Drinking on the job, listening to good music — "a lot of '50s and '60s soul"— and enjoying the down-to-earth vibe of The Roger Room is how Damian Windsor spends his nights as chief mixologist at the LA hot spot. A native of Australia, Damian's cocktail-making career took off soon after he graduated from high school, when he took a job bartending at one of the most prestigious hotels in Sydney. This quickly led to managing two bars simultaneously, and eventually an offer to move to New York. "I was knocked off my ass and humbled," he says of New York cocktail culture. Despite his love for NYC (particularly Cobble Hill, Brooklyn), Damian eventually moved to Los Angeles, where he started For Medicinal Purposes, a cocktail consulting firm that's "basically the middle man between the spirits business and the consumer." But the real goal, and one that is currently in the works, is to open his own bar: "I want it to be a collection of all the best ideas I've seen in all the bars that I've been to."

On growing up in Sydney: I lived in Sydney until I was six, so my earliest memories mostly involve the good life: swimming and playing with a golden retriever and labrador. My father was in the army, so we started to move around. I moved back to Sydney two years after high school and started to take hospitality seriously. Within two months, I was bartending full time at one of the most prestigious hotels in town, and within two years I would be managing two bars and have an offer to move to New York.

On his start in the biz: I got a start as the cashier in the all-day-dining restaurant at the Hyatt Hotel in Canberra. It was a step up from waiting tables. You were in charge of restocking the buffet items, cashiering, and mixing the drinks. We made a lot of milkshakes, but from there it was mixed drinks and frozen daiquiris. The first cocktail I mixed was a banana daiquiri, I still have a soft spot for them.

Out of Sydney, Toronto, New York, Los Angeles, and Miami, what's your favorite city? I had a great time in all of those cities, but my situation was different in each. Sydney was great and I had a lot of fun bartending and met some great friends. Toronto was different due to the fact that I was waiting for visa processing. I learned a lot of patience. New York was awesome, anything you need, any time of day. I was there as the resurgence was burgeoning, craft cocktails were hush hush but unforgettable. LA has grown on me, because the weather is great. I had a rough time after moving here. I sold shoes and counted inventory for a little while until I got a break behind a bar in a bistro, and within a couple of months I was back on track to making great cocktails.

On Sydney nightlife: I think Sydney nightlife is more comparable to San Diego than LA. Destinations are usually centered around a neighborhood and everything is there, a pub, a cocktail bar and a club, a couple of restaurants. It was usually more about hanging at a pub or dancing at a club.

On his favorite places to hang out in New York and LA: In New York I love Little Branch and the cocktails at Dutch Kills. I cant wait to see Painkiller. I love to eat at Blue Ribbon and Lucky Strike, the Jon-Jon Deragon hot dog at Crif Dogs, tater tots and a cocktail at PDT. Death and Co., the list goes on. In LA I like Cecconi's, Bar Marmont, Providence, Jones, Tiki Ti, Tonga Hut, Copa D'Oro, but my heart is at El Carmen. It was my local the first four years I lived here, solid food and lots of great tequila - at least 300 bottles. There's a lot of bars on this list because bar people hang with bar people. Friends in other cities may not be able to get time off of work so we go and see them.

On the Roger Room: It's like the best of all of the other bars I've worked in put together. Sean and Jared did an amazing job on the decor and ambiance, the bar feels much older than a year and a half, and the music selection will have you guessing. By the time you get to the cocktails you are totally immersed in the setting: red and brass, tile and dark wood, mirrored ceiling. It's kind of like pub meets bistro meets cocktail bar. We don't take ourselves too seriously, we make handcrafted cocktails and we also sling drinks from the well.

On For Medical Purposes, his cocktail consulting company: It's more than just writing cocktail lists. It's going to be an event management, coordination, placement, and brand representation company. Basically being the middle man between the spirits business and the consumer.

Favorite cocktail: A Martinez: gin, sweet vermouth, maraschino liqueur, and orange bitters.

Drink orders that set him off: It's not one drink in particular. It's the fact that we went through the trouble to put a cocktail list - actually two lists - together. And somebody couldn't be bothered looking at it. They'll say "Just make me something." It's a misconception that bartenders are magicians and can just pull anything out of their hats. We need the interaction. You've got to give me some idea of what you like. Otherwise I'll just make you a cocktail that I like and maybe you won't.

But if you had to say just one? Jägerbomb.

Do you drink on the job? Of course we taste the cocktails. It's not like the bartenders are partying with the guests, but we're really comfortable, really relaxed. The guys I work for are amazing. They make everyone feel like we're a family. And that extends to the guests.

Do you want to open up your own bar one day? Of course. I'm actually in the process now. I have a real estate agent looking for properties now. A lot of people have to sign off on this, but it's going to happen.

What will it be like? A welcoming place, and not pretentious. In the last ten years there have been so many bars and I want it to be a collection of all the best ideas I've seen in all the bars that I've been to.

If President Obama took a seat at the bar of the Roger Room, what drink would you make him? Well I have no idea. I don't really think about American Politics. I'm Australian. Why don't we try an Old Fashioned? Simple and elegant.