What is Matthew Bax – the mastermind behind high-concept cocktail bars Bar Exuberante and Bar Americano – doing with matcha?
The same thing he's been doing for a number of years, apparently. From July 18, Bax will host Samu, a Japanese-style matcha bar, inside Andrew McConnell's Supernormal on Flinders Lane. As Bax told Gourmet Traveller, he's been drinking matcha for decades and has studied the art of the Japanese tea ceremony. Samu – which will run between lunch and dinner service – will be an "intimate" and "modern" affair, honing in on serving high-quality matcha (not the stuff that comes in giant tins) in a space designed by long-time collaborator Ravi Avasti.
Still not sure what matcha is? Essentially, matcha consists of finely ground green tea leaves. Health cafés like Matcha Mylkbar extol the virtues of the verdant powder, which include concentrated amounts of antioxidants and metabolism-boosting properties. It may be having a moment here in Melbourne right now, but matcha has been around for centuries; originally, Chinese and Japanese Buddhists drank it in preparation for Zen meditation.
Samu will be open at Supernormal from July 18-Aug 1.