January 22, 2024

#50, Nick Vrielink, IBA World Cocktail Championships 2023 Gold Medal Winner, bar manager Fitz's Bar (Amsterdam), Best New Cocktail Bar 2023

1 hour 53 minutes

The champ is here!
Dutchman Nick Vrielink is definitely on a roll: Fitz's Bar, which he set up in Amsterdam's Pillows Hotel, won Best New Cocktail Bar at the Entree (Dutch hospitality) Awards last year, and the day after the Awards Nick boarded a plane to Rome to compete on behalf of the Netherlands Bartender Club (NBC) in the International Bartenders Association (IBA) World Cocktail Championships (WCC), where he won gold in the Pre-Dinner category with his Garden of Dreams cocktail (recipe below)!
We talk about building teams, the rising cost of accommodation in Amsterdam versus what bartenders earn, why luxury hotels open with the chef already in place but not the bar manager, the first cocktail book Nick read, his goals when opening Fitz's, how he communicates with his staff, what it's like to compete at the world finals, why he's having another crack at the WCC this year, what Dutch people think of genever versus whiskey, and lots more - enjoy!

Garden of Dreams, Nick Vrielink, 2023.
20ml Grappa Nonino Moscato
20ml Campari, rapid-infused with basil & white jasmine pearls
20ml Vermouth Bianco Del Professore
5ml Montelobos mezcal
Stir with ice
Strain over fresh ice in a double old-fashioned glass.
Top with prosecco
Garnish with a basil leaf and a zalotti blossom

Nick on IG: https://www.instagram.com/nick.vr/
Fitz's Bar on IG: https://www.instagram.com/fitzsbaramsterdam/
Pillows Hotel on IG: https://www.instagram.com/pillows.mauritsatthepark/

Pic Credit: Albert van Beeck Calkoen, aka Mister Cocktail: https://www.instagram.com/mister.cocktail/

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