Tips for Tips: What Bartenders Learn about Themselves on the Job
When you hit your local watering hole, you’ve got questions about what really goes on there. Well, there’s no better way to get answers than to go directly to the source. We give you, below, our March tips for tips from those who know the scene best—bartenders. They’ve done us a solid by giving us a peak behind the mysterious bar veil.
“What has bartending taught you about yourself?”
Christian
Where he presides:
No. 7 Restaurant, Fort Greene
Favorite Drink:
Harry Callahan
“I was working at a very busy bar, which only had one bartender and one barback. More often than not, the bar was four or five people deep, with customers waiting impatiently. This happened so much, I was written about on social media. They called me the “mean bartender.” I ended up getting fired.”
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Ellen
Where she presides:
The Bad Old Days, Ridgewood
Favorite Drink:
Old Fashioned
“I tend to be more honest than careful with people and their feelings. As a bartender, I learned how important it is to be direct with people. I am used to being very firm with everyone. But that doesn’t always apply well to the rest of life. In my personal life, I’m trying to be more careful with people’s feelings.”
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Carlos
Where she presides:
The Brooklyn Star, Williamsburg
Favorite Drink:
Bourbon Old Fashioned
I discovered how much I enjoy talking to people. I used to avoid it, but since becoming a bartender, I like it a lot.
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