Blair Frew of Paradiso Rooftop Bar and Restaurant wins Whitsunday’s Best Bartender

You might see this bartender fill a glass with cigar smoke, cook the top of a drink with a blow torch, or throw cinnamon on a flame to make sparks literally fly.

For Whitsunday’s best bartender, one key ingredient to an unforgettable cocktail is the ability to put on a show.

Start with a knack for perfectly balanced flavours, add in a creative flair for original combinations, and you are almost there.

But to truly stand out from the pack, in an increasingly competitive industry, Paradiso Rooftop Bar and Restaurant’s Blair Frew says “you’ve got to have a passion for impressing people”.

Personally, Mr Frew prefers to drink “classic cocktails, made well,” such as negronis and martinis.

But after 20 years in the industry, including 10 years at iconic Gold Coast venue Melbas, he knows how to please a crowd, and apparently that often involves fire.

On any given night at Paradiso, you might see Mr Frew filling a glass with cigar smoke, cooking the top of a drink with a blow torch, or throwing cinnamon on a flame to make sparks literally fly.

Having been a bartender most of his life, he has seen trends come and go, but he says one thing is for sure: “You want people to be able to have a bit of wow factor, not just a generic menu to choose from.”

Along with serving up his signatures like the showstopping ‘Fiery Fijian’, the refreshing gin-based ‘Continental’, and the sweet and sour ‘Lemon Brulee’, Mr Frew enjoys experimenting with seasonal additions to Paradiso’s menu as well as mocktails incorporating fruits and gelati from sister business ‘Whitsundae’.

Bartending was the first job Mr Frew had out of school, and after success in various cocktail-making competitions around the state, he said it has been exciting to see the industry evolve, pushing venues like Paradiso, which he now manages, to do more to be “a cut above the rest”.

“I’ve definitely noticed the culture around cocktails is becoming a lot bigger and better,” Mr Frew said.

“The quality of bartender has improved dramatically.”