E244 Bethany Nardi

This weeks guest is Bethany Nardi who joins us from Granite Bay, California. Bethany’s maiden initials are BAR so it seems that a career in the hospitality industry was always meant to be. Bethany started in the industry in 2006 as a server in a little family run Italian restaurant called Strings. At that time, Bethany was working towards her fashion design degree at Sierra College in Rocklin, California. Bethany found passion in the fashion industry and quickly became the fashion club president at the age of 19. She ran the club for two years where she designed future trends, ran modeling calls, fundraised, budgeted funds, and put on fashion shows. Although she earned her certificate in design, it turned out the restaurant industry had captivated her heart and that became her career path.

In 2011, Bethany started bartending at a corporate restaurant called Red Robin. She was obsessed with being behind the bar! Bethany enjoyed leveraging her previous years of serving to foster more personal connections with guests at her bar. Before she knew it, eight years had passed and, in that time, Bethany not only honed her bartending skills but also tied the knot with her husband and welcomed two out of her three kids into the world. Like many, life threw a few changes her way, and she realized she needed and wanted something more.

Bethany embarked on a journey, gaining valuable experiences at various fine dining establishments from Lincoln to Sacramento, eventually landing in Granite Bay, where she currently bartends.

In 2021, Bethany secured a spot at Hawks Restaurant in Granite Bay just as the restaurant began to reopen after pandemic shutdowns. She quickly fell in love with the overall concept, serving classically prepared, seasonal dishes and drinks with fine dining execution. Bethany was graciously welcomed by Mike Fagnoni and Molly Hawks (chef owners and operators of Hawks) and proved herself quickly, creatively developing drinks for the bar program.

They inspired Bethany to intertwine her design talents and love for the craft. Just like the dinner tasting menu at Hawks, Bethany's cocktails follow the seasons as well, with fresh ingredients provided by local vendors. Bethany styles each cocktail in a way that is both well-balanced and visually stunning!

Since the pandemic the perception of the food and cocktail world has changed and, in Bethany's opinion, people want to taste with their eyes first and want a photo-worthy experience. Bethany thinks the guests “want to feel special with a gorgeous drink in front of them, as if that drink was conceived with them in mind.”

During her journey at Hawks Restaurant, Bethany welcomed her 3rd baby. Like most of us in the industry she couldn’t do what she does behind the bar without her amazing bar team.

Hawks has allowed Bethany to grow tremendously and for that she is very grateful. After 18 years in the industry and 13 years as a bartender, Bethany decided to enter the Barboss competition where she quickly realized how many people love to see her creations. Bethany was incredibly humbled to make it into the semifinals where she was able to create her cocktail using Dos Hombres Mezcal. The feedback and support Bethany received was overwhelming, and she is very appreciative for the opportunity to share her craft with the world!

@bartender_bethany @hawksrestaurantgranitebay

A big thank you to Jean-Marc Dykes of Imbiblia. Imbiblia is a cocktail app for bartenders, restaurants and cocktail lovers alike and built by a bartender with more than a decade of experience behind the bar. Several of the features includes the ability to create your own Imbiblia Recipe Cards with the Imbiblia Cocktail Builder, rapidly select ingredients, garnishes, methods and workshop recipes with a unique visual format, search by taste using flavor profiles unique to Imbiblia, share recipes publicly plus many more……Imbiblia - check it out!

Looking for a Bartending Service? Or a private bartender to run your next corporate or personal event? Need help crafting a bar program for your restaurant? Contact Alchemist Alie for all your bartending needs: @alchemist.alie

If you're hungry for lunch - check out the best sandwiches in town @harpersdeli

Contact the host Kypp Saunders by email at [email protected] for products from Elora Distilling, Malivoire Winery and Terroir Wine Imports.

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