Situated high up on the fifth floor of the glitzy SLS Barcelona in the emerging Port Fòrum district, Kyara is a 90 seat postmodern cocktail bar bringing an experimental approach to cocktails to one of the city’s newer waterfront areas; the concept taking familiar drinks and reworking them using unconventional ingredients, with fragrance and perfumery as the starting point for its programme.
Designed by London-based studio AvroKO, the interior brings together Scandi functionality and Japanese minimalism with a darker, more atmospheric palette. The entrance (one floor down from the Cosmico Rooftop) has deliberately low ceilings and amber-glass portals set into concrete walls, offering glimpses into the bar beyond. Textured plaster covers the walls and ceilings in cool earth tones, while teal, steel grey and black are punctuated by blue and saffron details. Curved forms and monochromatic finishes give the space the essence of something between a cocktail bar and an apothecary; while a playful Mickey Mouse figure and some KAWS toys are a reminder not to take the high-precision craft here all too seriously.
At the centre is the Compound Room, an open glass-and-metal studio that contains an extensive library of spirits, extracts and accords. Cocktails are built using the principles of perfumery: botanicals, distillates and extracts are combined around seven accords: Fruit, Citrus, Floral, Amber, Chypre, Leather and Wood. Drinks are prepared in advance and poured in front of guests rather than mixed or shaken to order.
The ‘Martini Diagnosis’ offers a more personalised take on the concept, beginning with an aromatic assessment before the bar team creates a Martini formula based on the guest’s profile. It takes place inside the Compound Room, and turns the cocktail-making process into a theatrical part of the evening.
The food menu is small but well suited to the drinks, with plates including oyster of the day with lime and sea emulsion, delicious cuttlefish croquettes, squid yakitori and Tsukune chicken with eel sauce. There is also irresistibly moreish crispy potato mille-feuille with kimchi mayo, and beetroot shirae with crudités.
The cocktails are equally varied. The White Peach Margarita arrives as a tequila slushy and is a perfect coolant for this hot summer’s evening, while the ‘Amber Wood’ decadently combines Michter’s Rye Whisky and Ardbeg Whisky 10yo with Muyu Vetiver Oloroso Sherry, Minus 8 Red Verjus, chestnut, walnut and vetiver. Served on the rocks, this is an exquisite example of the considered intent of this concept. A Sakura Champagne cocktail reaches into the laboratory’s floral accords, and both a Coffee and Passion Fruit Old Fashioned and Walnut Leather Negroni are divine tipples from the leather accord section.
With natural wines, boutique beers, experimental spirits and a soundtrack spanning hip-hop, trap, garage, Afro-trap and drum ’n’ bass, Kyara moves from cocktails into late-night territory, with hosted nights and events adding to its programme. In a city blessed with its fair share of the world’s finest cocktail bars, Kyara shifts from tradition and makes a singular mark for itself. Original and thoughtful, Kyara Barcelona sure is one to watch.
Kyara Barcelona Photography, courtesy Kyara at SLS Barcelona / © We Heart.