KATE BOUSHEL

After leaving the restaurant and bar industry for a successful career in government and public relations, Kate Boushel’s passion for local flavours, spirits, and cocktails, as well as her natural inclination toward the art of hospitality brought her back to bartending. Since her return over a decade ago, she has collaborated with a many industry leaders, while working at notable Montreal institutions such as Le Mal Necessaire, the Atwater Cocktail Club and Milky Way Cocktail Bar. She has represented her spaces in various local and global competitions, such as Speed Rack, Diageo World Class, Bombay’s Most Imaginative Bartender, and Marie Brizard Masters, in addition to regular bartending and speaking engagements in communities all around the world. 

In her role as Partner and Beverage & Education Director for the Barroco Group in Montréal [Tiohtià:ke], she strives to lead by example. She is driven by her desire to help build a stronger, healthier, and more inclusive bar community, and to give back through mentorship and knowledge-sharing, while being a vocal champion of the Montreal and Canadian bar scenes.

Along the way, she has received numerous national and global accolades, for her contributions, including 2021 Bartender of the Year at Les Lauriers de la Gastronomie Québécoise, and International Bartender of the Year Top 10 Nominee at the 2022, 2023 & 2024 Tales of the Cocktail Foundation Spirited Awards®. In 2023, she was also named one of Drink International’s 100 most influential bar world figures, named Canada’s 100 Best’s 2024 Bartender of the Year, and received the prestigious 2024 Altos Bartenders’ Bartender award as part of North America’s 50 Best Bars. 

Kate can still be found behind the bar at the award-winning Atwater Cocktail Club, Milky Way Cocktail Bar, as well as Barroco Group’s newest cocktail bar, Bon Délire.