BeatRoute Magazine BC Print Edition February 2018

CITY
BOTTOMS UP
WITH CAM BROWN AT CLOUGH CLUB
GLENN ALDERSON
Cam Brown shakes things up as head bartender at Clough Club.
HOW DID YOU START
BARTENDING?
I fell into it as most do. I had just moved
back to Kelowna from Vancouver to start
college. I was freshly 19 and hadn’t spent
much time in any bars and wasn’t really
interested in it. I had a friend who was
working at a nightclub as a bar back and
they needed more people. He knew I
needed a job and kept bugging me to join
him. I eventually did and really enjoyed
it. I kept working in nightclubs and a
lounge called Avenue for four years while I
finished college. After graduating I moved
to Vancouver and started working for the
Donnelly Group.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED
AT THE CLOUGH CLUB?
I’ve been full time at Clough Club for
about three months now. I’ve done a
couple guest shifts and events over the
last couple years.
BEST THING ABOUT YOUR JOB?
I love hosting people and being creative.
This industry is really unique where you
get to host a party every night and get
the joy of making your guests’ night,
every night. This could be with a great
drink, good conversation or just the
vibe we create in our venue. I went to
school for 3D animation so I’ve always
enjoyed being creative. There are so many
unique flavours and techniques it really
is never ending what you can do behind
the bar. Also this job allows me to travel
around the world. Almost every two
months at least I’m off somewhere for an
event, competition or convention.
14
FAVOURITE DRINK TO MAKE?
My favourite drink to make would be
whatever my guest is in the mood for. It’s
always a conversation and then I go from
there. I don’t go to work to make drinks
for myself. If it’s a beer and a shot or a
unique cocktail it really doesn’t matter to
me. It’s more about being hospitable and
creating experiences, which can vary guest
to guest. That said, we do have some really
interesting cocktails on our menu such as
the “it’s not you it’s me,” which is like a gin,
cucumber, mint smoothie using a blender
to cheat dilution and garnished with
lemon zest, mint and rose flower water.
GO-TO ON A NIGHT OFF?
On a night off I’m usually at Keefer Bar.
Great team, atmosphere and usually have
something exciting and new in the way of
cocktails.
My go-to drink is usually a pint of
Guinness or a light beer depending
where I am. I also like seeing what other
bartenders are excited about so I do drink
a lot of dealer’s choice cocktails.
TELL US ABOUT THE GREATEST
NIGHT YOU’VE EVER HAD AT
WORK.
The best nights are any nights you have
a good room of friends, family and great
guests drinking and having a good time.
THE WORST?
The worst nights are the ones where you
are not prepared and things get chaotic
instead of smooth, the way they should be.
Clough Club is located at 212 Abbott St.
DI BEPPE
VETERAN RESTAURATEURS STRIKE GOLD WITH AUTHENTIC CAFÉ-RESTAURANT
WILLEM THOMAS
Sometimes, a miscalculation can actually be of benefit.
For the Kitchen Table Restaurant Group (of Ask For
Luigi and Pourhouse fame), their venture on the corner
of Cordova and Carrall, Joe’s Pizza, didn’t quite meet
their expectations. While its Roman-style pizza was
well-received, its counter service and cafeteria-like
atmosphere never quite felt right in the large, unique
character space. So a rework was needed. By saving Joe’s
Pizza with a logical move out to UBC and its ravenous
students, they were ready to elevate their Gastown
address into something special.
Enter Di Beppe, which essentially translates to “Joe’s”
from Italian. Di Beppe isn’t your average Italian eatery.
The space has been split into two distinct halves – a café
and a restaurant – creating a particularly welcoming
blend of casual and quasi-upscale dining. The restaurant
side avoids any off-putting attributes of fine-dining, like
vexing price points, but still gives guests the same level
of quality in food and overall experience. Di Beppe’s café
side feels like another establishment altogether, with a
totally different design and separate offerings on the
menu. Both sides work in conjunction smoothly due to
the central bar that passes through each room. Guests
enter through the café on Cordova, which operates
through the day and into night service, and after 5 p.m.,
seating in the restaurant begins.
Whether your knowledge of Italian food extends
only so far as The Godfather Part II’s closing scene or
you’re visiting Vancouver from Italy itself, Di Beppe
should be able to accommodate and surprise you. As is
to be expected if you’ve visited any of the group’s other
establishments, proper care has been implemented,
with highly knowledgeable staff members able to
properly explain and recommend fare on both sides of
the room. Their dedicated Italian coffee program, led by
Chris Giannakos (who has worked with Revolver Coffee)
exemplifies this care.
“Every drink here should feel like you went to your
Italian uncle’s house, and we take huge pride in making
our coffee the proper way,” he says. “Most places in
Vancouver can’t do a true Italian cappuccino. That’s one
of main things we’re doing differently here.”
Both sides of the establishment already seemed to be
operating in a well-rehearsed capacity when BeatRoute
visited, despite only having opened a week prior. Not
papering up and hiding from view, passers-by could
peek in the large windows and see as Di Beppe took
shape. What emerged is a wholly original, authentic
Italian restaurant that will most likely be jam-packed
into the new year. Make sure to try a corretto – “The
ultimate 5 o’clock pick-me-up,” says GM Matthew
Morgenstern – while waiting for your table.
Di Beppe is located at 8 West Cordova Street.
The Kitchen Table Restaurant Group elevate their Gastown presence with Di Beppi.
Photo by Chris Giannakos
February 2018