Clayton's Marlow - Bar & Kitchen in Marlow

An MBE Jam with Norman Jay

We like to say that we’re “Purveyors of fine cocktails, delicious food, great beers, wines and fabulous times” and when we say something, we mean it. The cocktails, food, beer and wines are there for all to see but “fabulous times” is very subjective.

We know we can’t please everyone but what we can do is put on the best possible night based on our perceptions on what “fabulous times” are. So far it’s worked and we’re proud to say that we’ve put on some of the best parties Marlow and beyond have seen, from our 1st Birthday Party with Jazzie B, to Trick or Treat, our Halloween Fancy Dress Party and of course not forgetting our two sell out New Year’s Eve Parties, Bar-Bados and Cafe del Marlow. Now we’ve got one more to add to the list, drums please…

An Easter Weekend Special with NORMAN JAY MBE BOOM!!!!

The Godfather of Good Times will be coming to Marlow to play a very intimate set at our bar on Saturday 30th March. He’ll be bringing the sound that has led him to being an internationally acclaimed DJ playing at parties all over the world including of course his annual slot at Notting Hill Carnival, playing to thousands with his Good Times Sound System. How exciting!

Behind the glamorous facade of running a bar, there is a lot of hard work however, there are some very significant moments when it all becomes worthwhile, when work doesn’t seem like work. Seeing Norman Jay MBE play here at Clayton’s Marlow will most definitely be one of those occasions. It’s the moments we see people having “fabulous times” or “Good Times” in this case.

See you on the 30th?

TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW AT THE BAR!

Striving for Bur(ger)fection

Following years of abuse/mis-management (think horse meat, BSE, cardboardesque patties to name a few) it is not surprising that the burger is generally viewed as a poverty stricken relation of the steak. Look no further than the knighted Sir Loin as an example of the recognition the great cuts of meat are bestowed. 

However, with the likes of Meat Liquor, Pitt Cue Co. and many others creating waves in London and beyond with their indulgent burgers, times are a changing. The much-derided cousin of the revered steak is enjoying a similar rise to prominence as craft beers have of late. There are even specialist burger blogs such as hamburger-me.com (well worth a visit).

So, when we decided to add a burger to our menu, it was never going to be “just another burger”. We wanted to create the absolute most fabulous possible burger that money could buy (well £9.95 to be precise). And so the quest began… 

Fast forward 8 months, 4 chefs (not including 2 very interfering owners), 5 different recipes and many different buns and we think (touch wood) that we’re pretty much there. The lion’s share of credit must go to our head Chef Chris “The Duke” Wellington for it was he that stripped apart the prototype and elevated it beyond recognition focusing on the 3 core elements:

1. The Beef Patty: High quality steak mince combined with paprika, cumin & parsley - offering a hint of Spanish you might expect from a bar serving Tapas

2. The Garnishes: Red onion jam, garlic aioli, beef tomato (from Bob) and baby gem lettuce - giving it a delightful mix of textures and flavours.

3. The Bun: A sesame seed bun from our aptly named local baker, Burger’s - after all, a work of art deserves to be framed in style.

Et voila, one outrageously good burger! It’s no wonder so many Burger King’s have closed down and McDonald’s seems to be focusing on coffee. 

Every Tuesday here is “PIMP your burger Tuesday” which means… buy a Clayton’s burger and get 2 extra toppings for free.

The Man With a Pan

Now he’s been with us a couple of months and firmly settled in, we thought we’d let you get to know our Chef, Chris Wellington, a little better so you know who’s cooking your food next time you visit us.

When did you start cooking?

I’m not sure. You’d better ask my mum. I used to always help her in the kitchen from a young age, tasting bits and pieces and  picking up a taste for things and techniques.

Where did your love of Tapas come from?

Tapas is my favourite type of food. It’s a social food which makes it such a fun and interesting dining experience.

I spend a lot of time researching my tapas dishes to make them as authentic as possible but saying that I do quite like to put my own spin on things like my cheese and leek tortilla.

What made you want to be a chef?

It was my mum’s side of the family that gave me the initial passion and interest and this has grown throughout my time working in the industry. Running the kitchen here at Clayton’s gives me the opportunity to express myself by creating new dishes and giving the menu direction. 

What do you enjoy most about being a chef?

I love cooking for people so to be able to do that everyday is perfect for me. I get really excited cooking and really hope that this shows when customers eat me food.

Do you have a favourite dish?

I’m a bit of a mixed bag really. I love the high life of foie gras and scallops but am equally happy with some good old peasant food such as offal.

Now you’re settled in here at Clayton’s Marlow, what are your plans for the menu?

My vision here is to establish a loyal group of regular diners by consistently delivering great tasting food.  From there, through new dishes, specials and seasonal variations, I can evolve the menu to keep it fresh and exciting so they keep coming back.

Who is DJ James Mac?

Part 3 in our ‘Who is DJ?’ series, where we try and give you an insight into our resident DJs. What they’re into and and what got them into it. Get the idea? This time up we spoke to the impeccably dressed James Mac, the little man with the BIG tunes. Here goes…

Give me 5 – name 5 tracks that you recommend we should listen to…

1. Gil Scot Heron - Sign of the Ages

2. Masters at work - Got Somebody New 

3. Miguel Migs - Breakin it Down (petal pusher mix)

4. Kathy Brown - Get Another Love

5. Marvin Gaye - Come Live with me Angel

That was hard - I have so much more. (We know, he gave us 7!)

Favourite DJ?

Too difficult to name just one as there are way too many excellent DJs who I love but I guess if I have to name just one it would probably be Masters at Work. I’ve seen them LIVE quite a few times, and they were the DJs that influenced me most to start playing. That was 15 years ago and I’ve got nearly every one of their releases on vinyl.

Most memorable DJing memory?

I’ve been lucky enough to DJ in some amazing places all over the world and have had some very special experiences however, nothing compares to when I’m with my friends playing some great music and seeing them and everyone else enjoying themselves! Saying that, being on the same flyer as Masters at work at Ministry of Sound was pretty cool too! :-) 

What do you like about DJing here at Clayton’s Marlow?

I love playing at Clayton’s because I can play the whole spectrum of music that I love listening to and can mix up the genres from soul and disco all the way to nice house music - love it!

What’s your Vinyl Confession? (a track that you shouldn’t really like but secretly love)

Billy Ocean - Caribbean Queen!

Stupid fact –I’m a bit of a geek! Chosen subjects are astronomy and WW2 – I’ve actually immersed myself in researching both for the last two years.

Well… there it is, James Mac in a nutshell. Coming soon to the Clayton’s Marlow Secret Bookshelf.

Hello is it tapas you’re looking for?

With One Direction being in the news so much, albeit mostly focused on the latest girl to be hanging off Harry Styles’ arm, it seems apt to talk about our direction and in particular, our culinary direction.

Here in Marlow, we’re pretty spoilt for choice on Michelin starred restaurants with the Fat Duck, The Hand & Flowers and Adam Simmonds at Danesfield House, all within a hop, skip or a jump away. Then there’s the endless list of quaint country pubs scattered around the numerous surrounding villages such as Marlow’s Little Secret and The Hind’s Head.

We may not be a fine dining restaurant or a quaint country pub. We may not lay out the tables and call everyone sir or madam, that just wouldn’t be us however, with new chef Chris Wellington on the case, we are most definitely a bar and poignantly, a bar that takes great pride in its food. People come to our bar for a variety of reasons from relaxing with friends during the week or partying with them at the weekend, watching a film or even listening to a bit of live music. We’re a ‘social bar’ and this gives us the direction for our food. We offer ‘social food’ otherwise known in the trade as… Tapas. Food that’s ‘great to chew, even better to share’ (Wrigley’s, 1990).

So, next time you’re thinking of meeting up with some friends for a spot of food and cocktails and you like the sound of crispy salt and pepper squid, garlic king prawns or even chorizo in a red wine sauce, drop in and say hello because I think may well be Tapas you’re looking for.

The Heat is On… and off… and on but mostly off (with plenty of rain too)

Mungo Jerry (In the Summertime), Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince (Summertime) even John Travolta & Olivia Newton John (Summer Nights), they all sang about what should be our favourite season of the year. Songs no doubt inspired by the long hot summers we have been craving/anticipating since we had a burst of sunshine in March. The kind where you’d have barbecues every day driving fancy cars (DR Dre, 1999).

Where’s our summer? Maybe it just wasn’t to be. Even as I write, it’s gone from bright sunshine to being overcast with dark clouds forming. Although it is a struggle to find them in this case, there are positives to be found in everything, even the wettest summer we have ever seen. We use our brand new barbecue as storage and the garden gets a thorough and regular watering however, there is one major disappointment we cannot get over, we’ve only been able to use our fantastic garden bar about 3 times.

Not being the kind of people to get hung up on these set-backs we’ve embarked on a very exciting project to bring a taste of the Caribbean to Marlow that can be enjoyed all year round, whatever the weather. We’re converting the garden bar into a Mount Gay Rum Shack! You may think it’s a little late but we want to bring you a taste of the Caribbean every time you come and pay us a visit and not just wait for summer because as you’ve probably realised, you could be waiting quite a while.

We’ll be celebrating the opening of the Mount Gay Rum Shack with ‘Bar-Bados’, our Carnival Party and Caribbean BBQ on Sunday 26^th August complete with a live steel band, DJS in the garden and a rum punch that’ll knock your cotton socks off. See you at the shack?

Simply One-derful

They say time flies when you’re having fun and if the last 12 months is anything to go by, we hope you agree. I still can’t believe it’s been a year! 

Opening a bar in a recession when bars, pubs and restaurants are closing faster than you can say ‘I’ll have a double Mount Gay Extra Old with ginger beer and plenty of fresh lime (please)’, was always going to be a challenge and it certainly hasn’t been easy.  However one principal we’ve always stood by is that if we don’t enjoy it, don’t do it. And I think it’s a pretty good principal to go by, whether it’s the films we show at our Boutique Cinema, the rounds in the monthly Quiz, or the themed nights we organize here we always ask ourselves, “would we want to go to that?”. If the answers ‘no’ then the we know we shouldn’t go ahead with it. Simple! It’s a pretty honest approach after all, selling stuff that you like doesn’t really feel like selling, it’s more like sharing and that’s much more rewarding and dare I say it… fun!

Which brings us on to our first birthday. We wanted to celebrate and we wanted to celebrate BIG and with both of us being massively into our music, what better way to celebrate than getting the legendary Jazzie B from Soul II Soul playing a very intimate set here. It was also an opportunity to thank all our friends, family and regulars, to share the moment and have some much deserved… fun. What a night!

One year however, don’t maketh a bar and we still have a lot of plans but, and I hope you agree (again), we’ve laid some pretty decent foundations on which plenty more can be built. So keep your ears to the ground and your eyes peeled (or just log into Facebook) so you don’t miss out.

Upcoming Events

Bar-Bados – Carnival Party and Carribean BBQ – Sunday 26^th August 2012

Jack Rabbit Slim Live – Saturday 15^th September 2012

Who is DJ Karl Brown?

Part 2 of our ‘Who is…’ DJ profiles, we spoke to DJ Karl Brown to get a bit of an insight into the man with a record collection which if laid out end to end would stretch to the Moon and back (well maybe not, but it’s pretty huge!)

How would you describe the music you play?

Across the Tracks …. a melting pot soul / disco / jazz / funk / hip hop / house.  

Give me 5 – name five tracks that you recommend we should listen to…

Too many to choose from (he gave us 6) but;

1. Ben Westbeech – Something for the Weekend
2. James Brown – Stone to the Bone
3. Jamiroquai – When You Gonna Learn
4. Masters at Work – It’s Alright I Feel It
5. Tommy Stewart – Bump and Hustle Music
6. Cymande – The Message

What inspired you to DJ?

Probably a DJ called Chris Bangs (coined the term Acid Jazz along with Gilles Peterson ). It was inspiring to see him play tracks by the Jackson 5 / Eric B & Rakim / 808 State / Gil Scott Heron / Sergio Mendes all in the same set. An eclectic mix of just great music no matter what genre - Soul, Hip Hop, House, Rare Groove, Jazz…whatever.

Most memorable DJing memory?

Played in the backroom at the Special Branch Doo at the Zoo (London Zoo). Djs that night included Gilles Peterson / Norman Jay / Pete Tong / Paul Oakenfold / Nicky Holloway. I had a room of about 300 people going ballistic. It was great except the main room was half empty. I was politely asked by a famous dj to turn the music right down (or off) so that people would start filling up his main headlining room!

What do you like about DJing here at Clayton’s Marlow?

It’s a cool place to hang out and hear good music. It’s got a lovely friendly vibe.

What’s your Vinyl Confession? (a track that you shouldn’t really like but secretly love)

Wham – Club Tropicana

Anything else we should know about you???

I was dj’ing once and the England Team turned up. John Barnes requested Luther Vandross – Never Too Much (nice choice), Chris Waddle asked for the Jam (good lad), Glen Hoddle wanted George Benson (nice) and Peter Beardsley asked for some Tina Turner (no chance!).

DJ Karl Brown will next be up on Saturday 30th June here for our 1st Birthday party warming up for the legendary Jazzie B from Soul 11 Soul.

Who is DJ Joelus?

In our last post we talked about the importance of music in the bar and waxed lyrical about our DJs.

Last Saturday DJ Joelus stepped into our Secret Bookshelf so we took the opportunity to ask him a few questions to give you a little insight into the man behind the music.

How would you describe the music you play?

Balearic - A little bit of everything good.

Give me 5 – name five tracks that you recommend we should listen to…

1.  Never Gonna Reach Me (Hot Toddy Mix) - Crazy P
2.  Baltimore - Nina Simone
3.  You Stepped Into My Life - The Bee Gees
4.  Reckless With Your Love (Tensnake Remix) - Azari & III
5.  Knee Deepen (Salt City Orchestra Mix) - Moloko

What inspired you to DJ?

Year 2000, Ministry of Sound, Jazzy M playing “Salsoul Nugget” by M&S (the original non-vocal version) - THAT’s what made me wanna be a DJ!

Most memorable DJing memory?

Too many amazing memories to select a single one.

What do you like about DJing here at Clayton’s Marlow?

Playing a mixed bag of music to suit all kinds of people.

What’s your Vinyl Confession? (a track that you shouldn’t really like but secretly love)

Diana Ross “My Old Piano”

Anything else we should know about you???

I love miniature things….yeh yeh i know what everyones gonna say!

If you’d like to hear DJ Joelus play, he’ll be back in our Secret Bookshelf on Saturday 23rd June but if you can’t wait until then, have a listen to the tracks he’s recommended, there are some real gems there.

Last night a DJ saved my life

Really? Probably not.  (Well maybe if they were a moonlighting Fireman and the bar you were in was on fire.) However… a DJ can definitely make or break your night. I may be particularly hard to please but I’ve actually dragged my friends out of a bar before when the DJ played Rock DJ by Robbie Williams.

Music in general gives a place identity, personality and most importantly, atmosphere. The wrong music for the venue can completely alter your perceptions of a place and your experience there.

One experience in particular springs to mind when I went to what was supposedly a ‘high-end’ Thai restaurant In Manchester. As I walked in, they were playing the Titanic theme tune ‘My Heart Will Go On’ by Celine Dion. My immediate thought was if their taste in music is this bad, what’s the food going to taste like?

We definitely appreciate the importance of music within a bar. There are plenty of venues that can give you a round up of the top 40 both in Marlow but also in any local town and beyond, but here at Clayton’s Marlow, we’re trying to be a little different, playing a mix of funk, soul, disco, jazz, grooves as well as other bits and pieces. Music you’d struggle to find anywhere nearby. We spend a lot of time putting the playlists together for the bar and we are fortunate to know some fantastic DJs that play here on a regular basis in our Secret Bookshelf. In fact, we would like you to get to know them too so over the next few months we’re going to be profiling all of our DJs, giving you an insight into who they are, what influences them and most importantly, what music they’re likely to play when you next visit. 

But if you can’t wait until then, we recently recorded one of DJ Jim Sharp’s sets here and had a few CDs made up so if you’d like to be reminded how good he is or are just curious, just ask us for one next time you’re at the bar.

Dates for the diary

Sunday 3rd June – Clayton’s Undercover Party

Saturday 9th June – DJ Jim Sharp