Hospitality
This combo took off, partly attributed to the obsession with ice at the time, which had just become readily available and highly prized. It’s been suggested that the name ‘cobbler’ may even come from the ‘cobbles’ of ice in the drink.
Vermuteria is an old-school European aperitif wine bar and delicatessen with a big focus on vermouth and sherry.
The Old Fashioned is a simple drink, with just the spirit base (in this case the delicious Angostura 1919 Rum), sugar and bitters (Piccolo uses a 50/50 blend of Angostura Orange Bitters and Angostura Aromatic Bitters), so this is a drink where the spirit really shines.
Spanton Hospitality, the team that brought you Piccolo Bar in Kings Cross, Australian Bartender mag and Sydney Bar Week have announced that they will be opening Vermuteria, a second venue in Kings Cross in January 2023, after successfully securing a liquor license for the premises, the former Café Hernandez on Kings Cross Road, last week.
The Paper Plane is delicious. It’s be perfect balance of herbs, acidity, sweet fruit and bitterness that makes a cocktail instantly quaffable. Here, Harrison Lind, Piccolo Bar Manager, shows you how to make this simple four-part classic.
“We created a completely new fit-out that still pays respect to the history and people that frequented the café,” says Dave, referencing the many famous people that have been to Piccolo in the past, many of them now immortalised with a mugshot on the iconic photo wall.
“The Romans also really loved their aromatised wines as it also helped make poor quality wines easier to drink, more palatable and aided digestion.”
“This new incarnation of the Piccolo as an aperitivo bar and diner provides something different for the area. We are focussing on a simple list of classics, aromatised wines, vermouth and amari; that’s not something you see around here and we think it fills a niche.”
“The Piccolo Bar, is the oldest café in Kings Cross, dating all the way back to 1952. In 2020, I heard that it was about to be lost forever and so I felt compelled to take the plunge and try to save this iconic hospitality venue.”