Step 1: How to Become a Restuarant Bartender

So you've decided you want to start bartending.  That's great - that's the real first step.

But if you're like me, you really didn't know where to start after making this decision.  So here's what I did.. and this is exactly what you can do:

Go to any run-of-the-mill restaurant: Chili's, Perkin's, TGIFriday's etc.  and tell the host there that you want to fill out a server application.  Fill it out and bring it back to the host-stand.  When you do this, ask if there is a manager on duty who you could briefly discuss job openings with.  I know what you're thinking, you don't want to be a server.  I know, I didn't either - it's all part of the plan.

The first couple times I did this, the host kind of shut me out by saying, "we will take your application and get back to you if there is an opening."  I politely responded, "thank you." and moved on.  On the third attempt though, the host brought me to the manager directly.  SUCCESS.  This is how you get the job, if you leave you application with the host, it will either be thrown out or thrown on a stack of other applications.

So, I had a quick interview with the manager who liked me right off the bat.  She asked about my experience serving, I said that I had none but that I'm "very excited and willing to learn".  Note: If you have ANY experience, bring it up at this point and make it sound as good as possible.  After displaying my willingness to learn, I got the job.

So then I got trained at the restaurant and became a server.  I didn't like serving.  Everything about it was awful to me.  But it was all part of my plan:  to learn bartending from serving.  I hung out by the bar when I had any downtime.  There I learned drinks, learned alcohol names, watched pouring mechanics etc.  In no time the bartenders were my friends and would bring me behind the bar and help me learn.  During my hours off, I was reading a simple "How to Bartend" book I purchased online.  Order one online or get the one I just wrote  here .   A couple months later, I was a bartender. 

THIS IS HOW YOU DO IT!  I learned to bartend for free (well for the price of a used book).  AND I automatically got a bartending job!  After learning enough, I eventually started taking bar shifts at this same restaurant.  I was much happier working behind the bar than out on the floor whileI made much more money at the same time.  I never wasted my time and money on bartending school.  Perfecto.    

Here is a good video made by a fellow bartender: Jason.  That further explains what I'm talking about here:

You can do it too, just follow these steps and stay positive. 

This was not my end goal however, nightclubs (and bars/lounges) is where the real money is at.  I was still working my plan.

NOTE: Ladies, you can do this same thing but replace food server with being a cocktail server.  Same process... you can learn bartending while you cocktail.  Us guys have to typically start as food servers though. 

Step 2: How to become a Nightclub Bartender

Ok.  So you have read through Step 1 on becoming a bartender and now you are officially a bartender.  You have followed these first instructions and you're bartending at a restaurant.  Very nice.

(If you haven't read these first steps - do so here: Step 1)

You are making better money now and starting to enjoy bartending.  However, you want to make more money.  This is good, money frees up your life for better and greater opportunites.  So how do you make more money?  The answer is: At a nightclub.

Nightclub bartenders make more money for a variety of reasons.  At nightclubs, drink prices are higher than restaurants (therefore you get gratuity percentage of a higher check),  people are having more fun (so they tip more), and at a club, there is much more volume.  What do I mean by volume?  I have had nights where I sell $7,000 or $8,000 of drinks (what's 18% gratuity of $8,000?  You do the math).  You will never sell this much at a restaurant bartending job.  

Nightclub jobs are hard to come by, especially for guys.  So here is how I did it.  I started practicing bartending mechanics and speed while I was still bartending at a restaurant.  

So, for you, while you work at the restaurant, start learning how to pour like a nightclub bartender (see video below).  Learn the recipes for the most common nightclub drinks in your area (these drinks will vary depending on your location).   Finally, and this one is somewhat superficial, keep yourself in presentable shape for a nightclub bartending job.  I know it's pretentious, but this is what the nightclub industry is about - do your best to be healthy, well-dressed, and professional. 

The next task for me was to start hanging out at the club where I wanted to get a job. I became friends with one of the promoters there, a tall guy with slicked-back hair named Steve-o.   After becoming friends with him, a few months later he told me that the club was hiring.  He set up a meeting for me with the general manager (The GM).  YES!  I was very excited.

I arrived at the nightclub at 2 PM on a Wednesday for my meeting/interview.  The first thing the manager had me do was jump behind the bar.  He started ordering drinks from me.  He closely watched me to see if I was making drinks correctly and if I was pouring the correct amount in.  Note:  It is VERY important not to over-pour on drinks.  Nightclubs, as I mentioned before, are high-volume.  If a club has a bartender who over-pours, that bartender will cost the club LOTS of money.  A typical pour for a cocktail is 1.5 ounces.  You should practice pouring this over and over-again at home. (Again, watch the video above to learn how to pour).

After we finished the drink orders part, we sat down and discussed "my fit" at this club.  He asked me how I knew about the job opening.  I replied that I was friends with Steve-O.  The GM's face lit up; he is friends with Steve-O as well.  I WAS IN.  I also talked about how many people I knew in the nightlife scene -  I knew many partiers from spending my nights out.  I mentioned this because managers want to know that you will draw your own clientele.  I started the next night. 

So I got the job.  But getting a nightclub bartending job doesn't mean you get to KEEP a nightclub bartending job however.  I was far from done.  Read on to learn how to keep your spot. 

Step 3: How to Keep a Nightclub Bartending Job

Ok. So you got the dream job.  The nightclub bartending job.  You have completed steps one and two - you're on your way.  You're going to work a few nights a week and make in that week what your friends make in 2 weeks working at their 40+ hr/week office job.  Exciting!  But please, don't rest on your laurels.

Your work isn't done.  Nightclubs often hire bartenders only to fire them weeks (or even nights) later if they aren't cutting it.  I have seen it many times. I do not tell you this to scare you but rather to help you be successful once you've come this far.  Let me tell you how I've kept my nightclub bartending job, among stiff competition,  for years.

I'll begin from the first night that I started at the nightclub I've worked at the past few years.

As you can imagine, I was very excited to start but I also new what I mentioned above.  I need to ring high (ring high: to sell a lot of drinks) so the manager would see that I can bring value to the club.  So I texted and emailed all of my friends the night before and asked them to come in and see me.  I made sure to invite a lot of girls (the nightclub industry is centered around getting good-looking girls to the venue).  I messaged a lot of people and asked them to come in and buy, buy, BUY from me.

They did.  The first night I worked, I rang higher than all of the other bartenders in the club.  I rang in $4,221.  I was happy with this number because I knew the general manager would see this and realize that I am valuable.  He did.   After I closed out with him that night, he said, "Nice job tonight Ross, see you tomorrow."

This is how you  keep a nightclub bartending job.  Demonstrate your value to the venue!   Most people can learn to make drinks (although being fast is a developed skill) but only some people can bring in people every night and have them spend.  You need to be promoting the club you work at whenever you can.  I have set up a separate Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram account which I use solely to promote the club I work at.

While some bartenders "phone it in" by not promoting, just showing up for work, and drinking on the job,  I bring people to the club every night I work and never touch a drop of alcohol.  Management notices all of these things, I guarantee you.

In summation:  Bartending is really like any other job (sales jobs in particular).  Make money for the nightclub and they will make money for you.  By the way, I made $700 the first night I bartended at the club I still work at.. and I haven't looked back.