PUBLISHED November 27th, 2021 06:00 am | UPDATED December 4th, 2021 01:16 pm
‘Nothing gold can stay’ – so goes the Robert Frost poem. But as the golden hour sinks into night, something magical ticks into life at Stay Gold Flamingo. Founded by Jerrold Khoo – formerly Bar Manager of Jigger & Pony – and Bai JiaWei of Employees Only, Stay Gold Flamingo is a dual-concept space: all-day coffee bar in the front, cocktail party in the back.
During the day, Flamingo welcomes caffeine cravers and day drinkers alike in a sunlit space decked in breezy whites and pinks. The menu here stays light with sandwiches, cuppas brewed with Cumulo Coffee beans, and low-ABV cocktails. If you like your pick-me-up boozy, their Espresso Martini (S$19) delivers a smooth hit with TNT Vodka and Mr Black Coffee Liqueur.
As dusk falls, slip behind the velvet curtain at the back of the café, and you’ll discover a gleaming tippling den: Stay Gold. The vibe here teeters on dreamlike, with a stainless steel ceiling that ripples across the space and reflects a sea of blue bar tables and neon purple lighting. In this drinking lounge, the two experienced bartenders shake up their brand of cocktail wizardry: Jerrold with his precise Japanese-style training, and JiaWei with his energetic American bartending.
Their cocktail menu is arranged in dual sections: ‘Stay Gold’ stays true to the timeless classics, while ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’ gives the classics a fun spin (all S$23++). There’s a secret code to how they’re arranged on the menu too: the former section is designed in a triangular shape, while the latter is presented in an inverse triangle – that means each ‘Stay Gold’ tipple has its zanier counterpart in the ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’ section. At the same time, their tipples don’t venture far from the basic three-ingredient structure: base spirit, modifier, and enhancer.
While ‘Stay Gold’ is rooted in the classics, you can count on more offbeat options than your familiar Negronis and whisky sours. A Perfect Sazerac, for one, takes on the New Orleans vintage cocktail with both Rémy Martin VSOP Cognac and Michter’s Rye, plus a splash of absinthe. The result is as stiff as they come, with a lovely balance of herbal, spicy, and bittersweet flavours.
Its mischievous alter ego on the menu is Intro to Absinthe. This tipple flips the spotlight onto the Sazerac’s supporting star – absinthe – and combines it with sparkling coconut water and earl grey tea. What we get is an easy-drinking intro to absinthe indeed – a highball-style refresher that starts off herbal and lifts into a fresh, sweet finish. It’s worth stopping by early from 5pm to 7pm to snag this cocktail for S$16, among other selections on their Golden Hour Menu.
Other standout twists on the classics include Twiggy, a take on the Bamboo cocktail that features Brass Lion Gin, Oloroso sherry, and blackberry umeshu. Named for the androgynous model icon, this tipple balances between fruity and spirit-forward, sweet and tangy. Another blackberry-laced cocktail, Smokey Bramble is a likeable blend of Monkey Shoulder Smokey Monkey whisky, blackberry liqueur, and lemon. It comes garnished, unexpectedly, with a mala quail egg on a skewer – but this spicy bite plays surprisingly well with whisky’s smoky, oaky notes.
Feeling health-conscious from one too many dranks? Cleanse your liver with the Conscious Mule, a clean-and-green take on the Moscow Mule. We’re talking green juice blended from kale, cucumber, and other wholesome veggies, mellowed with the bold sweetness of leatherwood honey, and laced with Haku Vodka. It’s not quite our cup of tea, but the bartenders assure us that it’s been a popular order here.
If you’re craving your dose of greens, we recommend getting ’em in solid form instead. One of the heartier mains on the food menu, Garden (S$20) is a smoky, indulgent take on gado-gado. Think a seasonal array of roasted veggies – ours included red onion, pumpkin, Thai eggplant, and cherry tomatoes – tossed in a savoury-sweet, blissfully creamy miso peanut sauce.
The bar grub is certainly eclectic, spanning the likes of stinky tofu and Inasal Skewers (S$16) – chewy skewers of chargrilled chicken hearts and gizzards. There’s no going wrong with the Nahm Prik Wings (S$18), a generous platter of meaty, juicy wings that come marinated with Thai-style chili sauce. But our favourite has to be the Sambal Matah Fish Taco (S$20) – this massive slab of deep-fried golden snapper comes pillowed in a corn tortilla along with sambal matah slaw. There’re eye-watering sliced chilies lurking in the slaw, so be warned.
Stay Gold Flamingo is located at 69 Amoy St, Singapore 069888, p. +65 8876 7364. Flamingo is open daily 8am–4pm, while Stay Gold is open Mon-Sat 5pm–10.30pm.