Seeking input - Bartending as a Side hustle

[YummyRaisins]

Any mustachians with experience bartending as a side hustle?

I checked out this page (http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/2016/01/how-to-make-money-bartending/) which covers some basics, but I'd like to hear from anyone who's done it.

How much were your startup costs and how did it pay?

Had you bartended before or did you have to be trained first?

Did you work private functions or at local bars?

Any pros and cons would also be appreciated.

I've never bartended, but as someone who is fairly sociable and who has nights and weekends free, I think it's something I could get into.

[gp_]

Any mustachians with experience bartending as a side hustle?

I checked out this page (http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/2016/01/how-to-make-money-bartending/) which covers some basics, but I'd like to hear from anyone who's done it.

How much were your startup costs and how did it pay?

Had you bartended before or did you have to be trained first?

Did you work private functions or at local bars?

Any pros and cons would also be appreciated.

I've never bartended, but as someone who is fairly sociable and who has nights and weekends free, I think it's something I could get into.

what city are you / would you be bartending in?

my old roommate was a bartender (pt) in san francisco about 8 years ago. he usually worked thur - sat night at a sports bar close to the moscone center and would sometimes take home $600+ a night in tips alone. he took a bartending course over 6 weeks which IIRC cost around $300. he said it was somewhat demanding (busy), but that obviously depends on a lot of variables. he loved the interactions with customers and met a lot of women (which at the time, was a plus for him). he said it was a great experience overall.

[Captain Cactus]

I had a great job one summer when I was home from college.  It was as a bartender in a dumpy coastal bar in Maine, frequented by fishermen and other local folks.  Had a great time, met lots of nice people, and could usually take home about $100/night cash. 

Once I'm FIRE, I might look into something like that as a side hustle to bring in some cash and be social.

[YummyRaisins]

what city are you / would you be bartending in?

my old roommate was a bartender (pt) in san francisco about 8 years ago. he usually worked thur - sat night at a sports bar close to the moscone center and would sometimes take home $600+ a night in tips alone. he took a bartending course over 6 weeks which IIRC cost around $300. he said it was somewhat demanding (busy), but that obviously depends on a lot of variables. he loved the interactions with customers and met a lot of women (which at the time, was a plus for him). he said it was a great experience overall.

I'm in the North Shore area of Massachusetts (Peabody, Beverly, Salem). Plenty of bars within walking distance, but it's definitely a seasonal location. Some of the most popular spots maintain a steady business even in the winter.

With no experience I'm not sure I'd be getting the coveted Thursday - Saturday night shifts. Gotta start somewhere, so earlier weekdays would be fine. Something like what Captain Cactus describes would be a good place to start.

The social aspect of it is also appealing (though I'm beyond the point where meeting women is a goal).

Would eventually like to work independently doing private parties and functions, but will need to get experience/references first.

[gp_]

I'm in the North Shore area of Massachusetts (Peabody, Beverly, Salem). Plenty of bars within walking distance, but it's definitely a seasonal location. Some of the most popular spots maintain a steady business even in the winter.

With no experience I'm not sure I'd be getting the coveted Thursday - Saturday night shifts. Gotta start somewhere, so earlier weekdays would be fine. Something like what Captain Cactus describes would be a good place to start.

The social aspect of it is also appealing (though I'm beyond the point where meeting women is a goal).

Would eventually like to work independently doing private parties and functions, but will need to get experience/references first.

my old roommate definitely had to move up to those shifts, but for whatever reason, did so fairly quick. even if it's seasonal, i'd imagine it would be a fun experience. he met people non-stop, so the social aspect was definitely a plus. private functions/parties could definitely be lucrative when you get there. i bet it would be a fun side-hustle!

[Financial Ascensionist]

I have never been paid for bartending, but I have hosted fairly large cocktails mixing session at work and thought dozens of people how to mix.  Given that I found a way for my company to pick up the tab for one of my hobbies, I guess that still counts as a side line.

I started with two classes: the free intro at the San Francisco School of Bartending and the mixology class at Bourbon and Branch, also in SF.  When you get down to it, there are only a handful of techniques, less than a dozen tools and about 20 ingredients that will cover 95% of the drinks you will ever make.  The technical part of the job is rather simple and you can learn it pretty well from a book, but I find watching videos more helpful and this app is probably a very good start: http://appcrawlr.com/ios/speakeasy-cocktails-learn-from-

The biggest part of the job is to be an entertainer and that's all about being good at chit chat and being a bit dramatic with everything you do behind the bar.  When you go to a restaurant or a bar, sit at the bar and watch the bartenders do their thing, ask them questions.  This is the best way to learn.

You only need a few tools to get started, which will cost you about $100.  You need your well liquors, a bunch of mixers, and plenty of fresh citrus fruits so add $150 on top of that and you are ready to host amazing parties.  Most of this stuff is very shelf stable so you are buying for the long run.  After blowing your friends minds for a few months in a row, I am very confident you are ready to serve strangers and it probably won't feel like work at all.

[LeRainDrop]

I have a friend who bartended part-time after college and when she was in grad school.  She subsequently went to law school and became an attorney at a biglaw firm.  In other words, she was making $200k+ per year.  Yet, she still decided to bartend on Sunday nights at another friend's restaurant, just for the social aspect of meeting fun people who were not lawyers, plus the dollars she made at the restaurant was considered her weekly spending money.

[YummyRaisins]

I have a friend who bartended part-time after college and when she was in grad school.  She subsequently went to law school and became an attorney at a biglaw firm.  In other words, she was making $200k+ per year.  Yet, she still decided to bartend on Sunday nights at another friend's restaurant, just for the social aspect of meeting fun people who were not lawyers, plus the dollars she made at the restaurant was considered her weekly spending money.

I'm not in your friend's earnings bracket, but I certainly make enough that some/most people would give me sideways looks for side hustling at all, let alone bartending.

But like your friend I see it as something I could enjoy doing to make money on the side. Lots of other options, but this one piqued my interest.

[Dezrah]

One Saturday I helped some friends move into a temporary apartment for the summer.  We walked in and the place was dirty and the fridge was absolutely awful.  It was empty but stank to high heaven.  They called management who sent out a third party cleaning company.

The person who came over was a younger, punkish woman.  We chatted and she explained that she used to bartend on the weekends but found out she could make as much money in an hour of cleaning as she made in a night of bartending.  Furthermore the cleaning was way less hectic, not that much grosser than maintaining a bar, and she usually still had her evenings free. 

Your experience may differs from hers depending on a million factors.  Just something to think about.

Postscript: She did a good job cleaning but the stench in the fridge couldn’t be remedied.  The whole thing has to be replaced.

[mancityfan]

A key component of a side hustle IMHO should be that it is enjoyable/does not feel like work. If you think you will have fun and enjoy yourself, you cannot lose.

[Boganvillia]

I do this.

Like the lawyer above, my choice definitely earns me a side eye from most people, in context of my qualifications and my other job title and our high household income. But hey, the real wage (in YMOYL terms) is comparable to my day job because:

- I don't pay child care for weekend or nights work, because DH is home and doing that; and
- I usually bike to work, so transport cost is nil.

Further down in importance on the 'cost of getting work' list:

- I don't pay for dressing up: laundered uniform is provided;
- I usually get fed on my shift.

There are some transferable skills which have definitely improved whilst I have been doing bar work: teamwork and customer service are probably the big ones. In my case I would add that it has been a boon to learn to work in teams with very young people (I am usually at least double the age of my colleagues.)

My functional fitness has improved. I couldn't say I would be any better at push-ups or chin-ups, but I can sure heft heavy things around more efficiently now, and my stamina is really good these days.

The work itself is usually pretty easy - there are times it sucks but often it is quite fun.

For my day job, I only work 20 hours (DH has a FT job and we have 3 kids - so 2 x FT jobs would sink us logistically at the moment). The financial boost is from taking on barwork as a casual is 10% on top of my regular earnings.

One unexpected advantage is that my taste for drinking alcohol has plummeted. Seeing people get drunk and being around them is a real turn-off!

[rocketpj]

One unexpected advantage is that my taste for drinking alcohol has plummeted. Seeing people get drunk and being around them is a real turn-off!

A bit of a crapshoot there - I've known a lot of people who tended bar and developed drinking problems with the ready access.

[Boganvillia]

Oh yes, totally! probably helps that my venue is not particularly cool, or atmospheric. My fellow bartenders are all teetotallers or very light drinkers.

[spolicas]

I bartended in college and for a few years afterwards until I landed a career. It was at local bars that didn't require any formal training. I started as a "barback" basically doing the grunt work for bartenders (stocking beer, refill ice, wash glasses, etc.). From there, I became a bartender for about 3 or 4 nights a week. Money was good, about $100-$200 a night. I usually didn't get home before 2:00am, but if you have the time and energy to do it as a part-time side hustle, I say go for it!