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When it's hot, drink: Tokyo's freshest summer sips
You could moan about the stifling humidity, or you could make the most of the thirst-inducing heat by getting down to these Tokyo cocktail bars for their stylish fresh fruit concoctions
The searing heat and soul-crushing humidity of Tokyo summers can be hard to handle. Fortunately, the city has plenty of stylish bars offering air-conditioned respite and expertly mixed fruity cocktails to make the season more bearable.
Oak Door Bar
Nothing says summer like a good mojito. The Oak Door Bar on the sixth floor of the Grand Hyatt in Roppongi was one of the first places in Tokyo to popularize fresh fruit mojitos and they’re still as good as ever -- available in a rainbow array of flavors from raspberry to ume. Better yet are original cocktails like the Jereck’s Banana, a smooth and creamy blend of Jack Daniel’s, Amaretto and fresh banana, and the Plus Alpha Buck, a refreshing mix of Beefeater 24 gin and shizo liquer, topped off with a splash of ginger ale. On breezy evenings, take it out onto the terrace and sip al fresco.
6-3-10 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Grand Hyatt Hotel 6F. Tel. +81 (3) 4333 8784
Website: www.grandhyatttokyo.com/cuisine/oakdoorbar.htm
Maduro
The swanky Maduro cigar bar downstairs is offering a summer collection of molecular mixology cocktails until August 31. The Granizado Salty Dog is gin and grapefruit juice poured over cool slivers of grapefruit granita and finished with lime-and-salt foam. Presumably, “molecular mixology” indicates the use of various flavored foams. The passion fruit daiquiri with cranberry espuma is the ultimate chick drink: fresh passion fruit seeds floating in a vivid fuchsia cocktail topped with baby-pink cranberry foam.
6-3-10 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Grand Hyatt Hotel 4F. Tel. +81 (3) 4333 8783
Website: www.grandhyatttokyo.com/cuisine/maduro.htm
Ekki Bar and Grill
Ekki Bar and Grill at the Four Seasons in Marunouchi is adding Acai berry cocktails to its Sunset Happy Hour drinks menu. The purple berry from South America is supposedly loaded with antioxidants, polyphenols and other healthy compounds, but no super food is powerful enough to combat the potential damage resulting from two hours of unlimited cocktails, beer and wine (¥2,900 for women, ¥3,800 for men).
1-11-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Pacific Century Place, Four Seasons Hotel 7F. Tel. +81 (3) 5222-5810
Website: http://marunouchi.fourseasons.com/marunouchi/april_2010/article_16289.html
Bar Rage
Aoyama’s sleek Bar Rage has developed a reputation for premium fresh fruit martinis. Recommended for this summer are a salubrious melon and orange martini and a luscious mango and honey martini flavored with black tea, but you can’t go wrong with the watermelon and ginger martini.
7-13-13 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Bulls 3F. Tel. +81 (3) 5467 3977
Website: http://www.mixologist.co.jp/bar_rage/
Bar High Five
At Bar High Five in Ginza, master mixologist Hidetsugo Ueno is serving up elaborate takes on retro summer classics. Instead of drink names, the menu lists seasonal fruits. Golden pineapple is whipped into a first-rate Pina Colada or thrown into a Singapore Sling; juicy peaches are muddled with pink champagne to make an elegant Bellini. If you haven’t had one of these since high school, now’s the perfect time.
7-2-14 Ginza, Chuo-ku, 26 Polestar Bldg 4F. Tel. +81 (3) 3571 5815
