New York bar called Singlish amuses Singaporeans, serves drinks called BTO and Chiobu

It's always nice to see a piece of Singapore away from home. 

So when local voiceover actress Caitanya Schmickrath-Tan was in New York, she was amused to find a bar named after something we are all familiar with — Singlish. 

In a TikTok video uploaded on Tuesday (Feb 20), the 36-year-old shared that her Singaporean friend who lives in New York had introduced her to the bar. 

"He told me the owner is not even Singaporean and neither is the decor," shared Caitanya. 

"So of course, as a proud Singaporean, I must go inside and complain, right?"

@caitofalltraits There is a bar in NYC called ‘Singlish’ so as Singaporeans, must complain! #singlish #nycbars #foodieSG ♬ Aesthetic - Gaspar

Right off the bat, Caitanya was amused by the intriguing menu offerings. 

"The names of these drinks are hilarious!" she remarked. 

One of the drinks, called Ho Seh Boh, is a floral old fashioned crafted with sesame oil washed bourbon, osmanthus syrup, galangal bitter and angostura. 

The drink description even explained that the slang is "a common greeting in Singapore". 

"Ho Seh Boh is pretty Singaporean!" Caitanya added. 

The bar's rendition of the classic Singapore Sling is called Build-To-Order, poking fun at our public housing programme. 

In the menu description, it mentioned that "some assembly is required" and true enough, tipplers would have to put together their own drink "from the flavours of Singapore's most famous cocktail". 

"BTO here only costs US$26 (S$34)!" Caitanya said jokingly.

Those who like pretty girls would be amused by Chiobu, a drink made from baijiu, orchid gin, jasmine tea, sichuan pepper and blood orange.  

Other interesting drinks are Relak Lah!, which is a barley tea highball; and Chope, a Thai tea washed scotch. 

The food menu also had dishes with local elements like Kuih Pie Tee, Money Bag and Singlish Fries. 

Though some may take offence at our local slang being used so loosely in another country, Caitanya said she was "not mad at all". 

"We have cocktails called The Manhatten in Singapore," she pointed out. 

"Does it represent Manhatten? No." 

In the comments, many amused netizens shared that they loved the concept behind the bar. 

One even shared that she is currently looking for a BTO so the cocktail name had made her laugh. 

Founded by non-Singaporeans 

While the Singlish cocktail names used are pretty accurate, the bar, which was founded in 2022, is surprisingly not the brainchild of Singaporeans. 

Chef and managing partner Salil Mehta, who hails from New Delhi and moved to the US, founded Singlish with beverage director and bartender Colin Stevens. 

Salil first fell in love with our local food during a trip to Singapore when he was a child. 

"I had my first taste of [Southeast Asian cuisine] when I was 12, after having roti canai in Singapore," he told OpenTable in an interview.

"That meal left an unforgettable impression on me." 

Recognising there was a gap in the New York food scene for Southeast Asian fare, Salil decided to open not just Singlish, but other establishments serving Asian cuisine. 

One of his more notable ventures is Laut, the first Malaysian restaurant in the US to earn a Michelin star.

In a video by New York Live in July 2022, Salil shared that the restaurant was very "close to his heart" and he had to tweak the concept a few times to create what the bar is today. 

"Singlish is a really, really cool colloquial language from Singapore where they have their own way of communicating," he shared. 

"We've always tried to incorporate parts of Singlish in some of our menus, and over here, we just wanted to go out the whole way and do something that truly embraces and captures that character and that fun idea of it." 

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melissateo@asiaone.com