A Japanese fusion bar is having fun with its menu, transporting guests to a Kiwi summer barbecue in the streets of Tokyo.

Imōto Lounge Bar at The Welder could be the only place in Christchurch where you’ll find the old school classic Kiwi dip and chips with sashimi and a wagyu mini burger.

The small plates are more Japanese Euro, co-owner Juliana McGowan says, “a little bit playful and quite cheeky”.

“We’ve got a cheeseboard, charcuterie, old school Kiwi dip and chips - everyone loves that right, you shouldn’t have to wait till summer or a party.”

Imoto Lounge Bar’s owners and husband and wife, Juliana McGowan, left, and Shawn McGowan, opened their bar late last year to complement Bar Yoku, their Japanese restaurant in The Welder. *PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER / THE PRESS*

The menu has traditional east Asian flavours with some surprises, including classic Kiwi dip and chips. *PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER / THE PRESS*

Other menu items - created by McGowan’s husband, chef Shawn McGowan - include truffle toasties, beef cheek croquettes, crumbed prawns and fried tofu.

Traditional east Asian flavours also feature in the cocktail menu, seeing matcha, green tea, sake and shuchu additions for the likes of a Yuki Natsu, Umi-chan or Mikan Munchkin cocktail.

The passion for Japanese food and drinks is motivated by the Juliana McGowan’s love of the country they’ve visited many times and her husband’s experience in Japanese restaurants.

Imōto opened in Salut Salut’s former space in October, complementing the couple’s first venture together, Bar Yoku, also in The Welder, and gets its name from the Japanese word for ‘little sister’.

Imōto translates to ‘little sister’ in Japanese and is the McGowans’ second Japanese venture following Bar Yoku. *PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER / THE PRESS*

McGowan said she wanted to “create a cosy little lounge bar that offers tasty small plates, a broad range of beverages, sake and creative Japanese cocktails - a really mature list that offers something to a broad range of people”.

The couple had “live and breathed” hospitality for decades, she said, meeting while working together in a Melbourne restaurant. Over more than 20 years together, they’d worked in Queenstown, at Pegasus Bay Winery and at The Bicycle Thief where the seed was planted to take the plunge and open their own business.

The relationships they had built over their career helped them achieve their goals, McGowan said.

“We’ve really nurtured those relationships with suppliers, customers and staff. It’s been a good journey - it’s definitely what we were built for.

“We just genuinely love to offer honest hospitality, greeted with a smile.”

*Imōto Lounge Bar is at The Welder, 20 Welles St, central Christchurch.

Imōto Lounge Bar combining classic Kiwi with traditional Japanese