Bartender Careers

How To Become A Bartender

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 15:47:00 +0000

by tom c.
Gather.com Articles

One of the more interesting jobs an individual can ever have is that of a bartender, and a person desiring to become a bartender has a number of career paths that are available to gain employment in the field. In it's most basic of incarnations as a career, a bartender can simply be the person pouring draft beers and shots of liquor in a blue-collar tavern. At the the pinnacle of the occupation is the bartender that is truly a mixologist, serving drinks at a top-notch establishment to the most discriminating clientele. While the first example requires little training to become a bartender, the second requires extensive training and knowledge of drink recipes in order to gain employment.

To become a bartender skills must be learned through some sort of comprehensive training designed to teach the finer aspects of the food and beverage industry. While a bartender serves and mixes drinks for a living, it is not their only duty as bartenders usually order liquor, handle cash at the point of sale and balance and account for receipts. Added to this, a successful bartender has to present a certain demeanor that is aimed specifically toward good customer service, have a thick-skin, and be able to handle the occasional intoxicated patron in a compassionate but firm manner. All of these skills can be learned by attending a bartending course in the local community, and there are even some courses available online. While the duration of these bartending courses vary from a few days to a few months, they are critical to complete for an individual that hopes to become a bartender.

In addition to formal training to become a bartender, the career demands a certain amount of continuing education to achieve constant professional growth and improve employment opportunities. There are literally thousands of mixed drink recipes already created, with hundreds more new ones becoming popular every year and a bartender has to keep up to date on what customers may want.

Once a person feels that they possess the knowledge and skill to become a bartender they can test the job market by making the rounds submitting employment applications. In addition to bars and taverns, bartenders are in demand at hotels, clubs, party centers and golf courses so there should be no shortage of possible employers. While some of the employment opportunities are only part time, these jobs are still a great way for someone that wants to be a bartender to get their feet wet in the career.

Get some bartender training

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 14:39:00 +0000

you can learn each and every details of bartending profession online and can be an expert of this. Do not need to go to any institution and any other oraganisation just click once on this site and you

http://bartending.com can help you the most if you really want to have some bartending training and if you really interested in bartending. Drink is a very common essentiality as far as any social gathering is concerned. Guests really prefer talking with a cup of coffee or any other beverages. There is no doubt about the fact that non alcoholic drinks are the most easiest to serve in numerous social gathering. This is the best among all the online bartending schools. Here with the experts you can learn the very tiny facts behind the profession of bartending. Just join the community and forums of this site so that you can learn bartending without any huge effort. There are numerous bartending schools over the internet. This is such a nice and interesting facility that one can have from the very home and can be a professional bar tender with the lessons and discussions that this site publishes. There are lot of recipes and details of drinks that you can find on this site.
Even you can submit your resume in to this site so that the tycoons of this industry can be attracted and hire you. You can also find a wide scope in bartending if you give your details on this site. Numerous people hire bar tenders for any social gathering or any family parties. They can have the contact details and can have an easy access and hire you. This is really an amazing facility for both the bartender as well as the host. Just into this site to get numerous bar tending tricks and learn bar tending to become the best bar tender. There is an ample scope of bartenders in this fast life.

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A woman bartender: Mixing the heady cocktail of her choice

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:42:00 +0000

Neha Dewan, ET Bureau

By her own admission, this is a ‘unique profession.’ But she wouldn’t have it any other way. For 27-year-old Dhanashree Punekar, bartending has been nothing short of a heady cocktail, quite literally!

Hailing from a Maharashtrian middle-class family, Punekar describes her four-year-old bartender stint as a ‘happy’ one. "I worked as a chef earlier but realised that it was not what I wanted to do. I did a six-months course from the Stir Academy of Bartending and never looked back. I have been freelancing at events and parties," she says, the enthusiasm evident in her voice.

Currently, Punekar also teaches students at the academy together with offering consultancy services for bars. She feels lucky to have a supportive family who never questioned her choice. "Neither my parents nor my husband or in-laws ever had any apprehensions. Things were clear from the beginning and they understood that it could mean late hours during events or parties. I feel lucky...not everyone would have been as supportive."

Punekar recounts some funny moments that she often goes through as a woman bartender. "Sometimes men are so surprised seeing a woman serving drinks that they shy away! As far as women are concerned, they are only too comfortable!"

But did she also face any challenges in this male-dominated profes-sion? "Fortunately, I have not faced any bad experience. The men bartending with me at events are almost like bodyguards! Serving behind the counter is safe enough...the wide space acts as a good safety shield," sums up Punekar.

Bartender Buddha

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 02:40:00 +0000

Pearls of wisdom from Nicole LaFrance
By Melissa Byron
Source: Hartfordadvocate.com

How many beers do you have on tap?
We have 20 draft beers, the Southern Tier Choklat Stout is very up and coming. Southern Tier also has a mocha and a crème-brûlée-flavored beer. We carry 90 bottles. Our most unique being the Unibroue beers. They have fun bottles. They're approximately 750ML, which is the equivalent to a wine bottle. These beers are light and the flavors are delicious. This beer surpasses any other beer.

What's the biggest misconception about bartenders?
Honestly, I think people assume that if you are bartending you are either stupid or have no future. There are a lot of people that have an educated background and sort of fell into it and love it. Plus, you make a lot of money.

The move that works every time?
You gotta pull the baller status. Buy something impressive like a bottle of wine and offer some to those around you. I've seen that work.

Sexiest drink?
The Niagara Kiss, it's one of our signature drinks. Presentation-wise, it looks like there are diamonds floating in it. It sparkles. It has Grey Goose, Inniskillin Vidal Icewine, which is sweet in taste, served with a frozen grape.

Who's the best bartender you've ever seen?
"Mojo" Maureen McDonald. She is our mixologist here. I've worked with her in my previous establishment. She's taking classes in wine making and she works at Cassidy Hill Vineyard in Coventry. She's the most amazing bartender I've ever seen.

Behind Bars: Stay in school

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 05:41:00 +0000

– bartending school, that is

by CHRISTINE HARRISON
http://www.marconews.com/news/2010/feb/12/behind-bars-stay-school-bartending-school/

Ariel Heinspeter went to bartending school to study to become a bartender. After graduation, she went right to Porky’s Last Stand, where she has been working at her dream job since August.

“I love my job. The atmosphere here is really nice. Lots of nice people and happy faces,” says Heinspeter. Every night is different, according to Heinzpeter. Tuesday night is karaoke night, Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights feature live entertainment and dancing, then there are ladies’ night, pool night, pizza parties, raffles and happy hours.

“We have a very good happy hour, for sure,” says Heinspeter. “There’s food available free, $1.50 drafts, you can stay and have a great time. On Sunday, happy hour is all day, and we open at 10 o’clock for breakfast,” she says.

Heinspeter thinks that’s one reason Porky’s is so popular. “Yesterday, we had 103 reservations, just for the bar,” she says. That was karaoke night. “There wasn’t even room to dance,” says Heinspeter. “People just wiggled in their chairs.”

Of all the things Heinspeter likes about working at Porky’s, her favorite is making specialty drinks for her customers. “Ever since bartending school, one of my favorites to make is a Long Island Iced Tea, says Heinspeter. “I don’t even know why, exactly, except that it uses almost everything in the well.”

In school, they would practice with empty bottles, so not to waste liquor. “Even on the last day,” she says. Heinspeter says bartending school was a great experience, and very worthwhile. “I graduated from high school and just decided to do it,” says Heinspeter.

To make a Long Island Iced Tea, according to Heinspeter, use vodka, gin, white rum, triple sec and whiskey. Fill it up, add a splash of Coke and lemon, and add ice. She says that if you add Blue Caracao, it will be a pretty shade of blue.

“I’ve been told I make really good Manhattans,” says Heinspeter. “I put my own little something in them. I use a few drops of cherry Grenadine. And, I make them extra-cold.”

Heinspeter was worried about passing the exams at bartending school, where they were given a written test and a speed test. Students had to make 12 drinks in five minutes. “It was just little old me and a bunch of grown adults,” says Heinspeter. “I was so nervous.”

Heinspeter says her sister, Andrea, took the class with her, which made things fun. Andrea works at Porky’s too, and sometimes, the two work as a team.

The restaurant and bar at Porky’s work together, too. The menu is the same, and you can order from the bar. “Come in, and get to know us,” says Heinspeter. “Before you know it, you’ll be family.”

Mix the perfect drink

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:06:00 +0000

Bartending tips help correct some common mistakes
By Margaret Sheridan, Special to the Tribune

Home entertaining requires juggling three roles: host, chef and bartender. Of the three, the bartender is most crucial. It sets the mood. Proffering that first flute of bubbly or a pilsner in a sleek chilled glass has immediate impact. It spells welcome and whets the appetite.

Whether you're tossing a Super Bowl chili bash or potluck for neighbors, playing bartender lets you customize entertaining. What you pour can enhance a theme and menu.

To sharpen skills for winter entertaining, we asked three experts for tips on correcting common mistakes in bartending. "Having a party isn't the time to serve new cocktails," says Tony Abou-Ganim, a Las Vegas-based hospitality consultant and author. Limit the scope of what you pour, offer drinks you're familiar with and buy quality ingredients. "Don't guess. Use tested recipes. They're engineered to balance taste and flavor, sweet and sour."

Hosts create stress by leaving details to the last minute, Toby Maloney says. Put the bar close to a sink, have plenty of trash containers at strategic locations and double the amount of garnishes, advises the head mixologist and partner of The Violet Hour in Wicker Park. "When the guests arrive is not the time to be squeezing lemons."

Being a solo host/chef/bartender requires a reality check. "Simplify everything," says Carlyn Berghoff, CEO of Berghoff Catering & Restaurant Group. "The larger the gathering, the less complicated the food and drinks should be."

Tips

Ice: It's the most overlooked ingredient. Ice, like a sponge, absorbs flavors. Stale ice can ruin the taste of a drink. Make a fresh batch of cubes or a block with bottled or filtered water to avoid off flavors.

Numbers game: Figure 1 quart of liquor for every 10 to 12 drinkers. One bottle of wine for two to three drinkers. Three bottles of beer for every beer drinker. Enlist or hire one helper for every 20 guests.

Pitcher perfect: If a full bar is out of the budget or beyond your skills, offer beer, wine and one signature drink. Opt for a pitcher of white sangria, mugs of mulled wine or a seasonal punch.

Cold on cold: Serve all mixers (soda, tonic, cola, ginger ale) cold. A mixer, poured over ice at room temperature, will hasten the demise of a gin and tonic by diluting it.

Sweet correction: Overly tart drinks such as a margarita or daiquiri can be saved by an additional slash of orange liqueur or homemade simple syrup.

Legal ease: Big party? Over 20 guests? Be sure the bartender is of legal age. Check your insurance policy. Whatever happens is your responsibility.

Copyright © 2010, Chicago Tribune

How to be a superstar bartender

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 10:26:00 +0000

By GARY REGAN
SPECIAL TO SFGATE.COM
http://www.seattlepi.com/food/414468_bartending21.html

If you want to learn how to mix drinks like a pro, you probably don't want to do what I did in 1973, when I was starting out behind the stick in the United States. I found a bar where the bartenders knew what they were doing, and I became a regular there, sitting at the end of the bar, listening to the wait staff ordering drinks and watching the bartenders make them, every night for about a month. My liver took an awful pounding.

Rather than suggesting that you go through that same arduous ordeal, I'll walk you through 10 steps that will put you on the path toward bartender superstardom. Well, something like that. Before we begin, know this: If you believe that you know what you're doing, and if you can pull it off without apology, you're 90 percent there.

1. Measuring ingredients

Measuring liquid ingredients precisely is a cinch if you use a jigger - the device you've seen bartenders use that looks like two tiny metal ice cream cones joined at the base. New jiggers - specifically the Oxo brand - look like miniature jugs with lines that let you know how much liquor you're pouring.

There's nothing wrong with using a jigger, and some of today's best bartenders do exactly that, though other equally accomplished mixologists use the free-pouring method. Here's how it's done: Fit a bottle full of water with any brand of pour spout - different styles pour at different speeds. Pour into the 1-ounce side of a jigger, counting in your head, until you have poured an ounce. Repeat. Repeat again. Soon you will know what number to count to in order to pour an ounce, and once you know your number you'll be able to accurately pour without a jigger for the rest of your life. Providing you use the same brand of pourer, that is.

2. Shaking

All drinks containing eggs, dairy products or fruit juices should be shaken, while drinks such as the dry gin martini and the Manhattan should be stirred. Although some bartenders like to shake martinis, nobody worth his or her Margarita salt would ever stir a drink that called for, say, lemon juice, milk or an egg white.

It's also good to know that as you chill the drink, you're also trying to incorporate enough water to make the cocktail palatable: One ounce of a 4-ounce drink that's been properly stirred or shaken will be water melted from ice.

Although metal cocktail shakers that include a built-in strainer look pretty spiffy, I far prefer to use a Boston shaker. The Boston shaker is made up of two flat-bottomed cones, one metal, one glass. There's something about this piece of equipment that makes me think that anyone who can use it properly means business. It's a serious tool. And it's a cinch to master.

Pour in the ingredients for the drink, fill the mixing-glass half of the shaker about two-thirds full of ice and place the metal half on top of the glass, giving it a sharp tap to ensure you have formed a watertight seal.

Now hold the shaker with both hands - one on the glass part, the other on the metal - and make sure that the glass points toward your shoulder as you shake. There have been occasions when the glass has flown from the shaker, and if that happens, you don't want it to fly into the room in front of you. Far better that it hits your shoulder, right?

Now I'll let you in on the secret of shaking drinks like a pro: You gotta shake that darned thing as if your life depended on it. Shake it as if you're trying to mix oil and water. Make a stupid face as you're shaking - everyone does this, you know. And shake it for at least 15 seconds if you want your drink to be cold enough.

Now you have to break that shaker apart. Hold the metal half in one hand so the glass is on top, and using the heel of your other hand, tap the metal sharply at the point where the two are joined.

The Mai Tai

Makes 1 serving

1 1/2 ounces 10 Cane rum
1/2 ounce Wray & Nephew overproof rum
1/2 ounce Grand Marnier
3/4 ounce orgeat syrup
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1 mint sprig, for garnish

Instructions: Pub all ingredients except garnish into a cocktail shaker. Fill shaker two-thirds full of ice and shake for approximately 15 seconds. Strain into a old-fashioned glass filled with crushed ice. Add the garnish.

3. Stirring

Take the mixing-glass half of a Boston shaker, pour in the ingredients, fill the glass about two-thirds full of ice and grab your trusty bar spoon. Note that your bar spoon has a twisted shaft. It's a functional part of the design.

Hold the twisted part of the shaft of the spoon between your thumb and first two fingers. Plunge the spoon into the mixing glass, and twirl the spoon back and forth by moving your fingers away from, then toward yourself. While you're doing this you should also be moving the spoon up and down in the glass. Stir the drink for between 20 and 30 seconds to achieve the desired temperature.

The Rob Roy

Makes 1 serving

2 ounces Chivas Regal 18-year-old or other scotch
1 ounce Noilly Prat sweet vermouth
2 dashes Peychaud's bitters
1 maraschino cherry, for garnish

Instructions: Place all ingredients except the garnish in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add the garnish.

4. Straining

One of my favorite bartenders used to strain drinks through her fingers, and that was a thing of great beauty, but I'm guessing that you'll want to be just a tad more conventional, so I'll guide to as to how to use both a spring-loaded Hawthorne strainer and a standard Julep strainer. The Hawthorne strainer should be used when pouring from the metal half of a Boston shaker; the Julep strainer is used to strain drinks from the mixing glass.

Sit the Hawthorne strainer firmly onto the mouth of the metal cone, or allow the Julep strainer to rest inside the mixing glass. Place your index finger over the top of the strainer to hold it firmly in place and strain the drink into the serving glass. When you get to the last drop, give the glass a sharp twist in any direction as you return it to an upright position, so any remaining drops of liquid don't fall on the bar. It's this twist that makes you look like a pro, so practice it a few times before you perform the maneuver in front of your friends.

5. Muddling

If you can muddle like you mean it, people are going to take you very seriously. Muddlers - basically, pestles for bartenders - come in all shapes, sizes and materials. I prefer wooden muddlers because they feel good, look good and by golly they muddle good, too.

You're going to need a sturdy glass in which to muddle because, depending on the ingredients in question, you might have to put some elbow grease into this. Put a sugar cube into a double old-fashioned glass, douse it liberally with bitters, grab your muddler by the tail, and crush all heck out of that sugar cube until it has completely dissolved into the bitters. If you think you did a good job, you might want to think about adding some ice and whiskey and having a nice Old-Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail.

When muddling herbs, you need to be a little more gentle, lest you release the bitterness from their stems. You're just looking to gently squeeze the essential oils out of, say, some mint leaves, and flavor the simple syrup that's in the glass. The real secret behind muddling is to make sure you tell your guest what you're doing and why you're doing it: "I'm being gentle with this mint because ..." Now you're muddling and showing off at the same time. Just like a real bartender.

6. Making a citrus twist

Citrus twists - the strips of fruit zest that incorporate a little of the white inner pith for sturdiness - add aroma and flavor to a cocktail when the bartender releases their essential oils onto the top of a drink. Try to make twists at least 1/2 inch wide so you have enough citrus oils to make a difference. Some people use a zester, which can yield a pretty-looking garnish, but the idea of introducing essential oils to the drink gets lost.

Hold the twist over the cocktail with the colored side pointing toward the surface of the drink. Hold the twist between your thumb and forefinger. Turn one end clockwise and the other counterclockwise. The oils will be released and will fall onto the top of the drink. Now rub the colored side of the twist around the rim of the glass so that any remaining oils adhere to the rim of the glass, and drop the twist into the drink.

Wanna get flashy? You can set a flame to those oils and watch them sparkle as they fly from the twist. Cut a very wide twist, and place it on the bar next to the drink with the colored side resting on the bar. Now light a match or a toothpick, and hold it close to the top of the drink. Take the twist in your other hand and hold it, colored side out, by the sides, using your thumb on one side and your first two or three fingers on the other side. Hold the twist over the flame - for orange twists, it's good to give it a couple of seconds to coax the oils to the surface - and squeeze it to release its oils. Blow out the match, drop the twist into the drink and look at the admiration in the eyes of your guest.

Manhattan East

Makes 1 serving

Adapted from a recipe by Dale DeGroff

1 1/2 ounces Makers Mark or other bourbon
1/2 ounce dry sake
2 dashes Peychaud's Bitters
1 ounce Domain de Canton ginger liqueur
1 flamed orange twist, for garnish

Instructions: Place all ingredients except the garnish in a mixing glass. Add ice and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Light a match and hold it close to the top of the drink. Take the orange twist in your other hand and hold it by the sides. (The colored side of the twist should be pointing toward the drink.) Now hold the twist over the match and squeeze it to release its oils. Drop the twist into the drink.

7. Using herbs

It's important to match the scent of the herb with the appropriate cocktail. Rosemary and thyme, for instance, work really well with gin-based drinks; cilantro works in Bloody Marys and with tequila; and mint is commonly called for in the Mojito, and of course, the Mint Julep. You'll find that if you place, say, a sprig of mint in your palm, and slap it with your other hand, immediately before placing it on top of the drink, the aroma will be more intense.

You can also muddle herbs as described above, or you can simply put a sprig of this or that into your shaker or mixing glass with the rest of the ingredients in the drink-when you stir or shake the cocktail, the herb's flavors will be released, though they will be a little more delicate than they would have been had the herb been muddled.

The Mint Julep

Makes 1 serving

2 to 3 ounces bourbon
1 to 2 ounces simple syrup
8 to 12 stems of fresh mint, as an aromatic garnish

Instructions: Cut straws so that they are approximately 2 inches taller than the serving glass. (If you don't have a silver julep cup, a tall slender collins glass works very well.) Add crushed ice to the cup or glass until it is two-thirds full. Add the bourbon and the syrup, and stir for 10 to 20 seconds. Add more crushed ice and stir again until a thin layer of ice forms on the outside of the glass, then add more crushed ice so that it domes slightly over the rim of the glass. Garnish with the fresh mint stems, and insert the straws. Serve with a cocktail napkin to catch the condensation.

8. Rimming glasses

If you want to coat the rim of a cocktail glass with salt, sugar or perhaps a little finely grated orange zest, fill a shallow saucer with the coating material of your choice, and moisten the rim of the glass. To moisten the rim, you can slot a wedge of lemon or lime over the rim and squeeze it gently as you slide the wedge around the rim until the whole perimeter is moist. Alternatively you might dip the glass into a shallow saucer full of one of the drink's ingredients. Cointreau, for example, works well for both the Sidecar and the Margarita.

Now comes the part that many people get wrong. Don't just dip the glass into the saucer - if you do, the dry ingredient will stick to the interior of the glass, where it isn't wanted. Instead, take the base of the glass in one hand, and rest the bowl on the index finger of your free hand so that the rim faces downward at a 45-degree angle, allowing the rim to rest on the surface of the dry ingredient. Now simply rotate the glass until the whole rim is coated. Voila!

The Margarita

Makes 1 serving

3 ounces 100-percent agave white or reposado tequila
2 ounces Cointreau
1 ounce fresh lime juice

Instructions: Add all ingredients to a cocktail shakes. Add ice and shake for 10 to 15 seconds. Strain into a chilled, salt-rimmed cocktail glass.

9. Chilling glasses

Just as good chefs serve their hot food on warm plates, cold drinks should be served in chilled glasses. If you have room in your refrigerator or freezer to store glasses, that's exactly what you should do. If not, you can keep upturned glasses on a mound of crushed ice in a large bowl - this works well at parties - or you can fill the glasses with ice and water and let them sit in the sink while you mix the drink. Before pouring the drink, you must empty the glass of the ice and water by holding it by the base or the stem, and shaking the glass vigorously over the sink. The cold water will spill over the outside of the glass, chilling it thoroughly. After emptying the glass, shake it vigorously to rid it of any last drops of water.

10. Rinsing glasses

"Rinsing" glasses is a fine way to incorporate a small amount of a liqueur or spirit to a drink by coating the interior of the glass. This is easily achieved by pouring about a half-ounce into the glass, tilting it so that the liquid reaches the rim, then rotating the glass until the entire interior has been coated. Then you simply discard the excess liqueur and strain your cocktail into the glass.

Every time I make a Sazerac I think about how much the absinthe-makers must love this drink, simply because the absinthe rinse requires more absinthe to be poured down the drain than remains in the glass. There is a way to avoid such waste, if you care to invest in a small atomizer. You can coat the interior of the glass by merely pointing and clicking.

The Sazerac

Makes 1 serving

1/2 ounce absinthe
3 ounces straight rye whiskey
1/3 ounce simple syrup
3 dashes Peychaud's bitters
1 lemon twist, for garnish

Instructions: Pour the absinthe substitute into a chilled old-fashioned glass. Swirl the glass to coat the interior and discard the excess liquid. Place the whiskey, syrup and bitters into a mixing glass. Add ice, stir and strain into the glass. Add the garnish.

For how-to videos, go to sfgate.com/ZJCP.

Gary Regan is the author of "The Joy of Mixology" and other books. E-mail him at wine@sfchronicle.com.

Job-Seekers Start Bartending To Make Quick Cash

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 10:20:00 +0000

By Josh Green,
Source: NBC17

She was a second grade teacher, then an event planner, a marketing director, then a retail manager. Although Ally Fischman graduated college just four years, she's fed up with job hunting.

"It's not only tough for me; it's tough for everybody right now," she said as she sat in class at Raleigh's Bartending School. "It might be harder for people like me with a major that you can do so much."

The communications major just graduated from the school in Raleigh among a class-full of others who are going through job transitions.

"I've been here long enough to see a couple different recessions," said Anthony D'Agostino, Director of Raleigh's Bartending School. "When something like this happens - there does seem to be an influx in at least interest in the industry itself."

Some are looking for quick cash.

"Just the average bartender in this area ... the Triangle, basically ... between $150 and $300 bucks a night," said D'Agostino. "If you're a dead-head behind the bar with no personality ... you're probably going to make the lower end of the spectrum there. Just the nature of the industry: somebody's going to come up, they're going to leave a dollar behind."

Happy New Year from Bartender Careers

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 12:35:00 +0000

We at Bartender Careers would like to greet everyone a Happy New Year! May we get more blessings in 2010.

Here are some suggested new readings about bartending:

Home Bartending Tips
By Bridget Albert
Source: Oprah.com
When you're throwing a cocktail party, it's essential to prepare your home bar. Here's advice on how to make sure your bar is well stocked and ready to serve

Bartender Buddha
Pearls of wisdom from Amanda Craig
By Melissa Byron
Source: Hartford Advocate

Tending to their needs
By Sheryl Julian
Source: Boston Globe

Drinks to ring in the new year
Source: Chron.com Blogs
As we say goodbye to the aughts, let's welcome the teens with a new approach to drinks. Whether it's an upgrade to the ice in your cocktail or a brand-new bubbly mix, start the decade out right with quality and flair.

Bartending Through Recession

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 16:20:00 +0000

Read through this article entitled Bartenders/Servers Struggling Through Recession where it talks about how tips received by bartenders go down due to the economic crisis.

"During these economic times, people are coming up with some basic ways to save money. That's bad news for area servers and bartenders who depend mostly on tips to make a living."

Read through the rest of the article by clicking here, and let me know your comments.

Ask the Bartender: How Can I Learn the Trade?

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:30:00 +0000

That’s a good question for the person who pours your favorite drink.
By Maggie Savarino
Excerpted from The Seattle Weekly

What's the best way to learn to bartend? I'm not looking to change professions, I just want to have a bigger repertoire at home than the martini and margarita. I feel like I'm in a rut.

—Randy

First, let's lower those expectations. Bartending is a specialized field that takes years to learn. A cooking class can teach you to make a few wonderful and basic salad dressings, but that's not going to be the same as what the pantry chef can whip up at the Herbfarm.

Such is the case with bartending. Sounds like you just want to learn how to make better drinks at home, and luckily you can do that one drink at a time—at a bar.

First off, don't get wrapped up in the myriad Bartending 101 books. These are great for looking up recipes, but then so is Google. The books also generally assume you want to be a bartender. You don't—you just want to be a better drinker. So start with a real live professional instead.

Next time you go to a bar, sit near the well and order your favorite drink—let's say a Manhattan. Ask the bartender to make it his or her favorite way, ask questions, and take notes. If a customer orders a Manhattan, bartenders have to make a drink that fits a certain spectrum of generally expected flavor, something near two ounces of whiskey, a half-ounce of sweet vermouth, and a dash of bitters. Give us license, and that's when you can learn something.

Within that simple Manhattan recipe are infinite variations that you can try at home without having to follow any of the rules or expectations a working bartender might. The most popular sweet vermouth at bars, for example, is Martini & Rossi, mostly due to its price. But I don't let that crap into my house.

Experiment at home with vermouths that may cost a bit more. Hunt for them at wine shops and grocery stores with strong selections, or ask your local wine seller to bring in a few bottles for you. Do the same with the bitters. Angostura is the classic, but with so many different bitters on the market, you might eventually become as obsessed with finding your favorite bitters as some people are with finding a signature cologne.

Repeat the process with another favorite drink, or take the ratios for the Manhattan recipe you got and substitute rum or bourbon. Play around. Easier said than done, but there isn't a boozy mistake you can make here that a few ice cubes and some ginger ale can't fix.

The bar isn't the only place to find inspiration. If you like dark or aged rum, for example, look at cookbooks and online for desserts and other dishes using rum. See what fruits and spices go into a dish, and play around with them in a glass.

Don't get discouraged because you're not a bartender; just start with the basics and experiment on your friends. Making drinks at home allows you to do things far too tedious for bars to do—like soaking cinnamon, apples, and pears in vermouth to make a batch of something that might once have resembled a Manhattan, but now requires tequila and some weird can of grass jelly from Uwajimaya.

Got a question for the bartender? Send your boozy plea to msavarino@seattleweekly.com.

A Bartender at Home

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:31:00 +0000

By Cheryl Tan
Source: WSJ Online
Having been a bartender at the Oak Bar in New York City's Plaza hotel since the 1980s, Orlando Rivera has served fancy cocktails to many a bold-faced name. But when Mr. Rivera entertains at home, he likes to keep his drinks low-key. For him, it's not about complicated drinks or flashy mixing displays. "The goal is to make the experience enjoyable for you and your guests," he says.

For those just learning to mix cocktails, he recommends the book "Mr. Boston: Official Bartender's Guide," which he calls "an important reference book we use at the Oak Bar." But he notes that the basic rules are that clear and light-colored liquors such as vodka go well with mixers such as orange, grapefruit or cranberry juice. While bourbon works with mixers, other dark-colored liquors generally don't. "Don't come to my bar and ask for Johnny Walker Black with Coke," he says. "If you're going to do that, we're not going to be friends."

When mixing a drink, the key is to make sure that the combination has been shaken together well, Mr. Rivera says. You have to think of yourself as "a portable blender," he explains, noting that he usually gives a cocktail shaker 10 to 15 vigorous shakes on average. "You must feel the cup getting ice-cold," he adds. "If you have that feeling that it's really, really cold and your hands can really feel it, that's when you know it's done."

For most drinks that are served on the rocks, he likes to use three or four large ice cubes; big ones melt slowly and don't dilute a drink too much.

Another tip: Don't make your drinks too strong. "You don't want someone to get intoxicated at your party—that's the last thing you need," he says. "You want people to have a good time."

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page D8

Bartenders for hire

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:27:00 +0000

By SARAH E. MORAN
For The Times Herald

Sara Moody’s cup is overflowing with business this holiday season.

Moody is the 26-year-old owner of Swig, a contract bartending business she started on the side two years ago after graduating from West Chester University with a marketing degree.
She developed Swig into a full-time entrepreneurial venture when she was recently laid off from her job at an interactive marketing agency.

Today, Moody employs 20 contract bartenders — she calls them “swigtenders” — who travel hither and yon to sling drinks at parties, restaurants and other events in Chester County and environs.

She cut her bartending teeth at the Four Dogs Tavern in Marshalton, where she worked for eight years — first as a hostess during high school (she graduated from the former Downingtown High School in 2001) and later as a bartender while she was at West Chester University.

Swig provides bartenders and supplies — glasses, napkins, shakers and the like — at a wide range of venues, from “banks and art galleries, colleges and offices to private homes — people’s garages, backyards and dining rooms,” Moody said.

Clients run the gamut from the extremely well-heeled to those who simply want to enjoy their own event and leave the mixings, be it alcoholic or non-, to a hired hand.

Take, for instance, Thursday night’s fundraising event at Penn Liberty Bank’s East Goshen branch to benefit Menzfit, a Philadelphia non-profit group that provides gently used suits and other professional work clothing to needy men. The event was sponsored by the Colby Kirby Team at Keller Williams Real Estate’s West Whiteland office.

Moody and her staff mixed and served drinks from behind several bank teller windows - not unlike bellying up to a bar, observed Colby Kirby Team real estate agent Nicole Marcum, who hired Swig for the benefit and uses the company regularly for various events.

Commented Marcum, “Sara is professional and lots of fun. An important piece for us is that she’s always on time. And she’s creative.”

Case in point: Most drinks Thursday night were on the house, but, for a $1 donation to Menzfit per drink, Moody and her staff shook up the Suitini - a pomegranate martini named in honor of the non-profit.

Moody combs Web sites and talks with other bartenders to come up with new and unusual specialty drinks and the latest imbibing trends. Sweet tea vodka-based drinks, using flavored teas, are popular right now, as are fruit-infused martinis.

A recent addition to Swig’s repertoire: A lychee martini, flavored with pureed lychee nuts (the consistency is that of fresh pureed pear) and garnished with a lychee nut.

Her major competition is event staffing companies, many of them large and highly competitive on pricing.

Moody doesn’t have a liquor license, so she can’t provide the alcohol itself. But she does give her clients a shopping list of exactly what to buy and how much. She also provides supplies such as shakers, pourers, wine keys and bottle openers, as well as plastic cups, ice, napkins and mixers for about $1 per person.

A new Swig wrinkle is that Moody now offers a “green” option - suggesting a list of organic wines and liquors as well as providing organic mixers, cups, napkins and other environmentally friendly products for an event.

A Swig bartender costs between $140 and $160 for a four-hour stint. Moody’s bartenders have extensive barkeep experience and work for Swig on the side, many holding down day jobs as nurses, gardeners, jewelers and the like, Moody said.

Swig bartenders routinely card people at events, which can make for some sticky situations. Wedding guests are the most likely to get angry about being asked for I.D. Moody said, either “because they’re truly underage or they don’t have their identification with them.”

The bartending business also has its fair share of funny stories.

One client at a recent event asked Moody to haul away every bit of bar trash. She paid her bartenders to load up their cars, hers included, with odiferous trash bags for an unscheduled stop at the dump.

“Our cars stank for a week,” Moody recalled with a rueful laugh.

Behind the bar at Ernie's with Maura Schuster

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 12:20:00 +0000

By Nancy Levine in Behind the Bar
Source: Blogs.Westword.com
After stints at LoHi SteakBar and Caldonia's, Maura Schuster is now behind the bar at Ernie's Bar & Pizza. The place is new, but the bar is old-school, complete with a back bar salvaged from the old Armory in Greeley. And Schuster is an old-school bartender, "not a big performance/flair bartender," she explains, "with the exception of spinning glasses and bottles around sometimes -- and I mostly do that for speed."

And don't even mention Tom Cruise in Cocktail. "Oh, my God, I hate that movie," she says.

Now serving: Maura Schuster.

How did you get into bartending? I was in college, and I desperately needed a job. I was hired at Red Lobster as a bartender, and after two weeks, totally confident of my newfound skills, I felt that I was ready for a "real" bartending job. I confidently went to the nicest bar I could find in the college town and asked for a job. The bar manager laughed at me and my lack of experience, but called me two weeks later to hire me. She later told me that she took a chance on me because I had a firm handshake, seemed teachable and was naive enough to think I deserved a job there. That was where I truly learned how to bartend.

What would you tell someone who wanted to get into bartending? You have to genuinely like people to be a bartender, and even when you're having an anti-social day, you have to put on your game face and pretend that you're pretty happy to be at work. The good outweighs the bad, overall, but you need to have a thick skin and not take anything personally, because people somehow feel justified in saying whatever they want to bartenders and servers.

What's your least favorite drink to make? Ugh, anything that requires a blender. Not only is it a huge inconvenience to make the drink, but you can be sure that the guest will complain that they can't taste the alcohol -- which is the whole point of frilly drinks like that. But at Ernie's, we don't even have a blender -- to the delight of the entire bar staff, I'm sure.

What's the weirdest drink someone's asked you to make? Tequila and milk with a grenadine float. I can't imagine anything more disgusting. But the guy sat there and drank the whole thing.

How do you feel about cutting people off? Oh, it's a necessary part of the job. But I always wonder why adults don't know when to cut themselves off: Why do you make us be the bad guys or have to act like your mother? And one more thing: If a bartender cuts you off, you should be thankful. We did you a favor.

What's your best/worst cutting-someone-off story? One night I cut off two guys, and they got belligerent. When they refused to leave, I looked around for one of the male servers to kick them out. I couldn't find anyone to help me, so I came around the bar and dragged them out by their armpits. When I came back inside, I saw a few of my friends sitting at the bar playing a game -- they had barely looked up during the commotion. They said that it looked like I had the situation under control. Thanks, you guys.

What do customers do that pisses you off most? I can't stand when people tell me to put extra liquor in their drinks or to "hook it up." Who do you think you are? Do I come to your place of work and tell you how to do your job?!

What do co-workers do that pisses you off? I'm pretty OCD, so I like everything to be orderly and clean and in the same place, because it saves you time and frustration when your tools are always where you think they are. On the other hand, I probably drive my co-workers a little crazy when I follow them around and rearrange things for the whole shift...

What's the best line you've heard to get a free drink? Well, I can say with certainty that the most frequent line is "Hey, it's my birthday, can I get a free shot?" Seriously -- it's your 37th birthday and you're still trying to get free drinks at a bar?

What's the most memorable pickup line you've heard? A woman in a purple pantsuit with shoulder pads screaming across the bar at me, "My kids are staying with a babysitter and my husband is out of town. Please come home with me and let me lick your p--!" Wow. The whole bar cracked up, and the bouncers ended up having to drag her out. For the record, I didn't call her.

What's the weirdest thing you've seen while working behind the bar? A really strange-looking guy came into the bar one night and ordered a beer. I gave it to him, and three seconds later, when I turned around, it was foaming all over the bar. He picked it up and chugged the rest of it before telling me that he had just poisoned himself to death. Then he ran out of the bar. It was really creepy. Two weeks later, we saw him back at the bar. Weirdo.

What's your favorite alcohol? Oh, I love tequila. I get a little bit wild when I get a few shots of tequila in me, but at least I'm fun.

What's your drink of choice? Hendricks and tonic, dirty Ketel One martinis on the rocks, and Svedka Clementine and soda. For beer, I usually drink Harp, Guinness, Smithwicks or anything dark. I can't stand light beers.

What's one alcohol you despise? Jägermeister. You couldn't pay me enough to drink it. I think I drank way too many Jäger bombs in college, because just the thought of it makes me sick.

Other than your co-workers, who's the best bartender in Denver? I worked with Jason Wetterstrom and Christy Sgambati at Caldonia's for about six years, and they are without a doubt two of the strongest and most charismatic bartenders you can find anywhere. I loved working with them. Christy now works at LoHi SteakBar, and Jason works at My Brother's Bar.

Other than your own bar, where do you drink most regularly? Atomic Cowboy is my neighborhood bar, and I've had more than a few nights of debauchery there. Yet somehow they have never cut me off there. Thanks, Natalie!

If your employer gave you the keys and let you change anything about your bar, what would you change? So far, nothing. Ernie's is beautiful and has a really comfortable feel, a fantastic menu -- who doesn't like antipasto and pizza and sixty-plus beers? -- and a professional, friendly staff. And nobody asked me to say any of that. But we just opened, so ask me again in a month!

What do you do in your spare time? As anyone who knows me will tell you, I'm totally in love with my lab, Ringo, so I hang out with him every second I'm not at work.

Tell us one thing about tending bar that we might not know: People tend to view bartending as a glamorous job -- which, of course, it can be at times. But behind the scenes, it can be really hard work, with late nights, drunken patrons and lots of stocking ice, beer and liquor. There's more to it than what the guest sees.

Do bartenders do well in a recession?

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 14:03:00 +0000

When speaking of the economic situation, even when people say that the worst is over, we still see no significant improvement our quality of life. We still see lots of jobless and homeless people. And for people considering entering a bartending career, a valid and timely question for them is: do bartenders do well in a recession?

The article below talks about how the recession affects the bartending industry. My personal opinion is it would be too easy to say that the recession affects everyone. The degree of impact however, would vary person to person, business to business. Have a look at it and let me know what you think.

Bartenders far from ‘recession-proof’
By Greg Cook, Globe Correspondent

WHILE IT’S tempting to conclude that “bartending may be the ultimate recession-proof career,’’ that notion is far from the truth (“Some liquid assets do well in downturns,’’ Money & Careers, Nov. 15). Bars and taverns across the country continue to make cuts in staff and other areas as business has declined or migrated to off-premises outlets during the recession. The economic downturn, and the reassessment of personal budgets that has come with it, has left many bartenders and servers looking for jobs... (Click here to read more about this article.)

Free Bartending Training

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 12:32:00 +0000

The American Bartending School is giving a free class scholarship and wants to help needy unemployed people who want to train for a new career. An advantage of knowing bartending is that it’s a skill where there are job opportunities no matter what the economy...

female bartender photo (http://www.barschool.com/free-bartending-class)

Read the article below to find out more about the free bartending training.

Free Training By Top Trade School Donated To Assist The Growing Number Of Unemployed In New York

New York (MMD Newswire) -- The American Bartenders School is aware of the many unemployed people in New York who need to train for a new career. The school is offering a free bartending course to one deserving person per month. Any unemployed person 21 or over must send a letter to the school's director explaining in 400 words or less why they feel they deserve to be picked for the free job training. All applicants must include their phone number and email address.

The American Bartenders School has been in business for over 40 years and is the nation's oldest owner-operated bartender training school that is licensed by the New York State Education Department and the Better Business Bureau. With the Holidays fast approaching, and money being tight for a record number of New Yorkers, the school wants to do something to thank the people of New York City that have supported them over all of their years in business. The school believes that the current troubling economic times should be a strong call for all successful businesses to do something to "pay it forward" any way they can.

The majority of people seeking new employment choices need training that is short and where there are job opportunities with immediate openings. People also look forward to the fringe benefit of doing something that is entertaining and new. Bartending is a way to make ends meet and it is the school's "hands on" training that makes it easy to learn.

Over 100,000 people have completed the course of study at American Bartenders School. Graduates have been hired by leading hotels, nightclubs, fine dining establishments, lounges, bars, catering facilities and other high profile beverage service venues across the country.

The biggest advantage of knowing bartending as a trade skill is that there are job opportunities available no matter what state the economy is in and no matter where you may travel. There are over 40,000 drinking establishments in New York alone, and constant opportunities for employment. Bartenders work for both a salary and tips and often the tips are quite substantial. There are full and part time jobs available and bartending creates the ability to network with a wide diversity of people.

For additional information on the news that is the subject of this release please contact:

Joe Bruno, School Director
Office: 212-594-8560 Cell: 917-642-0744
Email: ABSNYC@verizon.net
Website: www.barschool.com/free-bartending-class

When you contact or book, we are able to provide American Bartenders School's bio, course giveaway contact information and full rules for submission, suggested questions and lead-in for broadcast media and additional information on bartending, job hunting and hospitality related networking.

Bartenders Become Multitaskers

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:29:00 +0000

Just when you think you know a lot about bartending, something new and amazing comes out. Contrary to what most people might think, a bartending job also evolves and adapts to the needs of the times. Checkout this article from The Memphis Daily News that talks about how bartenders become "multitaskers" when the need arises.
Bartenders Become Multitaskers During Economic Downturn
By FREDRIC KOEPPEL | Special to The Memphis News
original source: The Memphis Daily News

On a Thursday evening at 6:30, the bar at Interim is packed. Every seat is taken, people stand behind the patrons sitting at the bar and every seat at the high tables is taken too. The clamor and hubbub are tremendous.

Most of the people fortunate enough to have grabbed seats at the bar are not just sipping cocktails, wine or beer. They’re eating, and they’re not nibbling cashews and Goldfish crackers, they’re diving into appetizers and main courses from Interim’s dinner menu.

All of this means longtime Interim bartender Ben Rhea is working hard. Of course, he takes drink orders, makes cocktails, pours wine, delivers the drinks and looks after the stock and cleans glasses. He also sets places with napkins and cutlery, explains the menu, takes food orders, replenishes water and clears the plates. Clearly, a bartender’s job isn’t just about shaking martinis and slicing lime wedges anymore.

“Serving the whole menu at the bar complicates things a little,” Rhea said. “But one way of looking at it is it’s similar to waiting tables but you can be more casual with the guests. There’s more responsibility, more elbow grease, you could say, but it’s more enjoyable too. You get a better handle on the scene.”

One of the pioneers of the full-service bar was Jimmy Bradley, owner of two popular restaurants in Manhattan, The Red Cat in Chelsea and The Harrison in TriBeCa.

“One of my thoughts,” said Bradley, “was often in restaurants, the bar is a sort of a holding cell or area if people are waiting for a table. Why not give them a choice? Why not say, ‘You can eat in the bar with a full menu,’ instead of waiting however long for the table to clear. And then they can stay in the bar for the whole evening.”

The issues involved in the full-menu bar came down to these questions, Bradley said: “How do I get people into the restaurant and make people happy and increase revenue?”

The advantage to the bartender is increased tips. The person who will lay down a $2 tip for a cocktail will generally tip full service for a meal eaten at the bar.

“There’s definitely an increase in tips,” said Rhea, who previously worked at the bar at Texas de Brazil, a bar where food was not served. “I was making $7 an hour at Texas and I’m making $4 an hour at Interim, but the tips more than make up the difference in the scale.”

“Serving the full menu at the bar definitely helps the tips for the bartenders,” said Deni Reilly, co-owner of Majestic Grille. “There’s more work involved for the bartenders, but the job is more lucrative. Eating at the bar is very popular. We have a bar menu, but we offer the full restaurant menu at the bar too. We supply newspapers. We have a lot of Downtown businesspeople who eat at the bar for lunch. It’s really informal, so the bartenders have created their own regulars.”

Lisa Gradinger, bar manager at Majestic, said serving a full menu at the bar didn’t add stress to the job, though she mentioned she has only worked at bars where meals are served.

“It adds to the whole dynamic of the job,” Gradinger said. “It’s a relaxed atmosphere, and it’s easier to meet people. The bartender should know what’s going on in the whole restaurant, anyway.”

Speaking to the trend of eating meals at the bar, she said, “I don’t expect people to just come in for a drink. A lot of the time it’s flatbreads and sandwiches, but businessmen will come in, sit at the bar and order a steak and a glass of wine.”

The increased revenue doesn’t accrue just to the bartenders who serve full meals as well as cocktails. Obviously there’s money to be made in serving full meals instead of giving away bar snacks.

“Absolutely,” said David Henkes, a vice president at Technomics, a restaurant industry consulting firm in Chicago.“Restaurants are trying to do more with less. Employment in restaurants is down nationally, dining rooms are not as lucrative, and owners are looking for revenue streams. The bar has become a destination, a place to grow and enhance revenue.”

Henkes noted that recent restaurant design and construction is resulting in smaller dining rooms and proportionately larger, full-service bars.

“The problem is that this situation places more burden on the bartenders, and it speaks to the need for more training and education for bartenders,” he said. “Once, all they needed to know about was how to make a lot of cocktails. Now, they have to know about food and menus and service.”

Jose F. Ancona, vice president for the North American chapter of the International Bartenders Association, agrees that the burden on bartenders is more severe.

“It’s indeed a sign of the times and of management saving a dollar and not giving customers the best service,” Ancona said.“Bartenders are being asked to perform beyond their capability. They shouldn’t bear all the responsibility for the whole restaurant.”

Bradley, of The Red Cat and The Harrison, mentioned that bartending now is akin to “performance art.” Certainly, watching Rhea carry out his responsibilities behind the bar at Interim – taking drink and meal orders, making cocktails, serving, talking, sending drinks to the dining room, clearing tables and always maintaining a pleasant attitude – seems like a performance.

“You just get in there and make it happen,” he said.

photo credit, glennharper

What Is Bartending?

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:48:00 +0000

by Jennifer Nguyen

A bartender is someone who serves beverages behind a licensed bar to paying customers. A bartender can also be called a barkeep or a barmaid. Bartenders are found in bars, pubs, taverns, nightclubs and other such places.

The bartender mixes and serves drinks, and the majority of drinks a bartender is making contain alcohol, such as beer, wine, liquor, liqueur, coolers and cocktails. They also serve water, juice, pop and other non-alcoholic beverages for customers who do not wish to drink alcohol such as a designated driver or a non drinker. As well as make and serve drinks, the bartender is also responsible for taking payment for drinks (either from customers, waiters or waitresses), keep the liquor supplies and glassware stocked, keep the bar area clean, maintain enough ice and garnishes on hand and serve food to customers sitting at the bar. Often, the bartender is expected to dress appropriately to add to the atmosphere of the bar.

In some establishments, the bar tender might participate in flair bartending, which contributes to the entertainment in the bar. Bartenders are expected to be able to mix hundreds of types of drinks to please any paying customer in a quick, accurate and unwasteful fashion. In some establishments, such as a busy nightclub, the bartender is only expected to serve the customer a drink and nothing else. In a smaller place such as a tavern however, the bartender might be expected to be a good listener, and allow the customers to have a shoulder to cry on.

All bartenders should be friendly however, and enjoy having contact and communication with customers. Good bartenders have a way of attracting regular customers. Good bartenders like this will remember the favoured drink of regular customers, have drink recommendations on hand or recommendations for other bars, as well as several other unofficial duties. In most countries, tipping is expected of the customer, and this is how the bartender gets the majority of his income, as most bar tenders are paid minimum wage.

In some places, minors are allowed in bars, and it is the bartenders responsibility to check for identification before serving them alcohol. If this sounds like a lot of work, with not much reward, look on the bright side. You're working at an establishment that serves gallons of liquor each day, and your in charge of it. What better way to get drunk for free?

article source: http://www.articlecity.com/articles/food_and_drink/article_2203.shtml

What Should You Look For in a Bartending School?

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:49:00 +0000

By Barry H Brenner

If you're interested in becoming a bartender, you may be considering attending a bartending school. This is typically a good idea, since you'll need to know many different drink recipes before you begin tending bar for real. You'll find that there are plenty of bartending schools available, so it may be difficult to choose the right one.

There are several things to consider when choosing a bartending school. The first, for many people, is cost. You'll need to closely compare the tuition you'll pay with the benefit/training you'll receive. Consider student loans and tuition assistance along with the actual cost of the program. The best program isn't always the most expensive or the least expensive.

A second consideration is schedule. If you need to keep your current job while you attend bartending school, you'll need to find a school that offers a class schedule that fits your schedule. In addition, there may be other factors in your life that determine when you're available to attend class.

Another factor to consider heavily is the curriculum and training you'll receive. You see, most bars look for experienced bartenders when they hire, so a curriculum that provides only classroom training is not likely to land you a job immediately upon graduation. It's important to choose a curriculum that requires you to prepare and serve real drinks to real customers. Otherwise, you'll be passed over for an experienced bartender with no education when you begin to compete for jobs.

Bartending can be a great career, and bartending school can go a long way to helping you achieve this career. But, before you choose a bartending school, it's important that you do some research into the schools available in your area. The web is a great way to do this research.

One great site to start with is http://www.earnwhileulearnbartendingschool.com/index.html. However, before enrolling in any school, it's wise to talk to some previous students. Find out how they felt about the bartending school while they were attending as well as how successful they've been as a bartender since leaving school. Be sure to ask them if they'd attend the school again if they had the choice to make over again. Once you've landed a great bartending job, you'll be glad you took the time to check them out.

Elite Bartending Institute, where you earn while you learn.

article source: http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Should-You-Look-For-in-a-Bartending-School?&id=3093986

How to Be a Good Bartender

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:17:00 +0000

By Elizabeth McCarthy

How to be a good bartender takes a little bit of practice. Here are a couple of tips. First you must learn your basic drink recipes. You should start out listing the drinks on index cards and study these cards every day. You should have someone go over the cards with you and ask you what is in each drink. You should do this every day until you know your drink recipes.

Just mark the drink name on the front of card, flip the card over and write the drink recipe on the back and number them. You can learn everything you need to do to be a good bartender studying at home. Learning your basic drinks is the most important step 1. Next step 2. list your basic frozen drinks on index cards, and 3 rd step your basic cream drinks. You should study each category. Don't try and learn everything all at one time.

You can write all the different drinks on the cards but study a few at a time then add more. To study. You don't want to overwhelm yourself. The index cards will be very useful, you can use these at a later time so keep them. You can put them in alphabetical order so that what ever drink you need to look at will be quick to find .You will need to look up drinks when you start your first job. A lot of bars have a Rolodex for the bartenders.

Because there is no way for someone to remember all the drinks that are out today. But learn the basic drinks. I think having my own Rolodex of drinks is better than having to use the bars Rolodex because you know what you have written on your cards, and what new drinks you may need to add and you can take it with you.

Being a good bartender starts out with you having a good attitude. You must leave all your problems at home. No one wants to here all about your problems. The customers have came into the bar to get away from there problems. So always listen, and let the person know that you are a caring person. But don't get wrapped up in there life. You just excuse yourself and say I've got to go take care of my other customers. Ill be back to check on you .Or we can talk later I am busy at the moment.

The best way for most people to learn how to be a good bartender is to get a good home study course. Then you can study at home. There is no need to go to a bartending school. You really don't ever need a diploma, not one job requires a diploma. And not one job that you will ever get will their be anyone wanting to know about how beer or wine is made. Bartending school doe's not get you prepared to work in a real bar atmosphere.

article: http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Be-a-Good-Bartender-Make-More-Money-With-These-Tips&id=2018562

What's Involved in Learning How to Bartend

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:16:00 +0000

By Robert Korepta

If you are considering entering the profession of bartender, you have made a wise choice. Although not always easy the job is immensely satisfying and, at it's highest level, can be tremendously well paying. Unlike almost any other job, bartending is a physical occupation that requires mental aptitude and skill. It requires knowing what you need to know and acting on it at a moment's notice, all the while appearing skillful and confident to a customer. A job well done in bartending can be quite the rush, and the profession is extremely satisfying.

To begin to learn to bartend, one of the best ways is to take a course. These can either be online or at a traditional school system; most, however, find that an online or audio course is the most effective way of learning. With these systems, you can learn at your own pace, in your own time and slot your bartender training around your current occupation or schooling. They are by far the best investment, and a unique way of learning will encourage you to remember what you need to know. This all leads to the question of what exactly you do need to know. Whichever type of course you do intend to enroll with to learn the art of bartending, the basic knowledge is largely the same. Before you sign up, make sure they are teaching the things you will actually need to know.

The most obvious learning process one must engage in when learning to bartend is that of learning and memorizing drinks. With over 200 cocktails and drinks, this is an awful lot to learn. For this reason alone, be sure to choose a course which uses visual aids for memory as well as just reading words off a sheet of paper. Other things that should be covered by any bartending course should include units of learning on the other aspects of the job aside from mixing drinks. This includes dealing with customers, dealing with problems in a bar and also giving help and advice when it comes to maximizing your tips. If the course you have found does all of these things, you are on to a winner, and a new career should beckon.

article source: http://ezinearticles.com/?id=1974691

Self Defense For Waitresses and Bartenders

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:13:00 +0000

By Steve Thibeault

With the increasing crime scene it is incumbent upon each one of us to take care of our personal self defense in whatever manner possible. This is not to state that the police department can stop doing their job but it is humanly impossible for the police authorities to prevent small petty crimes that take place each day in our streets.

There are some professions that require a higher level of self defense training so that they can enjoy their profession along with some of the negatives that come along. The job of a waitress or a bartender is one such profession. Waitresses and bartenders have one of the highest chances of being robbed. Waitresses have a higher probability of becoming a sexual victim.

There are some very specific reasons why this profession attracts the attention of attackers and assailants. Firstly, the job involves leaving the bar in the wee hours of the morning or extremely late at night. Secondly, most people know that waitresses and bartenders get tips from customers. If the dining place is popular, a good waitress can expect to take home a couple of hundred dollars or more. Thirdly, most people in this job meet new people each day and the profession demands that the waitresses make the strangers feel comfortable and relaxed in the new setting of the bar or the restaurant. There is a fine line between being friendly and warm and sexually inviting and there are many who would like to assume friendliness as an invitation for a sexual assault. Getting to know the schedule of a particular waitress is not difficult and these perpetrators can get drunk and wait outside the hotel to stalk potential victims.

Most of these aspects that are part of the waitress or bartending profession are unavoidable. There is nothing that one can do about the late hours since night time is when the business flourishes. A large number of good outlets assume a certain percentage of tips as a given and the salary of the waitress or the bartender is fixed accordingly. This necessitates that requirement for carrying all the cash each day. Days on which there is like to be heavy traffic are potentially more dangerous times. Additionally, if a waitress wants to maximize the tip-earning potential, she needs to be courteous (and sometimes a bit more than that) to be able to make both ends meet.

Even though there is nothing that waitresses and bartenders can do to change the nature of their profession, they can definitely take certain positive steps towards ensuring their own self defense. To start with, there are certain measures that each one can take immediately.

- Remain alert at all times. Make sure that you do not relax at any time. Be alert even when you are going about your normal daily chores. Try and be aware of your surroundings and the small moves that other people make. While walking towards your car, make sure that no one is following you. Ensure that no one is slipping in the backseat of your car when you get in.

- Do not hang around in the car once you are inside. Lock the doors immediately and leave.

- Never count your tips while you in public view and definitely not when you are waiting for a cab to come.

- It is important that you do not reveal personal information to customers even if they seem pleasant and friendly. It is not easy to judge people by their appearance and manner and sometimes the most gentlest of people turn vicious.

Beyond these simple steps that anyone can take, waitresses and bartenders need to make sure that they think about self defense proactively. Look for various self defense weapons or self defense products that you can use. These could include pepper sprays, stun guns or tasers. You may need to use some self defense product that is disguised and should consider lipstick pepper sprays or cell phone stun guns. This is required because you definitely do not want to make your regular customers uncomfortable by brandishing a stun gun all the time. At the same time you need to be prepared all the time.

TBO-TECH is a company dedicated to help you defend yourself in the time of need. The quality and range of self defense products that the company offers is unparalleled. TBO-TECH undertakes a large amount of research to understand your self protection needs and offers products that are practical and effective to use. Other than a wide range of pepper sprays, stun guns and batons, the company also provides martial arts weapons, home and personal alarms, hidden safes, spy gear and fun sporting products like slingshots and blowguns. For more information on how you can use these self defense items for your personal protection and safety log on to TBO-TECH and you will never have to feel insecure again.

article source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Self-Defense-For-Waitresses-and-Bartenders&id=1426922

How To Work The Crowds And Get Those Tips Rolling In While Bartending

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:11:00 +0000

By Adebola Oni

There is the potential that you will earn a great deal of money while bartending but if you are noticing that your tips have lessened and lessened lately, then maybe you are doing something wrong. If this is happening to you, then there just might be some things that you should really think about changing, before you end up without a bartending job because you can not even pay your bills. Even those of you who really think that there is no room for improvements in your life, because you are so good at everything that you do, listen up, there is always room for improvements, even with the very best. There are many different things that you can do, in order to work those huge crowds at the bar you are tending, you just have to take the time out and acknowledge that there are some things that really could use some improving.

If you can begin putting these changes to good use, then you will notice an immediate difference in your bartending income and you will totally be thrilled. Do not continue telling yourself that you are the perfect bartender, because there is no way that there is not some little something that could use some tweaking. What do you have to lose anyway? All you will do is gain, gain income, gain a good reputation and during this time you will probably gain a few good friends as well. It is in your hands, with a little work and determination, you could become the greatest, most popular bartender around. That will be quite an accomplishment and it can be done, with just a little more time and patience.

Learn how to interact with those crowds and get those tips rolling in while you are bartending, you deserve it! Work the crowds, get them interested in coming back to the bar, getting themselves another drink. Cut up with them, clown around, but do not get so distracted that you lose track of what you are doing. If you own a whistle, seriously, do not be afraid to use this as an attention getter during your very busy nights, to keep those fun customers coming over to your bar, asking for more and leaving more and more tips as the night continues. There are little tricks you can use to help you with attracting more customers and in order to keep your regulars coming back every time they can.

Bartending will give you so many opportunities and if you work hard and work those crowds, you will begin to earn a really great living by bartending as a career. The crowds will love you and before you know it, you will begin getting asked to do some private bartending for some very popular, wealthy people, making you loads of cash. You will meet incredible people and gain the respect of so many, it will turn out to be a very rewarding career.

article source: http://ezinearticles.com/?id=659574&opt=print

The Secrets to Becoming a Great Bartender

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:08:00 +0000

By James Wedmore

What does it take to truly be a great bartender? What Bartending Schools don't want you to know is that it has nothing to do with memorizing countless drink recipes.

In fact, learning how to bartend is much easier than most are led to believe. A 50 hour course at some school with a thick book filled with two thousand plus drink recipes can seem pretty daunting and overwhelming to most.

But the truth is, there are no more than 100 drinks that a bartender will ever need to know, and a lot of them are extremely similar in many respects.

But being a Great Bartender has nothing to do with how many drinks you know or how strong you pour them (although that doesn't hurt). Success in this profession cannot be learned in any class or book because it is all personality!

The Bartender is a very powerful character in any setting once he steps behind that bar. He sets the mood for the entire night, and in order to be a Great Bartender, he must be outgoing, charismatic, and very personable. You must be well-liked in order to be considered Great.

Below are some great tips to improve your status behind the bar:

Passion: Most importantly, your success as a bartender stems from your passion to bartend and serve customers. If you love what you do, your guests will see that and it will reflect in your work (and your tips).

Work Hard: Everyone appreciates hard work. Your guests will show their gratitude (with tips!) when you make their drink with speed and efficiency.

Remember Names: The bar creates a barrier between you and your guests. As a bartender, you want to become as personable as possible. Always introduce yourself and make sure you get your customers' names in return. Use their name whenever possible.

Use Humor: Everyone has a sense of humor, including yourself. If you're not the wittiest bartender, have a few jokes on hand that you can tell. Just make sure the jokes are appropriate for your audience.

Current Events: A Great Bartender always knows what's going on in the world, whether it is sports, politics, or local news, you should always stay informed so you can answer any questions and keep good conversation.

Add some Flair: People go out to bars and restaurants to be entertained. Anybody can buy a six-pack and stay at home and drink by himself, but that wouldn't be fun. At the bar, your guests expect to be entertained, so give them what they want. Learn a cheesy magic trick or two or add a bit of simple flair into your nightly routine. This will go a long way with your guest.

There are so many factors that must be calculated into the equation of a Great Bartender. But as long as you are outgoing and showing your customers that you are enjoying what you do, you will be on the road to a great bartender and the rest will just follow.

James Wedmore

After creating an extremely lucrative Bartending Business Empire, James has developed a perfect System that lays out the exact blueprints for success in your very own Bartending Business. Whether you are looking for picking up an extra event or two per month, or you interested in creating an entire army of bartenders and servers, James can teach you how in his comprehensive program: The Bartend-4-Profit System. (http://www.BartenderforProfit.com)

article source: http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Secrets-to-Becoming-a-Great-Bartender&id=1115502

Creepy Halloween Cocktails

noreply@blogger.com (buzzerbeeser) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:00:00 +0000

By Michael Russell

Summer is over, but the fun just begins. Autumn brings along, all over the world, holidays to celebrate nature and crops, but there is a certain holiday celebrating the spirits of those who have died: Halloween.

While Halloween is really loved by kids for all that trick-or-treat fun, there's no reason why grownups should not get their own "creepy" treats. You can impress your guests with one of the spine-chilling cocktails listed below, or why not, create a new one in which you'll drop a gummy worm or other weird garnishes.

Halloween does have a few predominant colors: black, red, orange and yellow. Can you master a black cocktail? One that has some devil eyeballs in it? Creepy! Black cocktails are a recent trend. They had an amazing public impact in 2003 when many bars, clubs and luxury restaurants included on their menus some surprisingly flavorsome black drinks, such as Midnight Cosmopolitan, Black Mystique or Blacker Dahlia. Probably one of the most interesting black cocktails is the famous Black Velvet: half Guinness Beer, half Champagne (beer first).

While black cocktails could certainly be creepy and elegant, don't forget the other Halloween colors. Red drinks are as amazing and tasty as the black ones. They lack the soberness of a black drink, but they give a feeling of romance and passion, that's if you need such feelings on Halloween.

The creepy touch comes with a special cocktail such as the Atomic Bomb, our first spine-chilling cocktail recommendation. In a shot glass pour equal parts of Sambuca and Bailey's, then pour over the back of a spoon a dash of grenadine. That's it. Decide for yourself why this cocktail wears its name.

What about a creepy orange cocktail? We've got that too: Passoa Death. Passoa is a sweet liqueur with passion fruit flavor. For this special cocktail, you need vodka, passoa, melon liqueur, orange juice and sprite or 7up. Shake 30 ml vodka with 20 ml passoa and ice. Into a highball glass pour 10 ml melon liqueur over ice and then strain over it the vodka-passoa mix. Fill up with equal amounts of orange juice and sprite and you've got a wonderful cocktail that has nothing to do with death. except its name. But hey, the name itself is creepy enough to get you into the Halloween spirit.

Our third recommendation for Halloween is another drink with a scary name: Red Devil. Shake 20 ml vodka, 5 ml cassis liqueur, pineapple juice and ice and strain the mix into a martini glass. Wow! It's red, it's frightening and with the right garnish it will certainly make the perfect Halloween statement. Your guests will really wonder: is it a trick or a treat?

On place four we have a black cocktail: Black Magic. Shake 30 ml vodka, 30 ml Kahlua and a dash of lemon juice with crushed ice. Strain the mix into a glass and garnish it with a creepy Halloween figure.

Last, but not least, we recommend a very elegant, yet mysterious cocktail: Black Shadow. This is not a black drink, but green. In fact, its color is creepy enough. Shake 20 ml blue Curacao with 5 ml cassis liqueur and ice. Pour into a flute glass and top up with chilled Champagne.

Happy Halloween!

article source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Bartending---Creepy-Halloween-Cocktails&id=273818