At The St. Regis Bar Jakarta, music has never been just background ambience. From live jazz performances to a trumpet-shaped chandelier that anchors the room and a mural inspired by Wayang figures playing modern instruments, sound and storytelling are built into the bar’s identity. Ranked No. 22 on Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025, the venue continues to position itself as a space where cocktails, culture, and ritual move in rhythm.
That sensibility comes into focus with the launch of the bar’s latest cocktail menu, inspired by 1920s New York’s Jazz Age. Developed under Bar Manager Paulo Naranjo, the menu treats each drink as a narrative device, drawing from the era when jazz, nightlife, and modern bar culture were being shaped simultaneously.
The New Cocktails
At the heart of the new menu are seven highlighted cocktails, each rooted in a moment, mood, or figure from jazz history. According to Naranjo, “each cocktail is rooted in a specific jazz figure, venue, or song,” using flavour and structure to reflect the spirit of the era rather than replicate it literally.
The line-up opens with Charleston, a lively, upbeat drink inspired by the dance floor, followed by Crime Tender, which nods to Prohibition-era ingenuity, when bartenders relied on creativity to navigate scarcity. Drunken Doctor leans richer and spirit-forward, while In a Sentimental Mood slows the tempo, offering a softer, more reflective profile.
The remaining drinks explore contrast and theatricality. Small Paradise references intimate jazz-era hideaways, The Greatest Snowman brings a sense of visual drama and texture, and White King closes the set with a composed, structured drink that mirrors the balance of a well-orchestrated ensemble.
Rather than presenting the cocktails as standalone signatures, the menu encourages guests to move through them as a sequence—much like a jazz set—where pacing, mood, and progression matter as much as the individual notes.
Jazz, Rituals, and the Bar’s Ongoing Programme
The menu arrives within a broader ecosystem of experiences at The St. Regis Bar Jakarta, where jazz continues to shape the rhythm of the room. Live performances take place six nights a week, reinforcing the connection between music and mixology, while signature St. Regis rituals—such as the Violet Hour—frame the transition from day to night with deliberate ceremony.
Beyond the menu, the bar’s “Raising The Bar” guest mixologist programme further extends this philosophy. Designed as a platform for exchange rather than spectacle, the initiative brings in bartenders from across the region to collaborate, share ideas, and interpret the bar’s Jazz Age framework through their own perspectives.
Together, the new menu and ongoing programmes reflect a bar confident in its identity. Rather than reinventing itself, The St. Regis Bar Jakarta continues to refine a language it has been building for years—one where jazz is not just heard, but tasted, felt, and woven into the experience of the night.
The St. Regis Bar Jakarta
Rajawali Place, Jl. H. R. Rasuna Said No.Kav No.B/4, Kuningan, Setia Budi, DKI, Kota Jakarta Selatan, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 12910
