Thong Hoai is the head bartender of The Enigma Mansion in Saigon. He makes us two cocktails, one with Vodka and Triple Sec and the second with Chocolate waxed Whisky and Mayonnaise Liqueur
Tee introduce yourself
My name is Thong Hoai ( Tee ). I’m a part of Enigma’s family with a role as a Head Bartender. My career started 9 years ago as a Cook position in a Private Club located in the heart of Saigon. After 4 years in the kitchen and front of the house, I decided to make my customers, friends and people around me even more happy by creating different cocktails for them. In 9 years, I have experienced a lot of hospitality concepts and cultures through bars and restaurants in Saigonon such as American, Japanese, and French styles. Those experiences help me create my cocktail-making style and a passion for non-stop developing myself. Right now at Enigma, an awarded venue, I would love to introduce our cocktails as a result of the combination of classic cocktails and modern techniques – something new but has familiar feelings and never being outdated. The Enigma Mansion is an experimental cocktail journey in a historical mansion. Because of the artfully placed brick and wooden walls, the bar has a warm, inviting, and historic feel to it. A focus on food and beverage that uses high-quality, regional ingredients and advanced technology which is a balance between 30 modern cocktails and 328 classic cocktails. We use cutting-edge techniques like Rotavap distillation and Ultrasonic Homogenizer, Fermentation, for new and inventive cocktails full of regional tastes.
The classic you want to show us
Kamikaze
60ml of Vodka
20ml of Cointreau
20ml of lemon & lime mix
The bar you dream of
In the future, if everything goes the right way, I would love to open a bar based on the concept Give – To receive – Exchange, a “Not” too formal but serves proper cocktails for everyone, and provides a good Vibe for Friendly “Alcoholic” – LOL. The Menu’s concept will be based on Greek Gods and their myths, combined with the “Seven Deadly Sins” in the Catholic religion. Which I believe is a root of human nature and our behaviours. The foundation must be relative to classic cocktails and its story. Combining local ingredients, and different methods to deliver proper cocktails with a meaningful story behind them. The bar design when you hear about it the first time will make you feel a little bit confused about the connection between the menu concept, but I want to build the bar base on an old Japanese Mansion. Back in the days when I was a teenager I knew about the Philosophy, Give – To Receive – Exchange through an Anime called XxHolic. It’s horror Anime mixed with a little bit of comedy. Fun to watch but it has a very very deep inside story.
What do you do in your time off
The answer will be going out for fishing with no bait and a straight hook. I like to sit down on the riverside or some random place without and site of people around me, relax and think about nothing, just to clear my mind. And why going out for fishing with no bait and a straight hook, I don’t eat fish and their no point for me to harm any animal or anyone just to make me feel better, Goofy but it works.
The spirit you like the most
My Favorite spirit to make cocktails is Vodka. I like to highlight other ingredients I put into a cocktail with a little help from the most underrated spirits in the world. Why ? For me, if something is considered tasteless, less characteristic like Vodka can be used to elevate the other ingredients inside a cocktail with the finest skills and proper execution, that’s art. Like a white canvas, just give it love, skilful drawing and a great idea, it will become a masterpiece.
What makes a good cocktail
For me, it’s about the balance between layers of flavours in one cocktail, you can create a cocktail with a lot of weird, wow, or even an unexpected combination of flavours from different ingredients. But eventually, what you list on the menu description is what the customers expect in a drink. Put many kinds of stuff inside and the result just like one-way flavour is pointless for me. And besides making cocktails is a way to tame the raw alcohol flavor of the spirits. TAME IT BUT DON’T KILL IT.
What ingredient do you enjoy using in cocktail
My favourite ingredient to use in a cocktail is The Gooseberry. The flavours represent my style, and it’s fun to experiment with it. From the shape to the shell, fermentation, syrup, and cordial, even if you preserve it with salt and vinegar can develop a whole new aspect of flavours, that can wow anyone in my point of view. Another reason is in Vietnam we call it the lantern fruit (a lantern in Vietnamese culture is an object to guide you on the right part of your journey. During the World Class competition in Vietnam 2022, I used the Gooseberry as the soul of my cocktail. A fruit represents for the right part, reunion ( Mid Autumn ). And of course, the base for that cocktail was Vodka – LOL
The signature cocktail you want to show us
Mayonnaise
50ml of Chocolate Waxed Whisky
20ml of Mayonnaise Liqueur
20ml of Italian Bitter
20ml Malbec Cordial
Where do you think we need to go to interview another bartender
I think you should come to see Art – The Bar Manager of The Old Man in Hong Kong. Then Supawit “ Palm” Muttarattana, Founder of Dry Wave Cocktail Studio in Bangkok. Both of them are super talented, Smart, and very fun to talk with. Their works inspired me a lot in different ways, one focuses on the complex flavours with modern techniques, and the other is simplifying everything but still creating great cocktails.