In this episode of Game Changers by CS, I sit down with Lorenzo Antinori, founder of Bar Leone, officially ranked World’s No.1 at The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025.
But this conversation is not about awards. It is about the anatomy of mastery.
Lorenzo did not enter bartending with a grand vision. He was a law student in Rome working shifts to pay bills. A random job became a calling. A YouTube video became inspiration. A humble neighborhood café became the emotional blueprint for a bar that would later captivate the world.
From knocking on hotel doors in London with paper CVs…
To barbacking at American Bar at The Savoy for 18 months before touching a cocktail…
To leading bar programs at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul and creating ARGO at Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong…
To taking the entrepreneurial leap during Covid to build Bar Leone…
This is a masterclass in patience, resilience, culture building, and the discipline behind world-class hospitality.
We talk about:
• Why he does not believe in luck, only “triggering luck” through standards and repetition
• Why queues outside a bar feel like responsibility, not pride
• Why simplicity executed with extreme quality beats constant reinvention
• How to build a bar people emotionally belong to, not just visit
• The difference between chasing hype and building return business
• Leadership through values, clarity, trust, and opportunity for teams
• Why awards are not an arrival, but a starting point with higher expectations
Lorenzo’s philosophy is radically simple:
You do not need to reinvent everything.
You need to make people want to come back.
This episode is not for bartenders only. It is for anyone in hospitality, leadership, retail, design, or brand building who wants to understand how enduring destinations are really built.
Game Changers by CS explores the childhood, struggle, turning points, craft obsession, leadership lessons, and life philosophy of the people shaping modern hospitality around the world.
