Bar Review: Bubbles

Bubbles Bar

What: Friexenet and El Patio join forces

Why: You love cava

How much: Cocktails RMB 68 – 72, Bottles RMB 278 – 1,688

Where: 3F, 110 Fenyang Lu, near Fuxing Zhong Lu. Tel: 6437 5839

There’s been an invasion. Over the past two years, Spaniards have flocked to the shores of Shanghai, littering the city with paella, sangria and Euro dancebeats. It was only a matter of time before they dedicated a bar to the Spanish sparkling wine cava.

Located in the attic of El Patio, Bubbles is co-owned by Friexenet, the world’s largest supplier of cava, and the restaurant, making it just about the most Spanish place in town. According to the owners, it was designed to be unpretentious, a goal that it accomplishes with its original wood floors, vaulted attic ceilings and intimate spaces. A small sequestered room just off the bar seats 10 comfortably, and the two terraces serve not just to supplement El Patio’s branding, but to encourage mingling amongst the terracotta eaves of the 1930s villa. All total, the four separate spaces max out at 70 people, but the number will dwindle as winter’s chill turns the patios into iceboxes.

The Japanese bartender, an el Coctel alum, is mixing a variety of cava-based cocktails, including a deliciously fruity mojito (RMB 68) that dances with hints of peach and muddled mint. If you prefer cocktails that don’t sparkle, there’s also a list of the regulars, but don’t expect them to taste conventional. Even the gin and tonic (RMB 68) is spiced up with a stick of cinnamon.

The Spanish will ¡vamos! their way over, and the rest of us will inevitably follow suit. After all, who can say no to drinking in another French Concession view with the beautiful people of Shanghai?