A new cocktail bar which is out to carve a niche in the city social scene is now adding to the mix with a new menu that claims a world first.
Pepo, a recent extension to Horticulture restaurant in Newcastle, has announced a new menu entirely devoted to pornstar martinis and which is set to prove a revelation to fans of the usual vodka and passion fruit combo with its side shot of prosecco. The bar, whose name is derived from a category of fruit that includes passion fruit, has come up with eight variations on the theme.
The pornstar martini, invented in London by the late Douglas Ankrah, has been dubbed the world's number one cocktail and Pepo is claiming a world-first with its creation of a whole menu of pornstar martinis, which includes imaginative mixings, decadent touches and some flamboyant extras; not to mention a bit of tongue-in-cheek fun.
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The bar, which specialises in fruit-focused cocktails and also serves food platters, opened earlier this August upstairs in the former Don Vitos building in Pilgrim Street and, while it has a separate entrance to the adjacent Horticulture, the pair link through a previously covered-up doorway. And as more customers discover this drinking den, its new cocktail additions are beginning to make their mark.
Joe Taylor, its operations and development manager, said: "We have seven alcoholic versions of a pornstar martini and one virgin non-alcoholic. Each cocktail harnesses the passion fruit flavour with a cheeky twist on the pornstar name, but all using innovative prep and forward-thinking methods."
And there's science behind that creative thinking - with endless taste tests having taken place to discover what flavours work - as well as a touch of theatrics, including some customer interaction to add a few wow moments to the making process.
One proving an early hit is The Glory which comes in a rocks glass that holds a frozen cave-like opening which is injected with drink and accessed via a small hole in the 'roof' which is hidden by a passion fruit. Another includes X-Rated - a completely clear version of a pornstar martini: a clarified passion fruit cocktail, with a 'naked' appearance and addition of Glenmorangie X.
Mike Hesketh owns both Pepo and Horticulture, whose own cocktail menu focuses upon another favourite, espresso martini, and boasts more than 50 variations of the coffee cocktail. He said of Pepe's new menu theme: "We knew the passion fruit was the key ingredient.
"So we couldn’t play with that, unlike the espresso next door at Horticulture, so we began a number of trials, taste tests and experiments over the past few months and have been blow away with the outcome!” Customers can sample the results for themselves when Pepe opens from noon on Saturday and from 4pm on Sunday to Friday, until late.
Bookings encouraged - see here for details and for information about its drinks and sharing boards - but walk-ins are also welcome.
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