Step 4: Home Bartending
Guest Service Tips

Serving Tips:

Not only remembering how to make drinks, a true bartender should know how to provide courteous and timely service. What makes customers come back again is the way a bartender interacts with guests. When they are friendly and efficient, guests will most likely return. People come in to socialize and a bartender is usually a first person for them to contact with.

- Keep your bar neat and clean. When your guests leaves, their glass should be removed and the bar area wiped clean. Keep the bar top uncluttered and the ashtrays clean.

- Stay alert and anticipate your guests' needs. If you see a guest is ready for a drink, you should make yourself available so they can have a next drink. Try not to let your guest wait too long.

- If you are running a tab, ring up each round as it is served. Count change carefully. Collect or start a tab for your drinks when you serve them. When a large bill is given, leave it on the cash register tray until you have made proper change.

- If you are running a tab with a cash register or same sorts, lock the cash register and take the key when leaving the bar area.

- Absolutely avoid serving a guest who is intoxicated. Try to monitor how fast your guests are drinking and for how long. In order to avoid having your guest throwing up or gettind sick after a couple of drinks, advise them to eat before coming to your home bar or serve a dinner along with your cocktails.

- Make sure to advise not to drive after drinking alcohol beverage. If they need to, have them stay at your house until they are ready to drive. Make sure that your guests are aware of seriousness of drunk driving.

- If you do not allow smoking in your house, make sure to let them know in advance or have a smoking area outside the house.

- Have enough chairs as well as supplies for your guests. Make sure that you are aware of how many people are coming. If you are not certain of the number of your guest, try to have extra bottles, glasses, mixers etc.

- If you have any children under legal drinking age, you may advise them the usage of alcohol beverage and your home bar. It is unlawful to serve alcohol beverage to anyone under drinking age.