Tomas Delos Reyes - Bartender

The spirits industry is full of fun and interesting people, and Tomas Delos Reyes is no exception. A self-proclaimed Scorpio, Tomas describes his age as "old enough to drink, too young to die." Currently a bartender at the BoomBoom Room at the Standard Hotel in New York, Tomas loves the amazing views that can be seen from the bar's heights and the interesting people he gets to meet at the invite-only hours.

Tomas started bartending at night clubs in San Francisco, inspired by the stories of an older cousin who tended bar. When he arrived in New York he started working at Public. "I got cocktail geeky and began to meet brand ambassadors," he said. From there he started working events and took off from there.

Tomas is a rare breed that incorporates other hobbies into his work. He runs his own events company called TomasMoves. A typical day for Tomas is "coffee, head to the studio/office to create and communicate, then to the Boom Boom Room and back to the office."

While there are many great experiences and memories from behind the bar, Tomas cites two. At a recent competition where he had to choose a song, create a cocktail inspired by it and perform a piece while making it, Tomas had an especially good time. "Basically I had to make a mix of my favorite songs (ingredients) first to see what worked, then narrow it down to the most inspiring," he said. His song of choice for the task - Hotel California. And a standout experience that will surely stick with Tomas was one night when he had his "dream team" of Penelope Cruz, Dita Von Tesse and Demi Morgan as patrons. "They stood in front of me for over an hour while I made them cocktails and they chatted," he reminisced. "It was the one time I let someone dip into my fruit trays."

Tomas's Downtown Cocktail

1 1/2 oz. white rum
3/4 oz. Aperol
1/2 oz. lemon juice
1 tsp. superfine sugar

Spray a coupe with Laphroig and set on the side. Add all ingredients to the shaker, shake well and strain into the coupe. Voila!

When Tomas is on the other side of the bar as a customer, he orders a Negroni (if he trusts the bartender) or a single malt or Anejo tequila. His favorite bar in the world to visit is Employees Only. He especially looks up to Dushan Zaric (owner of Employees Only), who Tomas admires for "nailing it on the head. The cocktails, style, business and a philosophy behind it all."

Tomas is an industry veteran, having been in the game for over 10 years. His favorite spirit to mix with is Tequila. He believes in pure experimentation to come up with flavor combinations, and for all bartenders (whether at home or behind the bar) to have an open mind.

Find Tomas behind the stick at the BoomBoom Room on Wednesday-Saturday from 4-10 PM.