The Showroom is an Italian speakeasy bar located above a designer furniture store on Jiaozhou Lu. It’s uber chic, and not your typical speakeasy.
It’s the brainchild of founder and furniture designer Edoardo Petri, Oscar Zuffada, and Richard King, who’ve drawn on their backgrounds in architecture, hospitality, and wine to create this unique space. The elegant cocktail bar is located above Petri’s showroom. The bar itself is its own exhibit—all the furniture is designer stuff, including some from Petri’s collection, other imported Italian works, and wallpaper from the Toilet Paper Magazine, an Italian art publication.
That chair you’re sitting on? Probably upwards of ¥30,000. Best mind your drinks!
There are seven themed rooms plus the bar to accommodate 60 people at full capacity. Each room is set to a theme, has it’s own name, and a signature cocktail created for each. It’s very classy, and you can carve out your own nooks in each room.
Cocktails are courtesy of bartender Lilian Sausset, who set up the menu before leaving China. There are seven signature cocktails (from ¥78), one for each room, ten house cocktails (from ¥78), and classic drinks. And because The Showroom is Italian at its core, aperitivo drinks are a requisite—spritz, garibaldi, negroni, bellini, and dirty amaro for ¥78. There’s also an impressive wine selection by sommelier and partner Richard King.
The Showroom also has a simple snacks menu, including items like cheese and cold cuts, parmesan truffle potatoes, arancini, cicchetti, guabao, and desserts.
The vibe? It’s like Milan design week meets Manhattan house party, minus the pomp. The current clientele are friends of the founders (fashion and design industries, and creative), classy unpretentious folk, and city explorers who’ve sought out the hottest new thing in the neighborhood. It’s super cozy (those chairs are hella comfy), intimate, and great for catch up conversations.
The Showroom
Address: 2/F, 556 Jiaozhou Lu, near Changping Lu 胶州路556号2楼, 近昌平路
Tel: 52920982
Hours: Tue-Sun, 6:30pm-12:30am
Looks good!