A caviar bump with a shot of iced Belvedere Vodka. A fried nori crisp topped with tuna tartare and wakame emulsion. Frozen cucumbers compressed in bay-leaf oil and seasoned with mountain pepper. The Nixon Room might be serving some of Brisbane’s best bar snacks.

It’s a bold claim, especially when the city’s snack game is so strong. But The Nixon Room isn’t just any bar. It’s the new bar from the team behind Essa, the moody fine diner that took the Brisbane scene by storm when it opened in 2021.

When it comes to the menu, head chef and co-owner Phil Marchant is putting an elevated spin on retro classics. Take the humble fish-finger sandwich, for example. Marchant uses coral trout offcuts – taking unused fish heads and wings from the Essa kitchen – and turns them into a terrine, which is then sliced, crumbed and fried. The resulting fish finger is sandwiched between slices of white bread with pickled cucumber and a swipe of lemon-verbena mayo. It’s Essa-level creativity distilled to its bite-sized best.

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“Because of the size of the tables, there’s nothing [on the menu] that needs proper cutlery,” Marchant tells Broadsheet. “We want it to be a bar where the food appears next to you and, without breaking conversation, you take a bite and want to order another round.”

The Nixon Room takes inspiration from 1970s cocktail bars. To enter, you walk through a nondescript brass door and down a vine-covered alley. Inside, the low-lit room features tanned leather, marble, walnut panelling and a scattering of polaroids. The small, intimate space means patrons have a very direct dialogue with the bartender.

“[The 1970s] was very much a time where the bartender was a part of the experience, and we wanted that to be the case [here],” Marchant says. “We wanted [the space] to be very open so the bartenders could be interacting [with customers].”

Bartender June Sok has created a list of five signature cocktails and four Martinis. There are elaborate cocktails like the God Complex, made with a combination of Scotch whiskies, amaretto, hazelnut and roast banana. It’s then blowtorched till maple smoke wafts from the glass. From the Martini list, there’s the Watergate (a nod to the bar’s namesake), made with Plymouth Gin, Maidenii Dry Vermouth, Oscar 697 Vermouth Bianco and bergamot.

Essa sommelier Eliott Boucard has curated a concise by-the-glass wine list of premium options, including chablis, red burgundy and an American zinfandel. There are also a few champagnes available by the bottle, including a 2014 Louis Roederer Cristal if you want to splurge (1970s politician style).

The Nixon Room
3/181 Robertson Street, Fortitude Valley

Hours:
Wed to Sat 4pm–midnight

@the.nixonroom