The Apo
Fortitude Valley
THE APO HAS CLOSED AND WILL BE REPLACED BY TSO LOUNGE & DINING IN THE LATTER HALF OF 2018.
The Apo is an atmospheric bar eatery that occupies heritage-listed Apothecaries Hall, one of the oldest buildings in Fortitude Valley.
The upstairs-downstairs venue, which dates from the 1880s, features original handmade brick walls, French doors, sash windows and bricked-in original fireplace, blended with touches of contemporary industrial chic.
The same menu of inventive food and drink is served on both floors, where there are all sorts of nooks and crannies to gather in, including a cosy upstairs lounge with shiny red couch, a downstairs courtyard on Bakery Lane and a Victorian-style balcony overlooking the lane.
Just inside the Ann St doorway look out for the amazing Crawleys Imperial Shaker, a five foot tall ornate contraption made from cast iron, copper, brass and silver that gets a workout making cocktails on busy nights. Based on an 1803 drawing, it was turned from ‘bartender myth’ to reality under the guidance of spirits wizard Jason Crawley in recent years.
Unsurprisingly cocktails are a drawcard here, having replaced the potions and concoctions that in the days of the old apothecary were once mixed onsite and divvied out to customers. In a nod to those days three of the cocktails on the menu (Apothecary Bloody Mary, Olive Grove Martini and Rhubarb and Vanilla Negroni) come served in labelled glass apothecary bottles and drinkers get to pour them over ice into their own glasses.
Otherwise there’s a small but interesting beer list, with Asahi and Cricketers Arms Pale Ale on tap and Epic Lager (Auckland), Anchor Liberty Ale (San Francisco), Nomad Long Trip Spiced Saison (Sydney) and Bridge Road Robust Porter (Beechworth) amongst the bottled options.
Meanwhile, the curated boutique wine list is derived from regions in SA, Vic, WA, NZ, Spain, France, Germany and Italy.
Drinks aside, The Apo is a serious foodie destination too, with one of the best bar food menus in the inner city. Menus rotate monthly and rely on seasonal produce but expect to enjoy tapas style dishes of deliciousness like Smoked Chilli and Manchego Croquette with Parmesan and Pea, House Made Dill Pickles with Fermented Fennel Cream, Potted Duck Meat with Rye and Spiced Pear or Racqlette, Comte and Gruyere Toastie. There’s also a handful of more substantial options such as Baby Barramundi Fillets with Spiced Butter and Sorel or BBQ Chicken with Lentic, Garlic and Young Leaves.
Need to know – A condensed menu is available till 1am nightly.
