shane eaton 9/17/16 shane eaton 9/17/16

Bar High Five (Tokyo)

a master at work :: 10/10 :: €20 for a cocktail

Review and Photos by Toney Teddy Fernandez. Editing by Shane Eaton.

Bar High Five is ranked the world's 13th best bar and the 3rd best in Asia. Headed by Hidetsugu Ueno who is famous for the hard shake and his ice talents, you can’t miss out on this place when in Tokyo. High Five is located near the Ginza metro line and adjacent to the high end shopping streets of Tokyo. Thanks to an immensely tall glass-covered building, the street that leads towards High Five is almost in complete darkness even though it was the late afternoon. The gloomy atmosphere sets the mood for the mystic drinking experience at Ueno’s bar.

The sunless street on the way to High Five

The bar is situated on the basement floor of the Efflore Ginza5 building and my reservation was at 17:00, right when the bar opens. Shane and I prefer to visit bars right when they open to avoid crowds. This gives us a chance to take better photos and also to chat up the bartenders. The elevator directly opened into the very small foyer of the bar with a sign "Please wait to be seated". As I was greeted by a young barman, I could see Ueno Sensei preparing for his busy evening at the far end of the very long bar counter. I took my seat up at the bar and then came the master. I presented myself and exchanged business cards with him, with Ueno realizing I arrived from miles and miles away, from the land of 1930, MaG and Nottingham Forest. He shared his fond memories of 1930 when he was in Milano for Super-Bar a few years back.

Bar High Five is in the basement of the Efflore Ginza5 building

Bar High Five was beautifully decorated with thick and dark wooden panels, with at least a dozen bar stools, all of them facing the long counter. The bottles on display behind the bar were beautiful, with an amazing selection of spirits from Japan and rest of the world. The room also has four tables and a round table with a couple of chairs facing each other, clearly for happy couples celebrating their moments in life.

Up at the bar, I was impressed with the Japanese hospitality. You can tuck your bag under the chair in a small drawer. The bartenders provide you a fresh white towel to wipe your hands and they even gave me a large cloth so I could rest my D750 on the bar counter. Since the bar counter is really long, one would doubt where to sit to get the perfect view of Ueno's cocktail making. Actually, you can sit where ever you want as Ueno alternates between two strategically placed stations, so that everyone gets a good view. There is no menu at High Five. The order is based on your preference, style, taste and mood. It’s always a challenge for me in cocktail bars. I would like to try as many drinks as possible but I also need to take "non-blurry" photos!

I ordered a Whiskey Sour to start, and the bartender asked me if I prefer egg white in it. Of course my answer was yes. At this point I got permission to take photos of the master Ueno at work. It was a visual experience of art of making cocktails through my viewfinder. I was impressed with his technical skills, elegance and velocity while mixing drinks. Ueno has a unique and graceful style of tasting his cocktails. He takes a sample of the cocktail with a ceramic spoon and places his hand over his mouth while tasting the drink. It almost looks as if he’s whispering to the spoon.

When I returned to my seat, Ueno told me in making the Whiskey Sour he prefers Bourbon and suggested the 7-year-old Old Ezra Kentucky Straight . I agreed straight away. The cocktail came out to be one of the best Whiskey Sours that I have tasted. The Old Ezra really made a difference with subtle taste notes of nuts and oakiness. It is definitely a power punch of a bourbon. I said to the bartender, back in Italy we say "una bomba".

There were three American travelers seated nearby and one of them told me, "you know back in States we just call it a bomb." Hi I'm Ricky Tamburro, he said. I got quickly acquainted with the group, who had all ordered personalized cocktails. I decided to move to one seat closer to talk to the friendly group. That’s when the bartender justly but politely scolded me, "Wait, you need the permission from Ueno to switch seats". The permission was quickly granted and I moved over.

As a second drink, I ordered an Old Fashioned as Ueno is famous for his ice. The group next to me also ordered their second round of drinks with one drink catching my attention. The Full Bloom is a gin-based drink which the bartender said was available only in Japan. Full bloom came in a Martini-style glass with a tinge of cherry color and it went straight to Ricky. I took photos of his drink with permission and he also allowed me to taste it. Another bomba and a totally unexpected taste thanks to masterclass cocktail making. It had dry gin, Sakura cherry blossom liqueur, lemon juice and Luxardo Maraschino. One can also order the Ful Bloom with Japanese whisky but that will have to wait for my next visit.

Meanwhile my Old Fashioned arrived, with the signature thick block of ice. The drink was elegant, with a perfect balance between the perfectly diluted whisky, bitters and sugar. Inside the cocktail there were also three cherries beaded on a stick and an orange peel.

Bar High Five is worth a visit and is definitely a place to hang out with other cocktail appreciating tourists in Tokyo. Ueno is a busy man and could very well be on tour, so make sure you consult his travel schedule located on the bar’s web site. If you are lucky enough to catch him at the bar then prepare to marveled by his elegant cocktail making and his signature hard shake.

shane eaton 9/17/16 shane eaton 9/17/16

Rita 2.0

the rise of milano da bere :: voto 9.25/10 :: €8 per un cocktail

Prima del Luca e Andrea, prima del MaG, c'era Rita, nato nel 2002 in Via Fumagalli 1. Il segreto del suo successo? Cocktail rinfrescanti, ingredienti naturali, prodotti sempre di livello. Ma per uno bizzarro motivo, l'ultima volta che ho provato il Rita è stata 5 anni fa.

Quando ho rivelato su Facebook che non frequento il Rita da anni, i miei amici bartender sono impazziti. Mi hanno spiegato che è stato Edo Nono, l'head bartender e co-proprietario del Rita, ad iniziare il rinascimento della "Milano da bere" sui Navigli. Secondo loro, Edo e il suo bar sono unici a Milano e nel mondo: ospitalità, divertimento ed eleganza sono alcuni tra gli aggettivi usati dai miei amici per descrivere l'esperienza al Rita. Grazie a Elisa, Pier, Massi, Erik e Carlo ho deciso di visitarlo ieri, appena rinnovato dopo un mese di lavori.

Ho visto un po' di foto su internet del nuovo spazio, con un bar centrale e la bottigliera fatta di legno sul muro. Posso dirvi che le foto non rendono la bellezza del locale. È spettacolare! Mi ricorda un american bar a San Francisco. Quando sono entrato, l'incanto del Rita mi ha fatto perdere il fiato. Dopo essermi seduto al banco ho iniziato a rilassarmi, ammirando lo splendore della maestosa bottigliera e lo charme dei clienti seduti intorno al bar. Il locale dona una sensazione di serenità, nonostante il caos dell'aperitivo.

I drink? Ho iniziato con il Gin Zen a suggerimento di Pier, fortunatamente presente nel locale (c'erano anche Erik, Kevin e tante altre facce che conoscevo). Il drink (zenzero fresco pestato, gin, lime, cordiale al lime, soda, ghiaccio tritato, servito nel tumbler basso) era molto buono: fresco, sour e rinfrescante - un ottimo inizio per la serata estiva. Ho assaggiato anche un Bobby Burns ottimo (vedete la foto) e un Basil Plum sour strepitoso.

Per la mia seconda vista al Rita, sono andato insieme a Simone di Zero.eu, l'unico giornalista che beve più di me a Milano. Ho finalmente conosciuto Edo, un uomo meraviglioso. Ora capsico perfettamente le parole di Pier "Io da grande voglio essere Edo".

Ero felice di rivedere Leo (ex Lacerba) dietro al banco al Rita che ci ha fatto bere benissimo. Il giovane e simpatico bartender Piero ci ha preparato il drink migliore della serata, il Negretti, un negroni rivisitato con Falernum, Campari, rum scuro e dragoncello. Ottimo anche lo Smoke on the Water (Campari, Averna, soda ananas e tè Lapsang Souchong) della stella di mixology Chiara Beretta.

Al Rita il cibo è buonissimo. grazie allo chef Luca Chiaruttini, l'altro proprietario del bar. Suggerisco le squisite alette di pollo alla Coca-Cola. Indimenticabili

Voi, visitatelo stasera!

Words and photos by Shane Eaton, editing by Michele d'Amore

Before Luca e Andrea and MaG set up shop on Naviglio Grande in Milano, there was Rita, which opened its doors way back in 2002 in Via Fumagalli 1. You will find Rita at the top of many best cocktail bar lists. The secret to the long-lived success? Refreshing drinks, all-natural ingredients, top quality products and a friendly staff. But for some reason, I haven’t been to Rita in 5 years.

When I revealed this on Facebook, my bartender friends sent me many comments in support of this important bar in the Milano cocktail scene. They told me that Edo Nono, the head bartender and co-owner of Rita was the person who started the renaissance of “Milano da bere” in the Navigli back in 2002. My friends told me that Edo and his bar were unique in Milano and even in the world. Welcoming, fun and elegant were some of the words they used to describe the Rita experience. So thanks to Elisa, Pier, Massi, Erik and Carlo I decided to finally return to Rita, which just reopened after a month of renovations.

I had already seen a few photos of the new space on Facebook, with a central bar and a huge wooden bottle rack against the far wall. But the pictures don’t do it justice. The refreshed Rita is absolutely gorgeous. It’s a bar you would expect to find in the Mission district of San Francisco, with tall ceilings, wooden finishing everywhere and the bar opening directly onto their terrace. The large windows let in a lot of natural sun light, setting the mood for a relaxing early-evening aperitivo. As I sat down on a bar stool and admired the beautiful bottle rack and charming clientele, a wave of calm swept over me. The atmosphere at Rita gives you an amazing feeling of serenity, despite the chaos of happy hour in Milano.

What about the drinks? I started with the Gin Zen based on a suggestion by Pier, luckily sitting right next to me, helping guide me through my first real Rita experience. Also at Rita that night were Erik, Kevin and lots of other familiar faces which further added to the fun. The Gin Zen cocktail contains freshly mashed ginger, gin, lime, lime cordial, soda water and crushed ice and is served in a tumbler. The sour and refreshing cocktail was delicious – a perfect way to start the warm summer evening. I also tried a Bobby Burns and a wonderful Basil Plum sour.

Another great aspect of Rita is the food. I am used to the slim pickings at MaG cafè, so I was excited to see that at Rita, they have a serious food menu. The great food at Rita is thanks to the chef and co-owner Luca Chiaruttini. I suggest you try the coca-cola glazed chicken wings. Although they sound odd they are absolutely delicious! I would like thank our friendly bartender for the evening Riccardo Tesini, for both the great conversation and well-executed drinks.

On my second visit to Rita, I went along with Simone of Zero.eu, my new drinking companion. I finally had the pleasure to meet Edo, who was just as genuine and sweet as everyone described. I totally get it when Pier says "when I'm older, I wanna be like Edo." Edo and I chatted about the trends in the industry, and about making the coveted and overly commercial World's 50 Best Bars list. I complemented him on his awesome bar, which I think is the perfect "neighborhood bar".

I was happy see Leo (ex Lacerba) behind the stick, taking over from Riccardo who is currently exploring NY. The young and friendly bartender Piero made us the best drink of the night, the Negretti, a revisited negroni with Falernum, Campari, dark rum and tarragon. The Smoke on the Water (Campari, Averna, soda ananas e tè Lapsang Souchong) by all-star barlady Chiara Beretta was also dope.