Any Bartenders in the house ?

[Big John]

Big John! You're slipping!

 

Other names were missing too.

[rajncajn]

 

Other names were missing too.

Hitman

[Vinatieri Is God]

 

Other names were missing too.

 

I was a bartender for 8 years after college at a very busy restaurant/bar and thoroughly enjoyed the experience until the last year. Because it was a full time gig, I knew I would eventually get burned out. Never took the school (my bar hired from within and preferred you learn from the other bartenders).

 

There are a million facets to the job and every one of them varies from place to place. If it is just a part time gig for you, I would say definitely start off slow and do the CC thing only. You'll gain experience without getting in over your head. Worry less about memorizing drinks and more about keeping customers happy. That's where the schools fail, I believe. There isn't a single customer who won't understand if you actually say to them, "wow that's a new one for me. I'm just getting my feet wet here. What's in that?" They will actually appreciate that you asked rather than spending 5 minutes trying to find it in the book and keeping them in the desert withno drink. Establish relationships with the regulars. Remember names and what they drink. Build on previous conversations but try not to re-hash the same stuff over and over. The customers will do enough of that for you.

 

And, the single most important thing you will ever have to remember is NEVER under any circumstances discuss a previous visit with a customer unless they bring up the topic first.

 

customer (with his wife): hey Whomp let me try that meatloaf for lunch

 

you: Try it? Wasn't it good yesterday?

 

wife: oh you were here yesterday were you??

 

 

 

Enjoy the experience and good luck! There is no better rush than slamming through a 2 hour period when you are buried with drinks and food and customers and you rock the place. The tip jar will fill accordingly. Peace.

[wiegie]

Biggest tip though......never let them see you sweat!

I'm beginning to see in this thread that perhaps my ineptitude at being a bartender was at least in part a function of the fact that I worked in the bar of a popular Mexican restaurant in which the primary drinks being ordered were margaritas. Now, margaritas in and of themselves are fine, but it was when a party of six 20-something women showed up to an already overflowing bar and they each ordered a different flavor of frozen margarita that I felt in the weeds.

[chester]

Been at it for 13 years.

As others have said, it's more about the experience for the customer than the drink. You don't need to know how to make everything off the top of your head, but you do need to be able to talk about anything off the top of your head. I think of it as a fine line between giving the customer exactly what he/she wants and telling them to f off. Some will think it's funny if you call them a wuss for ordering a cosmo, some will walk out. Some want to hear your political views, some will get offended. Some want to know your thoughts on Peyton Manning, some will ask you who that is. Knowing where to start/stop with any specefic customer is the difference between a good bartender and a bad one. You can get a martini anywhere, you can't have a great time drinking it anywhere.

[whomper]

Thanks a lot everybody. The feedback has been awesome. TBimm I will pm you my number and we will talk next week after my first weekend of classes. I am going to the school today to talk to the guy and lay out the schedule. This should be a good experience. I would think the CC opportunity may be a good start like others said because it wouldnt be as hectic as a NYC bar. Another thing too is the CC would be mostly weddings and parties so 99% of the time that would be open bar which means I wouldnt have to handle cash or deal with tabs or anything like that.

 

Speaking of which. Does it get difficult to keep track of the cash ? Some people pay as they go , others run tabs etc. I agree with Detlef about it somewhat being a night out as well. I know I will be busting my ass but I would love to get into a place that have live music or something fun like that. I will be certified by the end of this month.

 

Here is a dumb question. Do bartenders get paid or is it strictly tips ?

[whomper]

Been at it for 13 years.

As others have said, it's more about the experience for the customer than the drink. You don't need to know how to make everything off the top of your head, but you do need to be able to talk about anything off the top of your head. I think of it as a fine line between giving the customer exactly what he/she wants and telling them to f off. Some will think it's funny if you call them a wuss for ordering a cosmo, some will walk out. Some want to hear your political views, some will get offended. Some want to know your thoughts on Peyton Manning, some will ask you who that is. Knowing where to start/stop with any specefic customer is the difference between a good bartender and a bad one. You can get a martini anywhere, you can't have a great time drinking it anywhere.

 

 

I think I will be ok in that area. I hope so anyway. I am in sales so I do a lot of socializing with my accounts and I think I can read people pretty well. I know which of my accounts I can let loose with and others that I need to be more conservative with. I think I know enough about most topics to get by. I can always refer to the huddle for political conversation. I will look up H8s posts as a model for how I will handle politcal chit chat.

[tazinib1]

Thanks a lot everybody. The feedback has been awesome. TBimm I will pm you my number and we will talk next week after my first weekend of classes. I am going to the school today to talk to the guy and lay out the schedule. This should be a good experience. I would think the CC opportunity may be a good start like others said because it wouldnt be as hectic as a NYC bar. Another thing too is the CC would be mostly weddings and parties so 99% of the time that would be open bar which means I wouldnt have to handle cash or deal with tabs or anything like that.

 

Speaking of which. Does it get difficult to keep track of the cash ? Some people pay as they go , others run tabs etc. I agree with Detlef about it somewhat being a night out as well. I know I will be busting my ass but I would love to get into a place that have live music or something fun like that. I will be certified by the end of this month.

 

Here is a dumb question. Do bartenders get paid or is it strictly tips ?

 

I don't know the laws in NYC, but here in CA, you would normally get paid minimum wage plus tips. Since you are gonna be working weddings/parties, it could very well be you would be getting a flat rate for the night plus tips. But like I said, not sure how it works over there on the right coast.

[fingfootball]

Speaking of which. Does it get difficult to keep track of the cash ? Some people pay as they go , others run tabs etc.

 

is a dumb question. Do bartenders get paid or is it strictly tips ?

 

 

I could never drink and keep my cash drawer straight. Also, when I first started I would get some guy that would hand me a $10 for a beer, I would make him change and then he would say "hey, I gave you a $20". After awhile I always tried to keep the customers money separated from the drawer until they got their change. Cant always do that in a rush.

 

Most pay, but its like server wages.

[Rebellab]

Not much to add here, other than like others have said if you are just looking for a little extra cash, the CC would be perfect. I tended bar in a Legion Club during college. Weekends and one night a week. They had lots of weddings and those were killer for tips. Young boozed up girls that you flirt with a little and they throw cash at you. I can't help with the foo-foo drinks like I said it was a legion club. First of all it was coke, cloudy, water, or charge and whiskey etc. The second thing was it didn't matter what it was, it was $1.75. I poopy you not. What a great time. We had to clean up every night. We would start to vacuum at 2 am and start in the far corner and push people out the door with this horribly loud vacuum.

[detlef]

Thanks a lot everybody. The feedback has been awesome. TBimm I will pm you my number and we will talk next week after my first weekend of classes. I am going to the school today to talk to the guy and lay out the schedule. This should be a good experience. I would think the CC opportunity may be a good start like others said because it wouldnt be as hectic as a NYC bar. Another thing too is the CC would be mostly weddings and parties so 99% of the time that would be open bar which means I wouldnt have to handle cash or deal with tabs or anything like that.

 

Speaking of which. Does it get difficult to keep track of the cash ? Some people pay as they go , others run tabs etc. I agree with Detlef about it somewhat being a night out as well. I know I will be busting my ass but I would love to get into a place that have live music or something fun like that. I will be certified by the end of this month.

 

Here is a dumb question. Do bartenders get paid or is it strictly tips ?

Our bartenders get paid better than waiters in terms of hourly but it is still very much driven by tips. Obviously in catering situations, the tips become more secondary as, like others have mentioned earlier, we pay the bartender (and servers for that matter) a flat rate of around $20/hour and pass that on to the client. They often get tipped on top but then it is truly a tip, not their primary means of compensation.

 

Like our sales in general, our bar is very dominated by credit cards, so you don't have to worry as much about keeping cash straight. That, of course, has a lot to do with the fact that we're primarily a restaurant. Not many simply come in for a beer or cocktail and nothing else. Regardless, I'm sure the school will discuss handling money and tabs.

 

I'll tell you this. If you don't want to piss off your boss, be sure to ring everything through as it is ordered. Waiters obviously have to because they don't make basically everything they sell so the dish or drink won't get made without it being rung in. Bartenders, of course, make half or more of what they sell, so this step could technically be omitted. However, as an owner, I see three things that could happen from this and only one of them is good. 1) The bartender could be ripping me off by giving away drinks, 2) they could be honest but forgetful and fail to recall how many drinks they sold, 3) The only way this works out is if they're both honest and on top of it. I'd, of course, vastly prefer they just take options 1 an 2 out of play and ring things up as they go. After all, if you're too busy to ring things up as you go, you're likely too busy to remember what you rang up when it comes time to settle. That doesn't mean the customer has to keep settling up as you go as you just open a tab on the computer the same way a waiter does with a table and simply add things as you go.

[i_am_the_swammi]

Whomp, I bartended for three summers during college at a golf/country club to make ends meet, and the money is phenomenal for the hours you work. You picked the perfect place to get started...a country club. wealthy folks with money to tip for the right level of service.

 

Think a bit about the clientele at a golf club/country club...mostly men/families. Its not a singles joint where your customers are going to be ordering every new shot craze that hits the street. You'll mostly be pouring beer, and mixing the standard drinks they'll be teaching you in school. The fact that its not a singles hangout should also make the wife a tad happier.

 

The best advice in this thread is to keep your personality on high-maintneance your entire shift...always remember your customer's names, introduce yourself to everyone, keep every glass full, and handle yourself in a manner appropriate to your enviornment. You'll do fine...the service industry does take some getting used to, though, if you haven't one it before...you are working for not only the country club, but the guy on the stool who might be a huge momo....he pays your tips, so sometimes, your "boss" can be a pain in the arse.

 

On a separate note, for some reason, I am picturing you as a older and heavier version of Matt Dillon in Flamingo Kid.

[wirehairman]

I tended bar as a part time job in college and for quite a few years after college as a second job. Most of the advice here is good. Just remember, the better time your customers are having, the better the tips. Remembering little things like a guy that wants his beer thrown in the ice for a few minutes for some perceived extra coldness will go a long way.

 

Personally, I always tried to find gigs at bars attached to nice restaurants. I was typically closing up shop by midnight, made as much in tips as the guys across town at the bars, and rarely had to deal with the beligerent drunks. It was nice to head out on Friday and Saturday night with a wad of cash in my pocket and a couple of hours to party with the rest of the staff.

 

I did do one stint at a CC, and the tips sucked. All the members charged everything to their accounts and were tight as hell. Weddings and christmas parties were the exception as many non-members were present.

[tazinib1]

Whomp, I bartended for three summers during college at a golf/country club to make ends meet, and the money is phenomenal for the hours you work. You picked the perfect place to get started...a country club. wealthy folks with money to tip for the right level of service.

 

Think a bit about the clientele at a golf club/country club...mostly men/families. Its not a singles joint where your customers are going to be ordering every new shot craze that hits the street. You'll mostly be pouring beer, and mixing the standard drinks they'll be teaching you in school. The fact that its not a singles hangout should also make the wife a tad happier.

 

The best advice in this thread is to keep your personality on high-maintneance your entire shift...always remember your customer's names, introduce yourself to everyone, keep every glass full, and handle yourself in a manner appropriate to your enviornment. You'll do fine...the service industry does take some getting used to, though, if you haven't one it before...you are working for not only the country club, but the guy on the stool who might be a huge momo....he pays your tips, so sometimes, your "boss" can be a pain in the arse.

 

On a separate note, for some reason, I am picturing you as a older and heavier version of Matt Dillon in Flamingo Kid.

 

 

I had him pictured as Lloyd from The Shinning

Edited December 30, 2008 by tazinib1

[Big Country]

I'm beginning to see in this thread that perhaps my ineptitude at being a bartender was at least in part a function of the fact that I worked in the bar of a popular Mexican restaurant in which the primary drinks being ordered were margaritas. Now, margaritas in and of themselves are fine, but it was when a party of six 20-something women showed up to an already overflowing bar and they each ordered a different flavor of frozen margarita that I felt in the weeds.

 

I think the major cause of your bartender ineptitude was that you could barely see over the bar, much less keep up with the drink orders.

[Sir Loins of Beef]

Your question about money--never put money into the drawer until change has been given--just leave the bill on top of the till and when you have given the correct change then finish --On the country club scene 90% or more will be charged to their CC account just put their name and number on top of each check you'll be running a lot of tabs but it's pretty easy to keep track because the faces will become familiar after awhile

[SteelBunz]

I'm beginning to see in this thread that perhaps my ineptitude at being a bartender was at least in part a function of the fact that I worked in the bar of a popular Mexican restaurant in which the primary drinks being ordered were margaritas. Now, margaritas in and of themselves are fine, but it was when a party of six 20-something women showed up to an already overflowing bar and they each ordered a different flavor of frozen margarita that I felt in the weeds.

LOL wiegie......that CAN be a PITA. I had a Saturday night waitress who used to purposely suggest 3 or 4 different frozen drinks. She thought they were "fun" drinks to suggest. Then at the end of the night, when the wait staff tipped me out for making their drinks, toss a couple bucks at me. I adored her personally......but she had NO IDEA she was slighting me in the least. Like a lot of restaurant bars, one bartender takes care of the bar patrons AND the service bar. She never waited for a thing.

 

So one night I ran her totals.....it showed I had accounted for $300 (bar total) of her $800 sales night. I looked at her and asked her.....if you made 15% on the $300.....that's $45 in tips off the bar. All you did was deliver them......lol. I only had ONE blender. Do you think $2 is fair? She'd honestly never thought of it like that. Old custom when the restaurant opened was "a buck to the bar" when tipping out bartenders and busboys at the end of the night. I understand she has to claim the sales......but come on.

 

After that night.....she was pretty generous. Especially if she had suggested a bunch of foo-foo drinks.

Edited December 30, 2008 by SteelBunz

[SteelBunz]

Your question about money--never put money into the drawer until change has been given--just leave the bill on top of the till and when you have given the correct change then finish --On the country club scene 90% or more will be charged to their CC account just put their name and number on top of each check you'll be running a lot of tabs but it's pretty easy to keep track because the faces will become familiar after awhile

 

Yep...but when running a tab.....ring up as you go and "red line" the round after you deliver them. That makes your manager happy. Tell you what.....I'm obsessive about my cash drawer too. If you are responsible for the bank.....don't let anyone else ring up or get into your cash drawer either. Just common sense. If YOU screw up.....then YOU screwed up. Don't take the fall for someone else's bad cash handling.

 

And you'll always have that bait and switch schemer. Probably not so much at the CC. But it always helps to casually say it outloud....."out of twenty, sir?" Reinforces in your mind and his what he's given you for the bill. And I don't know about anyone else here...but even if they said "keep the change"....I'd still bring their receipt back with change. Sometimes.....their math can be better if they see the bill in black and white.....and see the change in green......LOL. Just a personal preference.....sometimes people lose track when they drink.

Edited December 30, 2008 by SteelBunz

[wiegie]

Sometimes.....their math can be better if they see the bill in black and white.....and see the change in silver or bronze ......LOL. Just a personal preference.....sometimes people lose track when they drink.

amended

[godtomsatan]

Speaking of which. Does it get difficult to keep track of the cash ?

 

A trick I learned that I always use is to announce what they give you as they give it. You get a 20, say "out of $20" or somesuch, so they have an opportunity to call baloney, and it gets in your head exactly what they're giving you before you ring it up. You'll figure out a system and go with it. Cash handling isn't that much of a big deal if you're not stealing.

 

Here is a dumb question. Do bartenders get paid or is it strictly tips ?

 

Legally, I would assume that you have to be paid a wage, as an employee. Though I have a friend who pays his staff a flat $20/hr (cash and under the table) in lieu of either tips or wage.

 

Whenever I get calls that offer a one-off gig for functions or parties as I do a few times a year, I always take the tips without additional pay as it's very much my pleasure to flirt for an extra couple of bucks every time I pour a beverage.

[Vinatieri Is God]

I don't know about anyone else here...but even if they said "keep the change"....I'd still bring their receipt back with change. Sometimes.....their math can be better if they see the bill in black and white.....and see the change in green......LOL. Just a personal preference.....sometimes people lose track when they drink.

 

Especially when their tab is $37 and they hand over $40 along with a "keep the change". I always make a point to count it out, too. 38, 39 ,40. Kind of a di*k move but you'd be surprised how many people pull out more money. Either it was an honest mistake or worse they are trying to cheap out and you called them on it.

[SteelBunz]

Especially when their tab is $37 and they hand over $40 along with a "keep the change". I always make a point to count it out, too. 38, 39 ,40. Kind of a di*k move but you'd be surprised how many people pull out more money. Either it was an honest mistake or worse they are trying to cheap out and you called them on it.

LOL...if you do it nicely.....it's not being a d*ck. But yeah.....if they see the bill is $37....it eventually registers, "hey...$3 isn't enough" in their heads and they'll pull out more before they leave most times. You'll also have other people at the table who'll add to it sometimes. I'm always the last up from the table when my Mom has gotten the check......when she's not looking, I throw extra cash on the table.....LOL.

[tazinib1]

Especially when their tab is $37 and they hand over $40 along with a "keep the change". I always make a point to count it out, too. 38, 39 ,40. Kind of a di*k move but you'd be surprised how many people pull out more money. Either it was an honest mistake or worse they are trying to cheap out and you called them on it.

 

The sports bar I frequent is co-owned by 4 guys. 2 New Yorkers, 1 guy from Jersey and another from Philly. It has a very cool East Coast sports bar atmosphere to it. Let me tell ya, if you are at the bar for a few hours and say your goodbyes with a few bucks on the table, the PATRONS will let you know your a cheap schmuck and compel you to dish it out. I've seen it a million times lol. The cheap bastages that leave a couple bucks usually don't return or there just stubborn old men.

[SteelBunz]

The sports bar I frequent is co-owned by 4 guys. 2 New Yorkers, 1 guy from Jersey and another from Philly. It has a very cool East Coast sports bar atmosphere to it. Let me tell ya, if you are at the bar for a few hours and say your goodbyes with a few bucks on the table, the PATRONS will let you know your a cheap schmuck and compel you to dish it out. I've seen it a million times lol. The cheap bastages that leave a couple bucks usually don't return or there just stubborn old men.

 

Well.......this is an unusual case.......LOL. But I have to say, there's a weird dynamic if the owner is also the bartender. He's already getting his markup from the liquor sales. Personally.....I never tip an owner as much as I would an employee.

[detlef]

Well.......this is an unusual case.......LOL. But I have to say, there's a weird dynamic if the owner is also the bartender. He's already getting his markup from the liquor sales. Personally.....I never tip an owner as much as I would an employee.

More times than not, I refuse tips when I serve someone at the restaurant for exactly the reasons you give. This pretty much just happens at lunch when I run the floor and only those who come to the bar. When possible, we'll have one of the waiters take them even if I do most of the work so they get the tip. However, especially if it's someone I know and having a waiter initiate the service doesn't make sense, then I tell them to please not bother with a tip when I present the bill.