Behind a simple wooden door nestled in a plain, roughly plastered exterior in bustling Desa Sri Hartamas, the Tap Tap cocktail bar is housed in a cave-like space showcasing rough walls and monolithic furniture designed by EMPT Studio.

A unique setting with soft contoured walls, private niches and an off-white palette aglow with diffused lighting, the vibe is a sophisticated combination of The Flinstones and Kim Kardashian’s Hollywood homes by Axel Vervoordt. 

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Futuristic is the design leitmotif running through Reka Bar, a cocktail bar in Damansara Heights that rewards patrons with imaginative cocktails and interiors once they scale the staircase to its entrance.

Designed by Port 25, the stage is set at the reception, which features an all-white hostess station that segues into a gleaming, tarnished copper-clad pathway.

Inside, patrons can enjoy different areas, from the outer balcony with grouped seating to the stone bar, which looks as if it's illuminated from within.

The back half of the bar is dedicated to the 'chemistry lab', where liquid alchemy happens in the most entertaining of manners. A futuristic red light installation on the back wall completes the tableau.

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You'll need a keen eye to spot Kantata, a hidden bar adjacent to The Zhongshan Building. The clue is that you'll need to look behind a hole in one of the walls of the graffiti-filled Zhongshan Annexe building. 

Once you find it, you'll be able to enjoy a space that transforms depending on the time of day. In the day, it’s a cheerful cafe  with natural light streaming through the translucent vent blocks. In the evening, it’s an excellent spot to have drinks beneath the glow of the neon light.

The space is as funky and offbeat as its owners, Adrien Kent and Suek Mei Chai, the duo behind design and branding collective Studio Kanta.

Warm, whimsical, and wacky, every corner of Kantata is Insta-ready with a David Hockey-esque colour palette, a scallop-edged bar, and cheeky details.

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The worst-kept secret in the bar scene, Penrose is a speakeasy located in the Petaling Street area. Set in an intriguing and intimate space, Penrose is an elevated classic cocktail bar that only seats 25 people.

Run by the founders of Merchants Lane and Wildflowers, Ken Ho and Matthew Goh who led the resurgence of design-led spaces in the area, this bar is also designed by POW Ideas. The correct setting for the concise but elegant menu of what is considered the best cocktails in the city.

Its street entrance has a steampunk feel with an industrial-style installation of shiny metal sheets set at different angles. Inside, the clean, minimalist space reveals a sleek pair of bars running along the wall.

The metal theme is picked up in the interior with the detailed edging of the bar and overhead beams. Lighting is atmospheric and enhances the sophisticated moody palette of blacks, granites and greys. 

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Located in the notoriously hard-to-find but now-defunct Omakase + Appreciate, Bar Mizukami is a 10-seater bar in the Ming Annexe. The tiny space was redesigned by Port 25 with charming details and a modern Japanese theme.

Upon entering, a swathe of scarlet demarcates one side picking out the floor's red and adding a sense of drama to the space. Its focal point is the bar counter, where renowned bartender Shawn Chong personally presides.

The Midnight Diner series inspired the concept of the bar, and like the famous Japanese TV show, the counter is where the magic happens.

Crafted from blonde wood, the uplit bar recalls architectural details from traditional Japanese houses, where Chong offers a refined omakase cocktail experience.

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