Nikos Bakoulis

Bar codex Nikos Bakoulis

It’s true magic to observe how simple things, food or drinks, make people happy.

The most enjoyable thing for me is to see how guests come specifically for what I make. That means that they value my work and my individuality.

A bar without individuality is pointless.

In the future, many people will stop drinking alcohol. But bars will still exist. That’s why even today, we have a large alcohol-free menu, and when creating alcoholic drinks, we always try to make them “healthy” – insofar as that’s possible.

I try not to drink when I’m on shift. Alcohol should remain a joy, a celebration, a pleasure. I prefer drinking once a week with my friends on a day off. It’s better than drinking a little at a time while at work six days a week.

A bartender who doesn’t smile and behaves formally is like a soda vending machine. More than anything, a bar is about communication.

When people ask me how to get on the World’s 50 Best Bars list, I answer honestly that I have no idea. Just express what you believe in and do it as simply and understandably as possibly. Don’t wait for it to be easy.

The biggest change in my life after our bar made the list is that I now never sleep more than six hours.

I’m a little bit of a detail freak. I want everything in our bar to be unique, from the music in the toilets to the ingredients we use in our cocktails.

I don’t like the word “mixologist.” You always have to explain it.

A cocktail should have a meaning, which should always have a story behind it. But if a guest is totally not interested in that, it should at the very least be tasty.

If a glass is empty, that means the cocktail was good. That’s the only criteria.

I hate responding to emails more than anything else. I’m not an office worker – I have a hard time with it.

Social media is important for a bartender’s career, but you can’t become a maniac and make dozens of stories and posts a day.