Sunday, July 24, 2011
Oh, Jumping lasagna cowboy. Why oh why?
Last week I got some terrible news. One of my favorite restaurants is closing it's doors. What am I going to do now? Portobello one of the best restaurants in Westchester county, is taking a small pieces of my heart with them. Oh why,oh why. Very sad We say farewell to the Portobello Cafe and we The family of Confession of an unemployed bartender and N.Y. Restaurant Solutions wish good luck to Luis and Francine in their new adventure. Please take care my friends.
Friday, July 15, 2011
An the fucked up thing is, It's a Fucking Chili's.
By know you might know that I have high standards when it comes to service. For me the food is just, not enough, there has to be a harmony between food and service. That is was keeps the people coming again and again. Here is my point. Last night, my family and I went to eat after doing some shopping, and the options where a little bit small. We had on one side, Wendy's, and on the other side we had Chili’s.
Because of my in laws diet we decided to go to Chili’s. The problem was, that we had have really bad experiences in this particular Chili’s, the food is as regular as a standardized recipe could get. The service in this Chili’s was so bad, every time we went there they gave us a 5$ discount coupon for the next visit, and no kidding my wife has like 4 coupons in her purse from last year.
So any way, we went to Chili’s and OMG for the first time, the hostess greeted us with a happy face, when we got seated, not one, but two waitresses came to the table and told us that, they, as a team, where going to be serving our table. The appetizers came out really fast, the refills where there every time the glasses where empty. The entrees came out hot and quickly, over all the service and the food were pretty decent.
Who would have believed that? I after eating in fine dinning restaurants, so many bar and dives, I would get a service that would make Marcos Mercado look like 15 year old girl. An the fucked up thing is, it's a fucking Chili’s.
Because of my in laws diet we decided to go to Chili’s. The problem was, that we had have really bad experiences in this particular Chili’s, the food is as regular as a standardized recipe could get. The service in this Chili’s was so bad, every time we went there they gave us a 5$ discount coupon for the next visit, and no kidding my wife has like 4 coupons in her purse from last year.
So any way, we went to Chili’s and OMG for the first time, the hostess greeted us with a happy face, when we got seated, not one, but two waitresses came to the table and told us that, they, as a team, where going to be serving our table. The appetizers came out really fast, the refills where there every time the glasses where empty. The entrees came out hot and quickly, over all the service and the food were pretty decent.
Who would have believed that? I after eating in fine dinning restaurants, so many bar and dives, I would get a service that would make Marcos Mercado look like 15 year old girl. An the fucked up thing is, it's a fucking Chili’s.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
I felt like a prostitute.
I'm not saying that I was a prostitute (I wish), just that I felt like one, every time I changed restaurants and had to start over again and again. Getting to know new people; well not really, in my town every service employee knows each other. Let me clarify; is not that I got fired on any of my jobs, is that I don't take crap from people that manage a restaurant because they have a B.S. in management and had never worked in a restaurant. Working in all those restaurants and bars taught me how to work and do work the right way. That is what a want to show all the people that work and want to work in a restaurant.
Working in a restaurant is tons of fun. You have the crazy waitresses, the really crazy cooks and chefs, that sell drugs to the employees. The cool doorman, the not so talented barback,the valet parking attendant that thinks he is the mayor of the town, the really hot bartender (that's me), and finally your customers, the most important aspect of working in a restaurant. I have many storys about bars and restaurants, so stay tunned and you will know a few, well the PG 13 ones at least.
Till then, go out and try something new
Working in a restaurant is tons of fun. You have the crazy waitresses, the really crazy cooks and chefs, that sell drugs to the employees. The cool doorman, the not so talented barback,the valet parking attendant that thinks he is the mayor of the town, the really hot bartender (that's me), and finally your customers, the most important aspect of working in a restaurant. I have many storys about bars and restaurants, so stay tunned and you will know a few, well the PG 13 ones at least.
Till then, go out and try something new
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
The dont's and dont's of the restaurant.
Whats up guys.
By know you should know that I love working behind the bar. If you started to work in a bar or restaurant here are a few more tips that might help your career in the service industry.
1. Always greet your customer.
2. If you are going to get high, do it before or after your shift, not while in your shift.
3. Never touch your customers. NEVER!!
4. If you dont know something, ask for help, you will look better asking for help than laying and saying that you know how to do it.
5. Never serve garnishes from the floor, no matter the customer.
6. Always know the daily special.
7. When in doubt do as Tosh would do.
8. And last but not least, never, ever party with your co-workers.
More tips to come, so stay tuned, until then, go out and try something new.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
For all you wannabe Wangstas.
An ode to Eva and her Blog
Everyday, I see people that say, they are the best. Oh, I can cook, I can manage a restaurant, I can fly, BLA,BLA,BLA. Listen, first, if you want to work in the industry, you have to try everything there is to try. My college Classmates don't know what is to try new food. They think that food is just pizza and burgers. Do you know how many types of food there are in the world? The Cuisines of the world are very complex and very delicious too, so why not try other food? And you call your selves the future of the service industry.
A small anecdote:
A few months ago I had a class presentation about the food of my home town. When I asked my class mate if they would try a plate called mollejas ( Gizzards ) , everybody said, I'm not going to eat that, that is nasty, some of them even told me that , how could I eat that. I told them, with green bananas and onions of course. As I got the 86 with the Gizzards I decided to cook something that is more awesome than the Gizzards, I decided to cook Conch, for those of you that don't know what Conch is. Conch is a sea snail that is eaten in the Caribbean and South America. Is very tasty as well as a good source of protein. You can make it raw, in ceviche, you can make Conch salad, Conch stew, and many other tasty plates. So that is what i did, I made the most awesome Conch salad the east cost has ever seen( I'm being modest ) just New York, and when I did my presentation one of my classmates said, that she wasn't going to eat that because she hated the look of it. I ask her that if she was going to work in a restaurant, how she was going to sell the food if she didn't know what was the taste, the flavor, the texture, and do you want to know what was her answer. This was like a kick in the balls, she said that she wasn't going to work in a restaurant that served that type of food. What an ignorant.
Anecdote Finished.
OK don't get me wrong, there are foods that are simply not eatable and just nasty, but people, you have to try it in order to know if is good or bad.
Thank you Eva (http://freirunhuevo.blogspot.com) for opening this can of worms, and having the guts to tell everybody first, that they suck, big time.
With that said, go out and try something new tonight. It doesn't have to be something out of the ordinary, but something posible, or if you have the COJONES go out and eat something imposible, you'll never know, you might like it, and make the possimpable come true. Thank's Barney Stinson
Everyday, I see people that say, they are the best. Oh, I can cook, I can manage a restaurant, I can fly, BLA,BLA,BLA. Listen, first, if you want to work in the industry, you have to try everything there is to try. My college Classmates don't know what is to try new food. They think that food is just pizza and burgers. Do you know how many types of food there are in the world? The Cuisines of the world are very complex and very delicious too, so why not try other food? And you call your selves the future of the service industry.
A small anecdote:
A few months ago I had a class presentation about the food of my home town. When I asked my class mate if they would try a plate called mollejas ( Gizzards ) , everybody said, I'm not going to eat that, that is nasty, some of them even told me that , how could I eat that. I told them, with green bananas and onions of course. As I got the 86 with the Gizzards I decided to cook something that is more awesome than the Gizzards, I decided to cook Conch, for those of you that don't know what Conch is. Conch is a sea snail that is eaten in the Caribbean and South America. Is very tasty as well as a good source of protein. You can make it raw, in ceviche, you can make Conch salad, Conch stew, and many other tasty plates. So that is what i did, I made the most awesome Conch salad the east cost has ever seen( I'm being modest ) just New York, and when I did my presentation one of my classmates said, that she wasn't going to eat that because she hated the look of it. I ask her that if she was going to work in a restaurant, how she was going to sell the food if she didn't know what was the taste, the flavor, the texture, and do you want to know what was her answer. This was like a kick in the balls, she said that she wasn't going to work in a restaurant that served that type of food. What an ignorant.
Anecdote Finished.
OK don't get me wrong, there are foods that are simply not eatable and just nasty, but people, you have to try it in order to know if is good or bad.
Thank you Eva (http://freirunhuevo.blogspot.com) for opening this can of worms, and having the guts to tell everybody first, that they suck, big time.
With that said, go out and try something new tonight. It doesn't have to be something out of the ordinary, but something posible, or if you have the COJONES go out and eat something imposible, you'll never know, you might like it, and make the possimpable come true. Thank's Barney Stinson
Thursday, June 23, 2011
If you want, I can help.
Here's the dilio guys!
I don't have a problem if you want to work in a bar or restaurant. Is the other way around. I woud like that more and more people could feel what I feel when I work in a restaurant, the fun that I have when I get behind the bar and do my drinks. Yes there are a lot of hours of work, you have to work with people that have no business working there, but trust me is the most fun you'll have in a job ever. Guaranteed.
My problem is with your boss, supervisor, Head waiter, Head bartenders, Maitre'D, and everybody that is above you in a restaurant. This are the people that are supposed to train you, the people that are supposed to help you understand what you're doing, so, here are a few tips you will need in order to make a good impression on your customers, and yes your bosses too.
1. If you are working at the bar. ( Bar tending )
Learn where everything is. Go to your shift 10 min early, check where the juices are, check if you have drink garnishes, check if you have silverware for the people eating at the bar, check if you have ice in your ice bin, check if you have napkins in your napkins dispenser as well as straws and drink stirrers in your dispensers. Check your glassware, make sure that the glassware isn't chipped off make sure that is clean, no dust no lipstick, check that your bar stock is full, that way you won't run out of liqueur on a rush, and never wait for the barbacks to do all this for you, because it won't get done.
2. If you are working the tables (Waiting tables)
Do pretty much the same, check where everything is, don't be afraid of your customers, but be respectful. Remember these are your customers; they are paying for your job. Never, I said NEVER give a customer another customers check, this looks sketchy. When a customer is asking you about a plate of food know what to say, so learn the menu, know the ingredients, if you have tried a menu item and you didn't like it, don't say it to the customer, this looks really bad, so never badmouth the food that your chef has put out for the customer.
3. Have fun, but be respectful.
Is important that you have fun in your work, but remember that we are serving customers and some of them are there to have a good time, but they are there to have a good time with themselves not with you. Give your customers space to talk to interact.
4. Always be on the look out.
As a server, bartender, you should be aware of the entire restaurant. You should know your regular customers from the people that walk in for the first time. Always be aware of the people intoxicated, try to avoid problems between customers. Count the amount of drinks your customers consume, remember you might be liable for any accidents outside the establishment.
I know that this is a lot to take, but trust me this will help you.
More tips to come latter, so stay tuned.
I don't have a problem if you want to work in a bar or restaurant. Is the other way around. I woud like that more and more people could feel what I feel when I work in a restaurant, the fun that I have when I get behind the bar and do my drinks. Yes there are a lot of hours of work, you have to work with people that have no business working there, but trust me is the most fun you'll have in a job ever. Guaranteed.
My problem is with your boss, supervisor, Head waiter, Head bartenders, Maitre'D, and everybody that is above you in a restaurant. This are the people that are supposed to train you, the people that are supposed to help you understand what you're doing, so, here are a few tips you will need in order to make a good impression on your customers, and yes your bosses too.
1. If you are working at the bar. ( Bar tending )
Learn where everything is. Go to your shift 10 min early, check where the juices are, check if you have drink garnishes, check if you have silverware for the people eating at the bar, check if you have ice in your ice bin, check if you have napkins in your napkins dispenser as well as straws and drink stirrers in your dispensers. Check your glassware, make sure that the glassware isn't chipped off make sure that is clean, no dust no lipstick, check that your bar stock is full, that way you won't run out of liqueur on a rush, and never wait for the barbacks to do all this for you, because it won't get done.
2. If you are working the tables (Waiting tables)
Do pretty much the same, check where everything is, don't be afraid of your customers, but be respectful. Remember these are your customers; they are paying for your job. Never, I said NEVER give a customer another customers check, this looks sketchy. When a customer is asking you about a plate of food know what to say, so learn the menu, know the ingredients, if you have tried a menu item and you didn't like it, don't say it to the customer, this looks really bad, so never badmouth the food that your chef has put out for the customer.
3. Have fun, but be respectful.
Is important that you have fun in your work, but remember that we are serving customers and some of them are there to have a good time, but they are there to have a good time with themselves not with you. Give your customers space to talk to interact.
4. Always be on the look out.
As a server, bartender, you should be aware of the entire restaurant. You should know your regular customers from the people that walk in for the first time. Always be aware of the people intoxicated, try to avoid problems between customers. Count the amount of drinks your customers consume, remember you might be liable for any accidents outside the establishment.
I know that this is a lot to take, but trust me this will help you.
More tips to come latter, so stay tuned.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Are you charging me extra for the lipstick?
Todays post is dedicated to the restaurant owners and their managers.
Over the weekend I went to the pub to have a few beers as usual, and my regular bartender had the day off. What a shame this guy really know how to treat a customer, and most of all, he knows how bad is my OCD is as far as clean glassware goes. As the new bartender came to introduce herself, I said to my self ( self, here we go again!). By know if you have read my last 2 post you should know that I'm a little crazy with the service I get, and I get crazier if it involves ALCOHOL. In most bars the employees don't really clean the glassware as well as they should. Lipstick, lip-balm, dirty fingerprints, dust from dirty rags, and other dirty residues from God knows what, is served every day with your favorite pint or drink.
So, getting back to the story. The bartender comes she introduces herself, and ask us for our drink orders. I ask for a beer and my wife asks for a whiskey on the rocks. I tell her that if she can please pour my beer in a plastic cup, she says, we dont serve on plastic cups. I said, listen is not that I don't want a glasscup is that I don't trust how you clean the glass, so, can I please have a plastic cup instead. I told her that my regular bartender does it for me, and this is the punchline, she said to me, your bartender is off today, and you get what I serve you.
I take crap from my wife, I take crap from my professors in college, I might take some crap from my family, but I won't take crap from somebody that doesn't know what they are doing. I have worked in restaurants and bars for the last 12 years, and by far this has been the worst bartender I have encountered.
The moral of the story is.
Please keep and eye on your employees, and stop hiring people to work in your bars, just because they know how to pop open a Heineken Keg and know how to mix a Cuba Libre. There is more to working in a restaurant, and when you and and the people you hire understand that, you will see that your business will do better, and your customers will thank you for that.
Words of wisdom
Work in a bar or restaurant, because you love working in a bar or restaurant.
Over the weekend I went to the pub to have a few beers as usual, and my regular bartender had the day off. What a shame this guy really know how to treat a customer, and most of all, he knows how bad is my OCD is as far as clean glassware goes. As the new bartender came to introduce herself, I said to my self ( self, here we go again!). By know if you have read my last 2 post you should know that I'm a little crazy with the service I get, and I get crazier if it involves ALCOHOL. In most bars the employees don't really clean the glassware as well as they should. Lipstick, lip-balm, dirty fingerprints, dust from dirty rags, and other dirty residues from God knows what, is served every day with your favorite pint or drink.
So, getting back to the story. The bartender comes she introduces herself, and ask us for our drink orders. I ask for a beer and my wife asks for a whiskey on the rocks. I tell her that if she can please pour my beer in a plastic cup, she says, we dont serve on plastic cups. I said, listen is not that I don't want a glasscup is that I don't trust how you clean the glass, so, can I please have a plastic cup instead. I told her that my regular bartender does it for me, and this is the punchline, she said to me, your bartender is off today, and you get what I serve you.
I take crap from my wife, I take crap from my professors in college, I might take some crap from my family, but I won't take crap from somebody that doesn't know what they are doing. I have worked in restaurants and bars for the last 12 years, and by far this has been the worst bartender I have encountered.
The moral of the story is.
Please keep and eye on your employees, and stop hiring people to work in your bars, just because they know how to pop open a Heineken Keg and know how to mix a Cuba Libre. There is more to working in a restaurant, and when you and and the people you hire understand that, you will see that your business will do better, and your customers will thank you for that.
Words of wisdom
Work in a bar or restaurant, because you love working in a bar or restaurant.
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