looking to get into bartending.

[wsirianni]

ok im looking to get into bartending i havent had any experience and i want to get into it but im availible nights and weekend. any tips or opportunities id appreciate it.. o btw i live in the northeast area of philly and i have trasportation and im 21.

[Ender81]

Allentown Bartending School :)

[wsirianni]

will they help u with a job placement.. and is there a website i can go to?

[Ender81]

Enjoy http://www.bartenderschool.com/ no real opinion of it myself, my brother went but that was years ago. It was enough to get him a job at a resort though.

[Got Insulin?]

If you go to any restaraunt with a bar, I gaurentee, that you'll learn more than you could at any school. In the industry, experience> paying way too much for things you could learn for free. I've been working behind a bar (at times illegally, lol) for five or so years at different places, and just with that experience alone, I can run circles around anyone that comes in from a school. Bartending is sooo much more than making drinks, that's the easy part. You need to know how to sell certain items, how to talk to people, how to be creative on your feet, ect. I'm not totally hating on bartending schools, but I have friends that went to them, and were "placed" in jobs afterwards, and I'm still making drinks, haha.

Like I said orgionally, get a job at somewhere like Dave & Buster's or Miller's Ale house, and even if it's serving tables, you'll get a feel for what it's like to have that pressure, and that way you don't waste your own money and time, just to not like something. Good luck with everything, man.

[deb38]

I was a bartender when I was 18. I learned a lot from just working. Paid great too!

A lot places look for experience. Try and get your foot in the door and let them know you are interested in tending bar. You might start off in some other position and they may end up placing you behind the bar during one of their slow shifts.

Goodluck, it is fun.

[WRX27]

I agree experience > than school when it comes to bartending.

I bartended for awhile years back, fun and $ was good.

[QCs_R4_Girls]

Apply for a job as a barback first. It's the helper to the bartender at busy restaurants. You'll get the experience of working at the bar, mostly by pouring beers and simple drinks, but you'll also learn the schematics of how the bartenders work at that specific restaurant.

Also, once you're a barback at a restaurant, you can apply to be a barback or a bartender at a hotel that does banquets. From experience, banquet bartenders make out well in tips and pay, and you're only serving soda, bottled beers, wine, and the occassional mixed drink (nothing fancier than a rum & coke). You'll work wedding receptions and corporate parties, and you're always in demand. If not, go work at a couple places so you're always bringing in money.

Biggest thing you need to learn while being a bartender is no memorizing drink recipes, it's the balancing of listening and anticipating people's drinking habits. A bartender is never alone behind the bar; there's always Mr. Boston there to help...

[jjm4life]

i manage a bar


heres the jist. skip bartending school its pissing away money. youre going to have to start off eslwhere, such as serving or bar backing. serving is more money but barbarking will get you to bartending quicker. for someone with no exeperience try to get a barback gig at a beer bar. a place that does more cocktails is going to want experience.as my fat freidn deb38 said, let them know your ambiition to be a bartender, but willingness to start elsewhere.

for what its worth, my bar opened about 5 weeks ago. i had 2x as many bar applicants as servers. everyone thinks they have what it takes to bartend.. 90% cant. Pm me if you want more specific info

[teh DIRT]

^^^
dude said it all. You can learn the drinks at school, being a good bartender is about being charasmatic (sp?) and being able to manage time wisely. I work as a server and know the bartenders (only 3 that rotate), on busy nights I can tell which one is working just by walking by the service window and seeing if drinks are waiting to be made for 5 mins or are already made and waiting to be picked up. Its a lot of work....but damn the cash is good. I walked with 150 on a slow night tending bar.

[Erik]

I dont bartend, but im in the food service which follows the same guidelines. You need to be outgoing but not creepy, creative, assertive, and you need to atleast act like you know your ****. That is pretty much what i follow to keep the sales aspect boosted, as well as developing regulars and friends. Im sure the same applies for bartending

[WCblkTC]

Im currently a bartender, i never went to a bartending school i actually started working at a restaurant that had a bar and after a while they trained me to be a bartender. Honestly though its probably easier and quicker (learning wise) to go to a bartending school because they will help you find a job and since you have no experience it will look better that you went to a school.

PS. The money you spend to pay for the school will be made back in one or two nights :) :)

[SvicksTc]

Allentown Bartending School :)

I know someone who did that schooling and loved it and now works at TGI Fridays, im sure making a decent amout of money

[EKLIPZGSX97]

Not to butt in but don't most places look for some kind of PLCB Certification? or a license or something? Family members used to tend bar a few years back and the place made them get LCB certs to be able to continue tending bar...

Is this still applicable? because this was prolly 10 years ago now that this happened

[DC Hunny5]

Not to butt in but don't most places look for some kind of PLCB Certification? or a license or something? Family members used to tend bar a few years back and the place made them get LCB certs to be able to continue tending bar...

Is this still applicable? because this was prolly 10 years ago now that this happened

i know in delaware, you have to go to an abc (alcohol beverage control) class & pass a test.

[EKLIPZGSX97]

Yea, I thought i was the same deal here... PLCB = Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. They have their own cute little mascot and everything. He's a Bee obviously:lol:

[WCblkTC]

Not to butt in but don't most places look for some kind of PLCB Certification? or a license or something? Family members used to tend bar a few years back and the place made them get LCB certs to be able to continue tending bar...

Is this still applicable? because this was prolly 10 years ago now that this happened

Yes, you have to sit through like a class and take a test thats honestly common sense..everyone including bouncers and barbacks have to take it. Its usually done through where you work and every two years.

[Got Insulin?]

Yes, you have to sit through like a class and take a test thats honestly common sense..everyone including bouncers and barbacks have to take it. Its usually done through where you work and every two years.

I've barbacked for a realitively big corparately owned bar, for two years, and I never needed to take it. Alot of places can just get away with "Safe Serve" which, I've never taken either, lol.

[wsirianni]

wow guys im getting alot of good responses here thanks alot and keep em coming.

[TGilb2007]

Ive also considered the same, but never really got around to it. See what happens later down the road yet.

[OPZ]

Isn't safe serv just pretty much knowing your states liquor laws? Like for CEC its you have to be 18 to pour the beer/wine, and that they are limited to a maximum of 2 drinks, 1 drink per hour.

[jjm4life]

there are no mandatory certs for anyone in the front of the house for a restuarant or bar. the only mandatory certifcation is servsafe safey and sanitaiton. a kitchen needs to have one certified employee in house at all times.

any certs for bartenders bouncers servers ect like servsafe alcohol, TIPS or any of the others comes in handy in the case of a lawsuit. a bar can defend itsself against a wrongful death suit, underage drinking fines ect by showing the courts that the bar has taken every step possible towards assuring safe, responsible service. it also helps with insurance rates

as for knowing the local drinking laws, yes that is part of the test, but there is nothing that says anything about maxiumum drinks per hour. there is a basic formula for time and amount consumed but there beyond that its in the bartenders hands to provide "responsible service"

fwiw i have servsafe sanitation and liqour certificates. the sanitation one was like a 20+ hour course where you need to score like 87% or better to pass. the booze cert was way quicker.