 I love it when they're like this. So you might know what a cool Korean soju bar and a cool Japanese sake bar is like, but what's a modern Chinese bar? Not quite. New York has some very trendy Chinese-owned bars that are leading this new movement. There's oolong mango sticky rice cocktails, Sichuan tapas, smooth Baijiu shots, tofu sandwiches topped with a spicy red pill. See, here's some stuff that you've never seen before, so hit that like button and let's go. Our first spot is a speakeasy in the Lower East Side. This might just be the best Chinese bar in all of North America. We're in the Lower East Side of Manhattan right now at Ye's Apothecary. Let's check it out. All right, you guys, we are here at Ye's Apothecary with the owner, Mandy. You know, you also own Blue Willow, which is one of our favorite spots to go to. Congratulations on everything. Thank you. I think we're bringing an introduction into a Chinese-focused cocktail bar, you know? We're infusing teas and cocktails, genotonyx, and we're kind of bringing to the table really off that table. Wait, wait, wait, real quick, man, we got to acknowledge the craziness of what you just said, because you just said Chinese bar. Everybody knows what a Japanese bar is, like a Korean bar, maybe even a Filipino bar. People do not know what a Chinese bar is, other than like a couple Lao Xiang throwing back Baijiu at the hot pot spot with some chouar. This is truly a Chinese bar from top to bottom, from what is infused in the cocktails all the way to your Baijiu cocktails, all the way to the food. And the food is very authentic, even though it might be multi-regional, right? Pan Chinese. Pan Chinese taking different dishes from different areas of China, but overall you're putting it all together and you guys are doing a great job. All right, Mandy, what are we looking at? Because I'm telling you right now, like you said, this is straight out of Chung King Express right now. I don't think I've seen anything like this, even in Shanghai. In Shanghai was the place I saw some good closest to this. Right here, this cocktail is called Remdi. We have Kavlon, and we infused Kavlon with Percentamon Goji berry ice cube. This is the Nightingale. There is Kampua and Rosemary, and it's a ginatonic, but the gin we infused with Oolong tea. Oolong gin. This is a cocktail ginatonic drink with leachy and butterfly infused gin. Butterfly PT infused gin. I see that in moments sometimes with butterfly tea. And this is, last but not least, the plum martini. It's an Asian take on the classic martini. Cheers. Hey guys, got me. Yeah, now when people think of Chinese bar, it's not that type of Chinese bar, where you're throwing back shots of high juice. Wow. Let's take a look at the food, because like we said, this is a bar, and you can get amazing 10 out of 10 drinks here, but you can get like 10 out of 10 food. This is our fisherman's prawns. It's basically with a lot of garlic, pepper, and butter. This is not a dish you would expect at. It's a dish that's really at a spot that also has incredible confidence. Dude, I love this. All around coastal China, you can get this dish right now. I don't know where it originally came from, but I want to say the Geng Chong maybe more came from the Guangdong side, but you can even get this in Shandong nowadays. This is our truffle mushroom salad. Wow. You know, we love mushroom, we know keen, mixed with different kinds of mushroom, and there's my country, it's part of the truffle taste and the black pepper. Wait, are these pineapple slices? Yes, and we... Oh, this is Changsha style, not Chongqing. I thought this whole time it was Chongqing, but this is Changsha style. This is Chongqing style. But... Wrapping him down. Yeah, and the pineapple makes it very sweet and citrusy, kind of cuts the spice a little. That is an absolute must get. This is everybody's favorite chili wontons, aka Hongyou Chaoshou. So good. Oh man, honestly, this is probably one of the biggest chicken chouars I've ever had. Duck fried rice. Guys, all fried rice lovers got to try this one. They took a noodle dish, turned it into a fried rice dish, then added duck fat. Oh, this is the Tramun Mao's Pork Belly, basically a very classic dish from Hunan. Yeah, that's true. Shout out to Hunan. This is like a cold dish, basically like a total salad, but very spicy. This is one of my favorite dishes here at Ye's Apothecary. This is the best tofu skins I've ever had in my life. Man, kudos to you, Mandy. You killed it. Thank you. I got to say, I mean, I love Blue Willow. I love Ye's Apothecary even more, especially because it's in the Lower East Side. I think it even exceeded, like, I don't even think I can think of something that's good in my mind, let alone pull it off. Well, y'all, I've already been here 10 times. I love Ye's. Check it out in the Lower East Side on Orchard Street. It is definitely a unique experience with a unique menu. So right down the block from Ye's Apothecary over here on Delancy and Allen, we have double chicken please. The owners are from Taiwan, and let me tell you this, guys, this is one of the hottest bars in the city, especially for Asians. All right, guys, so there's actually two rooms to double chicken please. This is the first one. You can sit down here and get cocktails on tap and get the chicken sandwiches, but it has a more, like, upbeat vibe. They play a lot of hip-hop here, and they also added these projectors up here recently. All right, so as the first room is a little bit more casual and more open, it's easier to get a seat here. But if you want to go into the second room where you can get the full menu and enter more of, like, a Singaporean, crazy rich Asians-type vibe, it's back here. All right, so the back room does have a totally different vibe. It's got some retro, futuristic, you know, wood paneling, and they're playing kind of like upbeat lo-fi. So here you have popcorn chicken. Those are from the Taiwanese roots. Here you also have a salted egg yolk chicken sandwich. Guys, the chicken sandwiches here are some of the top ranked in New York City. And you have a chicken liver mousse here. Of course, double chicken, please. Lots of chicken products. Ooh, they got the little lard on top. Let me break that up. Guys, the owners and head chefs are from Taiwan, but they study to Japan a lot, and they are cocktail masters. This one tastes like soba, and this one tastes like mango sticky rice. Sawadee kab. And to cap off the meal, you have a salted plum mochi donut. Because salted plum, not initially something that you would put on a donut, but hey, it works. You never had this donut before, ever. I would have never thought I would order so much patte at a bar before. This is the best chicken liver mousse in the city. A lot of people say that. And of course, you've got popcorn chicken, which is an ode to the Taiwanese roots. Everybody gets this dish. Asian, non-Asian. Let's see how they do it. A lot of pepper. Guys, and here is what I believe double chicken, please, is named after. The chicken sandwiches. They are some of the best in the city by a lot of rankings. Soft brioche bun. Cucumber slices. Nice little aioli. So as you can see, the Asian elements in the food and menu here are actually really Pan-Asian pulling from all over, but probably with roots in Taiwan, of course. And I would just say between this and Ye's apothecary down the street, it just really goes to show you the diversity that Chinese bars are having in New York City right now. Ye's is taking after 1940s Hong Kong. And then here is taking after probably like a retro, futuristic, Singapore, Taiwan vibe. So this cocktail, by the way, really tastes like soba. I suggest you come by and try some of their other creative cocktails. They're really, really good. Alright, our next Chinese bar is actually in Williamsburg called Anadote. Now this spot is not based off of any sort of Chinese historical theme. It totally looks different. It's really cool, very artistic, and it has great food. Guys, we're here at Anadote. I have the Anadote cocktail, and it comes with this blue and red pill, you know, kind of a little edgy game based off the matrix. And also, funny enough, based off what's going on on the internet right now. Here we have Sichuan peppercorn. I'm gonna put it on myself, just a little sprinkle on there as much as I want. If I want it extra spicy, I have the blue one that I can even add, the double amount. Man, I don't know if I'm ready for that. This is the Anadote in Brooklyn. Yeah, I got the Sichuan dusting right now. So here we got some appetizers here, and they're just doing something real different. This is their version of kimchi. I know that Chinese people also have their version of kimchi, too. So this might be, you know, this is just their own twist. Let's check it out. That is so refreshing. It's actually very sweet, and it's got a lot of heat. I definitely recommend getting this one. Here we have some pedon, aka duck egg, and it's got a little bit of spicy sauce on it. Got some little pickled veggies here. Let's check this out. Guys, I can definitely see and taste the Hunan Sichuan influence in their menu. Everything does have a spicy kick, so watch out for that. But it is actually really, really tasty. I love that dish. Hey, guys, and here we have their fried dish. Now, this is actually a dish you can find in China. I think I want to say more in Yunnan. So they look like crinkle-cut fries, but they're done a little bit differently. Here you have the fried peppers right here that you can eat. I love it when they're like this. All right, everybody, juxtaposing anecdote with, you know, Ye's Apothecary, something that was playing off of, like, the 1940s, 1950s Hong Kong theme. This is totally different. This looks like an art studio. They're playing lo-fi music. I mean, there's like a museum, like, curating group that is, like, eating right next to me. It also looks like there's a botanical garden mixed with a laboratory. I don't know. There's a lot of different themes going on here, but what I'm trying to say is it does not feel like a Chinese restaurant of any type. And this is why the spot is in Brooklyn. It's called Anadote. They're doing edgy things with the pills here. So overall, I think it's cool. The food is very authentic. It's got a nice, spicy kick, and the drinks are cool. So definitely check it out in Williamsburg. All right, you guys, our next Chinese bar concept is Amarabar in the East Village. One of the owners, Harvey, is Chinese American. The menu is Pan Asian. It's Japanese. It's Chinese. They got Asian drinks. Let's check it out. It opened up just a few years ago. Listen, guys, at any Chinese-owned bar, you will find the Lychee Martini. Lychee is a fruit, actually, that is native to Guangdong, Southern China, Yunnan, Fujian. And I'm telling you guys, it has very low acidity, and it pairs really, really well with drinks. It's very fragrant. It's almost rose-like. And I'm telling you guys, it's weird because in Cantonese, they think Lychee's give you Yeet Hei, but low acidity actually would mean it's more Dong Hei. I don't know. All right, you guys, we're looking at two different Asian fusion concepts right here. This is a lobster one-ton. It's not a ravioli. I know this is a lobster bisque, so definitely a fusion item. And of course, you've got the Sichuan spice wings right here. I believe this is some sort of wasabi aioli. Let's take a look. Oh, my goodness. It's really hot. Just not from a spicy perspective, but you guys, I never thought I would see a Western raw bar with like Sichuan spice wings. All right, you guys, we are looking at lobster one-ton. This is not a regular East Coast Chesapeake oyster, because I'm putting soy ginger garlic on top, guys. Oh, my goodness. Even the oyster-flavoring accoutrements are Asian fusion. Last but not least, I've got the miso garlic butter shrimp. Of course, very cool plating. Almost some like Hawaii, you know, Roy's Hawaiian-type vibes here, guys. This is Asian fusion. I'm telling you, you have never had wasabi and fusion rice in your life. Maybe they should call this dish, Camarones de Cantonesa de Japonesa. This is some real fusion out here. I did not expect to see this at an oyster bar. It carries like really expensive oysters, too. Our next Chinese bar concept is Wei Williamsburg. It's definitely half bar, half restaurant. It was started by a Shanghai-nese homestyle mom-and-pop family seven years ago. It definitely feels like the suburbs and the sense of like, it's sort of like your golden phoenix in the town that you're from, but elevated, and I really like it. All right, you guys, this drink is called the 88. It is made with Shaoxing wine. Listen, guys, Shaoxing is typically used for cooking and stir-fry and various things like that. But very, very interesting in this cocktail. I'd say I like it. And of course, they got Shaolong Bao's here, guys. This is a pork one. This reminds me so much of a place in Kent called Phoenix Moon, and it's kind of like a divey Chinese spot with a bar, but this is certainly the Brooklyn elevated version. This is a high-pie beef, okay, the Mongolian beef. Next spot is Peaches over in Chinatown. It's the baby sister bar of the pricey fusion spot, Chinese Tuxedo. Now, it's a little bit more on the kitschy side, but overall, it is really fun and vibey, and which causes for a lot of walking around and movement. Only one of the partners is Chinese, so right out the gate, it has a lot of appeal for the non-Asian crowd. We wanted to include it, not because it's the most traditional Chinese, but it is indeed Chinatown American themed. But the Chinese influence does not only extend to Chinese-owned bars. Right now, we are in front of Sleepwalk in Williamsburg, and they base their decor in a few of the cocktails of 1920 Shanghai. Like we said, this bar is not overly Asian, but they definitely took some design cues on there, and there's some even paintings, so let's check it out. I mean, there is clearly something about that era of 1920 Shanghai. It was a semi-colonial. I'll pop up the photos of it. That definitely is like a design inspiration, even for spots that are not Asian and non-Asian neighborhoods. They do have some Asian drinks here, though. This is wasabi mango. I'm telling you guys, this is almost like the Chinese Pan-Asian Chimango or Bloody Mary Spicy Margarita. Williamsburg, they are experimental here about everything. All right, you guys, so we just finished up at Sleepwalk. I got to speak to one of the owners. He told me that this bar Sleepwalk is supposed to be a mash-up of all the things he loves. One of his best friends is from Shanghai, and he said, I love 1920 Shanghai, and I love 90s glam rock in New York City, and I just meshed the two together, and I'll say, man, that's so Brooklyn. It was pretty cool. So that wraps it up for our new Chinese bars video. Let me know if we missed any around the city, and we're always looking to show off those who are pushing the envelope and doing something new. So let me know in the comments down below which one you thought was the coolest, which one would you want to go to, and if there's any cool Asian bars around your town. Until next time, we out. Peace.