Bartender Spotlight: Leon Tan on the heart of Laut and why cocktail trends don't matter
With just ten seats and a menu that kicks off each evening as a two-hour tasting experience, dining here feels more like a dinner party hosted by someone with an encyclopaedic knowledge of Southeast Asian flavours than the average dinner experience. First launched on Stanley Street, Laut has since made the move to a smaller, pocket-sized space in Fortune Centre, with the cosy spot feeling like an experimental lab for its talented team.
We had the chance to visit the bar and chat about Laut's unique cocktail programme, Leon's personal drink recommendations and his unfiltered thoughts on the bar industry and cocktail trends. Read on for our five quick-fire questions – and don't forget to check out more of Singapore's best bars in the Time Out Singapore 2025 Bar Guide, out now and available for free here.
If Laut had a theme song, what would it be?
Feel Good by The Kribo Brothers. They're Singaporean music producers based in Bali now, and they produce a lot of funky tunes and feel-good music.
What is a must-try cocktail at Laut?
I've got this cocktail called Serai – meaning lemongrass – which is a twist on the G&T. I use local Compendium chendol gin. Other main ingredients in the cocktail are pandan, blended fresh wheatgrass for colour and nuttiness, lemongrass for sweetness, and chin chow (grass jelly) water kefir. Most of us locals know chin chow in its agar form, but it's actually a black tea leaf that's slightly bitter. Food-wise, we tend to do casual small bites. A staple top-seller is our squid gado dish. It's basically confit baby squid with squid ink sauce, tamarind, and a bit of peanuts.
What is an underrated cocktail on your menu?
Lengkuas. It means blue ginger. I blend a couple of things from the ginger family, like turmeric and others from the Bentong region in Malaysia. It's kind of a twist on two classics – the Dark 'n' Stormy and Penicillin. Depending on the guest, I can also swap out the main spirit for something smokier like whisky or rum.
Which cocktail trends do you want to see more and less of?
I would like to see more listening bars in Singapore like those in Japan, America, and Europe. There are a few here, but not as many. In terms of drinks, I don't really believe in trends. Any bar or restaurant can do whatever it wants. And I drink anything and everything, so I think every guest should be allowed the same – it's about the time and place. That said, I would like to see less fluff. We're in a social media generation where everybody is just taking pictures. I would like to see less of that and more craft, whether it's classic cocktails or modern takes on them.
What's another bar in the neighbourhood you'd recommend?
Where Laut is situated, we don't really have many around us since we're sort of at the fringe of the city. But I like this place called Middle Child Bar, which is just across the road from us. They do good natural wines, beers, and cocktails.
Discover more of Singapore's best bars in the Time Out Singapore 2025 Bar Guide, out now and available for free here.
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