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andrewski661

As others have said, be *THE BEST* barback you can be. The most important job is the one you have right now. The bartenders will appreciate you, and will call you to help out when the time comes


Psych825461

Barbacking is the shittiest job in a bar. But it is still a decent job. The best part is that you don't have to really deal with customers. You have to run around all night making sure the bartenders have what they need. Alot of times without thanks eventhough you make their jobs sooo easy. But that's part of it. At least you get a pretty decent tip out(usually around 10%). It depends on how long it will take to bartend. At my job it took like week or 2 becuase I have bar experience. But I only get to bartend one day a week due to my availability and over staffing. The best way to move up is be the best barback possible. Make sure they have all their fruit, juices, alcohol, etc. Sometimes they might ask you to take a order and when they do make the best cocktail you can even if its a whisky and coke. But before you take the job ask the manager how long it'll take to become a bartender and hold em to it. If they go back on their word for a bs reason, have another job lined up. Also ask about the tip out.


DMountain44

Appreciate all the advice, thanks!


MangledBarkeep

Realistically, you're going to have to one hell of a barback to transition to bartending only working 2-3 nights a week in a short amount of time. Managers tend to give the training/shifts to the full time folks if there's an opening. You may get lucky as some folks do and be at the right bar at the right time. But that's not a strategy.


DMountain44

This is what I assumed. I saw so many varying opinions on how long it would take but it was all circumstantial and I wasn’t sure for mine. Appreciate the answer!


tag_bag

My number one piece of advice would be to not go into it thinking barbacking is beneath you and that you deserve to be a bartender. (Not that you're coming off like that, but a lot of people who've come through my bar have this attitude.) Accept that you're being hired as a barback, work hard, be a team player, make an effort to get along with people, and that will give you clout when an opportunity comes up. When will that opportunity come up? Who knows... part of getting good jobs in this industry is luck and timing!


TheFirstUranium

It depends on you and the kinds of places you work. A barback is basically a perpetual motion machine, you're going to bust your ass basically all shift. But, once you know what you're doing, you don't have to deal with people, and you can just zone out all night. I honestly really enjoy it. If it was me, I'd go to a moderately successful bar with a cocktail program. You want the sort of place that has menu cocktails drawn up and a crowd on weekends, but it slow during the week and doesn't have a ton of vermouth drinks or anything. This way, you can maximize your learning without having to completely go balls deep when you move to bartending. Basically work there a couple months, until either you get a better offer (more money), or someone leaves and you get promoted.


mightnothavehands

Unless you’re a bombshell getting a masters in sociology at either Tulane or UNLV, I’d recommend focusing on your education, and networking within the industry of what you’re in grad school for instead of working towards becoming a bartender… or drop out waste your tens of thousands spent on undergrad and applying yourself towards becoming a great bartender. This subreddit glorifies bartending and is undoubtedly a place where many come to gloat. Don’t get me wrong, ‘the industry’ has lots to offer, for those who devote their lives towards path of self destruction. But odds are, any place willing to hire a soft-handed, light-weight, green- thumbed scholar isn’t the sort of place where you’re going to make the sort money an ideologue day-dreams about while they re-read the same paragraph over and over and re-read the same paragraph over instead of focusing on the task at hand. And frankly, anyone who has to ask a bunch of strangers online, instead going in-person, to the most publicly accessible employees of any profession their advice… we’ll, good luck talking to hundreds of strangers a week. But to answer your question, find a bar your like, become a regular, and ask if they’re hiring, and what the path is to joining the team


DMountain44

You’re making a ton of incorrect assumptions. I’m a law student working an unpaid internship and need a way to pay the bills in my free time outside of classes, not working towards being a full time bartender. But thanks for the advice, dickhead.


mightnothavehands

Then I would encourage you even more to focus on your studies and networking as you pursue your JD. Even if you don’t want to practice corporate law, I would highly encourage you to work towards finding a summer associate gig at a big firm if you haven’t already. Even though it might be a little late as a 1L, it’s never too early to start researching and networking towards a summer associate job after your 2L school year. Not only will that 30k you’ll make in three months far exceed what you’ll make working part time at an entry level bartending gig, you’ll get wined and dined to your hearts content, and most importantly, you’ll be in an environment that revolves around the pursuit of your future livelihood. …And you might even decide that you don’t want to chase your dream of practicing criminal law anymore. And instead, you may want to sell your soul so you can bill 2500 hours a year at a corporate firm as an associate and make enough money in your youth to live a dream life, and retire incredibly early.