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 Message 12154 of 22774 in Behind the Bar
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Subject: Re: I guess bartending school can work
From: Mister2
Posted: Tue Apr 11. 2006, 05:50 UTC
Followup to: "I guess bartending school can work"  by pinky  (Tue Apr 11. 2006, 04:35 UTC)
> Just started bartending school in Virginia. 2 week program. I have 
> had 3 different instructors all good, but 1 was great. A guy name MO. 
> You can learn something , if that is what you are there for, to 
> learn. I think the school pretty much knows who is serious and who is 
> not.
> 
> I don't think establishments should laugh at this certificates we 
> get. We pay good money to learn how to. I want to be a good 
> bartender. I am a black woman, and I know some of the places I want 
> to work at will possibly turn me down, but that does not mean I won't 
> keep trying. I have got a taste of the bartender culture and it is 
> either your gonna be a great cool tender or your gonna be shallow

The problem(s) we have with bartending schools is that so many of them are 
hugely inadequate.  How many horror stories have we heard of students being 
handed a list of drinks, then told to memorize them, tested, and sent on their 
way?  Far too many.

I actually had the chance to observe an orientation session at a bartending 
school tonight.  I was very impressed - the instructor gave a brief overview 
of all the equipment behind the bar, plus pertinent information (such as why a 
3 basin sink is set up the way it is), and he then basically told his students 
how to freepour, and that they had 10 minutes to practice til they had it 
accurate for a 1 oz. pour.  That's EXACTLY what I want in a bar school 
graduate - a foundation of drink knowledge, an accurate pour, and a knowledge 
of everything else behind the bar.  Do I think a bar school grad is ready for 
work behind my bar, with no other experience?  Hell no.  But, given the right 
school, can it be an asset?  Absolutely.


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