r/bartenders

Okay so first thing that bothers me. It is when i am sick (rarely) and really have to call out management presses me about a doctors note and threatens to write me up. While all my other coworkers tell me they are never asked for doctors note (which often they lie, i follow them on instagram, they say they are sick and post pictures of doing fun shit outside).
Second thing, other coworkers mainly one (my boyfriend lol) has a second job and often are 1 hour late to work because “got stuck at my other job”.
Those mfs often ask me to work on my days off and sometimes 6 days a week.
It started bothering me last week when my second job had a grand opening and i said i would be late but would not happen again since we just had to stay late for the first opening day. They gave me whole speech about it, ok.
Today, i was transporting a bed on my car, bed fell on the highway and i was stuck there for 3 hours trying to figure out the situation. Texted my job asking if maybe someone could help me with their truck, their answer? “Can you cover your shift” okay. I asked to be one hour late for obvious reasons. Was answered with short messages and attitude saying that it was absolutely not okay and i could come at least 30 mins late.
That just straightforward pissed me off. I walked and had a whole conversation with upper management on how the rules are not being applied the same to everyone (yes mentioned names) and that i really wanted to get the same kind of understanding other employees are having. And that it upsets me how they asking me work 6 days a week, but when i need understanding i am treated this way. Her answer “i understand where you are coming from but it is none of your business how we treat other employees, boundaries are different, i always follow the rules” i said “well we are all employees doing the same job for the same company, and honestly the rules are not being applied equally behind the bar”.
Like am i overreacting here?

After a long time of being in retail, I’ve decided to go back to bartending and was recently offered an interview with Nobu. I have worked and fine dining before, but that was before I was more expressive in my alternative appearance.

I have minimal facial piercings that draw attention, full sleeve of tattoos, and bright pink hair. Out of everything, I’m more worried about my hair during this interview.

I’m desperate to land a fine dining experience again, because I really enjoyed the interactions that came along with it. However, it’s been a while since I hopped back in this side of the industry and I’m curious if dress code has changed or if people are seeing a more lax approach in these nicer settings. I would be totally down to cover my tattoos with long sleeves, and use clear retainers in my piercings if needed. But I JUST got my hair dyed this past week and I’m not sure if it’ll affect my chances of employment, as Nobu seems to cater to a very high profile clientele.

I’ve tried everything from normal mall brands to expensive athleisure brands to premium denim to workwear. I finally found the perfect pants.

The brand is Duer, they’re the No Sweat Pant and they’re amazing. Light, breathable, stretchy, durable, gusseted for movement, 5 pocket design so they act like jeans. They’re incredibly comfortable and exactly what I’ve been looking for for years.

They’re $130ish USD and worth every penny.

I just got their belt too and it’s a game changer. Normal buckle but flexible elastic material so you can pull it tight and it cinches you in.

I’m in love. I strongly recommend them to anyone looking for pants anywhere in a restaurant setting or just as general comfortable wearable clothing.

That’s all.

Cheers y’all.

For context,

I wanna first start off by saying “skinny margs” are not real cocktails. It’s gonna be a gross drink. U can ask 5 different people what it is and they’ll give you 5 different answers. In order to avoid confusion I ask my guests exactly what they want. Whether it’s tequila and lime. Or tequila lime and Cointreau. Whatever the case may be, it helps me cater to the guests what they want vs a shot in the dark. I have time at my bar to do this so I really don’t mind, especially if they are sitting with me

Me and my coworker (I’ll call him John) have been offered a supervisor position because the managers did not want to work weekends and close. Neither do I, because I have my own business set aside for this. I declined the offer and they gave the position to my coworker. No big deal, congratulations woo hoo.

Just yesterday, things were getting a little busy. Im training someone new and john is behind the bar with us. We have a bunch of tickets. I have 3 guests that come in and sit at the bar, they discuss amongst themselves what they wanna drink and then one of the girls asked for a skinny margarita. So I proceeded to follow my own method to curate this girls margarita. Then John had the audacity to talk over us and says “oh we make our skinny margarita with orange juice” so I look at the girl and I said I can make it however YOU would like it. Because she seemed really turned off by the orange juice. She clearly did not want that. she looks back and forth and between her friends and settles with a tequila shot.

Way to go John. This isn’t the first time he’s done something like this. He’s been on a high horse like this for like 2 weeks. Since they promoted him. Like wtf? This guy has such a knack for following the recipe book when it’s convenient for him. And then proceeds to make drinks wrong and free pours whenever he feels like it.

Since the beginning of this year my bar has taken a nosedive in drink quality on the specialty menu. And I can tell you it’s not because of the bartenders. It’s the recipe book they have given us. It sucksss ass. I’ll send pictures of it

I’m thinking of leaving very soon. I just wanted to rant because it was a stupid situation and this guy knows nothing about treating guests well and making a good drink for them.

Hey guys, so I (25f) have been working at a bar for the past couple years and while I have enjoyed a lot of it, it's time for me to move on. I want to put my 2 weeks in tomorrow, but I'm lowkey terrified to tell my manager as he is very unstable and has a drug problem. He regularly blows up and freaks out at employees and I'm scared that when I tell him im quitting hes gonna have flip out. I'm a pretty non-confrontational person so I'm very anxious about this. This is a very small place with only a few bartenders on staff, so me leaving is definitely going to stress him out. I just can't deal with his mood swings anymore, plus I got a great opportunity to work at another bar and make way more money. I know I need to do this for myself but IM SCARED! Any tips or advice would be appreciated lol thank you!!

Coworker and I at a new spot I got hired are debating whether or not to put ice in a michelada for the sake of consistency. I've always been taught to put ice in them, but we're close to Dodgers stadium in SoCal, and he says they don't ice the michelas there, and also that we should never put ice in anything with beer.

Asking others at the same spot revealed that there doesn't seem to be a universal consensus on this. So I ask you guys, do you ice your micheladas or no?

What is your go-to to trying the drink you have made? Is there an alternative to using straws? Please share your knowledge. Thanks

I’ve worked strictly in restaurants and bars for the past twenty years, since I was 15.

The first shock I felt on shift today was how slow all my new coworkers are. They dragged their feet around and chatted with each other while I was zipping around the store and behind the counter with a speed that wouldn’t surprise anyone in this sub, but that honestly seemed to unsettle everyone. Even customers. I’m realizing that the shock I’m feeling shouldn’t be that everyone else is slow, but that I’ve had to spend my entire adult life rushing so fast over such trivial shit.

There’s an Anthony Bourdain quote I butcher in my head a lot about working the line that I’ve always thought translates well for bartenders too, something like: “we’re frustrated by regular society because we don’t understand why the world can’t run as smoothly as our kitchens”. I think about this every time I go anywhere that isn’t a bar or restaurant, anywhere I have to wait in line for longer than it takes me to greet, serve and charge a large group of new customers.

It’ll be a huge learning curve to figure out how to let myself move slowly. It’s just not in my bones. It’s crazy how fast and efficient we’re expected (required) to be over food and drinks while the entire rest of the world gets to drag their feet.

Tomorrow I get a half-hour lunch break. And two tens. All of them mandatory. Soon I’ll have accrued one paid sick day. Health insurance after a month. Who knew you could get paid to go on vacation? Every day’s gonna be a whole new shock.

Hey everyone.

My wife and I both bartend. I’m 28 and she’s 26. She’s been at it for 5 years and I’ve been doing it for 4 years on and off. She works at a high volume cocktail bar and a dive and I work at a chill cocktail bar and a high volume dive. We both average $100k combined each year, give or take of course. This in Baltimore.

We want to move though and while we do plan on still pursuing our respective other careers, bartending is what’s working as of now.

Right now we’re in between NY, Chicago, Philadelphia, and smaller cities in California (basically just not LA if I’m being honest.)

Anyone ever bartend in those cities and recommend/condemn it? Or anyone have something nice or bad to say about the cities they work in but aren’t mentioned in the post?

Okay, so after months of searching and interviews that lead to nowhere. I finally did get a job at a seafood restaurant. I told them I had two years of experience as a barback and know how to make all the drinks. They told me that I had to start out as a server first because they aren’t hiring for any bartenders at the moment. I don’t mind being one starting out to learn how the restaurant works before being behind the bar. However, it has been three months since they hired me as a server. I found out one of the bartenders got fired and they had an opening position for a bartender. I thought they were going to hire me as I had the experience. For some reason, they hired this college sorority girl who knew nothing about serving or bartending starting out as a bartender instead of a server. She didn’t even know how to exchange a keg or make syrup. When they hired her instead of someone who actually did know how to run a bar, I put my two weeks notice. I was done at that point.

Why do bars hire people with zero clue how to run a bar instead of servers who already knew how the place works and have been there longer?

Sorry, I should mention- I’m a girl (28) btw! Lol

The scene: I work in an Irish bar in the UK, I have about 30 people in my bar, spirits are high, solo shift, everything is going well, and then the stomach grumbles start. Hmm, maybe I can pass the wind in the back. Nope. I need to poop. I have 4 hours until the next staff member is on. I have the quickest poop in the world, my body clearly understood what I needed today, but next time I might not be so lucky. Sometimes the poops are a long wiper, or they just keep coming.

What is your protocol for pooping?

I love my coworkers at both bars i work at and I would much rather work with them over time and years because of the fact that they and I agree on this type of stuff. Just my opinion and experience and thanks to Sam for keeping it positive and 100%.

Last night at the club I work at, one of my regular co workers that I work with at the club (we will call him Sam) and I were doing our usual Saturday night business and the music was great and the crowd was vibing and the tips were good. We pool tips at the club and Sam and I work together twice a month at the club and we both have an understanding that any just for you tips, go in the tip pool regardless of amount or client. I have this same understanding with every bartender I work with at both bars I work at today and almost at all times, in the past as well.

So last night, Sam gets a $400 tip from an out of town guest from a customer who only has 2 drinks (there alone) and the customer tells him it's just for you. Sam thanks him, tells him he appreciates it. Sam mentions this to me after the customer leaves and tells me it goes in the pool as always and then reminds me of the time I got an $1000 tip a year ago from a group and they told me it was just for me and I also put it in the pool and thus, it was split with Sam as well. AND this also goes back to the time 8 months ago when Sam got a $300 just for you tip and put it in the pool as well. AND the time also a year ago when I got a $200 just for you tip and put it in the pool. AND the time that Sam got another $400 just for you tip and put it in the pool. Etc etc etc. GO ahead and add it up and see if I got shorted or came out ahead but that is a fools errand because it does NOT work out that way over years in the industry and I am not giving you all the times this has happened at both bars i work at. To wit: it's not a balance sheet people because you cannot measure the goodwill it creates among your coworkers and the positive vibe in instills behind the bar during the shift when you honor your commitments to your coworkers. You just cannot quantify the income that you make or don't make off the actual amount of a just for you tip because the goodwill that sharing that tip in the pool creates, also impacts present and future income over time.

This stuff works out over time and I would much rather work with industry like Sam than those who argue over just for you tips as well as those who don't want to pool tips at all. Sam, Candy, Alyssa, Malcom, Dave, Jaime, and Bryan (not their real names) are all bartenders I currently work with that all feel the same way that I do and I would much rather work with any of them than some of the shortsighted industry people who pocket the just for you tips as well as those that don't like to pool tips. Just my preference and I have made more money on a steady basis in the industry over the past 15 years because of working with other industry people like them.

I've been working in downtown bars for nearly 3 years now. Recently I experienced my first active shooter situation. I'm due soon to renew my state certifications and training but they don't cover active shooter protocol. So I want to partly vent about the experience, partly ask advice and opinions, and also ask where to access active shooter protocol education and training when it's not covered by state mandated liquor training.

The shooting happened directly outside my bar. We had last call and shut the door like 5 minutes prior to the event. It's a big steel door with a little porthole window. I heard something, before realizing it was gunfire, but I knew something was wrong. Like maybe 20 shots were fired in total about 10 feet from our front door. When I got to the door and looked out the little window, I saw three people trying to find cover while shots were still being fired. Not knowing what was happening but acting on instinct, I opened the door and demanded the few people get inside. The last guy I think I grabbed and pulled so I could shut the door.

It ended up fine, nobody was hurt somehow despite it being extremely busy and crowded on the streets. Bullets went through the windows but, thank Christ, didn't find a body. But it made me realize how woefully unprepared I am for that kind of situation. What if it was inside the bar? What if one of the people I pulled inside was the shooter? I realize now I need to know that protocol and I don't.

Thanks for listening to my TED talk

Why must i be wired after the 11 hour shift that ended at 3am. Took a nap on my break I was so exhausted. But nooooo once my head hits the pillow though I’m wide fucking awake.

Going to attempt to sedate myself via bong rip. Goodnight (I hope).