TGI Fridays crowned Stavros Loumis of Larnaca, Cyprus, the World's Greatest Bartender at the 24th annual World Bartender Championship (WBC) in Dallas.
Loumis' perfectly precise cocktails, engaging personality, and bottle flair enabled him to earn top honors as the Greatest Bartender in the World.
Loumis beat out nine other finalists at the local, regional, and divisional levels in 2014. These 10 finalists ousted more than 8,000 bartenders from more than 900 TGI Fridays restaurants in 60 countries around the world.
After undergoing rigorous tests on products, ingredients, and recipes, the finalists competed in a showdown at the House of Blues in Dallas in front of a crowd of more than 1,000 spectators. They showed their best flair moves and mixed innovative drinks, proving they have what it takes to both engage with their guests and execute flawless mixology techniques.
The crowd at the House of Blues was some of the first to sip on the Top Shelf Spicy Margarita, one of Fridays’ new signature drinks featuring Casamigos Tequila that will be offered in restaurant this spring.
The 10 finalists in this year's World Bartender Championship hailed from five different countries. The top competitors were:
- Alexander Barrenechea (Lima, Peru)
- Ben Becker (Columbia, Maryland)
- Bryan Bonifacio (Makati City, Philippines)
- Stavros Loumis (Larnaca, Cyprus)
- Jessica Myers (Vestal, New York)
- Ram Ong (Hackensack, New Jersey)
- Alejandro Silva (Rancho Cucamonga, California)
- Fernando Soto (Lombard, Illinois.)
- Russell Ward (Sheffield, U.K.)
- Rae Ellen Williams (Port Orange, Florida)
