Time slows the moment you step inside. Bob The Other Side takes shape as a quiet counterpoint to Bob Isola in Milan, a place built for conversation, considered drinking, and an eye for detail. As Bar Manager Cesar Araujo puts it, “We designed a space that felt different not only in its look, but in how guests experience time and the act of drinking. In an age of speed, this is where calm returns.” The idea comes to life with a focused drink list, a thoughtful food pairing program, and a counter designed to rethink service from the ground up.
Bob The Other Side, the New Cocktail Bar in Isola
In the Isola district, Bob has been a steady reference for years. It sits within the world imagined by twins Luca and Michele Hu of Chinese Box Group, alongside Percento Lab, Chinese Box, Agua Sancta, and the two Bob addresses. To shape Bob The Other Side, Araujo drew on his years behind Bob Isola’s counter since 2018 and on a tight collaboration with Percento Lab, where technical trials refined methods and flavors. The goal was a contemporary approach to ingredients and process.
The First Drink List
The launch menu gathers six signature drinks that twists some of Bob Isola’s most loved cocktails. “We put seven years of work into this room,” Araujo says, a line that sums up the learning built across thirteen menus. Recipes were tuned with lab tools such as rotovaps and centrifuges, equipment that allows precise control and gives each drink a clean, exact profile.
Not a sudden pivot, Bob Isola had already tapped the lab, although that side was less visible in a high-volume setting. Bob The Other Side changes the rhythm. It is a dedicated room where the team can talk guests through every choice, explain techniques, and offer context sip by sip.
Another New List for Winter at Bob The Other Side
A seasonal chapter is already on the way. “This winter we will release a new list built around a specific theme,” Araujo anticipates. The format remains six signatures, in line with a design motif that runs throughout the space, the hexagonal geometry of tables and of the counter elements. Bob The Other Side will also host activities once held at Percento Lab, including spirit presentations for clients and masterclasses with brand ambassadors.
The Food Menu Designed for Pairing
The kitchen speaks directly to the glass. Dishes are built to echo or contrast the cocktails and to cut waste wherever possible. “We are already testing for the next menu,” Araujo explains. “Some ingredients for the dishes will come from our lab work. The liquid part goes into the drinks, the solid part goes into the kitchen, and this creates a tight synergy between the two.”
A Counter That Breaks the Mold
Guidance is part of the service model, which is why there are no waiters. The room seats twenty, with three bartenders moving between tables and counter. “We take the orders, make the drinks, and bring them back,” Araujo says. “When possible, we finish the cocktail at the table and sometimes invite the guest to complete the last touch.”
The Shape of the Hexagon
The counter is not a fixed barrier with a line you never cross. It has a strong presence in the room, yet it sits within the flow and does not divide those who mix from those who taste. There are three workstations to match the team on shift, and with a few adjustments the setup can accommodate five. Designed by Studio SGSM, the bar echoes the hexagonal shape of the tables, a choice that softens the line between floor and counter. In practice, bartenders share space with guests, which keeps exchanges natural and close.
The hexagon returns as a quiet thread. Six sides for the tables, six signature drinks on the list, six recipes planned for future menus. “We like to play with the number six,” Araujo says with a smile.
Images courtesy of Bob the Other Side
