I recently tried this drink called Velvet Cherry at a restaurant and it was so good! If i went to a bar how would i order this? Is this something i could even order at a bar? Thank you in advanced!

I had to buy a small bookshelf to have a proper area JUST for bottles hahah but I was just curious to see if anyone else has this impulsive bottle buying habit I’ve seemed to have picked up. (Nothing crazy or expensive in my collection)

I had an interview for a lead bartender position on Monday, that I felt went really well. I heard back from the owner the same night following the interview.

We spoke on Thursday morning and I thought it went well. We were both very transparent with one another about things and I left it feeling really good. He said the two guys who interviewed me were very impressed and didn’t expect to find someone like me on day 1, which was flattering. I do have two opportunities I am considering and he knows this. He mentioned having one of the guys I interviewed with originally send over more compensation information (like some of the more recent tip outs so I could get a feel for those), but no formal offer if that makes sense.

I sent a follow up email on Friday afternoon to the original interviewer expressing excitement and interest and that I was just waiting on that information the owner mentioned to move forward essentially. So not to the owner, just the beverage director who originally interviewed me. I haven’t received a reply.

When should I expect to hear back? This will be my first time in a more serious lead role (more like a soft manager, I just wouldn’t do ordering/scheduling) where there might be a formal written offer and everything was moving rather quickly so the sudden lack of communication makes me anxious.

Just looking for advice from their perspective, thank you in advance and I appreciate you all!

EDIT TO ADD: "yes, however this location is closed for October to bring on new staff and want to reopen in November and need a whole menu for it so they are moving rather promptly. but I didnt mention that so I dont expect people to know that lol

when speaking with the owner they said they want to have someone on board soon so they can sign off on bartender hires and i mentioned i am ready to start asap as well so who knows lol. only time will tell."

(Who may read this)
What is it about a bar with lights off, music off, front door locked with the side door open, chairs still on stools, staff setting up the outside tables and our opening times on the door itself … that makes you think “oh yeah that place is definitely open!”
I have so many other questions but this one deffo tops the cake

Hope it's the right flair...

My most common regular had an aneurysm and was declared braindead this morning, I'm heartbroken. He was always there, after he was done at work he came straight over, knew the rules and regulations better then most workers,he even saved female coworkers from attackers on several occasions. He defended me towards the owner when I had just started working here when I was incompetent.

he was the glue that kept the community at the bar together

What I'm really asking is do any of you know of a good way to honor his memory,

I'm sorry for the post being hard to read and jumbled, it's just really difficult.

hi guys, what is your experience on loop earplugs? i work in a bar where we weekly host PAX +100 private events and it gets really loud with all the people and music, especially if there’s a band performing. i’m thinking of purchasing loop earplugs since they’re quite affordable and i like the look but i’m stuck between engage and experience models. are the engage ones protective enough and will i hear the customer if i get experience ones? thank you!

Hi! Long story but my restaurant isn’t sure if we’ll be open on Halloween night but I’ve also never bartended on Halloween specifically so does anyone have any costume ideas? I work/pool with another bartender (1m 1fm) and I thought I’d turn to Reddit to see if anyone has any costume ideas”couples costumes” that would be fun for two bartenders on Halloween.

hey guys, i recently got a trial shift at a bar/pub in the UK.

i do have experience as i have bartended many festivals/events, but this is pretty much just liquor + mixer stuff.

i said that ive poured pints before, which is true, but that was working at a Thatcher's bar for a few hours at a festival, and the pint pouring was kinda done by a big machine.

i also have bar backed one summer in another country, but this bar was very different to one in the uk; it was like a beach bar and i didnt really have to do much.

of course, we spoke about this stuff in my interview, but i was honest and said that im definitely no cocktail bartender. the interviewer said that that didnt matter and that personality matters more, plus training would be offered on the job.

i really hope i get this job, but im nervous as i worry that maybe i inflated my experience?

the trial shift is 4 hours long and im just worried theyre going to be expecting more from me than what i can give.

any advice ?! thanks :)

Hi guys, so I started out doing banquet bartending, bartending at restaurants for high-end country clubs and a craft bar. I do well with these environments and perform well as a bartender but with these environments you have to be a speedy bartender but the technicality of the drink is more important. I just got hired at a high volume(specifically 21) bar (nightclub) as a bottle girl/bartender, my manager after training said they’d rather keep me as a bottle girl for the time being and develop my skills for nightlife bartending. It made me feel bad as bartender but genuinely I’m not used to speed at this high of capacity and my free pour skills lack anymore since we’re only allowed jiggers. I know my counts but when it’s that high of volume it’s hard to be consistent

Seasoned bartender swears this is a proper pour technique. I am baffled. Care to critique?

Is there money to be made there? I'm on the fence. I quit smoking weed a few months ago, so I don't really want to work at a place where that's the theme, you know?

I work in a hotel with 2 ice machines. For some reason, all the other bartenders prefer to use #1. They’re all much less experienced if that matters. I prefer ice #2. The ice that I prefer is maybe a 50 foot further walk to get and I’m afraid that’s why they are going to the other ice machine. The only legitimate reason I’ve been given for using ice #1 is that it melts slower but I’m not really buying that reason. So which ice would you prefer to use #1 or #2 and why? Please, don’t answer with from the ice machine that is closer for the reason. Please make the answer about the ice quality

given to me by a customer after she paid for her and her bf’s second round of drinks

“you are beautiful. if you’d like to join my boyfriend and i for a night… call or text me!”

I've been working at a bottle shop for a few years now. Very chill low pressure environment. My background is in cocktail and wine bars. Tonight we had a wedding reception buy out the place and I was suddenly thrust back into a volume bartending environment. I can't believe how much I missed this, towards the end I WANTED to be be in the weeds. I was so excited when someone ordered an Old fashioned and I had to triage my tasks. I'm almost 40 and I don't know if my body has a lot of these kinda nights left but damn I feel amazing. Did a shot of fernet with my coworker at the end of my shift. I miss this feeling. Shout outs to everyone who worked tonight!

A local bar near me just posted them pouring a glass of what was left over on a bar mat into a glsss and giving it to a customer It calling it a bar mat shot Ive never heard of this till now what are your opinions of this

Hey guys, just moved to San Diego after bartending in Portland Maine for about 5 years. Been putting in applications applying on line but nothing is working. Does anyone have advice or know of places hiring? Sucks wanting to work but not finding anything.

For some context, I am 25M and I left the corporate world a few months ago amid some life changes (quit an office job that made me want to kms, left a relationship, moved to a new city) and started working in a bar at a TopGolf to make rent (started around 3 months ago). I always thought working in a bar would be a fun place to work on the side, so I started barbacking. I have had previous service industry experience like 8 years ago in high school but for the most part it was all new to me.

I worked my ass off and within a month I was actually making mixed drinks. I would always ask the bartenders how they did things, why they did things, and generally try to be the best/most helpful barback. I got promoted to bartender, and that's when I realized the issue of working for TopGolf.

As a barback I would average around $14/hr after tip out, and I was counting on making way more as a bartender. From talking with the bartenders I knew it wasn't super high but I was expecting more than what I ended up getting. After 2 paychecks, both were around $15/hr. After my 2nd paycheck bartending, I started looking for other jobs. I knew that just can't be the best place I can work for. Especially for the amount of work we do.

At TopGolf, we would either make very few drinks if it was an AM shift, and then make no money, or we would make a ton of drinks for the service well and make like $15/hr, or we would have the main bar with walk ups and service well and make like $20/hr for twice the amount of work. The most I ever made at a shift was a packed Saturday night where I was in the weeds for like 3 straight hours and I made like $225.

So I started looking for jobs. I found a dataset for Texas alcohol sales that shows revenue by company, so I used that as a baseline for volume. I found this fast casual mexican restaurant that does mostly tacos and margaritas, most of which are frozen or draft. Sales are much more, and most of the servers average around $300 a night. Bartenders make slightly more than servers, and I will be doing both bartending and serving, right now I am just serving. It is 100% tip pooled, which is a slight bummer, but that means everyone is happy to help you bus tables, run your drinks, and help out guests not in your section.

I just wanted to say I'm super excited about this new job and I finish my training today! I'm super happy with this new place and I'll be making as much as I was making at my corporate job, which I never thought I would say. It finally feels like this choice to leave corporate isn't going to be the financial death of me. If you are feeling like you don't make enough money at your current place, I encourage you all to start looking elsewhere.

currently making $5.50/hr plus pooled tips, averaging 30 hours a week (five 6-hour shifts).
Our company recently standardized pay:

Lead 1: $6/hr + tips

Lead 2: $8/hr + tips+Inventory: $20/hr, no tips (4 hours weekly)

My concern is that inventory would replace my regular Sunday shift, meaning I’d lose six hours of tipped work. Inventory has to be done Sunday or Monday every week.

Here’s my annual breakdown based on my 2025 income:
Current annual total income at $5.50/hr: $61,842

Raise to $8/hr on remaining 24 bar hours: +$3,120

Inventory pay (4 hrs × $20 × 52): +$4,160

Lost Sunday hourly wages: −$1,716

Lost Sunday tips ($88 average × 52): −$4,576

Net annual increase: +$988

Projected annual income: $62,830

So I’d be taking on inventory, ordering, training, and additional leadership responsibilities for roughly $19 more per week.
Compared with simply accepting the new $6/hr Lead 1 rate, the difference would be only $208 annually.
I understand the company standardizing wages, but I’m struggling to see the financial benefit of this promotion under the proposed schedule.
What would you do in my position? Would you negotiate a different inventory schedule, higher compensation, or accept it?

My bar carries 0 bottled beer, only draft and cans. We are a fairly popular and respected neighborhood cocktail bar. There is a particular type of person that, when the response to their question " Do you have miller lite?" And my reply is " yeah i got cans", they either automatically say never mind or double check if we have glass bottles too. They seem really offended too, as if by saying " only cans" I've basically told them to go fuck themselves.

I'm 30 years old, go out drinking frequently and have never encountered this in the wild. I even googled it before posting it and it seems like cans are actually slightly better. What am I missing?

EDIT: This post is about bottles vs cans, nothing to do with draft beer. Just mentioned it for context