While other bartenders are scooping ice cubes into glasses to make a cocktail, Michaela Lattin is working inside a giant ice cube—80 tons of ice to be exact. And the glasses for the cocktails she’s slinging? They’re actually made completely of ice, too. Ice in the middle of the sweltering desert? Yes. Lattin works at one of the coolest—literally and figuratively—spots in the city, Minus5 Ice Bar at Mandalay Place.
The 1,000-square-foot bar is completely made of ice—the benches, walls, chandeliers, tables, bar, are all hand-carved Canadian ice. Put on a parka or faux-fur coat in the ski lodge lounge and step inside the frigid temperatures and you’ll find Lattin manning the bar. The Las Vegas native has been working at Minus5 for five years, and also assumes a supervisor position when needed, too. “Even though I grew up in Vegas, I never thought I’d work on the Strip,” she said. In fact, Lattin was teaching high school Spanish for years before she landed the bartending position. But over the years she discovered just how much she loves Minus5.
“I love that this place draws people from all over the world, Australia, Asia, Brazil, all the different cultures that I meet,” she said.
Ice Saver
But how does Lattin handle working a shift inside the freezing temps? “Yes, you can get cold at times. But, you get used to it to a certain extent,” she explained. “When it’s crowded inside the bar, when it’s really busy, you don’t even realize it’s cold at all!”
Ice Saver
According to Lattin, most cocktails served inside Minus5 are mixed directly inside the ice cups, including all of the specialty cocktails. One such cocktail is the Ice Saver, a mix of Sobieski lemon meringue-flavored vodka and orange, citrus and tangerine juices. For more cocktail options, and a warmer, cozier environment, step inside the ski lodge lounge, located right next to the ice bar.
