Ah Sam Cold Drinks Stall
This is truly a Cold Drinks Stall. Unfortunately, the bartender isn’t called Ah Sam.
I’ve heard of Ah Sam Cold Drinks Stall a long time ago. I always thought to myself what a quirky name for a bar. For those who do not know, they wouldn’t have guessed that the “cold drinks” served here are bespoke cocktails instead of the usual sodas. Yes, bespoke is awesome!
I’ll be referring to Ah Sam Cold Drinks Stall as ASCDS for the rest of the article because the name is so long, and it’s a hassle. (and I’m lazy 😝)
How do you get to ASCDS? Look for Express Mart along Boat Quay! Be careful not to walk into the wrong door and find yourself in the convenience store. It’s a small door beside the convenience store and it’s easy to miss. For those who weren’t looking for ASCDS probably wouldn’t even notice that it’s there. Unlike speakeasies that Joanne Tan and I have explored, ASCDS didn’t feel like it was meant to be hidden. But rather the entrance felt so inconspicuous that it’s “hidden”. Along the Singapore River at Boat Quay are many restaurants and big glamorous bars. Express Mart would have caught enough attention because it’s really a random convenience store right in the middle of all the night life, and what’s even more random is a chinese themed cold drinks store with a small entrance at the side.
Though this bar might not sound or seem glamorous, but they sure do serve delicious drinks! No fancy flavours, no unnecessary garnish and no lavish glasswares. A humble little store with Bartenders honing their craft!
The ambience of the bar felt very welcoming and its definitely a good place to hang out and talk with your friends. The entire interior uses wooden furniture, with a huge wooden carved signboard as shown as the cover photo of this article. The wooden interior felt very homely and somewhat humbling, and ties in very well with the concept of a drinks stall. The temperature in the bar is comfortable, and the best part is they don’t blast their music. The ambience really adds a lot of points for a great hang out spot!
Finally it’s time to talk about the drinks! Like I mentioned above, it’s bespoke! They do not have a menu. In order to get a drink, you have to tell the bartender what kind of flavours do you feel like having. It can be sweet, sour, bitter, dessert-y and the list goes on and on. It’s really up to your imagination. If you can’t make a decision, you can even ask the Bartender for help! They will be able to guide you along with some questions, to help you decide on what you’re feel like having.
First up, I had a Chocolate-y but not creamy cold drink. I really liked the Hazelnut flavour and how the drink wasn’t overly sweet. The amount of alcohol was unexpectedly much, but still within my boundaries of drink-able cocktail. I really liked how simple the drink was, and how the drink clearly was the kind of flavours I was looking for.
Joanne Tan: I was thinking that I had too many of those sweet and tropical flavoured cocktails recently so I decide that I should have some whisky and something not sweet. The Bartender recommended something with lemon, Aperol and Bourbon as the base spirit.
Sometimes when I have a drink with whisky as the base spirit, the taste of the whisky is so overwhelming that I forget what else is in there because I all can think of is “ok this whisky is a bit much”. But I was pleasantly surprised when I took the first sip of my drink — the “sour” part of the drink could actually be distinguished before I registered the taste of whisky. I think the taste was well balanced and I enjoyed it so much that I didn’t realize that it finished so quickly. Apparently this was one of their classics called Paper Planes.
I also liked that the alcohol was not too strong. I suppose it was good in a way because I was ready to order more after I was done with it. (maybe we would have ordered more if we didn’t have to leave early)
We decided to share one more drink before we head back home for the night. We ordered something with Gin and Elderflower liquor. I’m a big fan of Gin and yes I do like Elderflower too!
Joanne Tan: I didn’t like the second drink so much. This is when I discovered that I cannot handle too much gin. Although it had elderflower liquor which is a flavour that I like, somehow it was not as addictive and special as compared to the Paper Planes.
Conclusion
I really liked this place! A small establishment with the perfect ambience to hang out and catch up with friends. It also has seats by the shop house window overlooking Singapore River which is really pretty. The drinks are reasonably priced, as compared to the other cocktail bars that we have visited. The drinks range from $20 — $25 per cocktail. The music is soft, temperature is comfortable, the perfect set up to sit down and talk. The best part is the awesome cocktails. Nothing fancy and well crafted drinks.
We rate this place:
Drinks: 4.5 / 5
Ambience: 4.5 / 5
Hunted and reviewed with Joanne Tan
