Santa Chupitos

Oh man… this place. This place is great. I’m normally a British pub kind of guy, and after one or two of those, I decided to stop in here not knowing anything about it, and expecting it to just be a normal bar. It wasn’t.
The menu is up on the walls, with all of their fancy concoctions. They also have beers and «regular» drinks, but their specialty drinks win out. I had a few of them, and they were all really delicious, creative and well made.
Service was very friendly. Prices seemed quite fair for the quality and creativity. Definitely something different on the scene which was truly packed on a Friday evening, so it appears most people do appreciate something different.

Santa’s is tucked away just outside of Liverpool’s main nightlife hotspots, although at peak times it can be as densely-​populated as any other bar or club in the city. It’s formula is fairly simple, but extremely effective: shabby décor, good music, and extravagant cocktails. An example of the latter would be the Pulp Fiction-​inspired ‘5 Dollar Shake’, an ice cream-​based cocktail combining several different kinds of liquor, topped off with squirty cream and served in a milk bottle. This magnificent concoction really is delicious, and I would recommend it to anyone with a sweet tooth, although I wouldn’t recommend having more than one of these decadent beasts, particularly if you have problems with your blood sugar.
The drinks are great, but I have mixed feelings about the bar staff. They’re friendly enough, and it’s quite easy to get served, even at peak times, but they are very much of the ‘professional bartender’ ilk. You know, the ones that see their job as some sort of performance art — spinning bottles left and right, pouring spirits flamboyantly at arm’s length, whipping the tops off bottles as it was some feat of dexterity. This is very prevalent in the similar bars around Liverpool. Personally, I find it very annoying and frustrating — I just want my drink, thanks — but if you’re into that (is anyone?) then you won’t be disappointed.
It’s not surprising that most of the 5-​star reviews on here come from young women — girls get treated like princesses in this place, and it’s pretty common for the barmen to slide free drinks their way. I understand this, though — it’s a shrewd business move. Say what you like about gender politics, but a bar that always has attractive young women drinking in it will always do good business, and that will never change.
Their selection of music, which centres mostly around hip hop and related genres, is very good, and outside of peak times the place can hold a very pleasant atmosphere. Still, weekend nights are another story altogether, and during their busiest hours, there is almost always a troublesome undertone to the whole place. Some of the clientèle are decidedly unpleasant, and it feels like things could turn sour very quickly. The bouncers aren’t the nicest around either, and it often seems like they’re just waiting for it to kick off, so they have an excuse to get aggressive.
My main sticking point is something much simpler though; something that will become obvious as soon as you walk in — It’s. Just. Too. Small. Even with the decently-​sized outdoor smoking area, and the recent addition of a new room, it just feels like it needs twice as much floor space. Obviously, there’s not much that can be done about this, but if I was the owner, I’d seriously consider relocating to larger premises, considering the popularity of the place.
Sadly, that popularity has had something of a negative effect. Thanks to its brilliant cocktails, rugged chic, and semi-​exclusionary vibe, the reputation of Santa Chupitos grew wildly in its first year of business. But, alas, like any decent bar in Liverpool, Santa’s has quickly become a victim of its own success. Its explosion in popularity brought with it a new crowd of aspirational chavs and weekend warriors, and unfortunately it doesn’t look like they’re going away any time soon. Play it safe; stick to midweek nights out.

Santa Chupitos has always been affectionately referred to by me as ‘the secret cocktail bar’. Why is it so secret? Well, because everytime I’ve been for a night out here, I’ve gotten so drunk I never remember where it is the next day. Despite the fact that it’s in the centre of Liverpool. Near where I work. And I walk in the vicinity of it every single day. It’s that kind of a bar.
Saying that, its exterior doesn’t exactly shout its presence to the world. Clad in a rather innocuous black, with shuttered windows, it’s the kind of place which you could easily walk past without giving it a second glance. The only sign that it’s the legendary Santa Chupitos is a small gold plaque bearing its name.
Walk in though, and you’ll immediately enter Liverpool’s own Cocktail Wonderland. A wonderland where attractive bar tenders mix up delicious tasting concoctions which come served up in milk bottles and frozen pineapples. Where you can buy Brazilian beers you’d be hard pressed to find anywhere else in Liverpool. Where you can get free pretzels (!!)
Santa Chupitos is the kind of place designed for happy, hazy nights. And none of its cocktails will break the bank either (although I highly recommend the amazing Five Dollar Shake — made with Ben and Jerry’s ice cream!) No wonder people want to keep its existence close to its chest — it would be heartbreaking if this place suddenly became overrun with screaming hen parties and puffed up preening wannabe footballers.

The drinks come in milk bottles!
Really good layout, like a crazy, cool bar in Shoreditch

Santa Chupito’s is fast becoming one of the most talked about bars in Liverpool. I went there last weekend and you literally could not move in the place. Although I went there about 4 months ago and it was fairly empty in the upstairs bar!
They sell a wide selection of beers and cocktails, they sell Brazilian bottled beers that no other bars in the city centre stock, and some pretty unique cocktails. One I remember being particularly impressed with was made with fresh watermelon! Amazing!
It’s not too pricey in here and it’s only a 5 minute walk ago from Heebie Jeebies or Concert Square. I would say that the best time to nip in is around 1am, that’s when it really starts to get busy! They play a wide range of music but mostly indie. Last time I drank here I was made up as they played some classic Foo Fighters tracks off The Colour and the Shape, followed by Nirvana’s Heart Shaped Box!

Opened fairly recently this place is still gathering word of mouth momentum. It sits fairly quietly at the corner of Parr Street and Slater Street — a meandering wander down the road between 3345, The Monro and Alma de Cuba. Manchester has an array of cocktail bars and now Liverpool has Santa Chupitos.
The place is cocktail heaven for avid fans of the beverage. I love the décor, the rustic naked brickwork, the brushed floors et al. The list of cocktails available is very impressive. They even have a cocktail called the grenade… so check out this fantastic bar and you will be blown away…

Santa Maria, this is an amazing find. Opposite Mello Mello it’s as inconspicuous as can be, painted all black with an understated bronzed sign which lets you know you’ve reached one of the hottest bars in Liverpool. I didn’t even know this place was open, let alone immensely popular, and I’m so glad I discovered it.
It was crammed with the knowledgeable punters (all of whom, including myself, looked smug as though they’d been let in on a great secret.)
That secret? The cocktails. Rum and Tequila cocktails line the walls if you were looking for a menu, and the upstairs section, after the urban grafitti stairway, is low-​lit and bare-​bricked. There is no need for over the top here, it exudes the knowledge of it’s own brilliance. Great atmosphere to sit with friends and enjoy a good strong drink or two. The Jamaican me Stormy was delicious, rum, more rum and a splash of ginger beer and lime. Worth the wait, a must to start a night out in style.

Santa Chupitos is very cool. There are a wealth of bars serving bespoke cocktails mixed by people who look like they know what they’re doing in Manchester, but it Liverpool it’s a rarity which makes somewhere like this all the more precious.
Asking for a Tom Collins (my test of a previously untested cocktail bar, as well as just being my favourite cocktail) I was not disappointed. No checking a menu or a guide, the barman just mixed it up from scratch. No bottle-​spinning theatrics or pouring from over his own shoulder. And when it arrived it was delicious. Bravo.
The first time I ventured in here before Christmas it was pretty quiet but a visit around the same time last week revealed that it has become very, very popular here. Expect the queue for the bar to get longer and longer (and even when you’ve put your order in, the mixing of the drink can take a fair old while) but also expect the wait to be well worth it.

Best bar in town for sure. Only open since Christmas 2009, Santa Chupito — or Saint of Little Drinks to you and me — has already caused a bit of a buzz on the late night bar scene and has built itself a a strong identity as a drinking establishment for those who like drink.
Set up as a Rum/​Tequila bar, Santa’s extensive selection of spirits means that it specialises in cocktails — real cocktails that you can actually taste the alcohol in as opposed to the usual fruity, watery excuses that you find in most bars.
Bare brick and grafitti give this place a very gritty, urban feel and sat on the corner of Parr St and Slater, opposite Mello and The Kazz, Santa couldn’t have a better location to attract the arty, boho crowd heading this way. At the moment Santa is single floor venue but there are plans to open up another cosy room upstairs very soon and with the garden space to the back to be opened imminently just in time for summer, this will be the place to go for the forseeable future.

Monk and the Yak. Monk and the Yak. Monk and the Yak.
Forget seeing the Grand Canyon or bungee-​jumping in space with dolphins, the one concrete thing you have to do before you die is have the cocktail I’ve mentioned three times up there like an excited toddler.
Combining things I didn’t even know went together (eggs, Nutella, booze) the celebrated Monk and the Yak cocktail is what could spell global success for this scruffily pleasant bar. Seriously, whole nights are orientated towards there solely for that one drink. It tastes as good as a 1980s Christmas movie starring John Candy, crossed with sex.
Since this cocktail takes a few minutes to knock up, the barman refused to serve us five of them in one go. He did agree to make three though. Then we asked the barmaid to make us two. It didn’t take them as long as the feller initially speculated («twenty-​five minutes, mate»).
Denying me my fix of the most orgasmically splendid drink in existence loses them points in my book, but not enough to actually warrant my not going there. Damn you, Chupitos.

A local bar by local people for local people, Santa’s is definitely the next big thing. With a feel as though somebody put an unbelievably well-​stocked bar in your living room, this place knocks spots off the competition. And let me linger a moment on the bar — it holds pretty much every spirit you can think of. Example: I asked for a shot of Frangelico last time I was there (tastes like Nutella in a shot) and they had it. You also don’t need to spend all day dithering over the wonderful cocktail menu — simply describe to the barman the kind of drink you want and he’ll whip it up in an instant.
I foresee one problem though: this place is gonna be so popular there just won’t be enough space to let everyone in! I wouldn’t be surprised if there are queues at the weekend, and if not, there flipping well should be! The main bar has already spilled over into a back bar, which is up the stairs on the way to the toilets. The back bar can probably only fit one bartender behind it though, so he’d better be a many-​armed Hindu god to be able to deal with the demand for cocktails.
I hope this place doesn’t expand though, as it is likely to lose some of its charm in the process. An absolutely fantastic bar, with eclectic music (which I think runs off a laptop) — this is one place I could stay all night and not get bored. If it’s your first time here, ask for a ‘Flaming Lambo’ and get ready to be impressed…