Who | Keeley McAlinden
Where | Melbourne, Australia
Current Bar | Dessous
Past Bar(s) | Centro 86, Doorknock, The Duke of Clarence
Favourite Spirit | Tequila
Favourite Juice | Apple
Favourite Classic Cocktail | Dry Gin Martini
First Classic Cocktail you ever had | Amaretto Sour, splashed with some ginger beer
Favourite Part of the Job | The people! They make every day feel fresh and exciting!
Favourite After Work Drink | Pint’a’lager
Favourite bar in the world | Lyaness (London)
Best known for | A well-named cocktail and a spiel about any given backbar spirit. Also quality shit-chat, it’s an Aussie requirement!
Favourite “at work” memory | Less of a singular memory and more of a complete anthology; I’ve been collecting funny quotes from bartenders and guests since I started in hospitality four years ago. I have well over 400 and I remember the context of every single one of them!
What’s the most popular cocktail in your city? Espresso Martini
Favourite thing about your city | It has a vibe I can only describe as “crunchy”; the music, the art, the food and the drinking culture have this tactile edge that you can really get lost in. The more you find out about Melbourne, the less you truly know.
Favourite drinking song | Broken Leg by Bluejuice
What was the last photo that you took? A genuinely sexy charcuterie spread
What is your dream travel destination and why? NYC, I wanna go where the people are!
Any claims to fame? I was previously one of the Global top 3 finalists for the 50 Best Bars Scholarship award, alongside Calliope Draper and Kartika Kallianpur. I was also the National Aussie champ in the Cointreau Margarita challenge in the same year. Makes up for not being able to balance a spoon on my nose?
Soda or Tonic? Soda
Gibson or Gimlet? Gimlet- can’t eat onions 🙁
Naked & Famous or Last Word? Last Word but it’s bloody close
Dog person or cat person? I have a cat and because of him I am a dog person.
Are you available for freelance gigs? Yes indeed!
Find them: Instagram
Media: COINTREAU – Meet Jianming Liao and Keeley McAlinden
BOOTHBY – Inside the winner’s circle with the Step Into The Never Never Winners
50 BEST – Meet the three up-and-coming bartenders making their mark on hospitality
