I have been wanting to check out Meo, Vancouver’s newer cocktail bar for a while now. They opened after my favourite Singaporean restaurant Nancy Go Yaya closed down this year. Meo is owned by the same team behind Kissa Tanto.
They are normally closed on Mondays, but tonight was industry night, and they were celebrating the holiday season with friends, offering them 50% off cocktails and a featured menu item.
Having seen the space before, the decor was a face lift. It was 80’s soap opera bedroom with soft pastel pinks and lush textiles. I was just missing a feathered boa. The theme is not comparable to any other, and is a theme all its own.
It is furthered with kitsch like an oil painting of a regal White Persian cat done boudoir style, scalloped velvet booth seats like that of a head board, and plastics fan shaped menu holders that reminded me of vintage Chinese wedding table markers.
We grabbed a couple of seats at the bar, for the best view in the house. The retro pink followed us on to the counter top and on each table light with its own folded umbrella lamp shade.
Continuing with the bed room theme, there are also mirrors above the bar so that you could watch your drinks being made and you enjoying them from above.
Keeping it festive, we ordered only from the seasonal drink menu card. Five cocktail options and one shot. We skipped the latter, which read like a mint chocolate drop and passed on the Gingerbread Old Fashloned, which was like the classic cocktail but seasoned with ginger and mulling spices, and topped with a mascarpone layer.
The Shakerato was White chocolate Campari, Haku vodka, fermented rice, and lemon. I only got the richness of the white chocolate in the texture and the foam topping. The flavour was more ruby grapefruit, with the freshness of soda.
I liked the Ruby Reindeer, which drank like a Lambrusco sangria with Amaretto Disaronno, Oloroso sherry, pomegranate vinegar, and lambrusco. Served chilled, but with the warming spices of mulled wine. This best paired with our rich and small bites below.
Brigitte’s Eggnog was a premix of Cacao butter Bumbu rum, candy cup mushroom anglaise, orange, and spruce. Topped with freshly grated nutmeg that added a nuttiness on the nose. Not like traditional eggnog, but just as thick and creamy. It drank like a pudding with butterscotch notes.
For a spirit forward cocktail the Candy Canetini fit the bill. Roku gin, white cranberry, Menthe Pastille, and Bitter Bianco. Refreshingly minty, this made for a palate refreshing last drink digestif. It lingers on the palate with a perfume float of botanicals from the gin.
Not listed on the menu, you had to know to know to order this one. It was Chef Macia’s take on the McRib sandwich, but with Korean flavours, and served with curly fries.
Toasted crunchy focaccia bread, the kind that scapes the sides of your mouth. At the centre, fatty pulled rib meat, thoroughly coated in a salty umami sauce, with a green onion pancake essence. So juicy that it got messier with each bite.
But the best part was the sour cream blue cheese dip that the curly fries came with. I want it in its very own burger, over baked potatoes, and as frosting to a savoury dessert.
Apparently, if you can only order one item off of their regular food menu it should be the French Toast appetizer. Torched fois gras micuit, black currant jam, and chives. It had the same sauce as the burger above, but sweetened with the caramelized fois gras, given levity with the abundant chives for freshness. Sumptuous and rich one is plenty and the chalkiness lingers in your mouth.
Overall, I was impressed with everything: food, drinks, decor, service, and staff. This was a nice introduction, but I would love to explore more of their regular menu. Especially considering how artful their drink listing was crafted, like a collage with vintage family home photos. And cocktails that allowed you to choose how spicy you want your margarita by pepper type, and a Grasshopper made with pandan.
Meo
265 E Pender St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1T8
(604) 559-6181
meochinatown.com
