Vancouver’s most notorious mayor, L.D Taylor, famously declared in 1924: “This ain’t no Sunday School town.” As one might expect from a bustling port city, Vancouver is brimming with stories. One of Vancouver’s best storytellers is working with a different kind of medium. Much admired mixologist/storyteller Jeff Savage heads up the brand-new cocktail bar Prophecy at the Hotel Georgia with a menu inspired by myths, legend, music, art and poetry.
The Hotel Georgia has been the setting of many a rip-roaring occasion and remains one of the few spots in the city with a license that allows for overt merriment. Botanist alumni Savage found the walls of the historic, luxurious basement bar alive with echoes of the past, patiently waiting for the haute monde and thirsty adventurers of the future to join them there. “Prophecy is a meeting place for the curious,” he tells me, “our concept is to share the stories and continue the narrative of this iconic space.”
Backdropped by an interchangeable digital art wall, an ode to the imbibers who have filled the space over the years, Savage serves elaborate, eye-catching sips from thematic menu sections like “The Living Tapestry” and “Love of Land and Sea.” Kelpie (Aquavit, nori infused Fino sherry, bitter Bianco, orgeat, celery, lime and spirulina algae) is naturally blue in colour and served in hand-blown glass moulded to a branch of driftwood and is a tribute to a shape-shifting Scottish water spirit. With the Cavalier Martini (creme fraiche, chive and white pepper infused Belvedere 10, Cocchi dry vermouth), Savage presents an ice-cold ode to the Cavalier Room, a famed prohibition safehouse in the hotel which may or may not have been in the exact location of Prophecy. The El Peregrino (Paranubes Oxacan rum, artisanal mezcal, Fino, lime and the intriguing “Turbo Banana”: a super-blend of whole banana, lemon peel, sugar, salt, cinnamon, allspice and banana liqueur) presents a danse macabre from the evocative “Home Fires & Wandering Spirits” menu section; its skull presentation an ode to Mexican folk art.
Seeing and being seen is nothing new to The Georgia—it’s been a high-society hub for nearly 100 years. While Savage’s flashy serves are sure to ensnare Generation Instagram, Prophecy plays on the eternal narrative of captivating visual storytelling in hospitality. For the cocktail-curious who enjoy a sidecar of human connection, ask your server to tell you the tale of your sip; they’ll happily oblige.
– Rebecca Felgate
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