New gastro bar L’Aiglon tantalises with potent cocktails and bar bites
By Cheryl Chia
Tucked in a posh-looking shop house right next to Taboo on Neil Road is a sexy and visibly “grown-ups only” gastro bar, L’Aiglon.
Serving potent and delicious cocktails, L’Aiglon is a great place to end the week.
Owner Pierre-Emmanuel Plassart comes from a family of artists and entrepreneurs, starting with his grandfather, who opened a chain of supermarkets all over France. With the advice of Chef Patron Frederic of Brasserie Gavroche and Café Gavroche, he decided to open L’Aiglon.
Wind-Down Drinks
L’Aiglon, which means “the eaglet” in French, is a pet name that Pierre-Emmanuel gained when he refused to remove his Halloween costume of Napoleon for weeks as a child. The sentimental name aside, the bar’s unique collection of cocktails is courtesy of mixologist Louis Tan, who recently won the qualifying round of the Diageo Reserve World Class 2014 competition.
I especially liked the Indian Cooler ($20), containing an Asian-inspired mix of gin, fresh grapefruit juice, fresh lime juice, lemongrass syrup and fresh ginger juice.
The Screaming Tomatoes ($22) is the mixologist’s take on the Bloody Mary. He flames the French vine tomatoes and strains them to get the juice before mixing it with vodka, fresh lemon juice, herbs and black pepper, resulting in a more authentic-tasting cocktail.
Food Not to Be Missed
Do not leave without trying the bar’s signature, French 69 ($22), a strong mix of gin, fresh lemon juice, sugar syrup and Champagne Labruyere. From the menu, you can see that Pierre-Emmanuel has a penchant for gin. The bar stocks 30 different types of gin.
L’Aiglon is also the first in the world to debut Champagne Labruyere, from French wine entrepreneur Edouard Labruyere’s acquisition of Domaine Christian Busin, a champagne grower.
Apart from the cocktails, the kitchen serves little bites such as L’Aiglon’s Spiced Nuts and Green Olives ($15) and PEP’s Chicken Mini Burger ($14). The chicken is freshly hand-chopped in the kitchen before serving the burger – no premade chicken patties here.
Also try the Crab Cakes with Curry Salsa and Granny Smith Apples ($14) for a sweet yet spicy snack. If you’re looking for a place to chill or to wind down with friends after work, L’Aiglon is something new and interesting that you can try.
L’Aiglon, 69 Neil Road, Singapore 088899, Tel: 6220 0369
ADVERTISEMENTS