> When you graduate do not go straight into bartending. Look for a bar
> backing job and work your way up. You will get out what you put in.
> The harder you work and the more knowledge you acquire the faster you
> will rise. Simple as that.
>
> Bar backing is very hard and some will treat you like shit. But
> remember that some of it is mind games - when you are working the
> floor and watching the bartenders strut their stuff a small part of
> the idea is to increase your determination and make you work harder
> for it.
I've never seen a bartender mistreat a barback, at least a good one - good
barbacks are generally thought highly of, as they're so rare.
I'll repeat the comments about being willing to work from the bottom up.
Barbacking is better at training you to be behind the bar, serving is better
at training you how to handle customers. Both will teach you consolidation
and a good work ethic, if you allow them to.
While I won't speak ill of bartending schools in general (and I hope yours
turns out to be very good), the things that should be emphasized, IMHO, would
include the following:
What you learn in class is NOT everything you need to know behind the bar,
some can only be taught by experience.
How to pour properly and accurately.
The basics of mixing drinks - how various alcohols and mixers affect one
another, and how various serving techniques differ.
How to handle a customer, and how to keep a proper bartop.
If you walk in and find out that 90% of what they're doing is making you
memorize recipes, I'd ask for a refund. A good bartender will know a large
number of recipes, easily in the hundreds - but it isn't the foundation of
bartending. Being able to work quickly, accurately, cleanly, and with a large
amount of perceived attentiveness towards the customer are VASTLY more
important.