How does one turn a tenebrous mechanical vault in the cellar of a century-old skyscraper into an inviting bar space? Stokes Architecture + Design and hospitality group Method Co. faced this challenge when designing Detroit’s The Aladdin Sane.
The cocktail bar, an Imbibe 75 Place to Watch, is tucked beneath the restored, 1920s-era Book Tower in downtown Detroit. Considering the low ceilings, lack of windows, and a confined footprint wedged between a staircase and the building’s foundation walls, the team decided to lean into the constraints.
They took cues from Tokyo listening bars while enlivening it with the 1970s-era theatricality of David Bowie, with whom the city has an enduring love affair. “We deployed coziness to combat claustrophobia,” explains Daniel Olsovsky, creative director of Method Co. Warm lighting, antiqued mirror ceilings, and low upholstered seating areas helped with the transformation. “We even opted for an unconventionally low bar counter height. So the bar itself feels more furniture-like and does not overpower the intimate scale of the room.”
Feeding the classic rock vibes, they sourced a 1972 Pioneer receiver and vinyl turntable from local music legend Moses of Ecotopia. Chic, unique decor includes a live-edge mahogany slab bar top and walls adorned with hand-tooled leather, as well as a mural by Detroit artist Reverend Michael Allen. But Olsovsky points to the vintage Ralph Lauren fabric used to upholster the bar chairs as his favorite design detail.
“The juxtaposed interior design and existing building architecture celebrates opposites working together—East vs. West and old vs. new—to ultimately manifest a symbolic marker,” says Olsovsky. This East-meets-West concept runs through from the bar’s decor to its bar program.
Here, discerning imbibers partake of the most extensive Japanese whisky list in the city. Rarities also include Glenfiddich 29-year Grand Yozakura (the only bottle in a Michigan bar). Method Co. creative beverage director Jeremy Oertel and The Aladdin Sane’s beverage director Patrick Jobst craft the Japanese-inspired cocktails. “The cocktails are drawing inspiration from the vein of excellence interwoven into Japanese cocktail tradition, with a wide variety of Japanese ingredients and techniques employed to surprise and satisfy,” says Jobst. Sip on the Sake & Strange Divine, a Martini-style sake-based drink made with gin, rice whiskey, sushi rice, shiso, and garnished with caviar. The refreshing vodka cocktail She’ll Come, She’ll Go pairs bittersweet grapefruit liqueur and tart lime with the floral notes of the rosé sake.
Adventurous drinkers also have the opportunity to embark on an hour to hour-and-a-half-long omakase experience. The bartenders lead the guests on a personalized journey through the bar’s menu with up to four cocktails tailored around their preferences. “We hope that our guests are transported to a place that is both new and familiar,” says Jobst. “And upon leaving our bar, we hope they have an expanded mind and palate.”
