Keith Motsi of Equis Wishes Beijing Farewell

Although Equis' head bartender Keith Motsi is bidding Beijing adieu less than two years after that Liangmaqiao lounge opened as the Four Seasons' flagship bar, he's leaving a hefty legacy that belies his short time here. 

The pint-sized, soft-voiced, colorfully-dressed British mixologist quickly made a splash in Beijing’s cocktail scene but is now heading to Charles H. bar at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul, South Korea. During his tenure, Equis hosted guest mixologists from The American Bar (which topped the World's 50 Best Bars list in 2017) and began developing a “gin vapor room” where instead of drinking the juniper liquor, the entrant inhaled it, as Motsi described to the Beijinger at the time. Most impressive of all: he helped Equis score four nominations at last year’s Drink Magazine Bar Awards, eventually winning Best Hotel Bar in China.

READ: Beijing Gets Strong Showing at Drink Magazine's 2018 Bar Awards

Before his stint at Equis, Motsi had worked at a number of bars, including the exclusive Soho House & Co in London, England. "My first customer on my first day: Mr. Tom Cruise," he recalls, grinning broadly as if still in disbelief, adding, "I think he's a teetotaller. He only ordered an espresso. But you had very high-end clientele at that bar almost every day, so you were always switched on."

Despite the pinnacles he has reached elsewhere, Motsi says Beijing will always hold a special place in his heart, before comparing our fair city to “the crazy uncle who you’ll never get bored of.” He went on to call the Chinese apps, delivery services, and other innovations that gave him easy access to drink ingredients “really unrivaled,” and that he’ll also “miss the beer and barbecue at silly o’clock in the morning with my Beijing friends, and I will never forget my first hotpot.”

Above all, Motsi wanted to give props to his peers in Beijing's cocktail scene. “To all the innovators: keep doing what you’re doing. Nightlife has been expanding at an exciting rate, and a lot more high-quality bars have opened in the last two years,” compared to when he first arrived and began prepping Equis. “I hope the community keeps pushing on the education front and really teaches up and coming talent about how hospitality can be a respected career.”

READ: A Drink With Cocktail Connoisseur and Head Bartender of Equis, Keith Motsi

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Photos: Uni You, Drink Magazine