Curtains Jazz Club

Curtains Jazz Club comes from the group behind The Baxter Inn, Shady Pines Saloon, The Caterpillar Club and Alberto's Lounge, and is built around the world's great jazz rooms. It takes inspiration from Ronnie Scott's in London, Smalls in New York, and the record bars of old Tokyo. An intimate stage anchors the room, booked with some of the city's best jazz musicians for live sets Thursday through Sunday. The mood shifts set to set, from soulful grooves to high-tempo improvisation, rather than sticking to one register all night.

Outside live hours, the soundtrack keeps working. Monk, Brubeck and Washington give way to Japanese deep cuts, rare European pressings, obscure modern releases and cuts pulled from an actual CD collection, not a playlist. Daily happy hour runs from 5-7pm, with classic cocktails, tall pours and wines by the glass before the room shifts into gear for the night.

The cocktail list nods to the world's great bars — Harry's New York Bar in Paris, Bar High Five in Tokyo — without copying them outright: a French 75 scented with jasmine and rosé vermouth, a whisky highball lifted with tonka bean and mandarin, a pandan-spiked Mary Pickford, a fig leaf sazerac. The back bar goes even deeper, stocking more than 300 Japanese whiskies for anyone happy to skip the menu altogether. Entry is always free, with walk-ins only.

Images: Supplied. 

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