Bar Work....

gamerTM21 · 30 May 2012 at 15:39

Hey guys,
Through a friend, I've managed to get a few hours on Friday working at a bar, which could turn into a permanent job.
Now I've done bar work for a catering company before, but as we done houses etc. I've never been behind an actual bar with taps and till etc. Just wondering if there's anything I should know which will be quite different from what I did? A bit anxious that I might be a bit lost

gamerTM21 · 30 May 2012 at 15:49

Thanks for the advice guys, useful stuff so far

@Pish, is it literally just a dash of lemonade on a normal pint? I am working from midday for a few hours so I shouldn't really get many exotic orders apart from beer/cider and wine.
Just worried about the head rule on pints etc. I was bigged up by my mate to the manager so want to make a good impression

gamerTM21 · 30 May 2012 at 15:51

Moses said:
Wait, so me leaning right over the bar and shouting isn't improving my chances?!

I hate myself for it, but when I get really drunk I tend to do this, and trust me, it basically ruins your chances of being served at all

gamerTM21 · 30 May 2012 at 16:13

fez said:
When I worked in a bar. the regulars were the rude ones that thought they should be served before everyone else waiting.

Best tip I can give is to get in with the manager / owner. Leads to some good nights after they have closed along with a lot more slack / perks than you might otherwise get.

Well, I'm kind of seeing the girl who got me the work at the moment, and she's in good with the manager, so as long as I do well on Friday I've got a nice little head start there

gamerTM21 · 30 May 2012 at 16:17

Nexus said:
There is no real way other than to learn on the job, you will pick it up pretty quickly, but the first shift is always a challenge.

I did my first ever bar work in a very busy bar and it was a nightmare trying to get all the drinks right, find things on the till etc when you had loads of people waiting.
I'm sure I had lots of wastage and I remember a few of the local gypsies were trying it on with the notes they gave me too.

Similarly I had another job in a very posh wine bar, it was quiet, but you had to know how to mix loads of cocktails and the names of all the different liquor and wines they sold. So it was trying to get it done without looking clueless and doing it with some speed.

This is what I'm expecting really, I just need to go out there with my confidence full, and then I tend to get things done, when I act unsure then I start to mess things up! Although I went in on Monday to hand my CV in, around 4pm, and outside was fairly busy with all the people eating etc. but inside was pretty much empty and there was only 1 person at the bar, so heres hoping, but it is a Friday so I expect the worst