Speakeasy

On the Apulian seafront, not far from Bari Vecchia, Vincenzo Mazzilli and Nicola Milella have launched their vision of a contemporary speakeasy. The Prohibition era is only echoed in the 1920s-style furnishings, while there's no secret password required to gain entry. New bar manager Michele Upupa and bartenders Faldo Ruggiero and Mario Carannante are pursuing research rooted in the classics of international mixology. But there's more to the cocktails. Seasonal fruits, such as mandarins, persimmons, and apricots, but also less common ingredients, such as Lucanian crusco peppers or pineapple, transformed into a chutney, a sweet and sour Asian concoction similar to Italian fruit jam. While the drinks use technique, it's not used to cover the product, but to leave it as intact as possible, perhaps in a different form. Among the spirits, tequila and rum prevail, the latter often being the protagonist of blends of different products, to obtain a complete and more rounded final result.