CityView Magazine

CityViewNC.com | 33 R ob Clayton began mixing cocktails more than 30 years ago as a way to make a little extra spending money in college. "And when I would go on spring break, I'd get a job at a poolside bar making all those fancy, fruity Key West drinks," he said. "Rum punches, mojitos, margaritas." He graduated from Lees-McRae in 1991 with a degree in business administration and went on to work in the family business and then in real estate. But over the years, he continued honing his mixology skills whenever he could. His is not your everyday gin and tonic or pina colada. His gin and tonic includes a layer of ginger juice. He grills pineapple, then juices it for a homemade smoked simple syrup for his pina colada. So it was that when longtime friend Paddy Gibney asked him to train the bartenders at Paddy's Irish Pub, Clayton was happy to oblige. In fact, Clayton spent two years in Europe as an exchange student sponsored by Gibney's parents back home in Ireland. "I spent a lot of time in the pubs," Clayton said. As part of a revamped bar menu at Paddy's, Clayton introduced a variety of cra cocktails to the staff. e result is an intriguing menu that includes a cocktail called the Pit Boss, for which Clayton makes a homemade simple syrup steeped from the same dry rub he uses for barbecued ribs. It also includes Rob Clayton adds a splash of magic mixology to Paddy's menu a variation of a white cosmopolitan created by famed chef Daniel Bouludin. Clayton's version includes vodka, St. Germaine liqueur, white cranberry juice and fresh lime juice. And it's garnished with an edible flower. "Bartending is bartending, but I wanted to show them how to make a drink that has more than two components," he said. "I wanted to teach them how to create a well-balanced drink. It's a lot like baking; you have to use a recipe." Paddy's new bar menu features the original concoctions of local mixologist Rob Clayton, a longtime friend of Gibney's.

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