Cocktail creator getting ready to cause a stir with opening of new Cliftonville venue Daisy

Felix Cohen opens new venue Daisy tomorrow

An award-winning barman, businessman and cocktail creator will be shaking up the hospitality scene in Cliftonville with the opening of his new venue tomorrow (May 17).

Felix Cohen, who has a solid bartending history as well as a software developer background, will be opening the doors of Daisy in Cliff terrace where customers will find a tantalising mix of cocktails with plans for a food menu being worked on.

Felix took to bar work as a student at Bath University and took over and ran the cocktail lounge at Cwtch in St Davids, Pembrokeshire, for two summers.

That gave him a taste of future successes to come and prompted a move to London.

The 39-year-old said: “While working in a fairly boring day job I worked at a number of bars, before deciding to start my own popup, the Manhattans Project.

“The popup did very well, including stints as the house bar for Kerb and 6 months in residency at Dalston’s Pond restaurant. Having the residencies allowed me time to explore modern techniques and historical drinks, and this led to a number of high profile national competition wins; the Olmeca Altos Tahona Society and Jameson Barrelmen’s Homecoming being highlights.

“The Manhattans Project found a brick and mortar site in Hackney Central in August 2016, and after a quick fit out, opened as Every Cloud, which received a number of accolades including being named the Sunday Times Style Menu of the Year, twice running up in the OFM Best Place to Drink category and Bar of the Week in Time Out. It was also listed as one of Vogue’s top London bars , one of Distilling Magazine’s top 10 London bars and ranking 322 in the 2019 World’s Top 500 Bars.”

In the summer of 2019 Felix left Every Cloud behind to make the move to Margate but plans to open a new bar were derailed by the covid pandemic.

The hitch didn’t dampen Felix’s spirit and he launched a pop-up on the Harbour Arm last summer in a new guise – Daisy, named after the style of drink best known by its Spanish translation – the margarita!.

And then the former Roost venue at Cliff Terrace came onto the market.

Felix said: “When an opportunity came up to take over a restaurant and bar site near my home in Cliftonville, I jumped at it and after a few months fitting out and updating the space, Daisy is ready to open for the summer.

“We’ll keep doing what’s worked well at Every Cloud and on the Harbour Arm last summer – fun, fruity drinks and updated classic cocktails using great spirits and as many local ingredients as possible.

“Some of the highlights of our opening menu are the Tomato Cosmopolitan, with clarified tomato water taking the place of cranberry for a very light twist on a Bloody Mary, the Pink Panther, where smoky mezcal is mellowed out with sesame and rose orgeat, the Popcorn Old Fashioned, and, of course, our Brandy Daisy – a super smashable Brandy and peach sour- as well as a rotating selection of Margaritas.

“People can always ask for a classic cocktail – if we’ve got the ingredients, we’ll make it. We’re also working on a food menu of substantial bar snacks, small dinners and – soon – a delicious brunch selection on Friday’s and Saturdays.”

Daisy, at 19 Cliff Terrace, opens its doors tomorrow (May 18).

Opening hours are 6pm-10pm Thursday/Sunday and 6pm-11:30pm on Friday and Saturday nights.

9 Comments

  1. Niiicee! Will have to pay a visit. Hopefully, one day, Ramsgate will have similar establishments. 😃

  2. I think it’ll be very successful and wish it all the best. I’ll definitely be visiting.

  3. Great addition to the cliff. Looking forward to coming back soon for another popcorn old fashioned or whatever new concoction you have dreamt up by then.

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