I am looking for a part time job for in the evenings, and I have been thinking about bartending. Im a service oriented person, and like to please customers. The problem is that I dont have any experience with alcohol, never drank or anything. Does anyone have any advice for me?
2006-07-16 16:51:27 · 14 answers · asked by deconstruct2000 1 in Food & Drink ➔ Beer, Wine & Spirits
don't have to drink it to serve it.... actually its better you dont.... it's all about confidence!!! know your drinks ask people what their favorites are and listen and retain it! Be honest with the bar owner and tell him/her that you are new to it all but very willing to learn!! you should get a good response!! I loved to hire newbies!! they were easy to mold and had no bad habits!!! The most important thing is making the customers happy but your boss happier, Nothing is free, and you can look but you can't touch!! My girls always made great money and we all went home happy!!
2006-07-16 16:59:57 · answer #1 · answered by justme 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Bartending can be an excellant part time job. With no experience you would be better off going to more of a local beer and shot kind of bar vs. the ritzy nightclubs. Be honest about your lack of experience, most places will train you to do things their way and no two places are the same. Even after 20 years behind the bar there are still drinks that I'm unsure of as the popular drinks and liquors are changing all the time. Knowing how to make the drinks is only half the job anyway, the other half is being able to make conversation about anything and everything to a very wide variety of different people, and the key is to listen and not control the conversations.
2006-07-17 02:40:57 · answer #2 · answered by wigrma2002 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Honestly, try waitstaff instead.
It will give you valuable experience with service and better exposure to the bar, then maybe if you bone-up on your alcohol, then it's something to consider going to later.
I totally disagree with the idea that you don't have to drink to be a bartender. You don't have to drink to pour alcohol or tap beer, but that's only about 20% of what you are there for. Bartenders are (or should be) the resident experts on alcohol. If you don't drink and don't know much about alcohol (like you stated) then you really have no advice to offer, no experience to draw from.
If I came into your bar and asked you about a new beer and you couldn't describe the taste to me, or tell me if it's an ale or a lager, etc...no offense, but I probably wouldn't order a second drink and would go someplace else. Reason: any place that hires bartenders with no knowledge of alcohol doesn't really care about the customer, and is probably skimping at other places too.
Good luck, but I'm not sure that bartending is for you.
Try to find something that you ENJOY doing and you will be much more successful at it.
Cheers.
2006-07-16 17:20:41 · answer #3 · answered by jkk109 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Avoid the "Bartending Colleges"... they are a scam. What you need is experience, and you need a job to get that. You will probably start as wait staff and move up to bartending. Go look for a job at a cocktail club and don't stop until you find one, if that's what you want to do. Bartenders make money through tips, so your physical appearance, skill, and speed will determine your income. Cute girls get the best tips, unless it's a gay bar or something, and I did get pretty good tips from the gay guys too.
Most places will want you to know the most popular drinks. There are obvious ones (Gina and Tonic, Rum and coke), and the less obvious ones (Manhatten, Cape Cod, etc.). You also need to know the techniques of pouring beer, wine and champagne, and what glasses to use with each (this varies from place to place). This is not as easy as it sounds... pouring a Guiness from the bottle is quite different from gettin a cheap beer on tap.
Drinks you will want to know without having to look up:
Manhatten
Long Island Iced Tea (There are variations of this, but they are rarely ordered - Strong Island, 3 Mile Island, etc)
Tequila Sunrise
Cape Cod
Cosmopolitan (the most popular of the Martinis)
Vodka Martini (shaken is the best method)
Gin Martini (people will say "Vodka" or nothing. If they just say Martini, they want the Gin variety)
White/Black Russian
Screwdriver
Lemon Drop (another popular Martini)
Daiquiri (Various fruits, but usually strawberry)
Margarita (Frozen and "On the Rocks")
Fuzzy Navel
Sea Breeze
(These are just the cocktails - there's a whole world of shots you should learn as well... most of them have funny names - [A Word Yahoo Censored], "Pixy Stix" and so on - these will vary from place to place, so you need to find out what's popular in your area)
That's just off the top of my head. Usually if someone orders a cocktail that you don't know, they will be able to tell you what's in it, but you will want to get a 'pocket coktail guide' to look things up. I have a much better job now, and I haven't tended bar in several years, so there's probably some things I forgot. There is a drink named after me... Jazzy's Coffee. It would be cool if you could help make it more popular :)
Jazzy's Coffee = Coffee and Buttershots (whipped cream optional)
2006-07-16 17:27:45 · answer #4 · answered by polly_peptide 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Start as a server first....learn the menu and what drinks look like when they are served. Buy a bartenders guide! I bartended for years and never drank. However, I was thankful I started as a server first....I was able to get everything else under my belt before having to memorize drinks.
2006-07-16 16:57:25 · answer #5 · answered by ? 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
When it comes to bartending most restaurants consider that a promotion from within. So it is very hard to go in as Bartender. Especially with no bar knowledge whatsoever. You go to a restaurant/bar start as server and learn the bar from there and try to get on a to a bar shift here and there.
2006-07-16 16:57:33 · answer #6 · answered by momofaliciaemily 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Don't worry. Most bartending concerns simply opening a beer bottle. Get online and learn how to make the basics and you'll do just fine. The only thing that worries me is the people pleaser thing. You'll learn with time. Just remember that some people are a**holes and cannot be pleased.
2006-07-16 20:15:56 · answer #7 · answered by nunya 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Go for it, its easy to learn on the job. If you make a drink once, you'll remember it. Bartending is not easy work, you are on your feet for hours at a time, but it is fun. Give it a try, you might like it.
2006-07-16 16:57:16 · answer #8 · answered by Diane 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
See if there is any small liquor bars in your area that is willing to teach you. Hands on experience is the best. I started that way when I was 21. It is a fun job. And being a non drinker is in your advantage. Put that on your application! I owned a bar when I was in my 40's, and that's how I hired my girls. I trained them myself. Today their running their own places. I have since retired from the bar business and own a consignment shop. Good Luck. Theirs good money to be made with the right personality and smile!
2006-07-17 04:44:11 · answer #9 · answered by ASTORROSE 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
try going to the major hotels and apply to work in the banquet department where they use bartenders for both cash and host bars and buy the bartenders guide for everyday knowledge
2006-07-16 17:13:31 · answer #10 · answered by jose d 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋