Meet Xian Bar's New Manager Chris Peart and His Velvet Sledgehammer
It’s always exciting to find out about new talent that has arrived in our fair city in the field of F&B. With no further ado, it is our pleasure to welcome Chris Peart, the Aussie with the golden jiggers, who quietly took the helm at Xian Bar at EAST Hotel in January.
Peart's background includes manning bars in Brisbane, Melbourne, Shanghai, and most recently at the Coeval Blanc in the Maldives. But one doesn’t just became a jet-set, planet-hopping cocktail slinger, creating flavor explosions at classy joints in fabulous locales without years of practice.
Peart, who when not on duty told us he likes to get his Beijing buzz on at Janes and Hooch, got his start during university, where he provided the student body with the customary mixed drinks and cocktails popular with the underdeveloped tastes we all had during those times.
"Like most boys in their early 20s, I was really into girls and thought that bartending would be a good way to meet the ladies," recalls the now thirty-something barman, who also plans on DJing on occasion at Xian. "Nowadays I’m happily married, but I still love the fun, easy-going nightlife atmosphere. I’m really excited to be working with such a young, talented team at Xian.”
Today we in the Beijinger office had the pleasure of sampling some of Peart's hospitable concoctions, as the fine folks at East Hotel recognized that the working stiffs at True Run Media sometimes need a perk or two. Having a pro bartender mix fresh beverages for us while on deadline certainly ranks up there with some of the finest treatment we've ever received while at work.
The crew came with velvet sledgehammers in tow: a delectable mixture of dark rum, Portuguese sugar cane liquor cachaca, Malibu, pineapple orange juice, absinthe, and vanilla syrup.
Miles ahead of the jungle juice we drank at school, the cocktail proved to us that Peart has no doubt come a long way from his days in the Animal House.
Needless to say, after two cups of this sweet tropical punch to the noggin, we were smashed. Thus please excuse typos in this writeup.
If you want to check his skills out for yourself, head over to Xian, where the surroundings are a damn fine bit more sophisticated than our office kitchen.
Tuesday through Saturday, Xian also features house band The Shanghai Shoeshine, who'll be covering the classics so that you can combine fun tunes with the new flavors brought over by Peart. Expect a stacked bar, the lineup of which Peart is currently tailoring to his taste of hard renditions of classic cocktails.
Ganbei to that!
More stories by this author here.
Email: danielkippwhittaker@thebeijinger.com
Photo: Courtesy of EAST Beijing
