Lush Life

Cyprus has loads to offer its citizens and visitors alike: lovely beaches, hot sun, great food, and architectural wonders. Still, for a country that has been around since the 10th millennium BC, you couldn’t find a good cocktail anywhere. Thank goodness for Dinos Constantinides – he has literally upped the bar for everyone in town.

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Hello everyone - Don't get confused! Before there was Lush Life, there was Best Sips Worldwide, I rebranded after the first season. Although I reference Best Sips – it’s Lush Life through and through – the same great guests, the same music, and the same me! 

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His combination of inherent creativity and business savvy have made his bar Lost+Found Drinkery one of the World’s 50 Best Bars for two years running, according to Drinks International, one of the leading drinks journals. Nicosia, the capital whose location in the beach-less centre of the island, is often forgotten by the more than three million who visit the famed Cypriot seashores in summertime every year.

Lost+Found Drinkery is out to change that. Since the financial crisis, much has had to change in the capital city. Bigger, glitzier institutions have shut down and locally sourced, smaller places have begun to crop up in their place. (Read my piece for the Mail on Sunday about the transformation of Nicosia here.)

Dinos has tapped into that desire for change – leading way from frozen margaritas, daiquiris and pina coladas to Negronis, Old-Fashioneds and Crustas. Even if you are prone to a cold, fruity drink, a Tiki cocktail quite a different entity at Lost+Found Drinkery where ingredients include homemade syrups & bitters, fresh fruit and ice, like you have never seen it. There are seventeen (yes, one seven) water filters in-house so the ice is exactly as it should be.  

If you're a frequent customer, you can invest in your own Tiki glass, which is kept under lock and key on the wall. Make sure you use it though, as you can forfeit your spot very easily. Today, Dinos reveals to us how and why he created Lost+Found Drinkery & why two menus are served - one for those new to the bar and the other for his regulars. NB: If you do order a mojito, don't be surprised if it comes in a plastic cup.  

See how Dinos makes his version of the classic Crusta on our YouTube Channel.