The Cocktail Bar at Velvet — Bole, Addis Ababa

The bar program

Velvet's cocktail program leans on fresh — citrus pressed the day of service, herbs from the kitchen line, syrups built in-house. Spirits run the global classics with a deliberate Ethiopian thread, so coffee finds its way into more than one drink and local ingredients show up alongside the imports. The bartenders riff — tell them what you like (smoky, bright, bitter, sweet) and let them cook.

Signature cocktails

The signature list shifts with what's in the kitchen, but a handful sit on the menu year-round: a sharp mojito on the lighter side of sweet, a coffee-forward old fashioned that splits the difference between dessert and digestif, a smoky mezcal sour for the table that ordered "the strongest thing you have," and a clean martini for the diner who wants the glassware to do the talking. The full list lives on the menu.

The setting

A rooftop changes a cocktail. Light works differently at the 9th floor — by the time the drink lands the room behind it has shifted colour. The bar itself sits at the back of the dining hall, so you can perch on a stool when you want the bartender's attention, or take the drink to a window seat when you don't.

The rooftop terrace runs the same drinks list with open air. Most Friday and Saturday evenings the terrace is the busier of the two rooms by 8 PM.

Pair it with food

The kitchen runs late alongside the bar, so a cocktail-and-plates evening is the most popular Velvet format — wood-fired pizzas, sizzling tibs, and shared mains. See the full menu for what's on tonight.