World Class Global Bartender of the Year 2022, Adrián Michalčík, was one of the three judges at World Class Greek Finals, so we had some time to talk with him about his career and dreams so far, understanding his special mindset and as a conclusion sharing knowledge, wisdom and advice. Adrian gave lots of food for thought for the bartending community! 

Born and raised in Czechoslovakia, he now lives in Oslo where he works at Pier 42 in the boutique Hotel America. His career first started as a professional ice hockey player. After finishing his studies in a Hotel Academy, and passing through many different positions (kitchen, waiter, manager, reception) in hotels and the hospitality industry, bars won them.

He admits “hospitality has always been deeply rooted in my DNA. I love people in general. I like to be in touch with them and the bar is the very magical place where people are coming to celebrate or just have a drink, or relax when they have a bit of a bad day. They are meeting up and socializing and basically, it kind of attracted me. I fell in love with this and just stayed in the bar. So, I picked up the bar from all the upper departments in the industry. And I actually found a kind of parallel between hockey, which I like to do even till nowadays, because balance is very important. I have been a goalkeeper, so I found a connection between bartender and goalkeeper, because we are stable on one spot and, like the waiters in front of us are like kind of players, a goalkeeper is like a bartender overlooking all the operations right in front of him”.

Did your background in sports help you with your discipline and determination while preparing for the Global Finals?

“I would definitely say yes. The process of preparation was for me, super similar to setting up the targets and working on my goals. Every day I think about that (my goals) and do maximum practice, create new things, train, grow and go through this process again. Sometimes while we`re in this process, while creating a drink, tasting and adding more ingredients because we are not so satisfied. Then again, after a couple of hours, coming back to what we created once, we create something completely different compared to our first idea. Then again, the drink might not be as tasty. 

So in this moment, what worked for me was getting out of this creative process, going out for a walk, or doing some sport, or just meeting with the ones I love or watching my favorite movie. I was just doing something else and then after a couple of hours or even the next day, came back to my creation. It’s when you actually come into the same room, but you`re entering from the different doors, you see things differently. And create again.

I think it`s all about balance, and sport is also giving us this chance. It gave me this mentality of the winner from childhood, the determination and discipline and what I learned is, if I want to achieve something, I need to really work hard on it and never give up. So definitely it helped me to chase my dreams”.

After winning the World Class Competition in Sydney his life changed rapidly. He started many different projects, never stopped learning, kept on traveling and inspiring by seeing what is happening in many different markets and cultures, different bartenders or people in general. 

How does it actually  feel like winning the Global Finals? 

“Wow. That is a moment, which I will definitely remember till the end of my life. And I wish that everyone who has dreamed it, can feel these emotions once in a lifetime. It`s really like a roller coaster of emotions, it is a blend of happiness. You`re super happy that you reached your target, Keep smiling. And, at the same time you have tears in your eyes. It`s really like an explosion of emotions. But I have also been very proud of myself that I never gave up, because it`s really not an easy process.

It`s a long journey to this point. And many times, the bartender has the feeling that he wants to kind of give up. We are preparing for this competition during our free time and we also have a job on the side, right? You also have a personal life. So many things are happening. And, it`s challenging to prepare yourself for this format of competition. I never gave up on my dream, which I have carried basically for the last six years in my head. I`m super happy that I had a chance in my life to experience this. And I will remember that forever”.

What came next after that big night of the announcement? Had you really realized what had just happened?

“We left the competition hall, went for dinner. And I was at the same table with legends and winners next to me, sitting there and asking myself “Why am I here? What happened?”. It was just like a moment when you are not able to really understand what’s going on. Then, after a couple of months, when Forbes is calling you for an interview, you really realize it. And here we are; I`m super happy that I will be invited as a part of the Hall of Fame at the global finals”.

How many times had you participated in competitions before World Class? 

“For me, it was quite a fast journey. I participated in one competition in the Czech Republic in 2016. And then straight to World Class, which I have been fortunate to win for the Czech Republic and then compete on a global stage in Miami in 2016, where I placed in sixth place. Then I had a quite long break from competing, while collaborating with brands.

And the plan has been to come back to competition life in 2020. But, as you know, that was the year which changed everyone’s plans around the world. And it continued in 2021. Then it was announced that possibly, because of the conditions, the World Class would be partly or fully online. So I chose not to compete that year, risking it all, while competing from my living room at home. So basically I waited one more year and planned to join World Class in 2022. 

But, at the end of 2021 I had this idea to “warm up” with other competitions. So I joined like, three different competitions, which I have been fortunate enough to win all of those again. And then was World Class, on June 2 in 2022. I won the Norwegian finals and then got on a global stage. That was my plan. I like to beat myself and become better than the top six in 2016. But, you know, like on the World Class global stage, you can be only two times in your life. So for me, it has been like last chance. 

This is the last competition in my life. I will not go and compete in any other competition because I feel fulfilled, my dream came true two times on this global stage of the Olympic Games of bartending. After a week of competing in Sydney, I have been announced as a winner and I can`t even imagine any better kind of finish or end of my competition bartending career than winning World Class. So I`m super happy for that end, and very satisfied. Now it`s time to maybe help other people to reach their dreams. And I will be happy to support other people and give them the space I was given”.

What would you say to somebody who wants to, but hesitates to participate in the World Class Competition? 

“Life is a journey of learning, becoming better and pushing basically the boundaries, and World Class, with so many brands in its portfolio, is giving us an even bigger chance to learn and improve our skills and knowledge and it`s testing us from each corner of this industry, how we can work under pressure, what is our knowledge, how we can work with flavors, how we can pair it with the dishes, how we can host people. Or even how we can organize, maybe opening of Pop-Up Bar, which was one of the challenges in Miami in 24 hours to open your own bar; super challenging. It`s really giving us a chance to improve our skills and become better than we were yesterday; better bartenders, maybe better persons.

So I would definitely recommend everyone to join any kind of competition, and of course World Class. It is challenging, but you can gain a lot from this. The competition should not be seen as a challenge where we are competing against other people, we are competing against ourselves. What I carry always with me in my head is that I`m not there to beat other bartenders and I`m there to beat myself and become better.

Even without becoming announced as a winner, we are basically winning, because we learn something. And we as bartenders on these competitions, we are meeting up. I think it`s also creating a human relationship between us. So we should be helpful to each other and supportive. Sharing is caring and you can always find inspiration in others stories, in others journals. If we are open to sharing it with others, we become stronger together. So I think that`s a healthy point of view. We should be friendly with people and then we can learn together even more”.

Do you have any advice to give to the winner of the Greek finals while preparing for the Global ones? 

“It can sound cliche, but “be yourself”. What can also be helpful is trying to analyze yourself. Write down a couple of words; how you like to be seen. That really helped me. I sat down, and wrote on a paper how I`d like to be presented or seen. So I wrote down, for example, I like elegance. I like good cocktails, not to over combine, easy to understand, and crowd pleasing. If they feel like that they are gentlemen and friendly people, write it down on the paper and try to carry this one as kind of a verse, which you will be always looking up to and trying to fill them up. And this is exactly what you can become. So you will present yourself in a way you like to be seen. That`s one thing. 

Secondly, serve tasty cocktails; sometimes less is more. And in a competition many people are trying to show how creative they can be. But they often try so hard to be understood by the judges. 

And third one, always bring a big smile and try to create positive emotions. For me the smile is kind of addictive. So if you smile, you`re sharing the smile on people’s faces. These judges sitting there, who are also just human beings, want to have fun, want to feel good and try some good cocktails. So, they are giving you points at the end of the presentations when they feel happy. Definitely use emotions and always deliver something positive to people around you. 

We are hosting people even in a competition. That`s sometimes the thing which bartenders are forgetting, because they are so deep in their stories and so on. They should deliver a tasty drink and a fun mood”.

What ingredients make a great place to work as a bartender?

“There are plenty of things. Definitely. I think successful bars stand on Three Pillars, which is staff, product and atmosphere. Staff is very important. If you have a great crew around you, you attract more people to work in your bar, because bartending is not an individual sport, it depends on the power of the team. If you have a great team, you feel good with them, you feel energized and motivated, and you are not alone in that. So it is very vital to have a great team; that`s probably the most important condition. 

The atmosphere is all about the cleanliness of the bar, music, correct lighting and a nice smell of the bar. Product is important as well. If you have a great team, you always have some creative persons there to create a great new product, and the product then is executed by the power of the team to the guests with amazing storytelling connected to the flavors and the way of serving”. 

“I can`t wait to see what the future will bring because, everyday something new is coming. And  I`m super glad for that. Hope that all the people around the world drink less and drink better. Can`t wait to see you around. Cheers.”