Alpine-inspired bars call to mind fake-wood interiors, hot cocktails and a lot of kitsch. But under a railway arch on Holloway Road, newly opened Bar Gemist is transporting its patrons miles away to a non-cheesy alpine vision inspired by the backgrounds of its founders, couple Marion Zoellé and Uros Dezutelj.
Alsace-born Zoellé grew up bilingual and bicultural, and felt culturally closer to neighbouring Switzerland than to the rest of France. Dezutelj – who was the bar manager at the Bar With No Name at 69 Colebrook Row for five years – was born and raised in Slovenia, and worked at his mother’s cafe before moving abroad to study bartending. The pair met working at a bar in Stuttgart.
“We didn’t plan to open a bar in London, but this place found us,” Zoellé says.
Despite coming from different backgrounds, Zoellé and Dezutelj were surprised by how much the commonalities in their upbringings. “The first lunch that Uros’s mum served me was their traditional [Slovenian] food – sauerkraut. That’s exactly what I ate growing up,” Zoellé says. The bar’s name is a nod to this overlap in cultures. Gemist is a classic Croatian spritzer – a mix of white wine and sparkling water. “It literally means ‘mixed,’ which is what we do here. We mix drinks and we mix cultures,” Dezutelj says.
When the couple started looking into what London’s venues were offering in terms of alpine and Slavic heritage, they found most places gimmicky. “We felt that there was something missing – something younger, perhaps,” says Zoellé. “We had the idea to create somewhat comical pairings, like the Sauerkraut Martini, which is our best-seller. It’s like a funny mix of a high-end London-style drink with our traditional food.” The Martini is pink, with an almost umami flavour.
The space is cosy and intimate, with deep green corduroy seats shaped like flowers. Zoellé, who has a background in fashion, designed the bar’s visual identity. “We created a big mood board of images from former Yugoslavia in the ’70s for inspiration. Our logo” – she points to the drawing of a great tit bird on the menu – “comes from an embroidery I found on a vintage apron from Yugoslavia. It’s a symbol of hospitality, and it felt just right.” Zoellé also designed the green aprons the staff wear, which are inspired by Downton Abbey.
For food, Bar Gemist serves warm pretzels with butter and sweet mustard. The menu also includes goulash and potato salad, both cornerstones of the Slavic diet and nods to Alpine cuisine.
Dezutelj and Zoellé hope to seamlessly blend into the neighbourhood’s fabric. “We want this place to feel like it doesn’t just belong to us, but also to our community,” says Zoellé.
Bar Gemist
Unit 1, 303 Holloway Road, N7 8HS
07926800863
Hours:
Thu to Sun 5pm–midnight
