[Photo: Bar Shake Facebook]

Run by Osamu Kinugawa who had his first Malaysian bar, The Bar Kinugawa, in Empire Damansara, Bar Shake is a premium cocktail bar in Kuala Lumpur that lets you experience Japanese cocktail bartending, while also serving Japanese alcohol brands that are not already in the city.

Bar Shake occupies a small but well laid out space with seating at the bar, leather sofas and a private room. Wooden cabinets with sliding doors using Japanese paper make an elegant backdrop for the impressive wooden bar counter which is carved from a single tree trunk. The environment promotes a luxury drinking experience that comes with Japanese hospitality, combining meticulous skills, simplicity in its setting, and a twist of the classics with a modern touch.

Every drink on the menu is made with around three ingredients, not counting what are used in infusing in the liquid. Kinugawa makes use of whatever ingredients are available in the market and ensure they’re the freshest for his bar. Prior to opening his previous outlet, the Japanese had already spent two years researching the market and drinking his way around the city. That allowed him to explore local ingredients and integrating them into his drinks.

Osamu Kinugawa's clear Bloody Mary Martini is a staple to his menu. [Photo: Kim Choong]

Other than the usual set menu, the bar offers something different all the time, a bite to pair, seasonal cocktails, rare whiskies… you never know what surprise is waiting for you. Their staple is the clear Bloody Mary, it is savoury and clear like a Martini. No one does it better than Kinugawa himself.