The Working Bartender: The Best Beginner Bartending Course

Develop practical bartending basics focused on etiquette and service language. Build a confident mindset to manage guests and colleagues and set the tone for successful shifts.

Identify key bar and kitchen areas, including the floor and wood, the service pass, the pass with expediters, and the dish pit, line, pantry, and the walk-in.

Learn the multiple meanings of service, from hours of operation and reso times to front-of-house roles, chef calls for service, and how bartenders coordinate hands please during live service.

Learn to safely navigate busy service floors by using the command 'behind' when passing within arm's length, preserving personal space and preventing spills with a discreet back-of-knuckle touch.

Learn to read the bar's fast-paced rhythm by using movement commands: beside you, down low, and spinning, to signal where you are and what you're doing, preventing errors.

Learn to communicate safety in busy service by yelling 'corner' three to four feet before turning a corner, announcing blind spots and coordinating movement in loud, curtain-heavy areas.

Learn how to use the service language 'sharp' to warn teammates about sharp knives and broken glass, and safely carry and store them to prevent accidents.

Master service language by consistently saying 'hot' when carrying hot items to prevent burns and alert colleagues, especially when moving through busy kitchens.

Explore restaurant and bar roles from owner to line cooks, and learn to address colleagues with may I to uphold professionalism and smooth operations.

Master service language by acknowledging information with heard or yes, chef, and repeating back details like 86 lasagna to keep kitchen and front of house in sync.

Learn service etiquette by addressing the chef with yes, chef, showing respect in the back of the house. Embrace a drill-sergeant approach to improve kitchen communication and your bartending success.

Elevate professionalism by consistently saying yes sir, yes ma'am, yes madam to colleagues, which changes the air, boosts guest perception, and improves tips and revenue.

Master the bartender's term 86, meaning an item is out of stock. Repeat back the 86 and relay the update to the whole staff, posting it on the kitchen board.

Master service language with 'in the books,' meaning the reservation count. It refers to the old reservation book used to record names, phone numbers, party sizes, and time slots.

Master how 911, double sat, triple sat, and quadruple sat affect bartenders when servers take multiple tables, pause orders, and swap drinks to keep service smooth.

Learn the service language 'do not make' to prevent duplicates when charges follow after a verbal request. Use the do not make button and notes on the bill.

Learn how to send it, fire, and straight fire drive order workflow between bartenders, servers, and the kitchen, punching drinks first and sending to bar via the pos.

Master mise en place by organizing bar tools, garnishes, and line cook ingredients for a consistent workstation. Ensure guests have a side plate, water, glass, and coaster to streamline service.

Master common bar terminology, including what 'on the rocks' means, that it refers to ice, a rocks glass, and when a martini is served on the rocks.

Understand that neat means room temperature with nothing added, typically for sipping. Free pour without a jigger, as Jameson neat, with spirits like whiskey, scotch, tequila, brandy, or cognac.

Learn what straight up means: a chilled cocktail served without ice, typically stirred or shaken and strained. Use the martini as the example to explain its purpose and service.

Master martini terminology by learning how dirty and extra dry requests use olive juice and dry vermouth, and how burnt involves a scotch rinse and a lemon twist garnish.

Explore rinse and wash techniques to coat the inside of a glass with a small amount of an ingredient, such as tequila or reposado, to subtly enhance flavor.

Learn bar lingo for chasers, small non-alcoholic pours like orange juice or Sprite that accompany a vodka shot to ease the burn.

Explain how 'back' names a follow-up drink after a shot, as bar lingo, with examples like pickleback and beef au jus, served in a rocks or shot glass.

Discover a floater, the extra ounce of booze floated on top of a cocktail, often offered for an extra dollar, with cultural relevance in the south and varying legality.

Explore the four cocktail-making methods—stir, shake, build, and blend—showing how to use a mixer or a Boston shaker, and how an Old Fashioned is built in the glass.

Conclude the etiquette and body language section by memorizing action and movement commands and using service language with colleagues, like 'yes chef' and '86,' on day one.

Master the essential bar tools and daily carry for bartenders. Build readiness with a bar book, pens, apron, sharpie, wine key, beer key, lighters, and a menu pad.

Learn to use a scoop for ice, then store it in the ice well with the handle out to prevent contamination and keep ice clean.

Spouts speed pours, ensure consistency and accuracy, and vary in shape and hole size. Match spouts to bottles, manage airflow with the back hole, and rinse spouts after each shift.

Learn to use the jigger, a two-sided measuring tool (1 oz and 2 oz), to accurately portion cocktails and ingredients, and practice handling it to build speed and confidence.

Master the two-part Boston shaker, understand how the top and bottom fit, and learn to hold, shake, lock, and unlock to craft consistent cocktails.

Master the Hawthorne strainer, a spring-loaded tool that strains cocktails after shaking, keeping ice in the shaker when pouring straight up. Better models offer easier grip and control.

Master the bar spoon, a long spoon with a swizzle, designed to stir cocktails, measure raw or granular sugar, and adjust garnishes, with practice improving stirring technique and cocktail quality.

Learn to use the muddler to extract citrus flavors while avoiding mint muddling to prevent oxidation and mint fragments; clap herbs and explore muddlers and techniques.

Place a cutting board beside your workspace with a wet rag underneath to prevent slipping when using paring knives. Use a dishwasher-safe wax or plastic board and store knives properly.

Learn to use the juicer to extract fresh citrus juice from lemons, limes, and oranges, placing halves face down and squeezing into a jigger for accurate measurement.

Learn how to use bar graters for occasional garnishes and how to employ a zester for citrus zest, oils, and twists to garnish cocktails.

Master using a citrus peeler to create garnishes and rind zest from oranges, limes, and lemons, while observing safety to avoid cuts.

Use a fine strainer for double straining cocktails, like whiskey sour and amaretto sour with egg whites, to remove shells and fine particles while allowing foam.

Use designated rags for hands, surfaces, beer area, and glass washing to prevent cross-contamination; keep rags in spots: beer rag left, surface rag near prep, glass-washing rags atop drying glassware.

Master the yari, a crystal mixing jug for stirred cocktails like negroni and martinis, with a hawthorne strainer and bar spoon, or substitute with a Boston shaker.

Use tongs to pick up garnishes and delicate items behind the bar. Tongs offer better control for placing dehydrated citrus slices and provide a professional look.

Discover how painter's tape, liter containers, and a dish bin help label and date garnishes, enable first-in, first-out operations, and keep bar service smooth.

Master the five most common bar tools: jigger, Hawthorne strainer, Boston shaker, bar spoon, and muddler, and keep them clean to perfect stirring and beer pouring.

Explore spirits, beer, and wine, and learn how guest preference guides selections. Grasp ABV equivalence across categories and key service notes to build a solid bartender foundation.

Explore the five basic bar rail spirits—vodka, gin, white rum, tequila blanco, and Jameson Irish whiskey—and learn what they are made from and their typical uses.

Explore vodka as a common base spirit, rooted in Russia and made from potatoes, with brands like Stolichnaya, Ketel One, Tito's, and Grey Goose, plus classic cocktails.

Explore gin fundamentals, from floral juniper flavor to cocktail use, with a look at Tanqueray, Bombay, and Hendrick’s. Learn garnishes and serving ideas.

Discover the versatility of rum, from white rum on the rail to spiced and dark varieties from Caribbean sugar cane. Explore the daiquiri and rum and Coke for everyday mixing.

Compare Irish Jameson, Kentucky bourbons, and scotch such as Johnnie Walker Black Label with McAllen, Glenmorangie, and Oban, while noting rail usage and common mixers like whiskey and cokes.

Discover tequila as a sipping spirit made from agave, debunk the 51% agave myth, and explore 100% agave bottles, blanco, reposado, and añejo varieties and common cocktails.

Learn to manage red, white, and rosé wine by glass or bottle, pair prosecco and champagne, use proper glassware and carafes, and chill and present bottles tableside.

Learn the basics of beer by comparing lagers and ales, and master pouring a draft while tracking color and flavor profiles.