Bartender work fact sheet: 8 facts to know before becoming a bartender.

Being a bartender is fantastic for a lot of reasons, it offers a lot of advantages. The money is good, your nightlife will always be exciting. You will meet all kinds of interesting people and you can make your creativity flow. This is done by creating a lot of new and exciting drinks and cocktails. These are bartender work fact contents you cannot miss.

You will find the answers to this question with all 8 facts being explained in detail to help you get a better idea of how you should go about this process.

These are just some of the great advantages that you can have if you decide to become a professional bartender. The truth is that today, many decide to make this job a career, even today there are special courses. With those courses, you can learn the basic things that every bartender needs to know. This is essential in order to develop their work in the best possible way.

However, if you are thinking about becoming a bartender. There are some facts (negative and positive) that you need to know. You should be aware of before you start your career as a bartender, here are 8 of them:

Fact #1: Bartending courses are ok, but the experience you gain is the key

You can take a bartending course. However, you may need to choose between making money working in a shift at a Bar/Restaurant vs spending money on any bartending course. You should choose to work. If you have the opportunity to start working right away. During working practice you will learn more and faster. Plus, you will be making money. A Bartending certificate might be needed in the future. It depends on where you find a new job at a bar/restaurant. Take the course when it is convenient to you.

But is it really essential to take a course to obtain a bartender certificate?

The answer would be that not necessarily; there are many successful bartenders who work in the best bars, nightclubs and restaurants that have never received any kind of education or have never been in a bartending course. However, you should not detract from all those who decide to take a bartending course, especially if you do not have much knowledge or previous experience in this subject. In the end, entering a bartending course or not is a personal decision based on the needs of each person.

Fact #2: Your friends will be having fun while you are working

Even when being a bartender for hire involves an active nightlife. The truth is that you will be working while your friends are out every night. Remarkably, you will miss the Saturday night hangs, parties, and reunions. Also, if you are in a relationship, you need to be aware that you will bartend most of the nights and weekends. It will be impossible to be with them because you will be working. It is possible that you might take days off on weekends to hang out with friends or partner. However, most well paying days are on weekends. It is hard sometimes to choose between being well paid or having quality time.

Fact #3: In terms of money, bartending is very lucrative

You can be sure that if you mastered the art of bartending. You will make much more money than some of your friends. Sometimes bartenders make more tip money over one night than an office worker over a week’s work. Who spends all day in front of a computer sitting in an office. Bartenders can make quite a lot of money that is wealthy enough living in America. For example, to have a house, car and to be able to travel over the sea. That will depend on how many shifts you are willing to do weekly.

How to make more money and have better income?

The more knowledge you have, the more skills and tips you know and develop. Even, if you choose to take a bartending course to gain more knowledge, without a doubt you will be obtaining better income. Another resource that you can have at your disposal is to acquire the greatest amount of experience working in various places from bars, restaurants to private parties.

Fact #4: You will start as a Bar-Back

Before you even think about starting to tend to customers behind the bar. You are going to gain experience as a Bar-Back. Bartenders are the face of the bar/restaurants. It is important for venues to have experienced bartenders, so they won’t disappoint them with local customers/guests. At first, you are going to have to restock liquor bottles, clean the counters and other areas and sometimes you will have to take the worst shifts, but you can be sure you will gain experience.

As in any career or job, it is always important to start from the bottom, doing all the jobs that nobody wants to do, even if it involves cleaning floors or washing beer glasses and mugs; To gain experience and enjoy your work, it is important that you know everything that being a bartender implies, beyond serving cocktails and entertaining customers.

Fact #5: Tips and taxes

You will pay taxes, like everyone else. However, there is good news. Most of the time you do not have to pay taxes from your tips. You can collect your tips, so a good idea is always to save some money from your tips. As a choice, you can spend them for all your daily expenses and bills, so you can save the week’s salary as savings.

If you are a server or a bartender you are going to be required to report the income monthly to your employer, if you get more than $20; all these tips are considered as wages and as a bartender must pay payroll taxes in this income. You need to have a proper tip reporting anytime you are dealing with the famous IRS.

Fact #6: Bartending in a Bar or a Restaurant is a little bit different

Working in a Bar or a Restaurant can be a completely different experience. If you work in a Restaurant, you will need to learn to multitask because you will be serving drinks and food but at a bar, itโ€™s more focused and intense.

They say that “Practice makes perfect” and this is totally true, if you want to gain experience, it is important that you work not only in a bar, as in most cases happens with all bartenders, but also that you gain experience in a restaurant, or even, attending the bar at a private party, in a hotel, a cruise ship or attending a private party and even in a beer hall or a beach bar, the truth is that the more experience you have in different places and areas, the more possibilities you will have as a bartender to diversify and receive more job offers.

Fact #7: The best moment of your shift is when the bar is crowded

It can be a little overwhelming when the bar is full because sometimes there will be a line of people waiting for a drink. However, you need to understand that this is the best time to make more money on tips and to prove your skills. If youโ€™re working at a restaurant where you have to make drinks for guests at the bar counter and for servers who serve guests in dining. You should always focus on the guest at the bar first. That is the primary tip income of yours.

Those moments when you are serving behind the bar and suddenly you realize that there is a long line of people waiting to order a drink, they are always stressful, however, there are some tips that can be useful when you find yourself in this situation such as for example, keep customers entertained, stay calm, and do your best to serve each one in the quickest way but at the same time remain polite and smile. Although this can be an extremely stressful experience, in the end it is worth it because you will undoubtedly receive many more tips than you would receive in an ordinary night.

Fact #8: It could be your forever job or not

If you are 100% sure that you want to be an event bartender, thatโ€™s fine, However, if you aspire to become something more, like a manager, you need to focus on that and do whatever you can to make it happen. Also, it is possible that you will open your own bar someday. IF you love bartending and you take it seriously, you will do great when you run your own bar.

Questions and Answers

How bartenders pay taxes?

Any bartender has to pay taxes as in any other job, and usually they need to report their incomes monthly as most of the professionals.

What to do when the bar is too crowded and thereโ€™s a line of people waiting?

In these cases, it is always recommended to remain calm and start serving customers as quickly as possible, the ideal is to collect several orders at once and prepare them in order to get out of customers quickly.

What is better, working as a bartender in a bar or a restaurant?

Some bartenders think that they would get more tips in a bar or in a private event, which probably is true, however the best thing a bartender can do is to have both experiences.

Why is it important to know all the bartending processes and start as a back-bar?

When a bartender knows the whole process that takes place in a bar, from the most basic jobs, he will undoubtedly do his job with more willingness and passion.

Lastly

I hope these 8 facts before becoming a bartender will help you. There many other things could be discussed. You will learn them once you start bartending. As long as you know what you are doing. It will be easy. Check out other facts about becoming a bartender.