Simple and black, covered in velvety suede. The bar menu at the Galerie Boutique Bar looks like a luxuriously bound book. Its weight is testament to the precision craftsmanship that went into its creation, and the velour has a dense, soft, and fine texture. In the center is a large, solid brass logo, artfully engraved and hand-brushed. The gold shimmers slightly in the bar lighting, creating a sharp contrast to the matte black of the cover.
When opened, a world of deep colors, clear typography, and artistic images unfolds: a peacock with a glass of champagne, a cheetah in the jungle, a cocktail glowing in mystical light. Each motif picks up on the bar's theme, the small-town jungle, and combines craftsmanship with a touch of adventure. When you hold your phone over the page, the image comes to life. The jungle moves.
A good bar menu is more than just a list of drinks.
Gage Plecic
Light and shadow flicker across paper. A menu becomes an experience. When Gage Plecic receives the title of Best Bar Menu at the SWISS BAR AWARDS 2025, the jury knows exactly why. Laudator Tobias Linder describes it as follows: "A good bar menu is more than just a list of drinks. It should whet your appetite, inspire you, and ideally be so exciting that you don't want to put it down even after you've ordered." That's exactly what this menu does: it surprises, inspires, and evokes emotions.
Digital experience meets craftsmanship
The idea for this extraordinary bar menu came from the owner of the Galerie Boutique Bar, Gage Plecic. The former club operator, musician, and multimedia producer wanted to create a menu that you don't just read, but experience. His vision: "Digital experience meets craftsmanship." Inspired by his own concept of the "small-town jungle," a place where animals, plants, and light merge into one another, Plecic began implementing his idea in 2023.
He wanted to create a card that would transport his guests to another world. It took two years to complete the project. It almost failed at the first hurdle: no one in Switzerland was willing to produce the delicate brass logo. Most companies cast mass-produced parts and refused to do delicate handiwork, and then there was the small quantity involved—Plecic only needed ten copies. "I called everywhere, metalworkers, artistic metalworkers, bookbinders, and they all said it was crazy," says Plecic.
It was a graphic designer friend in Vietnam who came up with the solution: he knew an artisan who took on the task. It took nine months to produce. Each plate was brushed by hand to break up the golden sheen, as the aim was to create an elegant rather than a kitsch effect. "When I held the first piece in my hand, I knew it had been worth it."
Structure & Concept
In terms of content, the menu is as multi-layered as its design. On the left-hand side are the cocktails, on the right-hand side are the visual worlds that accompany them. A QR code brings the illustrations to life on your cell phone. Animals move, leaves rustle, lights flicker.
This makes every order a little voyage of discovery. The menu features around 80 drinks, from classics such as Negroni and Old Fashioned to signature creations with homemade essences or the in-house berry liqueur Fulehung, named after a Thun legend. The first page lists the "Most Ordered Cocktails": an invitation for guests who can't quite make up their minds.
As Plecic says, it is "a card that builds trust" between guest and host. Velour and brass, digital technology and craftsmanship—the interplay of these contrasts is what makes the card so appealing. The tactile luxury of the surface meets the shimmering magic of the digital realm.
The illustrations are Plecic's own work, and each image was animated, refined, and dramaturgically arranged in collaboration with a partner. "I wanted people to feel the jungle, to believe that the bar itself was breathing," he says. In this way, technology and emotion, design and craftsmanship combine to create an overall experience that extends far beyond the edges of the map.
