As we come back in Europe, we stop in France to meet the duo Anthony and Mel: Le Cocktail Connoisseur!
First of all, tell us who you are and what’s your job.
Mel & Anthony
We are a couple in love with cocktails, who travel the world to satisfy our passion and share it on social media. We have already visited several hundred bars around the globe, interviewed over 250 bartenders and drank far too many cocktails along the way. In the last two years, we launched a new project called Top 500 Bars. It’s a global cocktail bar ranking based on data from thousands of sources on the web, in more than twenty languages. We not only used the opinions of experts, journalists and influencers but also industry rankings, reviews on platforms, social media and search engines to complete the set. This data set makes it possible to appeal to the greatest number of opinions by creating this ranking via an algorithm from thousands of data. But it’s not our real job, Mel works as a creative director in advertising and I (Anthony) work in digital.
Coming to the COVID-19 crisis, how did you react humanly, psychologically at the spread of the virus and the consequent lockdown?
When COVID 19 started to hit Italy, many bartenders asked us to record a supportive message, like the #keepmilanoalive project. Then we were invited to Rome by Drink Kong to try their new menu (which we attended), just prior to the Italian lockdown. So step by step we’ve been able to see closely how people were managing this threat. I used to work for a french institution focussed on AIDS, so we started to read a lot of international scientific articles to get more information and try to understand this epidemic better. We knew from our network that lockdown was about to happen in France, so we were lucky enough to be able to move to a countryside house for the three months before lockdown began. Both of us were infected with the virus, but it was not a severe form so that was ok and we were happy to be in good health regarding the situation. We used the three months to refocus on ourselves, work on Top 500 bars and launch a project with Bombay Sapphire via Le Cocktail Connoisseur to support the french bartending community. The French government has been quite supportive of the bar industry, so we felt a sense of relief for our friends in the industry who were better protected than in other countries, like the USA and UK. Technologies, like video conferencing and social media, helped us to stay connected to family, friends and the hospitality community to get news and support everyone. For us, the three-month lockdown was quite interesting and far more productive than we expected.
Could you describe how is the bar scene of your country changed after the COVID-19 crisis?
Anthony Ponicer e Mel Harvey
The most important difference is the terraces. Now all the bars have one when it was originally very complicated to get permission for one. It was a big help for the industry, so they could still have clients and respect the social distancing laws, without losing too much money. It changes the physiognomy of Paris, with more people drinking and eating outdoors, like the South of France, so it gave Paris more of a holiday vibe. We know bartenders who went back to their families, focussed more on themselves and like for other industries, decided to relocate from Paris to the countryside for a less frenetic life. So far, it hasn’t really changed the bar scene in France due to the government support, even if sadly some bars have closed permanently.
In your opinion, how will it change in the future?
We are quite optimistic regarding the future. During this period we’ve seen innovation and better use of digital tools to promote the industry. For instance, delivery is a full business for Hope and Sesame (who have been so supportive of the industry by sharing their experience as a bar confronting COVID19). 28 HK Street had a cracking idea by recreating remotely the ambiance of the venue, by creating a mix of takeaway cocktails, a Spotify playlist and live video chats with their bartenders. El Copitas with their virtual takeover and guest shift marathon was also very creative and showed others that you can adapt to any situation. Martell is launching a phygital experience in China and in Singapore where they’ve launched their SCBA to help their industry. People are able to adapt to survive and that will be the case for this industry too, even if unfortunately some bars will disappear along the way, new ones will arrive and thrive.
Anthony e Mel at BlueBlazeR’s party
Could you suggest five bars in your country?
That’s a tough question, but we’ll select some of the lesser-known bars because they need promoting and support right now.
Symbiose in Bordeaux has great drinks and amazing food.
The Cambridge Public House, because it’s the only bar in Paris where you can start to drink at 3pm in good company.
Frequence, because it’s the only place where you have fabulous cocktails, a live dj and dance all night long in Paris.
Sister Midnight, because it’s the only venue where you have fabulous drag and burlesque shows with super sharp drinks.
Dirty Lemon, because it’s 30 seconds from our home and we are lucky enough to have this amazing local bar within footsteps.
