When it comes to surviving a Houston summer, few things beat a cool, refreshing drink. It’s a lesson that Anvil owner Bobby Heugel knows well, which is why he’s switching things up at Refuge for the summer.
Beginning Wednesday, June 19, Refuge — Heugel’s intimate, upscale cocktail bar that’s adjacent to Anvil — will roll out its Tropic Summer menu. More than a list of new drinks, Heugel, general manager Tommy Ho, and Catbirds partner Peter Jahnke have transformed the space with new lighting and decor. As Heugel tells CultureMap, the physical changes are extensive.
“We decorated the entire bar in plants. Covered the entire bar. They’re fake plants, but they look good,” Heugel says. “There’s also new lighting. Pretty much every surface you would associate with Refuge has been covered in something we feel like has a tropical theme.”
It’s an aggressive set of changes that will last all summer long. Heugel explains that the new direction is inspired by a number of factors, including his travels to countries in the tropics and the work he’s been doing to help former Anvil general manager Jessey Qi open a new bar in the Philippines. He started thinking about how to define a tropical drink.
“It seems kind of straightforward, but I’d never thought about drinks this way,” he says. “The tropics are a defined area. We’re trying to serve drinks that are from those places or are inspired by ingredients from those places or are classics but updated in a modern way.”
For example, Ho has created a Durian Swizzle made with Jamaican rum, amaretto, lemon juice, and absinthe that uses ingredients associated with tropical countries in Asia. The Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai takes inspiration from a recipe that tiki bar legend Trader Vic created while working in tropical Hawaii. Instead of serving an espresso martini, Refuge’s tropical coffee cocktail is inspired by Vietnamese iced coffee (cafe sua da). Even a classic Old Fashioned gets a tropical twist courtesy of cacao butter-washed bourbon.
“For Houstonians, I think it will be fun to see drinks they might be familiar with twisted in certain ways. For Houstonians that have more adventurous palates, they’ll be things for them,” Heugel says. “The drinks are presented in a way that feels like Refuge but slightly more fun and slightly more relaxed.”
Those who haven’t been to Refuge in awhile will notice some new faces behind the bar. The recent departures of veterans Máté Hartai (to new Italian restaurant Milton’s), Josh Alden (who returned to Reserve 101), and Kristen Nepomuceno (consulting) have made way for bartenders April Biagas (previously a host at Refuge), Lorenzo Shadoan (formerly of Better Luck Tomorrow), and Julia Miles (formerly of Squable) to step into new roles. Of course, Ho maintains his presence as the concept’s general manager.
“I think it’s great. They're getting to work in a new setting,” Heugel says. “They’re all pretty young, no offense Máté (laughs). It definitely has a more youthful energy to it. Just that eagerness that you get from people who are young and hungry. It’s not the same crew, but we’re equally excited to work with these folks.”
Refuge opened in 2022 as a more intimate, slightly more luxurious companion to Anvil. Its first floor is a coffeeshop and bar that’s open in the morning and afternoon. Reservations for the cocktail bar are available on Resy.
Courtesy of Refuge
The Pasteled Horizon is based on a drink Ho created for the Neo dinner series.
