Cesare isn’t a mixology museum, even if we’ve been around since 1934. It’s a neighborhood bar that stopped breaking your balls with rules. In Modena, we’re fed up with those spots where you walk in and feel like you’re taking an exam: “Sit here,” “Don’t drink standing up,” “Watch the glass”. At Cesare, you do what you want. Want the counter? Take it. Want to stand? Go for it. Our strength isn’t the decor, it’s the air you breathe.
YOU CAN’T DRINK INSTAGRAM
The marketing, the gags, the magic videos? That’s just us having a laugh. The truth is, when the lights
Here’s the real talk: I have a regular who kept coming back even though she hated the first Americano we made her. She came back because “you guys are cool and I feel good here”. That’s the real substance. People return for us, not for some “fancy” drink they can find on any corner. The bartender’s ego killed the bar scene; we left ours at the door.
INNOVATION? NO, JUST BOREDOM
There’s no master plan behind what we do. I started doing magic because I was bored to death of flair after two years. I wanted something that felt like mine, something that made me smile again.
Everything you see on our socials is for me, it’s my personal spark. I don’t do it because the business “needs” it to pay the bills. If it works for the market, great, but it all starts with me wanting to stop yawning behind the bar.
THE SQUAD AND THE REAL WORLD
Being part of the Red Bull Squad gives you broad shoulders. When a brand that iconic backs you, everything you do is amplified by ten. It gives you the green light to take risks and keep a killer image even when you’re slamming out drinks at a chaotic event in Rimini. It’s fuel for the crazy ideas, because you know you aren’t the only one pushing the limit.
DIRECTORS OF NOTHING: WE ARE BARISTAS
Today it’s trendy to act like “directors of entertainment”. We have a menu where we talk about sex, sure, but we do it to laugh with you.
If tomorrow the world only wanted the basics, we’re ready, because we never stopped being a real bar. Last night, two guys were reading our complex menu and then, almost embarrassed, asked for two Spritzes. I told them: “No problem, keep the menu to read if it makes you laugh”. If you feel like you have to apologize for what you’re drinking, the problem is the bartender, not you. The customer drinks the drink, not me. At Cesare, there are no obligations. You want a Spritz? I’ll make it, and I guarantee you’ll have a hell of a night.
