“May I see the manager”? It might take 10 years to get the see him/her, though.
The OP is looking for a job in a bar, not Goldman Sachs. Also I think barback is lower on the food chain than server.
Here in NYC there are anywhere up to 18,000 bars and restaurants. I suspect the way you get a job in one with no experience is the same way you get a job anywhere with no experience:
“Hi, I’d like to speak to the manager about a job.”
This will either go one of several ways:
“I’ll go get him.”
“He’s not here right now but a) he’ll be back at [whenever], b) let me get your name, c) here’s an application.”
“Fuck off.”
You then follow up with the manager, tell him your interest in working for a bar and ask him if he needs help. This will go one of several ways:
“Yes, you start Thursday.”
“I don’t need anyone right now.”
“I don’t need anyone right now, but [other bar] down the road is hiring.”
“Fuck off.”
And basically you repeat until you run out of bars, then start over.
Offer to work on new years eve. Every bar in the country needs help on new years eve. Or valentine’s day.
I’m kind of curious if the OP eventually got the job in the intervening decade.
Come to the UK. Because of our pub culture (ie we have a REALLY lot of pubs), it’s blindingly easy to get a bar job. Most students, myself included, work behind bars in pubs to earn extra money (helps we can drink/service alcohol from the age of 18). Pubs find it hard to find staff so are happy to put green 18 year olds behind the pumps.
It’s seriously an easy job to get part time (say, 3 nights a week), with zero experience. Often just asking in a bar will get an opportunity as pub managers need a lot of staff when so many work just a few shifts, and turnover is high.
The above responses make it sound much harder in the US. Do you just not have many bars compared to restaurants? I don’t think I’ve ever really thought about it.
Me too. I also really love the attitude of “there are things that have to be done and I’m the one that has to do them.”
I want to know how it worked out.
nm, zombie!
(
You follow the zombies.
Yes, managers are usually around in the early aftermoon in order to oversee delivery and stocking, take inventory to make sure they’re not getting ripped off, do scheduling, et cetera. Running a bar or restaurant isn’t just about making drinks and food; it is more about managing suppliers and employees, and keeping up with accounting and other paperwork than anything.
It’s not hard to get a job, although most states require that you have some kind of liquor service certificate before you can serve alcoholic beverages assuring that you’ve been trained in the pertinent legal, sanitation, and liability aspects of dispensing alcohol. But if you think you’re going to walk off the street and have Bryan Brown offer you a job serving at a swanky Upper East Side club with no experience, you’ve got a reality smack coming. The last thing any bartender wants behind the bar with him is some yokel who doesn’t know a martini from a manhattan, and who will break a glass by scooping ice out of the ice bin.
Stranger
I live in the Atlanta area. I’ve talked to a lot of bartenders about this very subject and they almost all agree…
The #1 best way to get a job as a bartender is to be an attractive female. Otherwise be prepared to work your way up from bar back (or below) in shitty bars for the experience.