We met Isa Mejia in Milan during The 50 Best Bars awards ceremony where they were crowned the winner of The 50 Best Bars Scholarship 2026. We were so happy when we heard that The 50 was bringing the scholarship back after they paused the program in 2025. Our good friend Calliope Draper won the scholarship back in 2024. We know how much impact winning this had on Callie – it set her on a whole new path in life and opened up a lot of opportunities. Winning this year’s scholarship means that Isa will be doing stages at Tres Monos in Buenos Aires and Line in Athens. We cannot wait to see where else Isa travels to and where they end up.
Bartender Atlas: Isa Mejia. Where were you born?
Isa Mejia: I was actually born in San José, Costa Rica.
BA: And where do you work now?
IM: I work now in Quito, Ecuador.
BA:Where do you work in Quito?
IM: Right now I am in between jobs. I am looking for new opportunities in Europe, but my home and the bar that I’ve worked at for the last three years has been Plural Drinks in Quito. It’s been my first bar and it is kind of time for me to start looking for new opportunities.
BA: Make a move.
IM: But I still feel like they’re my family. So I will be going back and celebrating with them for sure when I’m back.
BA: Where do you go out to eat and drink on your days off?
IM: After my shifts I go to Big. This is a bar by Sarah Ruiz (from episode 2 of Branching Out), who, I feel, has been one of my most instrumental mentors in this journey even though I have been mostly self-taught, she has always been there and I feel that Big is like my second home. That’s where I go to decompress and see all my friends. We have a lot of good restaurants near us as well. The neighbourhood that Plural is located in is kind of becoming a trendy gastronomic neighbourhood in Quito. Surrounding us we have Chulpi Urbano which is really nice for good Ecuadorian, contemporary interpretations of Ecuadorian’s dishes. Just in front of us we have a really good, specialty coffee place called Broz. They are one of the best coffee roasters in my opinion. I love to go to Floresta Pizza which is a really good pizza in the iconic neighbourhood of La Floresta in, in Quito. I am honestly a very simple eater, so nothing fancy for me. I like my grandma’s house.
BA: What do you do outside of work?
IM: I also do book binding.
BA: Oh!
IM: I’m taking that back a little bit. Honestly these last few years have been quite hectic so I have left my hobbies a bit aside. But I do book binding to relax. I have a small brand of kinda like artist books. They have a bunch of different types of paper, handmade, wood covers with some, silk print kinda utensils. A ruler, a grid etc…. And the idea is that it’s like “all you will need” kind of book. If you need watercolour paper, black paper, gray paper, white paper. So that was something kinda fun. And I’m kinda slowly but surely taking photography back. I love analog photography. I have a little dark room in a little studio that I have that I inherited. It was the old office of my grandfather when he used to work. So I’ve kind of inherited it now and made it my little photography analog lab, where I do my book binding as well.
BA:That’s cool.
IM: I’m always working with my hands.
BA: Who’s your favourite fictional bartender?
IM: I actually just started a series. I’m not big into anime. I don’t know why I’ve never been able to get into it. But there’s this series called Bartender and I don’t know if they say his name but he’s known as the Glass of God. The whole series involves him kinda reading what the guests are feeling, what they might need at the moment and he makes them a cocktail in that spot and they have memories of their childhood or whatever they’re feeling is kind of resolved. So that has been grabbing my attention now. And they end the episode with a cocktail recipe. I have honestly gotten more than a few cocktail inspirations from that series.
BA: What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?
IM: I think, just believing in myself. And, moderation. Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in when drinks are free and everyone is celebrating so keep it moderation. But I think mostly believing in yourself. Be sure of yourself and try to enjoy it all. Sometimes I’m over-analytical.
BA: What are you excited about?
IM: Ooh, right now honestly I am excited for anything that’s to come. Obviously doing the internships in Argentina and Athens – that is mostly what I’m excited about. Just seeing where this will take me. I feel like for a long time I’ve been wanting to take that extra step, that next step towards something else and this has come at exactly the right time. I’m so happy that I have taken myself there. So I’m just happy to see what opportunities this opens up and honestly I don’t have a set plan. I’m just rolling with the punches and riding the wave.
I’m just excited to see where I’m gonna be in five years from now and where I’m going to take myself, my craft. I’ve always loved doing what I do to the best that I can and I’m just excited to see myself become a more well-rounded professional as well as a person. I think one of my dreams was to travel through my career and that has started so I’m also excited to see where it would take me next.
RETURN TO ALL HOSPITALITY GEMS
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Posted October 16th, 2026
