Tour de France: Caprice Bar Manager Anyss Saintilan Takes Guests on a Journey Through His Home Country

With the launch of Caprice Bar’s latest menu, Terroir Volume Two, manager Anyss Saintilan takes guests on yet another journey through his home country. 

It’s never easy to take over the reins of a vastly successful project, especially when that project is Caprice Bar, an establishment that flourished under the collaborative direction of Lorenzo Antinori and Summer Lo, now respectively at Bar Leone and Argo. In 2021, Caprice peaked at number 10 on Asia’s 50 Best Bars listing, while also taking home the Nikka Highest Climber Award – and naturally for current bar manager Anyss Saintilan, there was never any doubt about the massive challenge he was facing when he joined the establishment later that same year, just as Antinori was shifting his full focus to Argo. 

“It was massive pressure,” Saintilan admits. “We all know that Lorenzo has achieved a lot in the scene here in Hong Kong, so taking over from him brought a lot of pressure. I already knew at the time we wouldn’t keep our position on Asia’s 50 Best, so the goal for me was simply to give every single guest who comes here either better or at least the same level of service and hospitality. Now we’ve effectively started from scratch, we’re slowly building towards achieving those rankings again but, yes, it was a lot of pressure and I knew that when I came in.”

Although Antinori’s eventual departure left big shoes to fill, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Saintilan, who became Caprice Bar’s manager two years after he joined, was the man Four Seasons chose to for the job. Born in France, he began his bartending journey when he was just 16, working to pay for his summer travels around his home country – though at the time, bartending wasn’t something he seriously considered pursuing as a career.

After turning 18, he worked for three years in a bank while studying for a degree. “I was young, and I was hunched over a computer surrounded by older people in an office, and I thought, ‘Oh my God, this isn’t for me!’ I also took on summer jobs in brasseries selling beers and whisky and cokes, and that’s how I got my foot in the door.”

From Limoges to Tours, Saintilan went on his very own Tour de France, eating and drinking his way around the country until one day he decided to look for opportunities overseas. He found his way to Dubai’s La Petit Maison, where he was forced to start from scratch once again as a barback, in spite of his previous experience. He worked his way up to assistant bar manager, before Le Petit Maison opened a branch in Hong Kong and brought him here.

But after five years, an opening became available at Caprice. “I met chef Guillame [Galliot] and we had a chat, and I decided it was time for a change, so I joined Caprice Bar,” Saintilan recounts. “It was quite high-volume when I was at LPM, so it’s a bit different working with fine dining here. I mainly worked behind the bar before, whereas here I’m much more engaged with every single aspect, moving between the floor and the bar. I get to interact more with the guests, and I love that.”

Given his experience, it’s easy to see why the Four Seasons decided to choose him to run Caprice Bar – and while it’s only been nine months since he took full control, he’s already gaining traction. Two years ago, as assistant manager, he introduced Terroir Volume One, a menu that documents his own travels and experiences in France, offering the then travel-restricted Hong Kong patrons a nostalgic taste of Europe. 

“The idea of Terroir was quite simple,” Saintilan explains. “When we launched the first edition, we were in the middle of the pandemic and people couldn’t travel, so we wanted to bring a bit of France to people here in Caprice Bar. We had the idea to do something more French, which is a big part of me, and also follow the kitchen more closely, working with chef Gillaume and working our drinks around the seasonal menu. People were very impressed with the drinks – the reception was great.”

The success of Volume One has now led to Terroir Volume Two, which transports us deeper into his home country, the ingredients from its different regions and the techniques he’s come to learn. This time, guests will start in the Caribbean and Indian Ocean and then head over to the Cognac region and Brittany before venturing east towards Provence and finally ending up in central France. 

Drinks range from La Vanille Bleue, a tequila sour accented by smoky blue vanilla from La Réunion Island, and La Banane, a mixture of banana-infused Antarctica white cognac, roasted star anise and celery bitters, to Coconut and Chardonnay, a gin-based Negroni made with Chardonnay grape-distilled Djinn gin topped with coconut-washed Campari, and – my own favourite – Old Caramel; a dessert-like twist on the classic Old Fashioned using Bullet Rye whiskey and salted caramel, complemented by a salty rim. All drinks come served in exciting vessels, including 3D-printed coconuts and coffee beans, as well as exotic glassware. 

“As a creative person, the creativity I can express is definitely the best part of the job,” Saintilan tells me. “I’d be getting on with my day and suddenly – poof – something comes into my mind, and I just get to try it out immediately. To be able to make something that came from my mind, put it on the table and have guests compliment it is what drives me. It’s important for me that every cocktail I create is a reflection of me and not just something other people want to see.”

The high praise from patrons may be motivating, and more accolades are sure to come in the future, but what’s most important to Saintilan now is never to take for granted this platform he has to share his experiences, memories and creativity. 

“I’d never have imagined this journey,” he reflects. “Where I was born and raised, life wasn’t easy. So to remember where I was at one point in life and see where I am now, I’m really proud of myself.”.