Galvin at Windows barman wins Europe-wide Hilton Bar Cup

Barman Rui Serra is heading off to Brazil after winning the Bar Cup at the Europe Food & Beverage (F&B) Masters 2011, organised by Hilton Worldwide.

Serra impressed the judges with his creation of a Classic Negroni, alongside the gin-based Galvin's Garden cocktail he prepares at his place of work, Galvin at Windows at the London Hilton on Park Lane.

Judges praised Serra for the elegance, balance and style of the cocktails he created, as well as his passion and creative flair during his presentation. His gold-medal winning performance will take him to the Worldclass 2012 bartender competition taking place in Rio de Janeiro next year.

The Bar Cup was one of four competitions, alongside the Culinary Cup, Pastry Cup and Service Cup, which took place at the F&B Masters event, held in Berlin. Fifty finalists, shortlisted from more than 200 entrants from across Hilton Worldwide's European portfolio of hotels, competed in two days of competition.

Besides Serra, the gold medal winners included Daniel Debattista and Ralph Vassallo of the Hilton Malta in the Culinary Cup, Youri Baltaliyski of the Hilton Prague (Pastry Cup) and Thomas Minihold of the Hilton Vienna Plaza (Service Cup).

Other UK medal winners included Murat Oguz and Laurie Thomas of the London Hilton on Park Lane who won bronze, with a bronze medal also going to Simona Gullo of the Hilton London Tower Bridge in the Bar Cup.

James Glover, vice president of food and beverage in Europe for Hilton Worldwide, said the quality of the competition had been extremely high. "The F&B Masters further enhances our objective of creating an exciting and rewarding food and beverage culture within Hilton Worldwide in Europe and is a wonderful showcase of the talent and creativity on offer at our hotels," he said.

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By Janet Harmer

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