Having worked in the global hospitality scene for close to 25 years, Carlos is a wealth of hospitality knowledge, insight and experience.
Learning his trade on the Brisbane scene – alongside some of Australia’s now best-known hospitality legends – he took his well-honed skillset abroad and landed in London in his early 20s. Here, he enjoyed a memorable stint at the iconic Fabric Nightclub.
Missing the craft of the cocktail, he boldly walked into the famous LAB (London Academy of Bartenders) in Soho (sadly, now closed but rated as one of the world’s best bars at the time) and asked for (in his words, ‘demanded’) a job.
The bar manager immediately put him on the spot and Carlos was told to make 7 classic cocktails for the onlooking staff.
Fortunately, the drinks were satisfactory and after passing the venue’s rigorous 3 month training program (which saw, amongst other elements, written testing across all spirit categories, general knowledge, procedure and pour training and memorization of what was a 70+ house cocktail list – and where passing the single attempt earned a barback role), Carlos was placed at their sister venue Townhouse in Knightsbridge – where the Porn Star Martini was created.
Here he was privileged to work alongside the likes of Marcis Dzelzainis and Sean Ware, immersing himself in the London and indeed, the global hospitality network, as he elevated his craft far beyond anywhere he’d previously imagined.
His love of hospitality was nurtured and would see Carlos in top positions at Soho House London and on the Sweet and Chilli UK event team (a very privileged position that afforded him insight and experience running some of the UK and Europe’s biggest and most sought-after events), before other tenures across the globe, including the setup and opening of a large nightclub project in Phuket, a pivotal role in the setup, opening and operation of Brisbane’s iconic Savile Row, and as a highly valued member of the team at New York City’s Saxon + Parole, where he executed the bar program of Naren Young, under the watchful eye of Maxim Belfand, and mentor, Masa Urushido.
As a deeply passionate agave spirit lover, his most recent major contribution saw him setting and running to success, the cult-hero Mexican venue, Mama Taco in Brisbane’s West End, before moving on to begin his own endeavours with events business, The Meniscus Co. and the soon-to-launch, Church Of Agave.
