Pony Up is a new cocktail bar on Jinxian Lu, the first venture of bartender-operator Dre Yang. Fun signatures and twists on classic cocktails at this lively bar in Shanghai.
About Pony Up
Dre has been around the circuit for some time and has plenty of accolades and awards behind him. You might know him from his previous post as head bartender at The Odd Couple, a cocktail bar in Xintiandi that’s part of SG Group (Sober Company, Speak Low).
It’s a homey space with a café-esque front area, a handful of booth seats, a tight bar, and loungy seating towards the back. Wood and dark leather tones and a pop of color with its namesake mural. It’s mostly dark-ish, moody lighting. Regulars are largely friends of Dre and other patrons are six degrees of separation from them, making the ambiance rather friendly and lively.
The Drinks
Menus are split into “night” and “day.”
The nighttime menu is a concise list of nine signatures, priced at ¥95 each. Expect fun renditions like the Fritzy Fizz, a vodka-based drink that’s like a boozy 7UP and sour plum or Far East Sangria, rum infused with curry leaf, mango, and lemongrass. There’s one that’s inspired by winter melon tea, and an old fashioned with Tie Guan Yin.
Then, there’s a daytime menu, a dozen cocktails — three “one sip cocktails,” six classics with a twist, and three “fun” drinks, one of which is a double highball named after a close friend of Dre’s.
The one sip cocktails are ¥55, petit tipples like tasters. These are stereotypically strong drinks—Martini, Manhattan, and Negroni—served as a little over a half portion, to whet one’s desire for the punchy stuff. Full classic available upon request, of course.
Classics with a twist are ¥85 each and range from a Piña Colada with a baijiu base to an Espresso Martini with pisco, pear, and an Ethiopia roast to a G&T with Sichuan peppercorn and bergamot.
Bar Food
Speaking of, there’s food too.
Currently, both cocktail menus are available during opening hours, 6pm to 2am. Pony Up will open from 1pm starting May 1, after which the daytime cocktails will be available from 1pm to 7pm, nighttime cocktails from 6pm to close. Food will then be served from 1pm to close.
