2020 marks 100 years since prohibition began in America – the ideal opportunity for DRAM to profile managers/owner-managers of some of Scotland’s most talked-about speakeasy bars, and today’s the turn of the Manager of The Cauldron in Edinburgh, Connor O’Hara…
The Cauldron is a kind of pop-up-meets-Speakeasy, managed by Connor O’Hara, and owned by a company called The Magic Things.
Said Connor, “The ‘experience’ is what attracts our customers. It fuses mixology, technology and science to deliver a customer experience in how drinks are made. But we also get walk-ins to our Speakeasy bar, which has slightly more signage than your average one.
The bar got a mini facelift late last year and now includes a lounge.” Before managing The Cauldron, Connor worked at Edinburgh’s Why not, The Raeburn Hotel and for Fuller Thomson, including at The Southern. How does managing a speakeasy compare? “We are continually teaching customers, so there’s more intensive staff training. So as well as the drinks knowledge, they need a flair for the dramatic and must be naturally fun-loving.”
