The doorbell rings, the courier comes up, and into my hands lands my favourite kind of childhood book: a fantastic pop-up with wild animals that doubles as the new cocktail menu from the acclaimed Gorillas in Thessaloniki.
Από την Ελένη Νικολούλια
“As a creative team, we love ‘working’ with our guests’ emotions and memories,” says Achilleas Plakidas, owner and Head Bartender at Gorillas.
“With this menu we tried to awaken the memory of our childhood, when so many of the books we read were pop-ups—the hero on each spread would literally ‘spring out’ towards the reader.
Another spark for the idea was a family trip we took to the Berlin Zoo, which we then found ourselves trying to recreate. That’s how it all began.”
The result? Sixteen “stops” in a zoo: beyond the animals on display you’ll find a refreshments stand, a zookeeper, a coffee spot, even a first-aid station. “And all the ‘animals’ you’ll meet are the ones people most readily think of today,” Achilleas adds.
Where does the team foccus flavour-wise?
The menu’s flavour approach follows the same logic as Gorillas’ previous menus: accessible combinations designed for repeat orders (think sweet-and-sour crowd-pleasers). You’ll always find highly carbonated cocktails, sweet & sour options, boozy serves, and drinks with an umami character.
Three cocktails to try from the new menu
According to Achilleas, when you’re at Gorillas and leafing through the new pop-up, make time for The Keeper, Po the Panda, and Simba the Lion.
The Keeper (Steve Irwin): a boldly alcoholic mix built on bourbon, white miso, oinomelo (honeyed wine), and pineapple.
Po the Panda: a different take on Bitter & Soda, with the bitter lightly cooked over charred bamboo, umeshu, and a soda of toasted rice and fig.
Simba (the menu’s best-seller): a milk punch with reposado tequila, a house liqueur of burned butter, passion fruit, and Oreo ice cream.
Getting to know Gorillas
Beyond Achilleas, the bar team includes Sakis Yiartimidis (Bar Manager), Sotiris Petrou, Giorgos Noulis, Dani Technitis, Giannis Youlekas, and Dimitris Athanasiou. What is Gorillas? We asked the team to describe a typical Saturday night:
“Gorillas is a bar in every sense of the word! Adrenaline, a high-volume cocktail bar, loud music (hip-hop and ’80s/’90s rock), dancing, flirting, fine drinking, and fun! Guests love watching the production process and, over the years, we’ve noticed that at Gorillas you forget about your phone—which makes us happy and proud.”
And if you happen to walk in and find a renowned international bartender at the counter, that’s because the Gorillas team is regularly in touch with bars worldwide, exchanging cultures and ideas with the best in the game.
See you in Thessaloniki!
Browse the bar’s full menu in the PDF that follows.
Welcome-to-the-Zoo-GORILLA