Michael Fortier began his career in the service industry in 2012 at Toronto’s iconic Drake Hotel where he found a passion for cocktails and mixing flavors. While working as Bar Manager at Richmond Station for Canada’s Top Chef winner Carl Heinrich, Michael discovered a love for flavor combinations used in the culinary arts and finding ways to incorporate them into mixing drinks. Over the years he has found an outlet for his competitive nature and love of mixing drinks in cocktail competitions. He is winner of the 2015 Lot 40 Canadian whisky cocktail competition, national winner for Beefeater MIXLND 7 and national winner for the 2018 Havana Club Grand Prix. However, Michael truly cut his teeth as a bartender in Toronto in 2015 while working at Bar Raval under the mentorship of great bartenders Michael Webster, Robin Goodfellow and Jenner Cormier. Along side industry leader Ana Wolkowski, Michael grew to run Bar Raval’s cocktail and bar program before being given the opportunity to run the bar program at Bar Raval’s sister restaurant, El Rey Mezcal Bar in Kensington market, where he currently resides.
Find him: Instagram