A fortuitous day that House of Pocket Owner Karl Schlothauer and Group Head Chef Amila Hemchandra spent together by a lake in Sri Lanka inspired Kasippu, Sydney’s newest cocktail bar and Sri Lankan restaurant.
“When we were discussing the new venue concept, I invited Karl to join me in Sri Lanka to experience everything—from high-end restaurants to our village cuisine. It was while sitting by the lake, eating curry, sipping Kasippu, and singing a bit of karaoke that the idea for the venue was born,” said Hemchandra.
House of Pocket, the Sydney hospitality group behind a string of popular small Sydney bars including Stitch Bar and the now closed Pocket Bars of Surry Hills and Darlinghurst, opened the venue earlier this month.
Hemchandra is leading the kitchen and crafted a menu of authentic Sri Lankan dishes for the venue. Kasippu is open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday from 4pm till late, Thursday and Friday from midday till late. The full menu is available whenever the doors are open.
“A personal favourite of mine is the pepper beef curry kebab,” says Schlothauer. Other menu favourites include the eggplant moju curry with eggplant fried in a sweet and spicy sauce; the polos ambul – an aromatic curry with baby jackfruit; and the white fish curry cooked in coconut milk and fresh spices.
Kasippu takes its name from a homemade liquor that is popular in Sri Lanka. Led by this concept, the bar’s syrups, cordials, and tinctures are almost entirely handmade. The cocktail menu is inspired by the island nation, and include the likes of Siyambala Julep with Woodford Reserve, tamarind syrup, fresh lemon juice, and curry leaves; Found God In A Tomato – Kasippu’s take on a bloody mary – with 42 Below vodka, fino sherry, tomato shrub, celery, Hellfire bitters, and matcha foam; and Kithul Old Fashioned, with Bacardi spiced rum, Woodford rye, Oloroso sherry, kithul treacle, chocolate bitters, and makrut lime leaves. Free Hydralyte slushies are also available.
Kasippu is located at 414 Kent St, Sydney.
