Mooalicious cocktails at Fat Cow
PUBLISHED February 21st, 2012 09:58 am | UPDATED July 25th, 2024 03:38 pm
Fat Cow may be the restaurant on everyone’s lips for top-grade beef (more on that from us another time), but did you know that the luxury Japanese meat atelier also boasts a rather cool cocktail lounge serving up some pretty killer cocktails?
Cosied up in the chic, intimate bar, I was looking forward to trying some of the 20 signature cocktails created by award-winning mixologist Matthew Radalj. While scanning down the list of cocktails, it’s very clear to see that the menu reflects Fat Cow’s modern Japanese approach to cuisine. Interesting cocktails blending eastern and western ingredients and flavours jump out, and Radalji has painstakingly endeavoured to use seasonal imports from Japan to create these.
So let’s start out with a perfect example of this. Cocktail lovers out there will be familiar with the Caprioska, usually made with vodka, lime, sugar and crushed ice. Well Fat Cow has it’s own spin on this called the Capirosabi ($25). You might get a clue about one of the distinguishing ingredients of this cocktail from it’s name. Give up? OK then if I really must tell it’s wasabi….
This cocktail combines equal parts Shisho sugar (that’s sugar muddled with Shisho, a Japanese herb similar to mint) and wasabi powder. Amazingly the instant infusion of these ingredients does not blow your head off like you might imagine it could.
Instead, after the initial refreshing feeling that is synonymous with a standard Caprioska, it follows through with a very subtle and pleasant warming after-sensation. Oh and I must add that of course this cocktail is not made with limes but in fact Sudachi, a centuries-old Japan-cultivated citrus fruit which has a zestier flavour than it’s cousin, the lime.
Now I have to admit I’m not usually one for whisky-based cocktails but Fat Cow has managed to turn me with the Midnight Sencha ($25), which is in essence a Whisky Sour but in reality a whole lot more.
Made with house-made Sencha syrup (think Chinese green tea flavours but with more earthy, grassy notes ), fresh citrus, egg white and bitters (by the way these guys have a pretty wide-ranging and interesting range of the latter).
It was a smooth and beautiful mix of sweet and sour flavours, with the mellowness of the aged malt whisky coming through giving the cocktail it’s umami taste.
Of course, like any decent mixology establishment bespoke cocktails are on offer, otherwise known as Dealer’s Choice. Â I always like to just say “surprise me”. And surprise me they did. Now I have to be honest, I wasn’t feeling all that excited when I had the Gin Mojito ($22) placed in front of me but you know what they say, looks can be deceiving. And ain’t that the truth.
Until this point, I was a Gin Mojito virgin, and to say I was pleasantly surprised is a complete underestimation. You might be thinking that this is complete cocktail sacrilege, making a mojito with a base of gin, but trust me once you’ve had this you may never want a rum-based mojito again.
The gin gives the drink a much more rounded taste and allows the taste of the mint to have a better chance at entertaining your palate. Also another secret here is that instead of muddling the mint leaves (which can cause that bitterness you sometimes get with a mojito), at Fat Cow they simply clap the leaves to bruise them to induce the mint flavour out. These guys know what they’re doing right down to a tee.
But that’s just for starters. The Kyoho Flip is also made with hand crafted, house-made Kyoho liquer and along with a dash of port and house-made spiced gomme.
It’s worth a quick interjection here to note that Fat Cow makes as much as they can in-house from it’s infusions down to it’s syrup….just like the gomme syrup. Anyway to sum up on this cocktail, it’s decadent, smooth yet with depth and a perfect end to our cocktail journey. Mmmmmmm. Yes it tastes just as good as it sounds.
While Fat Cow is an obvious go-to for all carnivores out there, it also has another major string to its bow in it’s cocktail bar. If you’re heading there for your meat fix, make sure you make a date with the bar for a pre- or post-dinner cocktail or two. Yes pay close attention –  the bar is not just an afterthought to the restaurant but should be on your hit list for seriously good cocktails in it’s very own right.
Written by Ms Demeanour
