Joe’s wants to be a breath of fresh air in Antwerp’s catering industry: “Ideal for people who want something different than the classic wines and beers” (Antwerp)
At the beginning of September last year, Joris Claus (31) opened his new shop ‘Joe’s’ on Frans Halsplein. Although customers can enjoy a simple pint there, the store mainly focuses on unusual wines and beers. “More special beers and special wines in combination with some pizzas, that’s the approach.”
Owner Joris Claus feels at home in the hospitality industry. For years, he worked as a student worker for a flex worker in various cafes. However, it is the first time that he ventures into an adventure as a business manager. With Joe’s he hopes to write a success story. The idea originated years ago while traveling in Italy.
“I was traveling in the Italian city of Bologna and ended up in a bar where customers could eat and drink. It was something in between a cafe, bar and restaurant, a nice concept. I kind of took that idea here at Joe’s: no design in the style of this visitor pizza x and this visitor pizza. A pizza or other finger food to share with an unusual beer or wine,” says Claus.
Baking pizza yourself during corona
Claus says he is not a born pizza baker, but he did purchase a pizza oven during the lockdown. “I have experimented and made a lot with pasta and the proportions of the different ingredients to get the pizza. I don’t have it yet, but I’m on the right track,” he laughs. “Neapolitan, Roman and New York pizzas are my favorites. I try to present a mix of that in Joe’s.”
The assets of Antwerp do not only reward customers with homemade pizza. The drinks menu can’t be called classic either: “Of course you can go here for a classic beer, but that’s not really the intention. I try to present beers brewed by local and smaller breweries. I try to regularly add new beers as a way of variation.”
But no Italian food without wine, of course. Claus knows that all too well. With a qualitative and varied range of non-commercial products: “I am not necessarily the great wine connoisseur, but I really enjoy natural wines myself. That brings a refreshing breeze to the city,” says Claus.
Working on advertising
Joe’s has been open for several months now. And although the pandemic also had an impact on visitor numbers, Claus is positive: “I certainly can’t complain. People are satisfied and happy to come back.” And yet the manager thinks that a lot of people have yet to find their way to Joe’s. To encourage this, he will therefore spend extra time on publicity.
“Students like to sit here, but make it clear that they still struggle to get here because they simply don’t know we exist. I am therefore going to hand out flyers and do some more advertising on social media. In this way I hope that people will come here sooner, especially now that summer is just around the corner. Getting people here is a challenge and we’ll see where we land. With the terrace on a quiet square in Antwerp, we already have a big asset in the house”, concludes Claus.
(lava)