Those curious about previewing Midnight Oil—the dim sum space-meets-cocktail bar taking over the former Rosemallows space at 3rd Street and Long Beach Boulevard in Downtown Long Beach—will have their chance on Wednesday, Feb. 5 from 5PM to 9PM. In conjunction with Ming River spirits and Intertrend Communications, a Lunar New Year celebration will grace The Promenade in DTLB. And yes, that includes a performance from the Yee Ying Tong Lion Dance Association.
With it, drink specials will be hosted at stops along the way, including The Ordinarie and ISM Brewing. And, of course, they will feature the distillery’s famed baijiu spirit.
“I’m excited to be a part of connecting the dots between my brand work and my work with the hospitality industry locally,” Ming River brand rep and Long Beach Bartenders Guild leader Tomas Delos Reyes said. “This is the next wave in Downtown’s bar scene and with Leonard Chan’s great portfolio of work, I think we’re all excited to see this new concept take off.”
Wait—wasn’t Rosemallows supposed to stay open for a bit while Midnight Oil cemented its plans?
Correct. The original goal was simple: Reopen under the Rosemallows moniker as soon as possible while slowly transitioning into Midnight Oil. Some minor cosmetic changes, particularly shrinking the sizes of the booths, were in order for the mini-rehab. And there was another reason for the hyper-quick turnaround: to help Rosemallows employees return to work as quickly as possible.
However, as crews began working, owner Leonard Chan realized that he might as well just move fully forward with Midnight Oil. With newly minted booths installed and the majority of the interior done, it’s time to invite their first guests.
“This opportunity with Ming River and Tomas [Delos Reyes, brand ambassador] proved something we couldn’t pass up on,” Leonard said. “It allows us to test some cocktails… Food will have to wait as our kitchen is not prepared yet—but it’s going to be a great way to test the waters with our community.”
What to expect at Midnight Oil’s first public preview.
The largest highlihgt of this preview will undoubtedbly be patrons being able to sample a bit of the new cocktail program from Long Beach native Peter Ross. Peter is no stranger in the bar world: from leading Le Loup at Nashville’s much-loved The Optimist to training at New York staples like NoMad, Manhatta, Mace, and more.
“I wanted to do a play on pineapple fried rice,” Peter said. “So we’re doing a rice-washed baijiu with carrot-washed Gray Whale gin. Add some clarified pineapple juice, Supasawa [a crystal-clear sour mixer used as an acid adjuster], and a rice syrup.”
With hints of five spice, anise, and cinnamon, the drink is ever so slightly savory and wonderfully balanced considering its use of baijiu (which, for those who haven’t had, I like to say tastes like a petting zoo in the best way possible).
And don’t worry, there will be food—it just won’t be directly from the Midnight Oil kitchen. Sherwood Souzankari—the former Rosemallows empoloyee who co-founded the
The Ordinarie and ISM Brewing will also be participating in the Lunar New Year festivities.
Joining the preview of Midnight Oil will be The Ordinarie, serving a baijiu-influenced cocktail named after the Chinese god of domination known as Yanwei. It features baijiu, gin, pineapple, Szechuan simple syrup and “an ounce of domination,” Ordinarie manager Clare Le Bras said laughing.
ISM Brewing, meanwhile, will have their Lion Dance rice lager and dragonfruit seltzer on tap while offering lemongrass grilled pork bao buns.
Midnight Oil is located at 255 Long Beach Blvd. The Ming River Baijiu event will start at Intertrend, located at 228 E. Broadway, at 5PM; it will end at Midnight Oil and run through 9PM.
){kind=link}