Hangover remedies from 6 top Vancouver bartenders

Dec 20 2017, 3:08 am

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…for hangovers. Thanks to office parties, family gatherings, and the flowing champagne of New Year’s Eve, the best gift you can give yourself is a sure-fire morning after plan for curing what ails you.

Hair of the dog? Bacon and eggs? Netflix and Chill? Whatever your hangover remedy is, if you are curious what some of the city’s top bartenders do, you may want to take these tips from the pros. You also may want to make note of Vancouver’s best ramen restaurants and pick up some Pedialyte…sounds like that might come in handy.

Here are hangover remedies from six of Vancouver’s favourite barkeeps.

Julia Diakow

Bar Manager, Tacofino Gastown

The ‘Absolut REMEDI’ is a simple pick-me-up cocktail I made for my recent seminar at Cornucopia on hangover cures:

  • 45 mL Absolut Vanilla vodka
  • 60 mL Notch Cold Brew coffee
  • 15 mL cinnamon syrup

Method: Shake over ice, strain into glass and garnish with espresso beans

For me, one of the most unpleasant hangover effects is exhaustion and this easy cocktail will most definitely wake you up, while giving you a nip of ‘hair of the dog.’ Just remember to chase it with plenty of water, as coffee is a diuretic. My personal go-to is always a big bowl of spicy ramen!

Ramen (Lindsay William-Ross/Vancity Buzz)

Ramen (Lindsay William-Ross/Vancity Buzz)

Lauren Mote

Co-proprietor, Bittered Sling Bitters/ Bar Manager, UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar

After a particularly late evening, my go-to hangover cure is to cook at home with my husband, Chef Jonathan Chovancek. However, if we’re both feeling tender, there’s no better cure than Motomachi Shokudo’s bamboo charcoal dark miso ramen. Bamboo charcoal is a well-known digestive supplement in Chinese medicine and remedy in Japan. Plus, it’s said that the porous bamboo charcoal absorbs toxins from the body. Whatever it does, it’s delicious, and it’s always a winner in my books.

Trevor Kallies

Bar & Beverage Director, Donnelly Group

A few tricks/tips – not really sure-bet cures or remedies but definitely things I can be found doing after a night of celebration.

Saturday Morning TK loves it when Friday Night TK leaves him a bottle of orange Pedialyte (un-diluted of course) and 2 Advil on the bedside table. Setting the alarm for a few hours before I actually need to get up, to take down some of the pedialyte and take the pain relief meds is a must! Back to sleep and the remedies get going on the problem well before its time to face the day.

I’m not a big eater in the morning on a good day, nor am I a Caesar/Bloody Mary guy so I don’t have the breakfast of champions ritual – there’s not a lot of grease consumed on those days I can tell you that much. Most of my friends can attest that if there is a food gathering on a hangover day I pretty much spend the time pushing food around the plate.

The ShaBath: Lights off, water hot – lie down in the tub with the shower on full. Its like hot rain, I just let the water fill up then drain. Repeat. Not quite a shower, not quite a bath. About 20-25 minutes of that and things get back on track. A water bottle of Pedialyte in there and you’re all set.

Grant Sceney

Head Bartender, Fairmont Pacific Rim

My ideal hangover cure is having a bowl of spicy ramen, drink some Pedialyte then putting my onesie on and lying on the couch to watch Netflix, and chill.

Tarquin Melnyk

Bar Manager, Bambudda

Some days I’m so injured (and old) that there is no cure that brings me back. But the days that feel like I turn it around revolve around a proven formula. Get up. Stretch. Drink water. Coffee. Push-ups (I know, it’s punishment). Bike ride hard and fast to Heirloom. Eat all the yummy vegetarian brunch food. Coffee. YouTube and chill.

Brunch at Heirloom (Jess Fleming/Vancity Buzz)

Brunch at Heirloom (Jess Fleming/Vancity Buzz)

Kaitlyn Stewart

Lead Bartender, Royal Dinette

My ultimate “hangover cure” has to be a giant bowl of vegetarian phở with beef broth (hold the onions, please!) from Phở Central on Davie Street. I’ll down that with an ice cold can of Wild Cherry Pepsi. Then, I recommend some quality time on the couch while watching a marathon of Roseanne or The Golden Girls.

DH Vancouver StaffDH Vancouver Staff

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