Stories
Davide Urgese
My Story
Bartender Life
- Nationality: Italian
- Occupation: Head Bartender
- Workplace: Isabel, London UK
- Favorite Cocktail: Sazerac
- Favorite Spirit: Whisky
What inspired you to become a bartender:
Since I was a child I have always been passionate about this world. I remember when my father took me to a bar for the first time and I was immediately struck by how the bartender interacted with customers, so I promised my father that I would do that job even though he hoped that from his son, he would get a doctorate and not sacrifice every night for such a tiring job.
Tell me about your bartending journey and how you got to where you are now:
During the school period I immediately started working at the bar at night and in the summer seasons in the local seaside resorts. Immediately after finishing my studies, I left for my summer season away from home, in the South Tyrolean Apennines. After the latter I started to take the foreign job route, my first stop was the Dutch capital Amsterdam, where I stayed for almost 5 years working for various clubs in the heart of the city and for international festivals. From there I moved to Ibiza, and then I went to Rome where I worked for various clubs and for a whiskey import company between Scotland and Italy. I was in the Alps of the French and Swiss borders working for various 5 Star Hotels of important names, I worked for Arab companies until my arrival in London, the cradle of all the bartenders.
What stamp would you like to leave on the industry:
The imprint that I would like to leave, or that they remember better, is that by loving what you do you can only give the best of yourself and express the maximum of your being. So if you love this job do it with passion and dedication and the rest will come by itself.
Can you explain your personal process for creating a cocktail:
I believe that there is not much to explain on this question, first of all you need to have a palate and knowledge of flavors, then just creativity is enough. Mixing the various spirits or products in general is not easy but if you start to understand which balance sheets are needed to give that touch of uniqueness to the cocktail, it means that you are starting to move the dice well on the board.
What is the most important part of what you do and what does it mean to you:
I would say the best is to give emotions to my customers, because by creating a new emotion in them (unconsciously) they return a beautiful memory that they will hardly forget, so that they remember you. For me this is the real purpose of my job and it is what I try to do daily.
What do you think will be the future of the F&B industry:
The F&B industry is a sector that will never die over time, it will always have its place, as from our ancestors to today, the only thing is that as time will evolve the same will happen to the F&B sector.
Anything that would you like to add?
Come to visit me!
Most bizarre client request:
An espresso martini without coffee.