RedLeb.com

Along with his brother, Haytham is the co-owner of Juniper. He recently married ‘the most amazingly beautiful lady.’ Like many Lebanese, he moved back to Lebanon after having lived abroad for many years. He’s a Liverpool FC fanatic.

How difficult is it to open a pub?

It’s actually really easy to open a pub…. Keeping it open is the hard part. The initial first few couple of months when we opened were probably the hardest as Lebanon was going through some very difficult times and people still didn’t know about Juniper. That’s when phoning up your friends and bringing them along makes all the difference. No one wants to walk into an empty bar, however amazing the place actually is. Since May however, it has just been one great experience after another. I’m now looking forward to opening my next project www.mybar.me

I’ve heard about that, what is it exactly?

It’s a completely innovative and exciting approach to bar ownership that provides the pubic with a unique opportunity to fulfill their dream of owning a bar. They can choose to invest in one of four different levels of ownership ranging from 2,000 USD to 20,000 USD and will benefit from all the perks of being a mybar.me owner. As a Barnote owner they will receive a percentage of voting rights, weekly sales reports, and an annual dividend distribution. The idea is to have between 150 to 200 owners who will all bring their friends along ensuring that mybar is a unique experience which is profitable for everyone who invested. Simply put mybar will let people… Own it. Live It. Profit.

Which is your slogan, I believe. How did you find Juniper, as far as challenges go?

I think turning what used to be a chicken shack into the bar Juniper is today should give you an idea of some of the challenges faced. One of the day’s we were renovating, I walked in to find the haddad [ironsmith] welding a piece of the ceiling at a height of about a meter and a half off the ground. Admittedly he was somewhat vertically challenged – I think that’s the politically correct way of saying a small person – but still a meter and a half off the ground?

Think fast: number of naked women you’ve seen in the pub?

Before or after I got married? Uhm tricky question that. To quote one of the greatest pieces of modern literature, ‘That’s classified… I could tell you, but….’ Readers, you’re welcome to walk in and tell me which classic piece of literature that line comes from. I’ll give you a clue, it’s the best of the best, and it’s not Shakespeare. Actually, to make it a little more interesting, anyone who tells the bartender at Juniper what film that line is from will be welcomed with a free shot of their choice.

What’s the funniest incident you can remember, since pub owners see the weirdest things?

There are so many to choose from, where do I start? The aquarium cleaner who tried selling his cleaning services because we had a digital Aquarium playing on the Plasma Screen? The darake [policeman] on New Year’s wearing his full police gear along with one of those little cardboard New Year’s hats shooting down shots all night? And by shots I do mean the alcoholic ones, if that makes anyone feel more comfortable… probably not. I actually have a great picture of that, I would post it, but I’m sure it would mean having to spend a few nights in the slammer. It’s probably posted on Facebook anyway. Reminds me of this t-shirt I saw, ‘What happens in Beirut…. Appears on Facebook.’ Classic. What else? The guy who proposed to his girlfriend only to find out she was actually a he? That’s probably pretty high up there on the weird scale. Shall I continue?

I’m assuming the poor man was smashed; you must get a lot of those?

Transvestites? No. Drunks, well, would you like that in a percentage or are we talking numbers here? Did I mention the aquarium cleaner, the darake and the sheman? That sounds like the beginning to a rather bad joke, now that I think of it… a darake, an aquarium cleaner and a sheman walk into a bar. The barman turns to them and says, ‘what is this, some kind of joke?’ Cue snare drum and symbal in the background. Sorry lame I know.

Nah, the free drinks took the edge off. So what’s it like in Gemmayzeh these days, from the other side of the counter? Still booming?

It’s getting crazier and crazier. It’s always a good sign when you have police asking you for shots. Joking asides though, Gemmayzeh is very much still booming. Obviously competition gets tougher with every new bar that opens, but generally with the relative stability our beautiful country has enjoyed, there is more than enough demand for most of the places that open up in Gemmayzeh to be successful. If I’m not mistaken the recent holiday period that just passed was the highest ever influx of tourists coming into Lebanon, which was really evident on the strip.

What does the owner of Juniper drink then?

I know it sounds corny, but my favorite cocktail is actually called a babycakes, which was contrived in recognition of my amazing wife whom I call babycakes. I had to add that in to make up for the naked women question. It’s Absolut Vanilla with a touch of cranberry and pineapple Juice. It’s a great drink which you can either make as a shooter or have in a long glass.