Good news for all your stylish barflies. The Donovan Bar at Brown’s Hotel, which takes its name from the prominent 1960s photographer, Terence Donovan, will be back in business on September 1st. Its welcome return coincides with the reopening of Brown’s iconic hotel. Suffice it to say, master mixologist Salvatore Calabrese and his close-knit team of bar managers can not wait to be back serving a sublime list of cocktails to guests and visiting customers.
“Coming back to the bar, is like coming back to life,” says Salvatore. “This is where we shine, where we make people feel special, where we feel special.” He adds: “It is part of my soul, which I have truly missed these past challenging months.”
There will be plenty of must-try cocktails to choose from and savour in the Donovan’s cool surrounds. Signature tipples include the Spicy Fifty and Breakfast Martini and of course, with the majority of Salvatore’s team being Italian, you can expect the best Negroni in town.
Our top tip for a warm August evening would be the Spritzer Fresco made with Acqua Bianca, Salvatore’s own, recently launched liquor. The liquor’s original recipe was first discovered in a late 1800s bartenders book and later updated with natural ingredients such as peppermint, rose and lemon. One sip and you will want to recreate your own at home. Salvatore explains how:
Ingredients
40 ml Acqua Bianca
15 ml Pink Grapefruit Juice
Prosecco
Method
Pour the Acqua Bianca and the pink grapefruit juice into a large wine glass filled with ice and top up with Prosecco. Stir and garnish with a twist of grapefruit.
Cheers!
Donovan Bar opening times: 4 pm until 11 pm Monday- Saturday. Closed Sunday.
Brown’s Hotel, Albemarle Street, W1S 4BP