Bartending School....worth it?

Only training you'll ever need.

bartending?


as in a pub?

as in pulling pints?

why the hell do you need to lern more then ''hold at this angle and pull this''

No bartender I ever worked with went to bartending school. I started by barbacking, as did most of the male bartenders I know. Most of the women started as cocktail waitresses.

95% of bartending is just making the same 30 drinks again and again. Draw up a list of "essentials" and learn to make those (then learn to make them quickly...). The list will vary a bit from one venue to the next, depending on the kind of crowd it draws.

You don't need to know 1000 drink recipes, and you don't have to learn juggling tricks unless you're working at some kind of cheesy holiday resort.

...and if a patron ever asks "Do you know how to make a 'Gorilla Fart'?", always answer "Sure... beans."

[Edited on Mar 24, 2006 by Vathek]

In most bars, if you try to pull any of the shit they did in that movie, you'll get fired on the spot.

From my personal experience: the best way to get a bartending job is to pick a bar you like the atmosphere in, then make yourself a regular. Get to know the staff (tip big, too) and voice an interest. Most places have slow nights during the week when the regular guys hate to work - maybe you can pick up a shift.

I have known a few bartending school "graduates," and they were almost universally disliked behind the bar - except this one retired Patriots cheerleader...

a lot of bars don't serve much beer. my bar actually only has one tap, and some stuff in the bottle. we sell mostly hard liquor in various forms.

if you have the money and time to spend, then it's a whole hell of a lot of fun. expensive fun, but i loved every second of bartending school. i did learn a lot of interesting trivia.

did i get a job bartending? fuck no. you have to start low and work your way up. apparently that's how it is everywhere. i have met up with two very different people from my class (we had a fascinating cross section of people) and neither of them ever got a job that was even remotely related to bartending.

basically to get a bartending job if you're in experienced.... well it always helps to network.... but for the most part it's basically getting hired on somewhere and being willing to do anything they ask of you, cocktail, door, barback etc until you work your way up to the bartending position... in which case they will normally give you day shifts at first until they feel you are ready for night/weekend shifts. patience and a smile goes a long way

I stand by my 4 year old advice about scotch.

Since most offer job placement it is absolutely not a scam. I didnt go to bt school but i have bartended with people that did. Dont expect to get a cool fun job at a non-corporate joint with bt school alone. They generally supply people to p.f. changs, chiles, applebees, places like that. get some experience there and then move on to a better place. option b is to start somewhere as a barback and pay attention, ask questions, practice. that will get your foot in the door and someone will quit or get fired eventually. Good luck. im sure you will like the career

i went to bar-tending school not for a job but just for the better knowledge of alcohol and drinks and just more knowledge in general I consider myself a permanent student. I learned quite a bit. never tried to get a job but the knowledge has helped me in general life a lot.

I have a lot of drinking buddies now.