Mayfair Hotel’s Hennessy Rooftop Bar has been named South Australia’s Best Hotel Bar. We chat with Bar Manager Christian Haddad about its boutique cocktails and glamorous vibe.

What do you enjoy most about bartending?

It’s a lot like cooking. I love cooking. To me, making drinks is like making yourself a nice dish. And then you get to deliver something tasty and unique to customers – it’s fun.

Hennessy was just voted the best hotel bar in Adelaide by Vogue magazine. Congrats! What do you think sets the venue apart?

The building is very unique compared to other places. There’s all this heritage to it, it’s almost 100 years old. When you go up to the rooftop bar, the ceiling, chandeliers and vibe are very special. The bar is named after the building’s original architects! We also keep our standards high. We treat everyone how we’d like to be treated anywhere else.

Bartending involves being able to re-imagine classic cocktails. Where do you draw inspiration from to reinvent what’s on offer seasonally?

The bar team puts in the effort to always do something different, whether that’s new flavours or something unique. I also use my Lebanese background and experience living in Dubai to inspire some flavours. There’s lots of dried fruit, spices and herbs – we keep it interesting!

Hennessy has a rooftop beehive. What cocktails use fresh honey?

One of our most popular cocktails, The Honey Trap, is designed around this and uses fresh honey as a garnish.People love it. It’s a sweet and sour vodka-based cocktail with a ginger and honey shot. We then garnish with dehydrated lime, mint and drizzled fresh honey. It’s very balanced.

Hennessy is the epitome of elegance and old-world glamour, how does this translate into the venue’s drinks offering?

We try and relate everything to the building and create harmony with it.Our signature cocktail, The #45, is built around this. It’s a special 48-hour infusion of pineapple sour and dark rum mixed with St Germain elderflower liquor. It’s so delicious, with a real tropical flavour. We garnish it with our signatureHennessy stamp, an edible flower and dried pineapple.

For those who haven’t been to Hennessy before, describe a night at the rooftop bar.

People look forward to our Friday andSaturday nights – especially when they just finish work. The DJ is on, the vibe is right, and the cocktails are always ready.

Mayfair Hotel
45 King William Street, Adelaide
08 8210 8888
mayfairhotel.com.au
@mayfairhoteladelaide