Braveheart Sake Originals: A Tanjong Pagar Sake Bar Near Me for Cocktails

Braveheart Sake Originals, up a flight of stairs at 83A Tanjong Pagar Road, Singapore 088504, builds almost every cocktail on sake, with prices from S$20 for a Sakeball and S$22 for most of the list, before 10% service and GST. It opens Monday to Saturday from 3pm to midnight, about 250 metres from Tanjong Pagar MRT, which makes it the most unusual answer to sake bar near me on a street better known for Korean barbecue and cocktail dens.

The bar soft-opened in February 2026 and held its official launch on 18 April 2026, HungryGoWhere reported. It was founded by bartender James Li and Ong Jun Quan, known as JQ, a certified International Kikisakeshi sake sommelier, and Tatler called it Singapore's first dedicated sake-cocktail bar. The company behind it is still registered as The Shin Koji Collection, a nod to the working name Shin Koji, or new mould.

The final name comes from shinpaku, the opaque white heart at the centre of a polished sake rice grain. Tatler explained that the room is split along those lines too: the bar counter side is Brave, where Li shakes and stirs, and the sake side is Heart, where JQ pours bottles and talks guests through a flavour chart of fruity, umami, cereal and milky styles.

The Sake Originals Vol. 1 menu names drinks after what they imitate. Lager costs S$22 and is built to drink like a beer, Merlot at S$22 borrows the weight of red wine, and Rosé-A-Pét at S$22 plays on pétillant natural rosé. Whisky, the stiffer option, is S$24, and Wild and Free is also S$24. Sakeball, the bar's take on a highball, is the cheapest at S$20.

Red Wolf at S$26 is the one cocktail on the list with no sake in it, there for a friend who refuses to try. Honeycombers found the Hedonic, at S$22, can lean a little too sweet for some palates, so if you prefer drier drinks start with Lager or Shin Classico instead. Lucky Bamboo and Elizabethan Blush round out the S$22 options.

The Sake Splendor list carries about 15 labels at a time, priced by 360ml carafe and 720ml bottle. The bottle to order for curiosity is Chrysanthemum, a junmai daiginjo made in Singapore, at S$18 a glass, S$96 a carafe or S$168 a bottle. Daishichi Kimoto Junmai, a traditional kimoto style, is S$69 a carafe, and Amabuki Banana, a fruity daiginjo, is S$67.

For a special night, Hakkaisan Snow Aged 3 Years costs S$218 a bottle and Eikun Ichigin 35% S$248, while Mizubasho Pure Awasake, a sparkling sake, is S$268. Honeycombers listed three tasting flights in May 2026, Familiar But Fun at S$38, Umami Discovery at S$46 and Wild and Curious at S$58, which are the best way to find your style before buying a carafe.

Ordering is easier than the list suggests. Tell the sake side which corner of the flavour chart you usually enjoy in wine or beer, fruity or savoury, light or creamy, and ask for a pour from that corner. That is the point of splitting the room into Brave and Heart. A first-timer who likes fruit-forward white wine could start with the Amabuki Banana carafe at S$67 rather than an aged bottle.

There is no full kitchen, and HungryGoWhere described the bites as quite basic and no-frills, so eat dinner first if you are hungry. The menu covers karaage chicken at S$16, smoked duck at S$14, tako wasabi at S$8 and rösti hash browns at S$12, all built to sit next to a glass rather than replace a meal.

The exception is RAPPU, a set of six handrolls for S$46, or six vegan handrolls for S$36, served only between 6pm and 9:30pm. Arrive after 9:30pm and you are down to the small plates. Our honest advice is to skip the duck and order the tako wasabi with a cold carafe, since the sharp octopus is the bite that works best against the cleaner sakes.

The room is a second-floor shophouse space with warm orange lighting, pale textured walls, dark shelving and a sculptural pendant lamp, and it holds up to 33 seated for a full private hire. Book through OpenTable from the official site or through Chope. The venue notes that reserved tables are held for three hours when another booking follows.

Before the cocktail crowd arrives, the bar also serves pour-over coffee and tea in daylight, so a 3pm visit can start with coffee and end with a carafe. Honeycombers described groups sharing banter, couples on dates and a solo drinker reading a book. Sunday is closed, so plan Tanjong Pagar weekend drinking for Saturday.

Jinrikisha Station at 1 Neil Road, the triangular red-brick building at the junction of Neil Road and Tanjong Pagar Road, is a two-minute walk away. The Municipal Council built it in 1903 as the administrative centre for the city's rickshaws, in Edwardian style, and it is now a conserved building worth a look before you climb the stairs.

If you want a second sake stop, Shukuu Izakaya at 8 Stanley Street in Telok Ayer has more than 100 sakes and full izakaya food, a sensible follow-up if the handroll window has closed. Tanjong Pagar MRT on the East-West line is the easiest way home after the midnight close.

Address: Braveheart Sake Originals, 83A Tanjong Pagar Road, Singapore 088504, second floor. Nearest MRT: Tanjong Pagar, about 250 metres. Hours: Monday to Saturday 3pm to midnight. Closed Sunday.

Budget: cocktails start at S$20 and most are S$22, the Singapore-made Chrysanthemum is S$18 a glass, and all menu prices carry 10% service charge and GST on top. The handroll set runs 6pm to 9:30pm only. Ask the Karpo APP for a Tanjong Pagar dinner spot before you go, or for a sake bar open on Sunday.