Last April, self-declared “plant mama” Élise Hanson won the coveted top spot in the global contest Most Imaginative Bartender for her Higher Harvests project, a plan to green the rooftops of bars in Toronto. From there, 2024 became a banner year for Hanson. Shortly after her win, Civil Liberties’ Nick Kennedy and David Huynh approached her to helm the bar program at Civil Works, the high-tech concept bar now open in a swank space in Toronto’s Waterworks Food Hall.
“My plan after winning Most Imaginative Bartender was to work towards opening my own place,” says Hanson. “And there aren’t very many people I would have changed my plans for, but, for sure, one of them is Nick. I just admire him so much for his commitment to the industry and his joie de vivre for the community. You don’t come by that often.”
Civil Works is a sibling, of sorts, to Civil Liberties, the Bloor-Ossington bar that took top spot on the Canada’s best bars list in both 2022 and 2023. The posh new Civil Works differs from the original, though. Unlike menu-free Civil Liberties, it has an extensive menu of drinks, all of which require a lot of advance prep, especially given the large 120-seat room.
“It was really challenging since we had to build everything from scratch ourselves,” says Hanson. “To be honest, I don’t think I fully realized what I was undertaking. Now, though, seeing the room full and the staff killing it and believing in my vision is really cool. It has totally been worth it.”
Favourite Drinking City: “I love Montreal. In Toronto, sometimes we’re so serious about our craft that we lose some of the fun of bartending. I think Montreal’s got a great balance that way.”
Favourite Spirit: “Sherry, nutty sherries above all else. And then mezcal.”
Favourite Cocktail: “I love a low-ABV cocktail, but you can’t miss with a seriously good Margarita. As a bartender, you want to present something nobody’s seen yet, but sometimes just sticking to the fundamentals like a Margarita is the best thing.”
Fun Fact: “In the final stage of the [Most Imaginative Bartender] competition, I showed up dressed like a farmer and spoke from my heart and showed myself to my core. I think the judges really responded to that.”
–Christine Sismondo