We sat down with Pablo Alfredo [DJ AIKON], our house DJ who’s curated a weekly Latin Night at our tequila bar La Ofrenda— located in Findlay Market. In less than a year, this event has quickly grown to one of our most popular recurring events. So we spent some time with him, sipped some tequila, snapped some photos, and learned more about the passion he puts behind it.
For a guy who’s the center of attention most Saturday nights behind the DJ booth, he was surprisingly a little shy in front of the camera [although nothing a chilled shot of Don Julio couldn’t fix]. His fresh Alexander McQueen sneakers didn’t stop him from taking a seat on the sidewalk to help us grab the perfect photo. We captured him in front of our mural by Jenny Ustick— the eyes of Maria Felix, the prolific Mexican Actress and Singer from the 1940s. Shoes aside— Pablo is as down-to-Earth and welcoming as they come. He laughed and said “Im from Peru, a little trash on the sidewalk isn’t gonna bother me.”
After photos, we settled in to enjoy his namesake cocktail on our menu “Pablo’s Passion” [made with Hornitos Plata, triple sec, house-made margarita mix, and his favorite passion fruit pureé] and had a short chat on the patio.
What do you love most about music and how it affects people?
It's power. I believe music has the power to make people feel and react in a way that nothing else can, music has the ability to transport you to a different time, it has the power to not only heal but can also describe a particular state of mind or mood via lyrics, poems, rhymes and sounds.
Lastly, I believe music itself not only represents but also unites people from different ethnicities and cultures. If I can get a positive happy reaction out of anyone on my dance floor just by playing music it's the best feeling in the world to me.
You’re from Peru. When did you move here and what was the biggest culture shock?
I moved to Cincinnati directly from Lima, Peru in November of 1997, and the biggest culture shock for me was definitely the language. I was not able to communicate with anyone for at least 6 months— luckily I made friends with the kids from the Spanish 5 class and they helped me a lot!
Describe your perfect night on the town! What restaurants and bars do you love to hit?
Perfect night would be Going to an FC Cincinnati game [and watch them win] or concert, have dinner at Prime Cincinnati Downtown or Bakersfield in OTR, then go for a drink at Igby's during the winter and Top of the Park at The Phelps during the Spring/Summer.