Whether you prefer your cocktails classic or bespoke, The Cascade Room’s Rob Scope has a drink for you
Rob Scope knows his way around a bar. After being introduced to the trade in England, Scope has had a hand in creating some of Vancouver’s most sought-after cocktails at establishments such as Campagnolo, ReFuel, Calabash, Cassis Bistro and now, as bar manager, at The Cascade Room on Main.
“Our cocktail list is pretty aggressive,” he says of the 60-drink strong menu of classics he oversees. “Working with this back bar is a dream come true.”
Despite such an extensive list of classic cocktails, Scope says he enjoys the chance to improvise. When a customer steps up to the bar and asks him to surprise them, it’s an opportunity to get a little creative.
“Bartending is still magic to some people, so that’s always fun,” he says. “But when people say, ‘Surprise me,’ you need to know what they are in the mood for. A lot of people will ask me ‘What do you like?’ But what I like when I get off shift is a beer and a whisky.
“It’s not about me, it’s about you.”
When it comes to local cocktail trends, Scope says the most popular drink on the menu is by far and away the Old Fashioned. And while Cascade currently carries 12 to 15 varieties of B.C. gin, the local spirit Scope is most excited for is whisky, which many B.C. distilleries are preparing to release after lengthy barrel aging.
Compared to just a handful of years ago, Vancouver cocktail aficionados are spoiled for choice with local spirits, Scope says, and finding shelf space for all the amazing products now available can be challenging — but that’s a great problem to have.
“Thanks to our liquor laws loosening up, it’s growing and it’s only going to get better,” he says.
In addition to The Cascade Room’s extensive offering of classic drinks, Scope and his team have been working hard to create an additional list that boasts 10 new and completely original signature cocktails.
“All of these have come from the minds of our bartenders,” he says. “And everyone will find something on the list that will please them.”
Make Rob Scope’s Local Negroni.
THIS POST IS SPONSORED BY:
The Cascade Room,
2616 Main Street,
TheCascade.ca
