Junior’s Deli Up Late — A Familiar Spirits Bar Takeover
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Time to read 2 min
Every now and then an evening comes together in a way that reminds you why you got into hospitality in the first place.
In February we took over the bar at Junior’s Deli in Mudgeeraba for a one-night collaboration we named Junior’s Up Late. Tables were booked well in advance and by the time the first guests walked through the door the room already had that feeling that something good was about to happen.
If you’ve ever been to Junior’s you’ll know the kind of place it is. Casual in the best way, packed with regulars and built around really good food. John has an eye for detail that makes Juniors exactly the sort of restaurant we love working with.
For the night we built a small cocktail list to run alongside Junior’s special late night menu. Guests settled in with drinks while plates started moving through the room... chicken tenders with buffalo and blue cheese sauce, grilled mortadella toast, padron peppers and a table full of pickles to snack on while everyone decided what to order next.
The steak frites were the undeniable hero of the evening, a grass-fed sirloin served medium rare with shoestring fries, chimichurri and mushroom sauce that disappeared from plates almost as quickly as they hit the table. Burgers followed close behind, alongside battered snapper burgers and a surprisingly addictive mushroom burger.
Cocktails couldn't come out fast enough! Of course we served a filthy martini with a Juniors Deli pickle, fluffy Peach & Raspberry Sours and our ever popular Lakehouse cocktail.
The room had that hum that only happens when a restaurant is completely full and everyone seems to be having a genuinely good time. Cocktails moving across the bar, fries being passed between friends, and the occasional moment where someone looks up and says something along the lines of “we should do this more often.”
For us, nights like this are incredibly important. Distilleries, bars and restaurants all rely on each other to create the kind of experiences people remember. Working with local venues like Junior’s lets us step outside our own bar for a night and bring Familiar Spirits into a completely different room, with a different menu and a different crowd. It also gives us an excuse to spend time with the people behind these venues: the chefs, the staff and the regulars who make places like Junior’s what they are.
