Opened in August 2018, Jasper’s is an inner city bar where like-minded people come to unite over cocktails and jazz.
But while live music forms a core part of the venue’s identity, Jasper’s isn’t strictly a jazz club.
“Jasper’s is a curated template that celebrates music, jazz in particular, but also other forms of art, bartending, service, and hospitality. That’s really important at Jasper’s,” says venue owner, Jasper Lai. “People can come in and feel free to talk to other people. It’s also about networking, where creatives, corporates and music enthusiasts come through the curtains and they want to have a good time, they want to be well dressed, they want to be presentable and be amongst like-minded people.”
Jasper is interested in creating a relaxed environment with emphasis on building a culture within the bar, revolving around core principles of community, cocktails and music.
“Whether or not you want to sit by the bar and read a book and listen to jazz or go out with your friends and have a lot of drinks and listen to jazz, it’s just about enjoying the space, enjoying the company and serendipitously meeting people,” Lai says.
“We’re not saying, ‘You must listen to the music and be quiet at all times’. Of course, for the purpose of everyone around you, it’s important to be aware of tone and mood of the room… it’s a bit like a jazz band playing together actually. The bar’s there to celebrate the spirit of jazz. So when the jazz is on it’s really a space for people to dance and celebrate the energy of jazz together.”
Jasper’s boasts a carefully curated cocktail menu along with a premium selection of whisky, gin and rum. Cocktail lovers can expect to find something new to savour on each visit.
“One popular cocktail is the businessman’s elixir.” Lai says. “It’s a smoked cocktail. It’s definitely a presentation drink here at Jasper’s. We also try to get in the spirit of special occasions, so we invented the gingerbread sour – one of my personal favourites – when it was Christmas time. We’ve kept it on the menu because people loved it. It was unique, there’s a unique flavour to it that brings back some nostalgia.
“I’m incredibly lucky to have passionate and enthusiastic staff. They believe in what they do, and strive for perfection.”
The venue’s commitment to showing patrons a good time is reflected in its varied live music program. A mixture of local and international artists takes to the stage from Thursday to Saturday every week, 9pm onwards.
“Usually we have traditional jazz, straight up jazz, contemporary on Thursday,” Jasper says. “Then Fridays we move into more of a groove, acid jazz, going into that modern jazz scene. And then Saturdays is when we might have some of our residency bands come in and just pump the venue, playing straight jazz and swing or maybe something more intellectual. So we’ve got three or four different genres every week that people can access.”
Jazz is closely tied to spontaneity and improvisation. Accordingly, there’s always a chance of an esteemed musician jumping up for a jam.
“We have James Morrison playing on the 23rd March, and tickets going live at the end of this week. We’ve had some amazing players from New York come in and jam with us. We’ve had a lot of local musicians coming in and playing together with the band too.”
Jasper’s is still a very young venue, but it has quickly established itself on Melbourne’s late-night map.
“You see almost a sine wave of different demographics come in through the night. We’ve got the corporates who come in after work, have a cigar and few drinks in the courtyard. Then people come in after dinner just to enjoy a drink and then we’ve got the music aficionados coming in for the band. And because we have a 3am to 5am license, we have the hospo workers come in after work as well.”
Jasper’s is located at 14 Goldie Place, CBD. Head to their Facebook page for more information on upcoming events.
