Brew Drinker

So You Want To Become A Bartender

A bartender is somebody who serves beverages behind a licensed bar to paying customers. A bartender can also be called a barkeep or a barmaid. Bartenders are found in bars, pubs, taverns, nightclubs and other similar places.

The majority of the drinks that a bartender will be serving contain alcohol in them. They also serve beer and wine, along with other types of alcohol. Not only do they serve alcohol they also have to serve juice, soda, water, and non alcoholic beverages to those who do not drink alcohol.

As well as make and serve drinks, the bartender is also responsible for taking payment for drinks, in some cases (either from customers, waiters or waitresses), keeping the liquor supplies and glassware stocked, keeping the bar area clean, maintaining enough ice and garnishes on hand and serving food to customers sitting at the bar, if the bar offers food for sale.

Almost anywhere you go the bartender will be expected to dress appropriate, this makes the whole atmosphere of the bar better. There are even some places where the bartender will be expected to be the main entertainment of the bar.

Bartenders are expected to be able to make hundreds of types of drinks to please any paying customer in a quick, accurate and non-wasteful fashion. In some establishments, such as a busy nightclub, the bartender is only expected to serve the customer a drink and nothing else. In a smaller place such as a tavern however, the bartender might be expected to be a good listener, and allow the customers to have a shoulder to cry on.

A good bartender must have excellent people skills, as communication and also a person that will listen to the customer. When people are drinking they are more to open up, and sometimes as a bartender you must be that shoulder to cry on. Knowing what your customers are going to order is also a good thing, you will learn this over time.

In the United States, mostly all bartenders are payed minimum wage. So their main source of income will be coming from tips, which is a custom in almost every country. Bartenders must also be strict when it comes to checking if that person is old enough to drink alcohol or not.

So there is much more to being a bartender than just serving alcohol as you can see. The most important thing you must do well is your people skills since the majority of bartenders work for tips. The better people skills you have the more money you will see coming in.

Before you try and get into the wonderful world of bartending you need to know the facts, for that reason the author has written an excellent book that goes over bartending tips for beginners and how to become a bartender.