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Curious

The W Hotel’s theatrical, Alice in Wonderland-inspired cocktail bar.

Curious’s new cocktail menu is designed by UK mixologist Matt Whiley.
1 / 7Curious’s new cocktail menu is designed by UK mixologist Matt Whiley.Supplied
Inside the Alice in Wonderland-inspired bar.
2 / 7Inside the Alice in Wonderland-inspired bar.Supplied
The Cryocone cocktail: bourbon, smoky bacon vodka and maple raisin ice cream.
3 / 7The Cryocone cocktail: bourbon, smoky bacon vodka and maple raisin ice cream. Supplied
Cocktails are as theatrical as the space itself.
4 / 7Cocktails are as theatrical as the space itself.Supplied
The “tropical sand storm” cocktail features an edible sand rim.
5 / 7The “tropical sand storm” cocktail features an edible sand rim.Supplied
The Pyro-Flora cocktail featuring smoked vodka, burnt pear, lemon myrtle and strawberry gum soda, served in a bowl of smoked leaves.
6 / 7The Pyro-Flora cocktail featuring smoked vodka, burnt pear, lemon myrtle and strawberry gum soda, served in a bowl of smoked leaves.Supplied
The Red Earth cocktail is a desert-inspired margarita with honey pearls.
7 / 7The Red Earth cocktail is a desert-inspired margarita with honey pearls.Supplied

Curious

Contemporary$$

It was loosely inspired by Alice in Wonderland, so the fact that there’s a lot going on at the W’s underground cocktail bar is kind of the point. An undulating ceiling of big timber beams emulates the rabbit hole, which the door person will whisk you down through a voluptuous velvet curtain.

If you want to soak up the surrounds, there’s a good vibe to bunker down for a midweek cocktail. But to find Curious at its most chock-a-block, book a table for Friday or Saturday night.

Cocktails are as theatrical as the Hachem Architecture-designed space thanks to a special menu by renowned UK mixologist Matt Whiley (Re, Little Cooler), known for his no-waste approach to creative cocktails, who has introduced a sensory and scientifically driven menu where all the states of matter – solids, liquids, gases and vapour – come into play. There’s a fluffy edible mojito “cloud” served on a spoon, or an earthy vodka concoction featuring native ingredients like lemon myrtle and strawberry gum soda served in a bowl of smoked leaves.

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