Should I visit Daisy in Cliftonville, Margate?
“an extravagant-looking libation, served out of a ceramic Eagle, yep that happened, headed elsewhere”
DAISY, CLIFTONVILLE
@daisy_margate
Up on Cliftonville’s Cliff Terrace, which is increasingly populated with indie outlets, neighbourhood cocktail bar and restaurant Daisy celebrated its one-year anniversary, having moved from its harbour arm pop-up to bricks and mortar of its very own last spring.
It’s fair to say that its reputation precedes it already. Owner Felix Cohen’s previous venture, Every Cloud in Hackney, achieved remarkable success, ranking 322nd in the Top 500 Global Bars in 2020 as well as being awarded Cocktail Menu of the Year by The Times.
Opposite the Lido’s famous obelisk, Daisy is concocting innovative and original cocktails alongside some flavour-packed bar bites.
A sprig of wildflowers on each of the wooden tables and green foliage add a natural element to the purposefully stripped-back seating area - beautifully understated and intentionally crafted, with a flash of pazazz.
Downstairs, the new basement space offers a more intimate atmosphere - for drinkers only - with low seating and dimmed lights.
The cocktail menu, which changes with the seasons, throws up twists on classics as well as a bunch of new mixology creations.
Using glassware shapes from across the decades, the cocktails are divided into Weird, Boozy, Small and Fruity, and all feature descriptions from the heart. For example, the Five Go To Mexico (tequila/pink/rhubarb) accompanies the foreword “Invokes heavy ‘fanning yourself with a Panama hat by the side of a pool amidst the heat of the South American sun’ vibes, this one”.
While an extravagant-looking libation, served out of a ceramic Eagle, yep that happened, headed elsewhere, we went classic with the House Gimlet. Using the house-made cordial of blood oranges, easy peelers and bergamot peel, stirred in with Beefeater gin, it’s light, citrusy (obvs), refreshing and, crucially, super-chilled for a warm Friday night. Stunning.
The High Tea, comprising wild strawberry liqueur carbonated with retro soda fountain, phosphoric acid and genmaicha tea (a mix of roasted rice and green tea) with gin, was a beautifully balanced, dry highball.
A plate of sizzling, salted Padrón peppers beautifully blistered in the pan arrived as an appetiser before we tucked into our Mexican-led bar bites.
The slow-cooked pork shoulder tacos with pickled radish and salsa verde! Banging! The beef birria burrito, packed with slow-cooked brisket, stewed black beans, Cheddar cheese, spiced rice, guacamole and salsa verde.
The last little touch is what we dubbed the ‘See Ya Later’ button, by the front door, which when pressed delivers a printed receipt, not of your time at Daisy but of the tide times, latest train schedule, weather and local taxi numbers. As with the rest of Daisy, this little extra something is perfectly calculated but delivered with a subtle excellence. Style.
