|
Masonity posted:In the UK at least, it's the standard "wiping up spills" paper. It's far better than kitchen roll.
|
#
?
Aug 6, 2013 23:18
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 15, 2024 14:35 |
|
|
rorty posted:Feeling industry social life set on is bleak. What's worse is when you start taking blue roll home and your housemates find it and convert to the blue roll. When you batch out, be mindful of ingredients that will degrade over time, like acids, wine-based products, etc. keep them cool or add them a la minute.
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2013 16:02
|
|
|
What are some cool places in Arlington, VA? I've tried Arlington Rooftop, which is cool and all but a little too yuppie for my taste, Four Courts which is pretty silly, and Wilson Tavern, which I really liked. Same goes for DC, what are some non-Adams Morgan places preferably around Foggy Bottom/Georgetown that aren't college bars like McFadden's that end up being fairly crowded on weekends?
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2013 16:37
|
|
|
I would just like to say that my new job is the best and working at one of the hot places during the opening period in a medium sized city is what I imagine being a king feels like. Getting tipped well in the UK is rare enough, here we get paid above minimum and then double it in tips no problem. Not even counting the freebies. Finally having an absolutely great time bartending.Vegetable Melange posted:When you batch out, be mindful of ingredients that will degrade over time, like acids, wine-based products, etc. keep them cool or add them a la minute. It's always gone within 24 hours - if not 10 - and we only batch core spirits, not unlike Long Island mix. Definitely nothing citrus or fresh. What sort of timescales should we be worrying about?
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2013 17:31
|
|
|
rorty posted:It's always gone within 24 hours - if not 10 - and we only batch core spirits, not unlike Long Island mix. Definitely nothing citrus or fresh. What sort of timescales should we be worrying about?
|
|
#
?
Aug 7, 2013 22:54
|
|
|
I just started a gig as a barback and it turns out that means I'm the bartender's bitch.
|
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 01:08
|
|
|
Yep. Welcome to the magical land of running your rear end off all night.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 01:21
|
|
|
The best barbacks I work with I barely talk to - knowing what poo poo to set up and fill before I start to worry is pretty much your job. You'll get there an hour before me and leave an hour after - and make half the $.. but it's a major stepping stone and kinda the best way to find out what's going on back there.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 01:28
|
|
|
Twat McTwatterson posted:I just started a gig as a barback and it turns out that means I'm the bartender's bitch. Just remember that once a month its a soft finish. Take your time. Don't just do the jackhammer and bounce.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 01:39
|
|
|
As a musician, I've been in and out of the service ind for a decade, because it really is the only "career" in the world where you can walk around your 4th city in as many years and find a job that will pay you a living wage when you're in-between gigs. I've often become burnt out on it because lets face it, the 4:30 afterparty just isn't as much fun when you're 30 as it is when you're 20. I've managed bars and entertainment properties for a few short stints, but management is 95% more real job and always half as much money as your star bartenders (who will be impossible to 'manage' because they actually control the flow of the place, make more money than the manager, and are keenly aware of both points). I've done everything from college bar plastic cup slinging to fine dining service in a golf resort. I've rocked the "craft cocktails" in overpriced hipster digs and worked in midtown dives as the only white guy in the place for weeks. It really is recession-proof and it really is always there for you to fall back on. I'm pretty sure I've worked every possible bar-related job, but bartending is for my money the best mix of money and freedom. I have a terrible feeling that my fate will one day be sealed as a 55 year old man, waxing philosophical as I methodically polish my tins in some hotel lobby bar. Right now I'm working main bar at a place about an hour north of the city, it's a destination nightclub with a decent surrounding area. We're doing 600-700 covers on an average weekend night, which I suppose is amazing for the area. They do some larger events which in all honesty are just really inconvenient because the floorspace doesn't have the traffic flow to handle it. We just did some kind of MTV "casting call" and while I didn't hear of anyone being cast in anything, we did charge a big cover and run out of everything. It's club pricing and very high volume. Everything is free pour which I definitely prefer, but the fog/strobe/lasers/etc can make actually seeing what you are doing pretty difficult. There are 4 of us behind the main bar, with 2 sat bars, a VIP bartender, deck bar, and assorted shot/drink girls and bottle service. I am the only male bartender, and I am always on the main bar. It can get very coyote ugly in there, a lot of the girls really work guys for tips and the guys generally cross the line at some point and get bounced. Some of the girls are sweet and some of them are total bitches and I will say in the relatively short time I've been there it's pretty evident that they all hate each other. The main bar can get extremely hectic as it is 3 sides of a square, and the crazylights mean you are pretty hands-on with the other tenders. Everything is mostly for show, they will dance up on each other/me and generally draw as much attention to themselves as possible while I work like a madman and try to handle female patrons so we maximize our tips. I am under no misconceptions that I'm worth the same as the girls, my work has to be faster and cleaner because they are the ones making the money that we split. Of splitting, the real bartenders split everything equally (sat tenders get a lesser share, VIP keep 100% but make almost nothing), get tipped out from bottle service/shots/hostesses, and only tip out to our small pool of barbacks, all young men who are overworked and taken advantage of to the extreme by the almost entirely female bartender staff. There is one barback who is significantly better than the rest, he is generally my shadow, and it's not out of the question for him to make $200 on a good night. He loves his job and is super happy to be around the hot girls who are sometimes slightly nice to him. I think that about covers my spot right now, I can speak to almost anything about the bar industry but obviously right now I'm doing volume club service. When I started here I was honestly having a hard time just getting it into the cups, now the lights hardly bother me unless we're unusually busy. Due to the nature of the business, we are constantly hiring beautiful women who lie and say they can handle high volume, after 5 minutes of the deer-in-the-headlights stare, they are asked to leave. I am not in charge of anything and I do not want to be, this is too good of a gig to mess up. I guess this is technically my weekend, we are very busy ThuFriSat and dead the rest of the week, we roulette out the awful shifts if there are no hires to force into them. I am super jaded and can be incredibly rude when people cross the line, but I also know the value of good service and always try to give it because it impacts my bottom line and I hate when management has to get involved with anything that mentions me by name. The owner is a millionaire who is opening another club in a few months so who knows where I might end up. I suppose I don't quite look my age, but my knees definitely feel it on Sunday morning and at times I feel like a dinosaur in there with all the young girltenders. This thread has some great stories in it, feel free to ask away if there's anything I can help with. My job hunting advice is to get any job you can as a barback, learn as much as you can, and then go to another place and tell them you're a bartender. Job jumping is the only way to do it; no matter what anyone says about moving up or working up or whatever, you will be a back until the day you quit and your boss will always hire from the outside, because good backs are irreplaceable and your boss can always hire some girl to wear a tank top. Sorry if the truth hurts. To work volume, you need to be able to take orders, make drinks, and ring up at the same time without forgetting or going back. Four at a time, all night. To work anything else, you need to be able to listen to people's ridiculous bullshit for hours at a time without ever really calling them out on it, and that's about it. Go and do likewise, gentlemen.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 02:05
|
|
|
Twat McTwatterson posted:I just started a gig as a barback and it turns out that means I'm the bartender's bitch. Barbacks really fall into 3 categories: Career backs, People trying to make the jump to bartender, and people seriously on the chef/manager's shitlist. At least in my experience, barbacking is the best possible way to prepare you for a bartending gig, but not at the place you back at. They will never promote you. Get your experience and go to a different bar. Good backs are seen but not heard, they know how to do everything they need to do without interfering in your job or getting in your way. They have a LOT of responsibilities and do almost all the side work. A good barback is absolutely essential to your night running smoothly. Barbacks are 1/3 firefighters and 2/3 anticipation and prep. The minor differences with an experienced barback add up to such a huge sum. How do you know you have an inexperienced, slow, or lazy barback? You are constantly asking them to do and get things because you have run out and can't serve. Ice, fruit, bottles, break, kegs, whatever it is that you go through, run out of, needs to be replaced, those are all the duties of the back. It is a physically demanding, very high pace, generally thankless job. The only real benefit is experience, unless you are an all-star barback in which case the bartenders will fall over themselves trying to give you extra money to work with them, and you might make more than some bartenders in the area. Any bartender worth their salt will instantly recognize and appreciate the work of a good barback. You have no idea how many shifts are absolutely struggled through with a lovely or disinterested back where the bartender is wishing all night long that their favorite back was with them. I'm working a high volume club right now where I am the only male tender and the backs are universally abused by the female staff who are too good to do basically anything that isn't scoop money off the bar or sometimes make drinks. I have seen these guys get ridiculous "favors" asked of them, which they always do either out of fear of being screamed at, or because the girls are pretty, I couldn't say. They work very hard, they are tipped out fairly, and if someone goes above and beyond, it's always brought up and compensated during the split. I have a specific guy that is always with me, and I never say anything to him. He does everything perfectly and anticipates when things are going to need to be replaced, does the work, and waits for me to be clear of the area before moving in. I never trip over him, he is incredibly sure-footed, and I have never seen him drop anything- even when I drop things trying to hand them off to him. He's a 40-something el Salvadorian guy who is basically god's gift to bartenders on earth and I always give him extra money because god drat I wouldn't get anything done without him. The awful backs are too young to need the money or got sent off the line/dish/whatever because the chef is trying to teach them a lesson. The lesson is that they are going to ruin my night and they are going to get screamed at in a horrifying yet inevitable confrontation with one of our resident primadonnas. We will constantly run out of things and then they will do something like step in front of us to dump ice or refill a fruit tray while we are mid serve. They are hated with a passion and there will be a bunch of notes on the chef's door to put them on dish, make them cleaning crew, or just fire them. I will always go out of my way to talk to the backs in preshift, especially if they are , to make sure they understand what is expected of them, what will make us happy, and a few things that I know the girls will rip their heads off for. A good barback can prop up an awful bartender, but a bad back can sink anyone. Good backs are fought over and bartered for in cash. My back is the best and he is worth any 3 of the other guys, no exaggeration at all. He's the best and he has a quiet happiness about him because he knows that everyone loves him, while they scheme and plot the demise of the guy from the line who stepped on their foot while knocking a cocktail shell off the mat and into the well.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 02:42
|
|
nrr posted:Yep. Welcome to the magical land of running your rear end off all night. Hahaha loving A... it's all I do. Back and forth back and forth. Good info, GrahamBLY.
|
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 05:46
|
|
|
GrahamBLY posted:Any bartender worth their salt will instantly recognize and appreciate the work of a good barback. You have no idea how many shifts are absolutely struggled through with a lovely or disinterested back where the bartender is wishing all night long that their favorite back was with them. Hahaha, yup. Our place is currently in a bit of a turnover with our BAs, complicated by the fact that 2 of our most 'senior' (and I use that term in the loosest sense possible) are friends of the family. One is a lazy as poo poo guy who does the bare minimum to scrape by, while the other one is an entitled poo poo who wears CCCO shirts and who feels he should be bartending 4 months into working at the place we're at. quote:I'm working a high volume club right now where I am the only male tender and the backs are universally abused by the female staff who are too good to do basically anything that isn't scoop money off the bar or sometimes make drinks. I have seen these guys get ridiculous "favors" asked of them, which they always do either out of fear of being screamed at, or because the girls are pretty, I couldn't say. What kind of favours? As someone who worked at a viper's den of female bartenders for a while, I'm curious what this entails.
|
|
#
?
Aug 8, 2013 11:12
|
|
|
I work in a hotel that specialises in conferences and weddings. Very often we get larger groups that are happy to run a tab with no restrictions. The Groom/CEO/Boss/whatever will usually sign off on the bill without even looking at it. Now, my previous manager always encouraged us to "add a bit of extra love" to their tab, like a few staff drinks, or just a few extra of whatever they'd been drinking to make our figures look a teen bit better. I was wondering, is that fairly standard practice? I realise that morally it's pretty iffy, but when a group's stance is "we'll pay whatever for whatever", is it that much of an issue? Since that manager left it has been up to my discretion as to what a group's tab looks like, and so far this has been limited to "every time you're a dick to me, you bought me a drink!" Is the previous example of fudging a tab common practice, or have I basically been working for a terrible human being?
|
|
#
?
Aug 15, 2013 18:42
|
|
|
ubermarcus posted:I work in a hotel that specialises in conferences and weddings. You've been working for a shady person and "every time you're a dick to me, you bought me a drink" is still stealing. Theft is theft dude. You don't just add stuff on to people's tabs. Is this a troll?
|
|
#
?
Aug 15, 2013 18:45
|
|
|
I worked for a place in NYC that would ruthlessly double and triple ring on large group tabs. The owner/manager would be by the server POS telling the wait staff that if they didn't find a way to "kill" the tab (take it to whatever the customer had allowed the preauth for -- 5k or 10k often) he was going to fire people. There was also a grat on these so there was less resistance than you'd think. I'd suggest not doing that. It's a beer short sighted strategy and only barely viable in a place like NYC. Anywhere else and you'd just slay your rep and be tits up in a month. You can shear a sheep many times but only skin it once.
|
|
#
?
Aug 15, 2013 21:18
|
|
|
Sheep-Goats posted:I worked for a place in NYC that would ruthlessly double and triple ring on large group tabs. The owner/manager would be by the server POS telling the wait staff that if they didn't find a way to "kill" the tab (take it to whatever the customer had allowed the preauth for -- 5k or 10k often) he was going to fire people. There was also a grat on these so there was less resistance than you'd think. How many disputed charges does it take before a bar gets to experience the joy of having to be cash-only because VISA dropped them?
|
|
#
?
Aug 16, 2013 04:15
|
|
|
Frozen Horse posted:How many disputed charges does it take before a bar gets to experience the joy of having to be cash-only because VISA dropped them? Get the imprint.
|
|
#
?
Aug 16, 2013 04:19
|
|
|
ubermarcus posted:I work in a hotel that specialises in conferences and weddings. Yeah, it happens and anyone worth their salt will catch it if it's egregious. My fiance is an event planner for corporate conferences and whatnot. Every so often she'll come home with a story about how a hotel or conference center gave them some suspicious looking bill that was a few grand over what was expected. She'll call them out on it and have it "corrected". It's pretty obvious when you do the math and see it come out to an average of four cocktails a person for a two hour business luncheon. Definitely will lose you business in the long run and is shady as hell.
|
|
#
?
Aug 16, 2013 15:33
|
|
|
Tigren posted:You've been working for a shady person and "every time you're a dick to me, you bought me a drink" is still stealing. Theft is theft dude. You don't just add stuff on to people's tabs. Is this a troll? I understand that the practise is shonkey on a moral and legal level. That's why I was asking whether it was common practice or not? I'm sure that it makes me a terrible person, but I have to say that, when a group has an unlimited tab running, reaching many thousands of dollars, where the person signing off on it neither knows nor cares what's going onto it, then changing "127 beers" to "130 beers" isn't going to make me lose any sleep. Sure, it's dodgy, but is it common? When I've got 120 pax who I would consider to be a colossal bunch of fuckwits, I find it very easy to add +5 to whatever drink they've decided to drink a poo poo load of. The staff are happy, and the group is absolutely none the wiser. I'm sure there's a very big difference between "make sure this comapany pays at least X amount, because they're made of money and gently caress them!" and "chuck a few extra drinks on there for the staff".
|
|
#
?
Aug 16, 2013 16:59
|
|
|
ubermarcus posted:I understand that the practise is shonkey on a moral and legal level. Except there isn't. They're both stealing unless the latter is told to you by the person paying. Just because they're "a colossal bunch of fuckwits" doesn't make it right on any level. Tell yourself whatever you need to, but it's hosed up and stupid and can/will get you in some poo poo. Tigren fucked around with this message at 21:18 on Aug 16, 2013 |
|
#
?
Aug 16, 2013 18:23
|
|
|
ubermarcus posted:I understand that the practise is shonkey on a moral and legal level. Might as well share where you work so we can all avoid it.
|
|
#
?
Aug 16, 2013 20:23
|
|
|
All of you people acting holier than thou obviously have never worked a place with large groups of corporate douchebags. Who gives a poo poo if you add a round of drinks for the staff to a $2k+ tab. It's a drop in the bucket and nobody notices or cares.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 01:44
|
|
|
confonnit posted:All of you people acting holier than thou obviously have never worked a place with large groups of corporate douchebags. Who gives a poo poo if you add a round of drinks for the staff to a $2k+ tab. It's a drop in the bucket and nobody notices or cares. You're exactly what's wrong with society today. Instead of doing things the right way, you'll put yourself ahead at the expense of others. Instant Gratification Please. Get hosed.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 01:53
|
|
|
kingcrimbud posted:You're exactly what's wrong with society today. Instead of doing things the right way, you'll put yourself ahead at the expense of others. Instant Gratification Please. Thank you for showing me the error of my ways, oh paragon of truth and virtue. I bet you're a lot of fun to work with.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 01:58
|
|
|
confonnit posted:All of you people acting holier than thou obviously have never worked a place with large groups of corporate douchebags. Who gives a poo poo if you add a round of drinks for the staff to a $2k+ tab. It's a drop in the bucket and nobody notices or cares. Yeah, no. I DO know what it's like. I'm very often in the same situation that the dude described and I don't steal. If the people wanted to give me more money then they'd tip me. The so-called Corporate douchebags might have more money than you or me, but that doesn't make it okay. It might be a drop in the bucket. It might be equivalent to somebody stealing a single dollar out of your pocket. Would you be alright with that? Plus, if coworkers or managers are stealing from customers, then they'll steal from you.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 02:07
|
|
|
confonnit posted:Thank you for showing me the error of my ways, oh paragon of truth and virtue. I bet you're a lot of fun to work with. Because I don't steal from others, I'm not fun to work with? Are you listening to yourself? I'm sure you'd appreciate every tab you have from now on just having an extra drink or entrée on it. Not a problem, right? Seriously, tell us where you people work so we can avoid you. Why would I want to tip someone who is going to steal money from me?
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 02:12
|
|
|
I've put a drink for myself on a massive tab from a huge group of drunk idiots who caused problems for me all night because they were treating it like a free bar, screw you guys. One pint after work for me, when they've spent a grand on round after round of eight mojitos, I'm not losing any sleep over it. People don't tip in the UK, especially when they're drinking on a tab. I've never done the "make sure the tab gets tapped out" thing though. I can't recall a tab that ever didn't hit the limit.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 02:14
|
|
|
I work in a bar in the City (London's financial district), and regularly make sure tabs get "tapped out" as you put it. I do it the old fashioned way though. Find out what the limit is early, and make drat sure the fuckers drink it. Even if that means suggesting "Jagerbombs?" at 10.30 to get over that last few hundred pounds. I hate knowing there was extra budget available and not being able to drain it. I wouldn't go as far as to add extras but I can certainly understand why the temptation would be there, especially if there's a service charge based on the final bill too. Plus it's corporate. A company is paying it, and if they don't use that £2k limit this year, it'll be smaller next year. I'd never intentionally hit a personal tab for as much as someone's happy to spend. But an office party / company card? Hmmm, sounds like Jager time guys, you still have a bit left on the tab!
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 02:23
|
|
|
kingcrimbud posted:Because I don't steal from others, I'm not fun to work with? Are you listening to yourself? Are you always so dramatic?
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 02:43
|
|
|
ubermarcus posted:I'm sure that it makes me a terrible person, but I have to say that, when a group has an unlimited tab running, reaching many thousands of dollars, where the person signing off on it neither knows nor cares what's going onto it, then changing "127 beers" to "130 beers" isn't going to make me lose any sleep. Of course not. Because them paying for beer out of your money would be completely hosed up.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 03:07
|
|
|
Swooping in on the thread without reading it just to say that James Woods is a stand-up guy and his book is a good read. He also throws fun parties, at least judging from the one I attended when he was in Denver many years ago.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 03:15
|
|
|
Masonity posted:I work in a bar in the City (London's financial district)
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 03:43
|
|
|
I am the guy with the corporate card who has done many $2k, $5k, and $10k+ dinners and bar nights. When there is shady stuff happening by the bar operator I sure as gently caress catch it and get it fixed, but I also take care of the staff if the place is well run and professional. I will personally kill the tab if I know the limit, just give the rest as gratuity, or slip the bartender or manager or whoever cash instead of just buying them drinks. If you are a cool guy and deal with 50 crazy assholes making the tallest pyramid of kamikazes consumed for a few hours, yes, I am giving you a few hundred dollars cash on top of the 4k bill and $488 extra gratuity (because these things always have 18% or whatever baked in from the start) so I can come in under my limit. gently caress: please tell me that when I do this for a group of servers and tell the manager or head bartender to tip out the rest of the people who helped us that they actually do it and don't jut take the cash for themselves. I may have unknowingly screwed even some of you in this thread if they didn't distribute the cash or extra tip. If there is a better way to take care of you please let me know. But yeah, stealing drinks because we're corporate doesn't go over well with my team. Luckily we tend to go places where this isn't a problem, and I would like to think that taking care of people means they don't do this to us even if they would do it to others.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 05:00
|
|
|
My experience with corporate sorts is that they secretly envy the fact that I openly drink at my job and I've never met a dude in charge of a corporate tab worth more than a few hundo who didn't want to buy me a drink or two while I slung piss for them Arsehole tax is still a thing for me sometimes i guess so im no angel but its dumb and unprofessional as poo poo to be at all vindictive about it or use lovely customers as an excuse to drink. If you can't handle assholes, get out of the industry as soon as an opportunity presents itself please
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 06:08
|
|
|
Hoops posted:Do you mind saying which one? Or what street, maybe? I won't put it out there in public beyond saying its a food pub near London Bridge / Monument but I sent a PM.
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 11:26
|
|
|
What the gently caress kind of person orders mojitos at 1am? Round after round. Tonight we had a pretty large booking for a student(1) group, a graduation party for a foreign film school(2). They arrived an hour and a half late for their reservation, and had about 40 more people than they told us were going to be there - so they roll in after one of our servers is gone, and now we're shortstaffed for the rest of the evening. And then the mojito orders start rolling in. 1) Cheap 2) No tips. (Took me about 3 sales to see where the night was going and start autogratting everyone coming to the wood)
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 11:41
|
|
|
confonnit posted:Are you always so dramatic? confonnit posted:Thank you for showing me the error of my ways, oh paragon of truth and virtue. Sure you're trolling, so now is a good time for me to stop feeding. On Topic: Attending a wedding reception tonight, with an open bar all night. What's your preferred way to tip in this situation?
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 16:19
|
|
|
kingcrimbud posted:Attending a wedding reception tonight, with an open bar all night. What's your preferred way to tip in this situation?
|
|
#
?
Aug 17, 2013 21:05
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 15, 2024 14:35 |
|
|
Holy geez, thread.
|
|
#
?
Aug 18, 2013 01:09
|
|