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The vibe
No concealed entrance or glamorous entryway here. Simply push past those non-intimidating glass doors, and you have arrived at your comfort place for the evening. This casual neighbourhood bar takes over the old No Sleep Club space, refashioning the previous grungy interiors with a wood-furnished bar counter and warm light fixtures throughout.
Behind the counter, in the kitchen, and pretty much everywhere, are Employees Only alum Bryan and Sheera. They've swapped out the chaotic, high-energy bar life for something cosier and closer to their hearts. Bryan's Filipino roots shape the hospitality at Your Mother's House (YMH), where it's not about impressing your guest, but simply making them feel at home.
The drink
We like that the menu is pared-back and deliberately unexperimental, with options for drinkers and non-drinkers alike. Most of the cocktails here ($23 each) are pre-batched, so service is quick. The Dirty Tommy's is a house favourite. It's a crossover between Bryan and Sheera's favourite drinks – a margarita and a filthy martini – featuring tequila and mezcal, French vermouth and YMH's house olive brine, completed with a lime wedge and tagine rim. It's savoury, sour, dangerously crushable, and a squeeze of that accompanying lime makes all the difference.
Equally popular: Rizz. No, not what you wish you had. But a take on the classic Italian dessert cocktail with lemon sorbet. Think a refreshing slushie cocktail served in a tall glass, anchored by Monkey 47 gin and herbaceous, floral notes from elderflower, cucumber and mint, with a final splash of bubbles. Not drinking? The V/T soda is what you should order. Normally, you'd have it spiked with either vodka or tequila, but otherwise, the carbonated concoction of clarified passionfruit and pink guava is highly enjoyable enough on its own.
Other interesting pours include the Chismis (vodka martini with a house-made caper brine) and Starz (Martell, green tea, honeydew and shiso, carbonated). Or order a round of the house shots ($14 each, with your choice of tequila or bourbon with 'pickle' juice) for the table.
The food
A short but sweet list of comforting, craveable bites, from simple spiced edamame ($10) and seaweed fries ($10), to heartier plates of noodles and pasta. Get the patis wings ($18) – crunchy outside, tender inside, with a sweet-savoury sticky patis glaze and hits of garlic and calamansi that keep you going back for more. Hungrier folks should order the Cajun pasta ($22), which will surely fill you up. It's saucy bar comfort food at its finest, with a homemade touch from honest chunks of chicken, shrimp and julienned capsicum.
There's also Indomie ($14), a kitchen staple in just about every Asian household. Here, it's dressed up (but not too much), with chicken, two eggs and a dash of YMH's homemade chilli oil. Ever had warm olives? We haven't, until we tried YMH's generous, mountainous bowl of green and black olives ($8), tossed in warm bonito and furikake for a fitting contrast with the icy drinks. We could snack on these all night.