AVALON – Marisa Holt, a bartender since she was 18, saw the glamor of New York City’s flair bartending scene and, rather than abandon her roots in Marmora, decided she would stop at nothing to bring it to the Shore.
Flair bartending is the kind of avant-garde glitz you’d see in Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby. Marisa juggles shakers and cups like a seasoned circus performer. She can pour ten drinks at once, mix cocktails mid-juggle, and make catches that would make Tom Brady blush. Her bag of tricks is extensive; she can rollerskate and mix, cut ice into diamonds, shave a lemon into a mermaid’s tail, anything to keep her audience guessing.
A toolbelt of small machines adds to the spectacle. She uses smoke-filled bubbles, dry ice, and other flashy touches to fill the night with pomp. Her cocktail bubble gun, for example, creates foamy bubbles that pop with a burst of aroma and a haze of vapor.
Her performances share a spirit similar to that of a hibachi chef. She’ll serve you a delicious drink, and make you sweat with anticipation while it’s being prepared.
Behind the barroom theatrics are hundreds of hours of practice. For years, Marisa commuted from Marmora to New York City to take lessons because no one closer could teach her. She made a name for herself there and, in 2024, won the coveted title of “Bar Boss,” an honor awarded annually to one standout mixologist at a competition in Nashville. The win brought her national attention, but she still isn’t leaving the Shore.
“My whole life is down here,” she said.
Flair is underrepresented in Cape May County, giving Marisa a golden opportunity to shine. Many people who catch her shows at ICONA and other local spots have never seen anything like it. She loves impressing locals and says debuting new tricks for her regulars is a fierce motivator. Sure, you can wow a jaded New York crowd, but it’s far more rewarding to surprise an eager audience at home.
Marisa eventually joined a flair team in the city. Even while working full days, she continued commuting from Marmora. She loves being at home and having her own space. In her garage, Marisa is an obsessive mixologist. She buys grapes in bulk from Gino Pinto’s in Hammonton and makes wine to enjoy with friends. She’s always experimenting, and it’s her obsession with both showmanship and craft cocktails that earned her the “Bar Boss” crown.
“Recently, I took dragonfruit and infused it with jalapeño, cinnamon, and cardamom. That drink was really killer,” she said.
She even made her own limoncello, a delicate process that takes months.
“Learning all of this has been a really fun process, trying to hit these checkpoints. When I randomly messaged the man who would eventually become my mentor, I just wanted to learn a few tricks. I didn’t think I’d end up part of a whole show team,” she said. “The local people, the regulars, they really encourage me to keep pushing. It’s a drive to impress them, to have something new for them. They help me move toward my dreams and goals.”
This summer, Marisa is back at ICONA Windrift, where she worked her first-ever bartending gig at 18. You can find her schedule more easily on Instagram, where she posts updates about events all over the Cape.
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