The Bourbon’s Dominic Gibson, on bringing a slice of Americana to the Roman Road
The Bourbon diner has quietly become a favourite haunt for burger lovers, cheesesteak aficionados and whiskey (that’s with an ‘e’) nuts from Roman Road and beyond.
Dominic Gibson is everything we want from a quintessential host: friendly, knowledgeable and passionate, always ready to offer a friendly ear and a cracking recommendation, keen to make you try a house pickleback.
He is also the proprietor of The Bourbon, nurturing it into one of the finest speakeasy diners this side of the pond over the last three and a half years, a striking standout among the area’s more traditional establishments.
We talked about burgers, beer, bourbon, and the ever-growing challenges of running an independent hospitality business.
What have you tried to give the people of Roman Road with The Bourbon?
For me, it’s about trying to create a really authentic slice of Americana. You might look around in here and think of it as being inspired by classic American joints, maybe the sort of place you’d find in Brooklyn or Memphis, with the bourbon selection, low candlelit vibe, always playing classic blues, and music legends painted on the walls.
Despite the name and the decor, we’re really a diner – the kitchen’s always open and we go hard on the classic diner touches. The food served in little red baskets, squeezy yellow mustard, authentic ranch dressing, Old Bay-seasoned fries (skinny fries that is, not British-style fat chips), buffalo wings and some of the best smash burgers around.
We have changing specials, but one thing I’m particularly proud of is our Philly cheesesteak – I’ve even had Philadelphians say it’s one of the best they’ve ever had, which is pretty cool. I use authentic rolls imported from Martin’s in Pennsylvania, and having tried other bread in the past, it makes a massive difference.
My ethos is about giving people the best quality they can find. We do get a lot of regulars and return customers, Americans in particular. They say they feel like they could be in Chicago, not sitting on the Roman Road, so we must be doing something right!
I’m looking at your back bar, and it’s definitely one of the widest North American whiskey selections going.
At the last count, I believe we have…120 whiskies, and only one each of Scotch, Irish and Japanese – because occasionally people do ask for one. But it’s not what most people come in here for.
My favourite kinds of bourbon are single barrels because what goes into the bottle has come just from one barrel, so every batch is completely unique. One of my favourite single barrels is Evan Williams – it’s always aged at least eight years, and it’s just got this fantastic smooth, honeyed finish.
I’m thinking of doing whiskey flights so people can sample a few at a time and really get a bit of an understanding of some of the subtle differences. My standard measure is 35 ml – whiskeys made for sipping, and I just think with 25 ml it’s gone before you’ve really tried it.
But a couple of flights, 35 ml a shot, it could go south pretty quickly…
Mmmm. Maybe we’ll have a one flight per customer limit.
I also love cocktails and find bourbon, with its sweetness, works particularly well.
My personal favourite is the espresso bourbon martini, which is my own recipe. The base is bourbon and coffee liqueur with two fantastic nut liqueurs. And because it has three different fairly sweet liqueurs as well as bourbon, there’s no need for additional sugar. With the shot of Italian coffee, you get a perfect balance of sweet nuttiness, roasty coffee, plus the vanilla hit you get naturally from the bourbon.
On the more classic side, I also really love an Old Fashioned, and again, I just think the sweet, smoother bourbons work really nicely.
One thing I really wanted to ask about is the challenges of running an independent business with hospitality the way it is right now.
The biggest one is definitely energy prices. For example, my energy prices went up from 17p a kilowatt to 60p a kilowatt – that’s a 350% increase! It’s insanity. And you’ve got celebrity chefs closing places, like Michel Roux Jr with Le Gavroche after 56 years, so yeah, it’s definitely challenging, and we’re always trying to find creative solutions.
Initially, we reduced opening hours to the core weekend times, just Friday night, Saturday and Sunday, when most people are actually going out. Especially as our kitchen’s always open – everything’s electric and it’s expensive to run the equipment, so it kind of needs to be worth our while. But that does mean if you’re coming down the Roman Road after 11 pm on a Friday or Saturday, you can still pop in for a banging burger or some wings!
For me, this whole business is literally in the name – hospitality. It’s about generosity and creating an environment where, in a cost-of-living crisis, with costs bloating and wages flatlining, people are happy to spend their hard-earned money because they feel like they’re getting great quality and great service.
That’s why our smash burgers are all at least two 3-oz patties instead of the standard ¼ pound; they all come with Old Bay fries, and we get our sesame buns from this amazing bakery in Tottenham. It’s why the shots are 35ml, not 25ml, why we have some great American beers and PBR on tap, why I get all the mince for my burgers from a brilliant local butcher, Peckover’s, just down the other end of Roman Road.
I know I could do things cheaper, but I wouldn’t be able to give people the same experience, so what’s the point?
What would you say to young people starting out in hospitality now?
Don’t do it! No, I’m joking – we need people. I read that we lost 300,000 Europeans working in hospitality – lots of them brilliant, experienced, pros – since Brexit and Covid, and we need people to fill that gap.
People need to remember the name of the game – being hospitable. Whether it’s a bar or a diner, or a Michelin restaurant, it’s about taking pride and care with the food and drink you’re sending out, and giving your customers the time of day.
Definitely. I feel like I’ve encountered a lot of surly bar staff, and you always remember and return to the places with great staff.
Absolutely. Then again, with the state of the industry here, I can see why a lot of employees – and employers – aren’t best pleased.
Right now, the government’s making it so hard for independent businesses to succeed. It feels like their policies are designed by people with no hospitality experience and no knowledge of the daily struggles of business owners.
With the National Insurance increase and energy prices, it’s becoming unsustainable. Major groups are being forced to cut staff, so how’s it affecting smaller businesses with thinner margins? Places will close, and they’ll just be taking less tax into the coffers!
This area’s full of great local, independent, family-owned businesses, and I just hope people keep supporting them through this period, and that things will start looking up for the industry as a whole in the next couple of years!
Amazing. Thanks so much for talking to us. See you soon – definitely for a couple of picklebacks, and maybe a doomed attempt at the 50 wing challenge!
We chatted with Dominic at The Bourbon, 387 Roman Road. They’re open Wednesday and Thursday 6 pm – 11 pm, and Friday and Saturday 6 pm – midnight, serving up wings, burgers, beer and bourbon – and a mighty fine Philly cheesesteak!
