One of the most important decisions a Bartenderone student faces after graduation is what type of venue to apply to. One of the first questions we ask all of our students at the beginning of the Masterclass is “what type of venue do you want to work at?”. On average our students are in their mid 20’s and their instinctive answer is they want to work at a nightclub. The glaring appeal of working at a nightclub is that it will be little hours, little work, and lots of tips! In some cases this may be but it is unlikely that you will immediately fall “ass backwards” into a lucrative club bartending job! That being said, there are many profitable and sought after clubbartending positions in the industry, you just got to find them! I have worked in clubs for over 5 years and very much enjoy my time working at them, but it is important to expand your mind and your options when choosing a type of venue to work at.
One of the most humbling and beneficial experiences I have had as a bartenderwas my time working at the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel. At the time I had been actively bartending for three years, and heading out to Alberta, was very confident with my skill set behind the bar. I quickly learned that my “nightclub only” experience had only prepared me for a small fraction of what the hospitality industry had to offer. I was hired as a bartender at a lounge with a 500 person capacity, not intimidating at first glance, but very deceiving as I soon found out! As the junior bartender on staff I was put on service bar to learn the ins and outs of the menu and the Fairmont style service. The menu consisted of 35 cocktails and martinis unique to the hotel so it was like starting from scratch with regards to recipe knowledge. That coupled with the fact that the lounge did not stagger reservations meant that at any given time I could have 500 people walk into the lounge at the same time……translation 500 drinks at once! And not just drinks, labour intensive cocktails and martinis! Being thrust into this type of bartending setting forced me to really hone the speed, recipe execution, and techniques that I had been introduced to during my time in the Bartenderone Masterclass and Finishing School. Stepping out of my nightclub “comfort zone” and into a challenging hotel venue setting allowed me to become a much more well rounded bartender. As a result new doors in the industry were opened for me and I have never looked back. I currently work as a bartender at a nightclub, instructor/mixologist with Bartenderone, bartender at the Air Canada Centre, and Performance Mixologist (flair bartender) with the Movers n Shakers special event team! Expand your horizons, try a little bit of everything, and challenge yourself and then and only then will you truly evolve as a bartender!
JB
From Dolphins to Bartenders… How did I get here?!?
After a career as a Director of Training for marine mammals and over 4,000 live shows under my belt, I now find myself as the Director of Training at Canada’s Premier Bartender Training School! But now instead of a team of dolphins, sea lions, and seals, I work with a team of some of the most incredible instructors I’ve ever met! They spend their time helping others learn to bartend. I spend my time supporting them and the students who are in their classes. Who could have predicted that I would wind up doing this? Certainly not me! The bartender training we provide is the best anyone has to offer and I constantly find myself smiling just because I get to be part of this!
In 1998, which seems like a lifetime ago, I had the pleasure of working with Gavin MacMillan for the first time. We both worked at Canada’s Wonderland and we were both ball-busting managers in our respective areas. Little did we know that several years later, Gavin would create a bartending school in Toronto called BartenderOne. After my career training animals, I went on to be an operations and general manager and then to fundraising and special events management. When the time came and there was an opportunity for me to join this incredible company as the Director of Corporate Events and Training… there was no thought in my mind other than YES! I didn’t know exactly what I was in for but I knew it was gonna be nothing less than fabulous!
For me, working at BartenderOne is exhausting, in all the right ways. There is so much going on behind the scenes at any given time and I don’t think anyone would know it if they weren’t told. From planning upcoming classes and workshops, to answering calls with questions and taking registrations, to marking and posting test results, to posting classes online and preparing for class… it never stops. Registrations come in 24 hours a day, the phones ring at all hours and the emails never stop. The instructors are in and out of the office, running errands and commuting between our various training locations. And beyond the time they spend as instructors providing bartender training, they also find time to do special events and to work shifts at their respective bars! At the end of my day I don’t get to work in a bar but instead I go home to my job as a mom and my little bartenders-in-training who are 3 & 6 years old. They practice their flair bartending in the bathtub and as soon as they’re old enough, they’ll be in class and getting ready for flair bartending competitions!
There is never a dull moment here since we also do workshops, private events, corporate events and teambuilding events on top of the bartender training that goes on. We have instructors traveling around the country doing flair training right now. We have instructors shuttling back and forth from Ottawa to open our newest location there. Never mind all of the events we are doing! So even though it may seem like we are just doing this bartending school Toronto type stuff… there is so much more to BartenderOne! I love what I get to be a part of here and the amazing team of people I work with. Over the next few weeks I am going to share some more of what goes on behind the scenes at BartenderOne including what it’s like to work with this crew of instructors and the entire B1 team. Andrew, David, Ryan, Krissy, Jeremy, Jay, Jair … even the infamous Gavin! They truly are the best and I’m thrilled to be a part of this team!
Until next time…
Mel