As omakase experiences become more common in Atlanta, the cocktail omakase is having a moment.
At its core, omakase means the chef — or bartender — chooses what the diner will eat and drink. At a cocktail omakase, the drinks are the focal point, with the food designed around them.
Kirk Gibson, beverage consultant for Lucky Star, sees it as an opportunity to make more labor-intensive cocktails in a small volume, so even if the diner doesn’t like a particular flavor or technique, they’re not obligated to down a full-size drink.
It’s an experience best suited for drinkers who like to experiment.
Here are three cocktail omakases in metro Atlanta:
Credit: Catalina Selvagn
Credit: Catalina Selvagn
7th House
This astrology-themed cocktail bar, which opened in Adair Park early this year, is located in the Abrams Fixtures development.
7th House, which comes from the team behind underground supper club Bovino After Dark, is named for the seventh of the 12 houses in astrology, which are said to govern various aspects of a person’s life. The seventh house, in particular, governs partnerships, and in keeping with the astrology theme, the menu changes monthly to reflect the current zodiac sign, Beverage Director Trenton Austin said.
Using seasonal ingredients, the drinks take into account the qualities associated with that month’s astrological sign. For Gemini, that involved air — from removing air with a vacuum seal to using a nitrogen press to put rum into blackberries.
A cocktail omakase is an opportunity to share a bartender’s craft with interested guests. “There is more to cocktails than just booze — it is art, to a certain extent,” Austin said. “There is some playfulness and whimsy, but also some really cool, serious science behind it all.”
Instead of directly pairing the food and cocktails, three drinks came out first, then the food was presented toward the end of the evening before wrapping up with an espresso martini.
The offerings from Executive Chef Chris McCord were a mix of traditionally sweet dishes spotted with savory flavors, such as a blueberry waffle with shrimp cooked into it, or a toasted rice ice cream speckled with tomatoes and kombu (seaweed).
The cocktail omakase is $84 per person and requires reservations.
Wednesday-Saturday. 565 Northside Drive SW, Atlanta. 404-663-6842, seventhhouse.lpages.co/7th-house
Credit: ChingYao Wang
Credit: ChingYao Wang
Lucky Star
When chef Jason Liang and his partners opened Taiwanese restaurant Lucky Star, the plan always was to operate a cocktail omakase.
The omakase launched in June with the theme “dinner” as an extension of savory and culinary cocktail trends, beverage consultant Gibson said.
Omakase guests receive about five cocktails (plus one palate cleanser) and five small bites. Some drinks — including a ma po tofu fizz that involves soy milk, egg and pork belly bourbon — took Gibson months to perfect, while a figgy stardust 2.0 is a riff on a drink he has been making since Lucky Star’s early pop-up days.
The latter, a resounding hit among omakase guests, uses fig leaf syrup (with leaves harvested from Liang’s garden), distilled matcha, lime juice and Jigaden Honkaku shochu.
The drinks are paired with bites — such as an oyster or tomato skewer — or small portions of such dishes as lu rou fan and a pineapple upside-down ice cream cake.
Part of the enjoyment is watching the bartenders at work. Lucky Star’s counter-height bar was designed so that it’s easy to see what goes on right in front of you.
The cocktail omakase is $85 per person, and reservations are required.
Wednesday-Thursday. 1055 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. 678-994-6016, luckystaratl.com
Credit: Luke Beard
Credit: Luke Beard
Tiger Sun
In the back of Muchacho’s parking lot, a vintage bus is decked out with orange shag carpets, psychedelic walls, a penetrating neon-orange glow and a collection of intimate seats and tables.
Tiger Sun opened in November, and every 90 days Director of Operations Ennio di Nino and his team select a new cult classic movie as a theme for the cocktail menus. “Pulp Fiction” is the current theme.
Every omakase experience begins with a surprise way of finding out which of the two menus you have been assigned. Members of a party of two might be given separate menus, so sharing is encouraged.
Di Nino said they scour the movies for references and character profiles that will translate into a drink and a bite. After they develop the cocktails, small dishes are created to go along with the flavor profile of each drink.
Over the course of 90 minutes, guests will receive four drinks, four corresponding bites, plus a few appetizers at the start. There also are optional add-ons of full-size drinks or caviar bumps.
Fans of “Pulp Fiction” will have fun spotting movie references, ranging from the “Bring out the Gimp” section of the menu, to cocktails named after the film’s “Ezekiel 25:17” verse and the line “A please would be nice.”
The two menus offer different flavor profiles, with one focusing on shaken and laid-back cocktails, and the other offering boozy and complex drinks.
They have fun with garnishes as well, Di Nino said. “How can we present this where it’s not just liquid in a glass?”
The Tiger Sun experience is meant to entertain, playing not just on the movie theme but also the groovy space in which it’s housed.
The omakase is $85 per person and requires reservations.
Tuesday-Saturday. 904 Memorial Drive SE, Atlanta. tigersunatl.com
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