Bartending Tips

|| Greeting & Carding|| Attitude || Law ||

In this section, I've decided to share a few bartending tips that I've picked
up over the years working as a bartender. First, let's look at both the spoken
and unspoken rules when it comes to working behind the bar.

Let's talk about the first thing you do when a customer walks into the bar.
Assuming you work at a lounge or a bar, and not a club, these are the standard
steps that most bartenders would follow:

1) Acknowledge the customer with a friendly greeting.

2) Place a cocktail napkin in front of the customer

3) Offer the customer the bar menu (if there is one), and ask if they have any questions.

4) Come back in a few minutes to take the order. Card if necessary. I will talk in more detail about this later on.

5) Make and serve the drink.

6) Ring up the order on the cash register or POS System. Charge the customer or keep a tab going.

There will always be exceptions to the rules. For instance, when a regular walks into the lounge, I'll go through the basic steps of greeting the customer, but instead of offering the menu, I'll ask if he or she wants what he or she normally orders.

For example, if a patron always starts the night off with a Cosmopolitan, I'll ask if she wants a Cosmo.

Then there are regulars who ALWAYS get the same beer-be it Heineken or Harpoon IPA from the draft. In those instances, I don't even need to ask. I'll pour them the drink.

Doing so not only speeds up the process of serving your customer, but also makes him or her feel special since you remember his or her drink. This bartending tip usually results in higher tips for you!

Bartending Tips #1 - Carding

Now, let's talk about carding. A lot of people may be intimidated by the idea of asking a complete stranger for his or her ID. I felt the same way. The first few days on my job, I was pretty reticent about asking for people's identification.

But! Here's the cold hard truth. Your job is on the line.

Say a minor walks into the bar, has a couple of drinks, and ends up causing trouble later on inside or outside the bar. Someone may or may not get hurt. Either way, the police gets involved, and it turns out that the bartender (aka you) served drinks to a minor. The repercussions, my friend, are serious.

The penalties can range anywhere from you losing your job to the bar losing its license. And that is, in essence, a death sentence to any establishment.

All this can be avoided by asking for proper ID from the get-go, which brings me to the next topic. Proper forms of Identification. This will vary from state to state, but a good rule of thumb to follow is always carry an up-to-date, State or Federal-issued form of ID.

Examples are: State Driver's License, State ID Cards, and Passports. Some joints may allow expired licenses to suffice as proper ID, but most don't. The same is true for Learner's Permits or Temporary State Licenses. By following this guideline, you should be golden.

There you have it- the most basic rundown for tips on bartending.

It's not rocket science, but more an exercise of common sense. Of course, this is just an example of how one might proceed in greeting and carding a customer - it's not set in stone.

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Bartending Tips #2 - Attitude

Even though I've listed this as tip #2, this shouldn't be overlooked. In fact, this may be one of the most imporant tips on bartending. What's the difference between a good bartender and a great one? Well, attitude!! Anyone can learn how to make drinks, but being able to make and sell drinks by itself won't make you a great bartender. A technically proficient bartender who is not only able to make the drinks, but also engage the patron is a stellar bartender.

Remember, a tip is earned, not given. Treat each customer with respect and a winning attitude. This will not only make the job easier, but also earn you amazing tips.

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Bartending Tips #3 - Bartending and the Law

Depending on which state you are bartending in, the rules will vary. I would suggest that you look up the rules and regulations that are specific to your state. For instance, in Massachusetts, which is where I am from, bartenders are not allowed to serve more than 2 drinks per customer. Moreover, in most states, the legal maximum amount of alcohol in one drink is 2.5 oz.

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