Nobody loves a night out like us, so when it came to getting the scoop on how to make it a good time, all the time, we asked the people who know best–our own team!
We asked Drake team members to spill about everything from their best hangover cures to favourite dancefloor tracks and wildest nights out. Their responses were…enlightening.
+ What’s your favourite get-ready-to-go-out jam?
Krista Whitman, Housekeeper, the Drake Devonshire: Right now, I’d have to say I Love Me by Demi Lovato. It’s a powerful message meets a really good, get-ready bop.
Samuel Wilson, Bartender, The Drake Hotel: Put Jewels On It – Statik Selektah feat. Run the Jewels
Sharene van Onselen, Lead Bartender, The Drake Devonshire: Anything classic rock or indie.
+ Three things you never leave home without when you’re heading to a party:
Aileen Heatheringon, Assistant General Manager, The Drake Hotel: Small purse, credit card, Rebel by MAC lipstick.
Shawn Murphy, Venue Operations Manager, The Drake Hotel: My phone, house keys, and a good mood.
Krista: Snacks, comfy shoes, and a hoodie. I guess you could say I’m a practical party person.
Heather McCorquodale, Housekeeper, The Drake Devonshire: Water, a fun scrunchie, the aux cord.
+ Have you ever had a whirlwind, unexpected crazy night out on the town? Tell us about it!
Bayley Dathorne, Front Desk Supervisor, The Drake Hotel:
Dubai, summer of 2019. I was working on a cruise ship and our docking coincided with the end of Ramadan. From about 6pm the streets and beaches were FLOODED with celebration. Fireworks going off everywhere you looked. The nightclubs were crawling with expats and tourists having the time of their life without a care in the world, the music was hit after hit after hit, and the night ended with a group of 12 of us walking into a restaurant at 5am and getting the best shawarma of our lives, only returning ‘home’ at 7am with the sun almost fully out. Best night of my life, hands down.
Sam:
Once, I went to a bar with the cocktail waitresses from a lounge I worked at in SoHo. They took me to this seeming residential building at E 23rd and 3rd, and we were let into a cave-like, half empty basement bar by a dour bouncer. After a minute in the bar, my co-worker declared it lame and shuffled us out a fire exit, up maybe ten stories of stairs, until we got to a mostly empty loft furnished with only a set of couches, a rug and a coffee table where a very large man was smoking hookah. I think we stayed until about six or seven with the sun coming up over southern Manhattan. A lot of my time in NYC was like that: weirdly beautiful debauchery and very odd hours.
Shawn:
I used to run a skate brand, and its launch party was during Caribana and OVO Fest weekend. Because of how heavy the programming was that weekend, they merged the party with a wicked concert series to draw people. When I showed up, a bunch of the LA Lakers were there, and as a huge basketball fan, I was losing it. A bottle of Henny later, those guys couldn’t get enough of me and my best friend.
+ What’s the next cocktail you think should make a comeback?
Anna Luo, Bartender, The Drake Hotel: Corpse Reviver No. 2.
Joyce Lo, Creative Director, Drake Hotel Properties: Piña colada with fresh pineapple.
Sharene: Paloma! Can’t go wrong with a little mezcal, some fresh grapefruit juice, fresh lime, and of course a little sweet rim. No salt for this babe.
Bayley: The Pornstar cocktail. Simple to make, so many ways you can riff on it and make it unique. Plus it’s always fun asking the bartender, ‘Hey, can I get a Pornstar?’
Sam: A lot of bartenders are bringing back high-end spins on what I would call Applebee’s Drinks: Appletinis, Long Island Iced Teas, that kind of stuff. My late mentor told me when I started bartending that before the cocktail revival of the early aughts, a lot of now famous bartenders worked at spots like Applebee’s for a time, because it was one of the few places that had a bar bible and a cohesive training system. So it makes sense those drinks are coming back because there’s a kind of nostalgia for that not-so-serious era of drinks. I always love making Blue Hawaiians. They’re a super-fun, silly, seafoam-looking drink, and I’ve tweaked the recipe to make it drier. Once one goes out, ten more follow.
+ Name a track that always gets you on the dance floor.
Heather: Idol – BTS
Joyce: Follow Me – Aly-us
Aileen: Expressing What Matters – Disclosure
Sam: Anything by Busta Rhymes
Shawn: I Want You – Janet Jackson
+ Are you a morning person or a night owl?
Bayley: Night owl! Stay up until 5am? No problem. Wake up at 5am? I’m in tears.
Heather: Morning person.
Aileen: Morning person!
Anna: When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, THAT’S AMORE.
Sharene: Morning person, once I’ve had my coffee and shower.
Shawn: I’m nocturnal.
+ Best 3am snack food (and fave place to get it):
Joyce: Chips and Gatorade from the 7/11.
Krista: Pancakes 100%, of course in the comfort of my own home. I grew up eating Mickey Mouse-shaped pancakes and that hasn’t changed with age!
Heather: Ramen from the Korean grocery store.
Sam: Pizza. King Slice is right next door to The Drake Hotel, so it’s become a very convenient post-shift snack on Friday/Saturday nights around 3:30am.
Shawn: Jerk chicken from Rap’s on Eglinton.
+ What’s your cure for a wicked hangover?
Shawn: Crush a michelada, have a heavy breakfast and binge watch MTV’s The Challenge.
Aileen: Large amounts of greasy food, and a little hair of the dog…
Joyce: Watermelon.
Anna: Sleep. A lot of sleep.
Krista: Sleep, bananas, Netflix and nature!