Aidan Bowie
The Office | New York
February 2019
Scottish Bartender Aidan Bowie credits his chef father for introducing him to the world of restaurants and bars. Although he took a brief detour away from the industry to study civil engineering, Bowie returned to hospitality to work as a bartender at the Blysthwood Square Hotel in Glasgow. It was during this time that he entered the Auchentoshan Switch Competition and won the grand prize: a two week trip to New York City to work at award-winning cocktail bar Dead Rabbit. Bowie fell in love with the city after spending an evening absorbing New York’s cocktail culture with Bartender and Dead Rabbit Co-owner Jack McGarry.
Bowie returned home and continued to earn accolades, including the Diageo Reserve World Class Bartender of the Year for Great Britain in 2016. He moved to London to work with Ryan Chetiyawardana and Iain Griffiths at the Dandelyan in the Mondrian Hotel. In 2017, he was presented with a once in a lifetime opportunity that he couldn’t refuse: join Grant Achatz’s team at Alinea Group to head up the New York City branch of the modernist cocktail den The Aviary and sister bar The Office inside the Mandarin Oriental. The bars received two stars from The New York Times and The Aviary was named “Best New Bar” by Time Out New York.
