Mirror Hospitality Expo ‘25 Recap
Hospitality industry leaders, innovators, and professionals came together in Bratislava, Slovakia, to share the latest trends, technologies, and ideas shaping the future of hospitality at Mirror Hospitality Expo. People from all over the world gathered on May 5th - 6th, 2025, in the luxurious setting of the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel, where the warmth among attendees was a welcome antidote to the cold and rain outside.
A key feature of Mirror Hospitality Expo is their focus on bringing the international community together. 74 international guests, including industry leaders, award-winning bartenders, and innovative cocktail creators, visited Bratislava, providing an unparalleled opportunity for the local bar community to learn and network with global movers and shakers. Vice versa, the event was also an occasion for globally successful bar industry leaders to learn about the rising hospitality expertise in the lesser-known city.
The next generation
The third year of the expo started off with the Mirror Junior Bartender Challenge, involving both seminars and competition for aspiring bartenders still in hospitality school. Students, from both Slovakia and surrounding countries, not only gained the valuable experience of competing but also heard inspiring information and stories from seasoned professionals, from what schools don’t teach you, to becoming a better person, to the gastronomy journey from Slovakia to Paris and back.
Local products for a global market
Throughout the event, a trade market also introduced local products to a global audience. A number of non-alcoholic products were on display, such as Nochino and Pureé. Other Slovak products included Tatratea with their new Herberry Gin, Toison, and Shake the Pear distillery. Wine, kombucha, and beer were also among products available to taste.
Bartenders are smarter than you think
The seminars over the two days covered a wide range of topics, with something of interest for everyone, from how-to’s on some aspect of bartending to examples of sustainability, from finances to leading teams. Overall, 19 seminars and masterclasses were held.
Valentino Girotto, author of the book Bubbles, made bartenders look smart as he went deep into the science of carbonation. Oscar Buhre and Jinda Cibran, of Lucy’s Flower Shop in Stockholm, talked about acids in drinks and the discoveries they made while finding an alternative to lemon juice; their work with vinegar was especially inspiring.
Sustainability was a thread through many of the seminars, as the hospitality industry becomes aware of the role it can play. Margarida Barcelos & Lucas Joussemet from Cambridge Public in Paris shared the journey of the bar to becoming a B Corp certified business, following their motto of Tradition and Transition. They also highlighted how sustainability does not only include ecological factors but also people - the community formed between the team itself, the bar team within a local community, and within a global community setting.
Máté Szabo also shared the sustainable measures taken by Elysian in Budapest, and educated listeners on how companies can greenwash - advertise sustainability for marketing purposes without action backing it up.
Kristine Bocchino and Kaitlin Wilkes, founders of The Ada Coleman Project, hosted women in the spotlight to talk about bartending career paths as well as leading teams in the hospitality industry. Leah van Deventer motivated bartenders especially those who feel at a disadvantage; if there is no seat for you at the table, she said, make your own table.
Tasting the world through guest shifts
Those were only a few of the topics covered in the seminars, and while there was plenty of learning to be done at Mirror Hospitality Expo, it wasn’t just about theoretical knowledge but also the practical: taste and experience. A whopping 32 bars from 26 cities all over the world were involved in sharing their drinks through guest shifts over four days at Mirror Bar, Sky Bar & Restaurant, and Old Fashioned Bar. Guest bartenders served up over 2500 cocktails, besides countless others mixed by local teams.
Through the guest shifts one could taste, for example, sustainability in a drink with a Knotweed & Chervil drink from Alma (Prague), made with the invasive and problematic Japanese knotweed. Or one could try the red cabbage paloma from Purovoku Project (Thessaloniki), made with red cabbage and mushroom cordial and dusted with red cabbage waste salt.
Besides creative drinks, the guest shifts were full of experience and good times with bubbles, the song “Tequila” tapped out on the backbar, or ice throwing tricks. With so many bartenders, that also meant there were representatives from those 35 bars with whom to network, chat, and dance.
Major Thanks
Mirror Hospitality Expo 2025 was organized by Stan Harciník, Peter Marcina, and Adrián Chrzan, whose vision and dedication have transformed this event into a cornerstone of the European hospitality scene. The event was hosted by Mirror Bar, Bratislava, which earned its recognition at the 62nd spot on The World’s 50 Best Bars list and achieved two Regional Top Ten Honoree distinctions in 2024 from Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Awards, and again in 2025 for Best International Hotel Bar for Europe.
A special recognition goes to the team behind Mirror Bar, who embodied the meaning of hospitality. No matter the number of broken glasses, extra clean-up, and long hours, they were attentive and welcoming to each person who came through Mirror Hospitality Expo 2025.
