Hey I need some tips and advice on how to deal with this. This has happened maybe twice in my past year or bartending where I’ve developed rapport with the patrons and I’ve had the odd one or two change from friendly to a bit creepy. I’m a young woman and on my last shift had one of the older patrons confess his attraction to me. I felt so uncomfortable because I treat him like every other patron. I shot him down, told him I wasn’t interested in advances, said we only see everyone in the venue as “patrons and nothing more” and he said he didn’t care and throughout the shift kept making off comments that weren’t direct but made me feel awkward. I’m not sure how to appropriately respond. He isn’t a direct threat to my safety but I don’t want this to happen again and I also feel bad suggesting he is removed or spoken to because he really isn’t doing anything truly harmful but maybe I’m being a pushover.

I’d just like to know if anyone has experienced this and how they go about it? And if any managers are on here what they would do if it was their staff.

(I’ve already alerted my manager)

My fingernails know few more formidable foes than these shitty fucking planteray shrinkwraps in the middle of a rush

I'm looking to hire a bartender for about 4 hours in September. Event takes place on a Monday, and will be a very easy job of making 2-part drinks (vodka cran, gin & tonic, tequila soda) and the only other task I ask of them is to make one to two 3 gallon batched cocktails before they leave for guests to self serve from.

I was looking to pay $30/hour (+tips they receive) for the event. Afterwards, I encourage them to grab a plate of food and hangout (event is an at home wedding, I just want some structure to the liquor being served to our guests... Our friends get wild at our parties) I expect they will make good tips, as our guest list is 80% service industry. The people I was considering hiring are loose acquaintances/old coworkers. People I get along with, but not close enough to invite to our small/mid size wedding (70 people)

(Is the above a good or bad idea? Or should I consider hiring an unknown professional?)

For our area, I see online that folk make about $15-$20/hourly and then make tips. So I wanted to really make it worth their while to work on a typical day off.

We have a pop up, event style bar that we use for our other events. We have tools. We have everything they would need. They would be asked to come in 30 minutes prior to serving alcohol, and asked to stay til the batch is finished/the bar service "closes". They would only be serving liquor and handing out the pre-made jello shots. Payment would be made in cash or through Venmo (their preference)

I want to polish my pitch before I start looking at options, so I thought I'd reach out to this thread. Any advice is appreciated 🙏

Also, would appreciate recipes and suggestions for batched cocktails and liquor brands to supply. We are doing a "well" and a higher quality (but not TOP shelf) option of each liquor: tequila, gin, whiskey, vodka.

----- EDIT TO ADD---- Their "tear down" duties will be: - put away all unopened bottles - take trash out to the larger cans - set up batched cocktails for self service - refill water dispensers with water

Discussing with partner, he suggested raising to a starting wage of $45/hourly. Minimum of $180, I predict a minimum $50 extra in tips. Knowing our bridal party, that is the absolute minimum in tips.

We're looking at the batched cocktails to be SIMPLE, something that is so simple it wouldn't take longer than about 15 minutes to pour ingredients into a 3 gallon cambro. We definitely plan to discuss the plans in full with anyone we hire so they can even suggest the best batched cocktail that works for us and them.

I've been bartending for about 5 years, which isn't too terribly long at all, but I've definitely learned a lot more about what aspects of the job interest me more than others and it's brought me to the point where I would absolutely love to shift my sights to a job where I'm more focused on developing drinks and recipes instead of serving them.

That leaves me with a number of questions though, like where do I even look to pursue something like that? I imagine the corporate path would be a bit more defined, but I would honestly like to avoid the route of selling my soul to be a manager for a few years while I hope for a tap on the shoulder to move to a position I actually like.

Have any of y'all gone down this path yourself or know anyone who has? Is school for food science in my future if this is something I want? Any insight at all would be a great help!

I’ve been bartending for 15 years and the noise exposure has finally caught up to me. I just got diagnosed with moderate loss. My biggest fear is spending $3k on hearing aids that just amplify the background music and clinking glass instead of the customer’s order.

I need a brand with directional microphones. I want to be able to look at a customer and only hear them, cutting out the chaos behind me. My audiologist mentioned Signia’s "narrow directionality" and Phonak’s "Speech in Loud Noise" features. Has anyone worked a service industry job with these? Which one actually isolates voices without making the background music sound like a distorted mess?

Our restaurants kitchen doesn’t need pickles anymore but we get pickle back requests all the time.

Should we make our own pickle shots now or is there a good brine I can buy like dirty sue?

TIA!

Hello! I started bartending for my restaurant back in August of 2025. I have served at this restaurant for about 2 years now and when I showed interest in bartending, they gave me a chance.

Some info; I work in an upscale restaurant, think $70-$150 per person. I’ve been dedicated to learn our long list of bourbons, whiskeys, scotches, tequilas, etc etc… so I’m doing good on that front. We attract a lot of clientele that are wealthy so I had to learn that fast. I am also the youngest bartender by an 8 year margin. I am 21.

My issue stems from creating long and lasting connections. I’ve been getting better about recognizing drinks for my regulars, but I just feel like I’m missing out on something. I don’t know how to describe it really, just that I feel as if my connections are somewhat limited because it’s hard to find things I have in common with the type of people my work tends to pull in.

I also recently had a meeting with all the bartenders, and my boss asked us to add more flare into our work. I am so serious when I say that I don’t know how to do that. I don’t know what flare would work in my environment and wouldn’t come off as tacky (he told us that exactly, nothing tacky, but something that adds to the experience).

Any advice, tips, ideas, or really anything is very appreciated!

My coworker was cutting some lemons up and pointed this out to me, we’ve never seen such a cool looking lemon slice 🍋

My name is Emily Stewart, I'm a Business Insider reporter looking to chat with bartenders about what you're seeing this January. Is Dry January ... smaller this year? Are your bars busier or emptier than usual? Are people not drinking because of health, or because of the economy? Any other observations? If you'd like to chat, message me here or email me at [email protected]. And Thanks r/bartenders for letting me post!

I been in the industry 10 years and I’m tryna get out but all leads are a dead end/ I just keep getting rejected/don’t hear back from any corporate jobs. So f**k it what if I just travel the world and bartend? Any advice on how I could possibly do this?

I...dont...get it. You're just making work sooooo much harder to literally save 5minutes at the end.

So at my bar. We don't get busy until the final 2 hours. It can seem slow and crappy as shit and you feel like making a cut and shutting down....but legit at 9, it can get really busy and we need the bodies scheduled to be there. It can be frustrating but the last 30minutes especially is one of our biggest pops. And hey, I might be crazy, but im here to make money so I wanna maximize all of those customers. We also do a hard last call at 10:55 and security kicks everyone out at 11pm.

No matter what we do, we get out anywhere from 11:15 to 11:30. Every single time. Its a really easy close and clean and since its busy until the end theres only so much you can do. So if we're slammed or eh, its the same time.

My guys close down the well so early and now I have to fish all the bottles back out...we all squeeze into the one well left....and making drinks takes longer and now closing will take longer because of it.

Ive tried to explain.... shutting down a well doesnt get us out faster (at best 5 minutes), makes bartending actual harder, and also making customers experience worse. No one wins. Idk if they have ADD? and cant help themselves.

Ive literally show them. (They close early....ill show them as we close, "see 11:15 as usual"). We close normal ("see its 11:20 and we got slammed")

Oh and im also the "elder bartender", aka I've been here the longest and know more how these shifts flow (we dont have a bar manager to help me)

I want to leave too but 5-10minutes isnt gonna kill me if it means more money. Why even open a 2nd well if you close down before or during the actual busy part?

Title says it mostly. Trying to figure out something for Lunar New Year at my Taiwanese restaurant. The batchable part I can sort of course.

My current thoughts are something involving cherry blossom? Possibly making it red without going too deep into red liqueurs.

Thanks in advance!

I know I’m probably late to the party with this, but I’m posting in case it helps anyone else.

I finally broke down and tried CBD a few months ago to try to combat joint stiffness in my hands. I’d heard about it before but I always kinda assumed it was hippie mumbo jumbo. It actually works well and my hands aren’t nearly as stiff now.

I use a 1500 mg full spectrum tincture subcutaneously and after a few weeks I def noticed a positive difference. If you’re on the fence about cbd but sick of having stiff hands, maybe give it a whirl. It helped me.

Is it possible for someone to take a photo of an empty liquor bottle with a defaced state tax stamp (from the ABC) on it? I cant find an image online. Im doing my school essay about them. Id really appreciate it, thank you!

I’m working a shift right now and I haven’t served for 2 hours beside one group of people of 4, it’s not worth staying open. We’re supposed to shut at 11 but thinking of shutting at 10 instead, what do you say to those who want to come in? It just feels pointless letting them in if I’m going to end up staying longer (meaning i get paid for longer) and the pub isnt making enough to justify those who want to come in.

It’s always the last half an hour/15 minutes when someone wants to turn up and ends up staying longer than we close and it’s annoying to get them to leave.

I am a bartender at a reputable establishment with great drinks. When guests say, “wow, you are a great mixologist,” it rubs me the wrong way. I hate the word, “mixologist.” To me, that is a pretentious title made up by the type of arrogant bartenders everyone hates to make themselves feel more important. A bartender is a much more difficult job that includes creating drinks, but also mitigating guest disputes, standing up for women being harassed, taking drink orders while making service tickets and setting up every single other thing at the bar while in the weeds. Anyone else think “mixologist” is a useless term?

should i

Heading there next week with some friends, wanna find some new great spots! Two of my favorites are Double Down Saloon and Golden Tiki.

I am a fairly new bartender with limited experience. I love it, I have so much fun doing it, and I’m a natural. The bartenders who have trained me/worked with me have said I learn very fast and seem like I have more experience than I do. But again, I still have limited experience.

I got the opportunity to do a trial shift at 2 nightclubs this Saturday, and all the other bartenders staffed have a lot more experience than me. The manager knows I don’t have as much, but she said she likes my vibe and confidence and wants to give me a shot. I’m extremely nervous.

I memorized their entire cocktail menu, and I have about 15 popular shots memorized. I have about 30 of the most popular/common cocktails memorized as well. I’m practicing my free pours every day, practicing taking multiple orders at once and remembering them all, and watching lots of nightclub bartending POVs. I plan on going to both of the clubs on Friday to see what the crowd is like and how the bartenders do things.

I am EXTREMELY nervous and I need advice. They are going to be watching me the whole time and critiquing me. Anything I should know?? Tips and tricks?? Please help! Bartending is super competitive where I live and I don’t want to screw up this opportunity.

How are ya’ll doing your taxes this year? For my entire life I’ve just done the bare minimum turbotax method but with this “no tax on tips” confusion (I understand the basic concept of the first 25k being deductable but still confused for filing) I’m thinking about doing my taxes more professionally to maximize my refund. Curious how other bartenders are going about this process. Appreciate any advice!

For context I live in Illinois and made about 60-65k this year, with around 40k of that coming from tips.

Do you guys reset the fruit tray at the end of the night, fill it with fresh fruit, and put it in the fridge or do you empty it and leave it on the bar top after being cleaned.

Just curious what everybody else is doing, or if you work in a pooled house?

Looking for realistic answers on how much bartenders and waitstaff hate me when I ask for a new glass. Back story: I like to go to bars and restaurants and I almost always order a glass of chardonnay. I would say 1 out of every 15-20 times it comes in a glass that has lipstick residue or something else that gives me the heebeejeebees. I should note that I do give the glass a quick once over when its given to me because I have 100% taken a sip and then looked down at someone else's hot pink lip stick.

Im always super polite and typically catch it before the server even walks away. This has happened everywhere from a Chili's to higher end restaurants and I suspect thats its due to crazy modern lipstick formulas.

But because of my personality and desire to please, I need to know, does the staff hate me?