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Bash Ironfist posted:sticking with this job, practicing a lot at home, and lying my rear end off hoping to get a bar tending job. There is a 99.9% chance this would never happen. Start as a barback.
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Aug 15, 2012 06:42
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nrr posted:Congrats on your first safety meeting
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Aug 15, 2012 08:23
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JawKnee posted:You can probably find spouts easily enough at a local restaurant supply store - ask for a tapered spout, and a speed spout (or fast-pour spout). Don't get ones with cork stoppers, get the rubber/plastic stoppers - the cork will degrade and you'll end up having to buy new ones. You might also occasionally run across econo-pour spouts - which automatically measure out 1oz for you (I've seen these in hotels and a couple of bars) - they are worthless to you at this point, avoid them. Pretty much every bar in my country has those auto-measuring spouts on all bottles. I figure it's a matter of nickel and dime-ing so people don't get too much? The standard amount of booze here in a drink is also 2 centiliters, which is less than half an ounce. If you go to a fancy nightclub, you may pay as much as $15 for a drink with half an ounce of liquor in it. Sucks balls. 
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Aug 15, 2012 10:11
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Bash Ironfist posted:Well, thanks? Not sure what you mean. I'm sure it's not a universal thing, or at least the term isn't, but this is how it works in my neck of the woods: Safety is important. Sometimes, it's paramount above all else that is going in the bar at the time to drop everything, and have an impromtu meeting to discuss safety. It's that important. You might have one of these meetings with one other staff member, or maybe a few. Maybe just with your boss. But the important thing is that there are multiple staff members present and they all are keen to work towards a common goal and make safety a priority. First, the minutes from the last safety meeting be read. This is where one of the members recites them: "Safety." Then from there, all the other members of the meeting bring up their particular concerns for the current meeting: "Safety." everyone makes eye contact, nods solemnly, and then downs the glass of booze that they were given upon initiation of the Safety Meeting. Congratulations, your bar, your staff and your patrons are now a whole lot safer than they were before. tl;dr: A safety meeting is basically the fake name you give drinking booze on the job to make it sound super legit. Sometimes it is legit, and downing some hard liquor right this instant is the only thing that is going to save multiple people from getting brutally murdered by a bartender/manager/doorman who is on the verge of snapping. Sometimes it's because you can't remember when your last safety meeting was, and that is dangerously unsafe. Sometimes it's just because your boss is an alcoholic and wants a drinking partner. Either way, Safety First.
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Aug 15, 2012 11:32
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Nice. Where I'm from, those are staff meetings. Any team member not present gets saved a copy of the memo.
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Aug 15, 2012 17:41
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Vegetable Melange posted:Nice. Where I'm from, those are staff meetings. Any team member not present gets saved a copy of the memo. I like how in the 90s companies started using "team member" instead of "worker" or "employee" in their literature (back then it was a obvious shiv against those commie unions) and now people use it without being prompted. And by like I mean don't like. :care:
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Aug 15, 2012 18:57
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nrr posted:I'm sure it's not a universal thing, or at least the term isn't, but this is how it works in my neck of the woods: This is hilarious, I laughed out loud. Well I feel proud that I got to attend my first safety meeting. Too bad that was out in Arizona. Maybe I could have used that to get some work. So I'm going to go looking for barback work, I have a few questions: 1)How should I dress? I don't own a suit and tie, but I have some slacks, some jeans, some button up shirts. Would a pair of slacks and a buttoned shirt be acceptable? 2)Should I be honest about my lack of experience? Just say something like "I haven't barbacked before, but I'm honest, on-time, and I'm a hard worker."? 3)Should I mention that I want to eventually work my way to bartender? I live in West Los Angeles. If you guys maybe know of/heard of a good bar to try to get work at, I'd appreciate a heads up!
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Aug 15, 2012 21:12
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1 - Jeans and a polo or button down are probably perfect - barbacking is manual labor, if someone applied with me to barback and they were wearing slacks, a button down, and a tie, I'd assume they aren't going to last because they're unaware of the nature of the work. IMHO, dress one level nicer for the interview than you would for the job. 2 - Yes, be honest about your lack of experience. 3 - If asked, tell them right now you're just looking for work. If that turns into bartending down the line, great, but right now you're looking to barback. Emphasize that you know barbacking is hauling trash, hauling ice, stocking beer, racking and cleaning glassware, sweeping up, cleaning, etc., basically that you're aware it's manual labor. Bars can be reluctant to hire white barbacks because too often they try to start bartending immediately (whether or not they've done it before) because barbacking isn't "fun." Seriously - I've never let go of a Hispanic barback before, but probably half the white guys I've hired either quit or were let go quickly because they would show up and either bitch constantly, not work at all, or try to start bartending every shift when we were already fully staffed. Edit: VV This is also generally good advice, however as a white guy that started as a barback in Houston, it's not impossible. One thing I would add is that you might have better luck getting a barback job at a place that's very new - that's how I got started. VV Shooting Blanks fucked around with this message at 21:28 on Aug 15, 2012 |
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Aug 15, 2012 21:22
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I would be absolutely shocked if there were any non-hispanic/unpromotable barbacks in LA, bud. You'll probably have to go either waiter > bar or busboy > waiter > bar or dishbitch > waiter > bar in that area. Try the chain restaurants first, others are quite unlikely to hire without experience. Even pretend experience. Please emphasize in the interview that you will happily eat poo poo forever, are happy just being an entry level guy, etc etc, and don't change your mind about this until you've been there a few months and are already the hardest working/most capable barback/busboy/dishbitch/whatever. It's good to mention in the interview that you currently work as a lowly shiteater and are very happy doing that forever. Like Shooting Blanks said, white barback = whiny, entitled twerp who won't do his job because he feels destined for another. You have to counterbalance that. As for clothes every service industry job I've applied to I've worn black slacks and a collared button down business shirt, tucked in, without a tie. Except for one upper end hotel job I applied to (didn't get hired, have no tits, manager was inexplicitly looking for tits) where I wore a suit/tie. I would only wear jeans/khaki pants to the interview if the place was super blue collar / punk oriented, or if it's one of those places where they're "looking for a certain look" which means you wear a shirt that shows your tattoo and show up with hurricane hair. Shooting Blanks posted:as a white guy that started as a barback in Houston 
raton fucked around with this message at 21:31 on Aug 15, 2012 |
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Aug 15, 2012 21:25
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Shooting Blanks posted:1 - Jeans and a polo or button down are probably perfect - barbacking is manual labor, if someone applied with me to barback and they were wearing slacks, a button down, and a tie, I'd assume they aren't going to last because they're unaware of the nature of the work. IMHO, dress one level nicer for the interview than you would for the job. Appreciate it! I'm aware that it won't be fun. I've done construction work where there only thing I was there for was hauling dirt and concrete over to a big pile. My current job, I take out the trash, sweep, wash bowls. Oh, and clean up lots and lots of dog piss and poo poo. So I'm perfectly fine with 'dirty' work. Sheep-Goats posted:I would be absolutely shocked if there were any non-hispanic/unpromotable barbacks in LA, bud. You'll probably have to go either waiter > bar or busboy > waiter > bar or dishbitch > waiter > bar in that area. Try the chain restaurants first, others are quite unlikely to hire without experience. Even pretend experience. Please emphasize in the interview that you will happily eat poo poo forever, are happy just being an entry level guy, etc etc, and don't change your mind about this until you've been there a few months and are already the hardest working/most capable barback/busboy/dishbitch/whatever. It's good to mention in the interview that you currently work as a lowly shiteater and are very happy doing that forever. Like Shooting Blanks said, white barback = whiny, entitled twerp who won't do his job because he feels destined for another. You have to counterbalance that. That makes sense. The thing that sucks about here is that even for waiter you gotta have experience. Most places I've seen it's like 2+ years. So I might have to try to get a busboy job. Even then it might be hard, because most places have hispanic busboys, and I'm white as hell. But I'm not gonna quit before I even try. edit: That new place thing is a good idea. There's always places opening here. Always closing too, but that's a different story! edit 2: I've had to clean up some stuff. You ever seen a dog that eats dog poo poo, then vomits it up so it's a mass of vomitshit? Barback work, I think, can't be worse than that. Deep Thoreau fucked around with this message at 21:32 on Aug 15, 2012 |
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Aug 15, 2012 21:29
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"Safety meeting" has been the ubiquitous euphemism for doing gently caress all in all of the blue collar jobs I've had (or been around). You're on a work site sitting around drinking coffee. The boss drives up and says, "What are you guys doing? Get to work!" "Safety meeting, boss." Then someone adds under their breath, "Nobody works, nobody gets hurt." It's pretty much a cliche at this point.
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Aug 15, 2012 21:32
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Bash Ironfist posted:The thing that sucks about here is that even for waiter you gotta have experience. Most places I've seen it's like 2+ years. So I might have to try to get a busboy job. Thems the shakes, buddy, it's like that everywhere. The general public doesn't understand that serving is a skilled profession and requires experience to step into any but the least desirable openings. The good news is that after you have like three months of experience as a waiter you can lie and say you have 2 on your resume and no one will notice when you come in for work. Lying when you have 0 days waiting will get caught on day one, though, usually. The hardest part about getting a job in the service industry is getting your first job in the service industry. Bash Ironfist posted:edit: That new place thing is a good idea. There's always places opening here. Always closing too, but that's a different story! A new place will need more people and people with good jobs will usually be hesitant to leave a known position for something that might be worse, so the requirements are lower at them. However, that doesn't mean they're gone. Worth a shot, but don't expect to waltz in. By the way try to look "good" (a cougar would want to touch your dong) when you go in for the interview. LA is a particularly bad spot for this, they want hot young people scurrying around in their place and not much else. We hired one particular (awful) guy for my club in NY one time because one of the female managers looked at him, and when he left the room said "He's my Superman" and licked her lips. 
raton fucked around with this message at 21:39 on Aug 15, 2012 |
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Aug 15, 2012 21:32
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Sheep-Goats posted:Thems the shakes, buddy, it's like that everywhere. The general public doesn't understand that serving is a skilled profession and requires experience to step into any but the least desirable openings. The good news is that after you have like three months of experience as a waiter you can lie and say you have 2 on your resume and no one will notice when you come in for work. Lying when you have 0 days waiting will get caught on day one, though, usually. Yeah, I'm not expecting this to be easy in any way! But that's okay with me. LA is serious about that poo poo man. "Would MILFS want to bang this guy? No? Tell him to get lost." "Are her tits big enough? No? Throw away that application." I love living here, but man. edit: Looking good enough for a cougar to want your dong is a way every man should live his life. edit 2: Vvv It's got its good things and it's bad things. Wouldn't say the worst. Wouldn't mind living in another place for a while though. Been here my whole life. Deep Thoreau fucked around with this message at 21:41 on Aug 15, 2012 |
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Aug 15, 2012 21:39
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LA is the worst city in the world.
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Aug 15, 2012 21:40
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Sheep-Goats posted:LA is the worst city in the world. QFT. The main downside to starting at a brand new place is the risk: The risk that the money or management will be terrible The risk that you'll pick up bad habits that make it hard to hire you The risk that you'll get burned out or feel locked in because the atmosphere/culture are awful On the other hand, if you DO get lucky and you get hired up to barback at a new place, you might wind up bartending within 6 months as the crowds build, and it might turn out to work out perfectly. Either way, good luck!
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Aug 15, 2012 21:53
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Question: What is a busser? Someone who cleans tables? There's a Buffalo Wild Wings looking for a barback. They're holding open interviews tomorrow that I'll go to. Another place is looking for a busser. Wondering if that's a way to get in as well? edit: noticed they're both tomorrow. One is from 11-1pm and the other is at 12:00pm. The 11-1pm is for busser
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Aug 16, 2012 00:58
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Bash Ironfist posted:Question: What is a busser? Someone who cleans tables? A busser is to waiters as a barback is to bartenders, basically. A busser generally has cleanup responsibilities on the floor of a restaurant, including moving dirty dishes to the dishpit, wiping down tables (and possibly resetting them), sometimes keeping water/tea pitchers full, and generally cleaning up the floor and bathrooms. A barback is a better chance to get behind the bar, if you have the option of only making it to one of those interviews, I would go for barback. BWW's tends to have reasonably high turnover (at least in Houston), so there's a good chance you'll wind up bartending there.
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Aug 16, 2012 01:02
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Shooting Blanks posted:A busser is to waiters as a barback is to bartenders, basically. Well thanks! I'm going to go to the BWW open interview then.  edit: My moms flipping her poo poo after I told her because it's on crenshaw in baldwin hills. A predominantly black neighborhood. My *lilly white skin* will make me the target of vicious attacks, apparently. edit 2: Vvv oh, I've thought of that. The tips and the hours that bartenders work has crossed my mind. edit 3: Went looking on craigslist. There's a place looking for a barback! But they want someone with 1 year minimum bar experience. I'm guessing they don't want to train someone. Deep Thoreau fucked around with this message at 05:13 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 01:11
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Bash Ironfist posted:Well thanks! I'm going to go to the BWW open interview then. Nothing to do with race, but bartending and working in the service industry in general DO put you more at risk of getting mugged if you're not careful and aware of your surroundings. You will frequently be out late at night with cash in your pocket following a shift - not a great combination, especially if you've had a few safety meetings. Not trying to scare you away, but it is something to be cautious about.
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Aug 16, 2012 03:49
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I'm curious about something. Lets say a customer comes in and orders a rum and coke. The coke part is obvious, but how do you choose which rum to put in? Does the manager/owner tell you what the go-to rum is for something like that, unless the customer requests a specific rum?
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Aug 16, 2012 05:26
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You'll have several bottles of bar-stuff - that is, cheap stuff that you put in if the customer doesn't specify something else, and you don't think it's important to ask. Those bottles will typically be quick to hand in a speed-rail right in front of, or around your ice-well. Common drinks like a rum and coke have a set way to make the drink usually - I use whatever the bar white rum is (Bacardi Superior at my current job). If you're making fancier drinks (in my opinion, drinks that aren't mixed with juice or pop) or if you work in a fancier style bar, it's probably a good idea to ask what kind of liquor they would like. E: For clarity JawKnee fucked around with this message at 05:43 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 05:39
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Bash Ironfist posted:I'm curious about something. Lets say a customer comes in and orders a rum and coke. The coke part is obvious, but how do you choose which rum to put in? Does the manager/owner tell you what the go-to rum is for something like that, unless the customer requests a specific rum? There's a "rail" next to the ice housing the most commonly used liquors. Generally if someone says "rum and coke" they mean "the cheapest rum you have and coke." The cheapest rum is usually on the rail. Anyone who wants a nicer or particular rum will say "BRAND and coke." So "Meyer's and coke" or "Captain and coke" or "Bacardi and coke" or whatever. These are called "call drinks." You can often upsell someone from a rail drink to a call drink by saying "BRAND?" while slowly nodding your head. So:  "Vodka and cran, please." "Grey Goose?" "Uh, ok."At a restaurant setting they may have midrange liqour in the rail. So a rum and coke will be Bacardi and coke. At most bars the brand will vary from month to month as different distributors make different rums ten or twenty cents cheaper a bottle than another. raton fucked around with this message at 05:49 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 05:44
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And it's always the plain stuff. So no dark or spiced rum. No vodka with lemon flavouring or whatever. If someone wants a dark rum and coke they will definitely specify (or they don't know how to order a drink).
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Aug 16, 2012 05:55
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Bash Ironfist posted:I'm curious about something. Lets say a customer comes in and orders a rum and coke. The coke part is obvious, but how do you choose which rum to put in? Does the manager/owner tell you what the go-to rum is for something like that, unless the customer requests a specific rum? e;f;beaten like a heathen whore at an Inquisition. Short answer: Yep. Long answer: Yep. It'll be in your "well," known also as your "house" rum or "rail" rum/whatever liquor. And it will probably have some silly-rear end name on the bottle. Bellows is what we got here. Bellows Light Rum. I rarely, if ever, encounter a customer that asks me what my house pour is, but I work in a dive bar so I don't think people really care about that sort of thing here. In other atmospheres, where upselling might matter (more on this I'm sure to come) like the catering bar I worked at, I would always ask something along the lines of "Would you like X or Y rums?" where X or Y are NOT our low-priced bottom-shelf "rail/well/house" pours, but are either call or top-shelf booze, perhaps Captain Morgan or Kraken (for call) or maybe for a vodka drink like a Gray Goose or Belvedere (for top-shelf). Upselling is a strange thing in environments where price matters and where you'd hopefully like to be selling lots of drinks to the same person. Upselling will line your manager/owner's pockets quickly as you'll be selling the high-priced stuff, but won't get you serving as many*, thus possibly stunting your tips. That is, if you got Customer A ordering a well/rail/whatever rum and Coke, and tipping a dollar every time, and that drink costs him $5, and he's only got $24 bucks on him, he can get himself 4 of em and you get 4 bucks. Customer B is a bit more discerning, and you decide to hit an upsell with the False Choice. "Pusser's or Pyrat?" B also happens to have $24 bucks on him, and asks what the price is. Say it's $7 / drink. Well that might just start to cut into your tips a bit, but your owner will love your salesmanship. Dude buys 3 drinks, tips a buck a drink, has a buck left in his pocket. You net $3, your owner sold $21, and $1 is still out there. *This all also can be total bullshit. It depends upon where you work, who you're serving at that given moment, whether or not they're big tippers anyway, whether you personally have an opinion/earnest recommendation as to why you'd serve X over Y rum, and what your specials might be for the night. Also if you've been jaded into just getting as much cash as possible into your pockets at the end of the night. Also, read the old thread, and pick up a copy of the Bartenders Black Book for cheap on Amazon and read the first pages. Not the recipes, as those come later, but just read up on some really tried and true stories and advice about the work. I still keep my copy with me in my bag behind the bar at every shift. And don't used spiced rum in a rum and coke, yeah. Just plain old white rum. I guess I just couldn't really think of enough call/top shelf examples for rum so I started listing whatever I could. Ally McBeal Wiki fucked around with this message at 06:01 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 05:57
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Ha our "rail" is Bacardi Superior, Smirnoff Red Label, Bombay Sapphire, and Crown Royal, but only because that's almost our entire selection of liquor. Also, the physical dispenser that they're in is pretty much falling apart. I should really get them to fix it up. The pegs to secure the bottles in have disappeared, so it's just a weak spring and gravity that stops them from crashing to the floor.
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Aug 16, 2012 06:08
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edit: ^^^ I'm a big fan of bombay sapphire and tonic. First drink I ever had! Ahh, I did not know that! I've learned quite a lot from reading this thread and the old one. FaceEater posted:
I'm on page 37 of the old thread. Been reading it all day. I plan on picking up the black book, some spouts and some booze next week when I get paid. Got about 30 bucks on me atm. I sure hope I can find a barback job or something, I'd love to be a bartender eventually. Any of you guys on the east coast? My brother lives in West Virginia, near DC. How's the bartending scene there? As crazy as here in Los Angeles? edit: Vvv don't get me wrong. I'm not romanticizing the job. But it seems like it'd be a good job for me is all. Deep Thoreau fucked around with this message at 06:15 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 06:10
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That is going to ruin your night eventually.
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Aug 16, 2012 06:11
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odiv posted:Ha our "rail" is Bacardi Superior, Smirnoff Red Label, Bombay Sapphire, and Crown Royal, but only because that's almost our entire selection of liquor. Yeah, well my soda gun is completely cracked apart on the handle where the part where the gun meets the flex hose, meaning the soda hoses are totally unprotected and are one good squeeze or irregular twist away from leaking all over everything until the syrup runs dry. And Jesus Christ that's a nice rail. You don't happen to have Posi-pours on those though, do you? Also, just got the management call today. "....start managing the place, ordering, more work more work more work..." UUuuuuugghghhhhhghghghghg. I am not a leader, or even smart. I'm a worker and I work and talk to people. Sometimes I make a drink in that process. But how much do I really want to give that up for less pay, more work, and infinitely more stress? \/\/\/\/ No, right, I know. It's weird that I got the call right in the middle of the thread turning that direction pretty recently. And yeah, I won't. I can't. I'm already having a loving breakdown and grinding my teeth in my sleep because of both on and off the job stress, and declining this "promotion" once it's officially "offered" in a couple weeks is also stressing me. It's a small place so it's gonna cause ripples and headaches for others. Whatever, e/n bullshit. e2: Jesus does the whole thread have the night off? Let's party. Ally McBeal Wiki fucked around with this message at 06:31 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 06:19
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Don't take a "promotion" without a pay raise. Don't take a "promotion" without a pay raise. Don't take a "promotion" without a pay raise.
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Aug 16, 2012 06:25
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It's actually true that for almost every language around the world, that after a few drinks and you start slurring your words, no matter where you are geographically, the local word for "manager" is almost completely indistinguishable from the word for "sucker."
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Aug 16, 2012 06:29
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nrr posted:It's actually true that for almost every language around the world, that after a few drinks and you start slurring your words, no matter where you are geographically, the local word for "manager" is almost completely indistinguishable from the word for "sucker." And almost every job! "Yes I'm the manager at blockbuster video" 'What does that mean?' "It means I get all of the trouble if poo poo goes down, without the pay raise to make it worth it." edit: Interesting fact: Adding the word 'regional' to the beginning changes the meaning from 'sucker' to 'douchebag'.
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Aug 16, 2012 06:30
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FaceEater posted:And Jesus Christ that's a nice rail. You don't happen to have Posi-pours on those though, do you? It's a nice rail and we're probably the cheapest place in town (and really the only place to drink on a Sunday). I'm surprised we're not busier, but we close early and it's usually members only.
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Aug 16, 2012 06:31
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$310 tonight, too bad I'm leaving for New Orleans in 9 hours and I'll probably blow it all
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Aug 16, 2012 06:53
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I'm just going to explain my situation where I work. I feel it's different enough to describe. I'll say it again: I feel like I'm not really as much a bartender as y'all at my current job. I'm at a semi-fancy event hall/hotel/marina/restaurant/bar. I personally work at the event hall bar. There are a lot of company parties (woohoo drinking on the boss's dime) weddings, communions, holiday parties, high school reunions (oh god) some media events, and oddly enough, funerals/wakes/whatever. Somebody died and now people are eating/drinking to oblivion. So whenever somebody books an event, they have the options of getting a cash bar (We have to ring up drinks and exchange money. So, real bartending.) a consumption bar (we just tally what everyone at the event drank, total, divided into categories of drinks) or an open bar (by far the most common. Like 97% of all parties) So I rarely having to worry about opening a tab for somebody, running their card, upselling or anything. The most I really have to do is break a larger bill for a guest. Money is no object. On top of these three cash options, there are tiers of liquor we provide. There's house brand (Crystal Palace vodka, etc. and no flavored stuff. Basic basic stuff.), premium (this is where we break out flavored vodkas and rum, and get Svedka, Bacardi, Tanqueray, etc.) and ultra-premuim (Patron, Grey Goose, and whatnot). If they're open bar, the ultra bars charge around $40 per person for a 4 hour event. Events are usually about 100 people. But 40 isn't uncommon, and neither is 200. What is mind boggling to me is that the liquor, wine, and beer is completely not regulated where I work. I don't know if we just make enough money where it's not an object, but there are basically no cameras and no REAL inventory on our liquor cage. I've seen a sheet where the liquor is counted by the case. Not bottle, or parts of a bottle, but by the case. I know the guys I work with are straight-laced and wouldn't rip off our employers, but if we wanted to, we could fill our bags full of bottles, waltz out, and nobody would know or probably even care. So on the topic of upselling: I rarely do it. Since it's an open bar, there's no real good reason for me to do it. What I've been doing is, if I think the person would tip me well, reach down to the well liquor, say "Ahhhh, I'll give you the good stuff" and pour something higher up. Would this fly at another place? Abso-loving-lutely not. Has it gotten me bigger tips? Hell loving yes. Does/will management notice? Doubt it. The people at the event are pretty much paying for the expensive stuff. So I give it to them, and pretend like I'm doing them a solid. Am I lovely for doing this? Maybe, but I say no. Many people are confused that they get a choice as to what rum they want in their rum and coke. Even if it all costs them the same zero dollars. Does anybody else have a "No Shots" policy where they work? Because I do. They can get it waived if they talk to my manager. But if I'm working a wedding and the groom wants a shot? He's getting it. And management accepts that. People think they're clever by sending up one person to get a double of tequila, neat. Then the next person from their group asks for just 4 glasses. Alright, enjoy your 4 'almost-a-shot's of tequila. I didn't break any rules, I know those people have a hotel room right down the hall, and even my boss thinks the no shots thing is bullshit. Then again, when the DJ offends my ears with "SHOTS SHOTS SHOTSHOTSHOTSHOTS! it is so satisfying to let out a big "Sorry, can't do that  " when the inevitable rush comes up to the bar. Though I have to pretend I am very truly sorry.So while the place I work at is semi-fancy, I'm in a weird spot, or so I think. The events start off being slow, quiet, somewhat civil, but by the end of the night, it's nearly club-like. Many times I will start off the night saying "Wow, they're really tame for a high school reunion." only to be slammed later, with everybody wanting alabama loving slammers because that's what they drank in high school. (Not a knock against the drink, or making it even, just that when a drink becomes contagious at a party I kind of hate it.) I don't have to worry about charging people, really. It is the norm for people to be staying at our hotel, so no worries about people driving off to wrap their car around some tree. Seems a big difference between this and James Woods's catering bartender experiences. ANYWAY! HUGE long boring post. Basically, I read your stories and think "Huh, well, that's weird." E: And I wrote this coming off a shift, so meh. Too tired to really proofread it all.
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Aug 16, 2012 07:24
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Daric posted:$310 tonight, too bad I'm leaving for New Orleans in 9 hours and I'll probably blow it all You missed us by like, two weeks.
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Aug 16, 2012 09:29
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gently caress Europeans*. gently caress barbacks who are as big as a Sherman tank and run behind the bar with open jugs of Clamato. gently caress people who don't tip. gently caress Brazilians*. gently caress short staffed nights. gently caress owners who think they're Jon loving Taffer and ranting and raving about cleanliness will elevate the bar to new goddamned heights. gently caress leaving the goddamned bar at 6:00 AM. Yay ringing $5,000 on a Wednesday night, though. * = Just ranting, we had over people from over 30 goddamned countries in my joint tonight. Apparently my Portugese is a lot better than I thought. Perdido fucked around with this message at 13:46 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 13:43
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Rotten Cookies posted:A whole bunch of stuff I am in almost the exact same situation as a bartender in a hotel that specialises in conferences and weddings. If they pay for a 4 hour beverage package then we still have to ring up every single drink we pour (with wine by the bottle) purely for stock taking purposes. There's a massive room for error, but also plenty of room to put through a few extra beers as staffies at the end of the night. Nobody is paying too much, but drinks can be very easily written off. We also have a "no shots" policy that I quite enjoy enforcing, although it is actually somewhat up to our discretion. If I get a group who is discussing shots I usually let them go through their whole "what do you want? Okay, so that's 4 tequilas, 5 Sambucca" etc. before telling them we can't do it. I'm not sure why I get such perverse pleasure from letting them get an entire order first. Serving doubles is at our discretion as well. Someone who wants to sit by the fire with a double scotch, no problem. A bunch of wedding guests drinking on someone else's dime with a mission to get drunk? Sorry fellas, no doubles served here. Part of our license I'm afraid! Speaking of which, what the hell is up with black Sambucca shots? It seems that literally not a single person who orders them actually likes them. Sambucca seems to have this stigma of being really strong and will get you poo poo-faced more than anything else in the bar, but the taste offends everyone in a 10m radius. I'm always happy to give the bride/groom pretty much whatever they like as well, but it's hard to explain to a group of drunk dickheads why they can't get shots when they just saw someone else doing them. One massive saving grace at my work is that our license only extends to midnight. 11:45 last drinks are called, come 00:00 I'm afraid your wedding is over. I don't give a poo poo that you didn't hear the DJ calling last drinks, I don't care that it took you half an hour to stumble your way to the bar. As soon as that clock hits 12 not a single drop of booze is leaving my bar, the lights are turning off and you can all gently caress off back to your hotel rooms.
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Aug 16, 2012 16:03
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Perdido posted:gently caress barbacks who are as big as a Sherman tank and run behind the bar with open jugs of Clamato. never tell your barbacks to stop running though. make sure they let you know when they're in your blind spot with a simple "BEHIND" to avoid problems, but otherwise, that guy is on the money. also: gently caress gettiung up on 3 hours sleep to go get a usb stick from the printers for a girl who needs it for class today down in the city after she left it here and drove two hours away from it i dont even know if that makes sense at all but long story short: 
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Aug 16, 2012 17:41
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Why is it so hard for people to figure out who's next? Sorry, I'm busy making drinks so I don't see when everyone walks up to the loving bar, I don't have eyes in the back of my head, and I don't hear your inside voice so speak the gently caress up. I got pissed and yelled at everybody standing at the bar WERE ALL ADULTS HERE RIGHT COULD YOU PLEASE FIGURE IT OUT AMONGST YOURSELVES WHOS NEXT IF YOU HAVE A GODDAMN PROBLEM WITH THE ORDER IM SERVING!!!??? I ask who's next and they all just sit there and look at each other 
Applebees Appetizer fucked around with this message at 17:57 on Aug 16, 2012 |
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Aug 16, 2012 17:53
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Oh Thread! How I've missed you! My 2 cents worth on a couple of things, a update on myself and some photos, beacuse gently caress it, I can. The argument between mixologist and bartender: as far as I'm aware there are different levels of skill when it comes to a bartender, from pulling beers to molecular / barrel aging / whatever fad has taken over the cocktail scene. A mixologist is simply a title to take to your boss to try and get paid more. I don't think one person in my city that I know of would willingly call themselves a mixologist without their tongue firmly implanted in their cheek. Safety shots in some bars are a necessity, always have a bottle under the well that got written up on raw wastage for those moments where it'd be safer to have a shot and have a smoke then make another 6 mojitos and 4 old fashions in 2 orders, peak service. Out of curiosity; what are your go to shots? Someone got their scowl on at me the other day for enjoying a shot of Jim Beam White, and I realized it was a bit of a guilty pleasure to drink well spirits over back bar during service. I'd also be interested to hear about how many of our cocktail bartenders on SA have won/ entered/ are entering competitions, whether global, or brand based. The management side of things is interesting at the moment, it feels 80% babysitting and 20% bartending at the moment, so the tips are even worse at the moment. The venue that I work is on the corner of the busiest street in the "entertainment disctrict" of this city, and we've been reopen for 2 months now, unfortunately I'm not getting the numbers I'd like to, but I'm getting the clientelle that I'd like. Waiting game I guess! Anyway; Coldfire: Cocktail bar manager When I'm not in a bar somewhere, I'm usually shooting, the yin to my bartender yang. So have a few photos  Quick and dirty shot of the new bar  28ml jiggers! Yay!  One of the restaurant boys just learned how to make a Harvard  Small staff training
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Aug 16, 2012 19:00
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