Bottled Up! with Joey Donnelly

Joey Donnelly. Supplied photo

Meet Joey Donnelly, a maritime treasure of a human, who has made a solid east-coast stamp on the west-coast hospitality industry here in BC. He is the GM of Clough Club in Gastown (his last name is unrelated to the Donnelly Group) and even after almost a decade in Vancouver (with eight years under his belt at the Clough), he still greets you from behind the bar with genuine maritimer charm and an enthusiastic drawl of, “Hey Bahd!” He also owns a couple of restaurants in Tofino with some of his old ‘Scotian pals’ (being the much-admired Lil’ Ronnie’s Backyard BBQ, of which a second location just opened in early June 2019), and he sits on the Board of Directors for the newly formed mental health initiative, Mind The Bar, which serves as a resource for Vancouver hospitality workers struggling with thoughts of suicide, addictions, depression, or workplace harassment. Despite his efforts to be low-key, Joey is absolutely beloved in the industry, from colleagues to patrons to musicians to CEOs. If you don’t know him, you should. Hailing from the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia, this is Joey Donnelly.

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Best hidden patios in Vancouver

Bar manager Barry Jackson on the patio of Gotham restaurant. Dan Toulgoet photo.

Summer in Vancouver is all about the patio. Almost any patch of sidewalk will do, really, but it’s certainly better if that chunk of concrete comes with a decent cocktail or two.

That said, our very favourite patios are Vancouver’s hidden ones, those quiet urban oases that we share only with a handful of people in the know. Finding a new one is like discovering treasure buried in your own backyard.

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Mix Master

Trevor Kallies finds inspiration in the international cocktail community

Lou Lou Childs photo

 

Leading the beverage program at the Donnelly Group keeps Trevor Kallies on his toes.

With responsibility for lists across the group’s pubs, cocktail taverns and nightclubs, his 15 years of experience behind the bar—10 as a serious cocktail contender—are invaluable.

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