Haley Traub, general manager of Attaboy and Good Guy's bars in NYC, shares her expertise in bartending techniques and speed. She discusses mastering efficient bartending to improve service and drink quality, emphasizing the balance between speed and accuracy. Traub dives into the importance of hospitality, reading social cues, and delivering an elevated guest experience. She also explores cocktail craftsmanship, the role of traditional menus, and offers insights on continuous learning in the industry, all while celebrating the artistry behind crafting a perfect drink.
Effective bartending hinges on mastering the art of building faster rounds while ensuring each cocktail maintains its intended flavor and quality.
Emphasizing hospitality is crucial as bartenders must prioritize guest experiences alongside timely service to enhance customer satisfaction.
A successful bartender should continually embrace learning and adapting to evolving techniques and trends in the industry to provide exceptional service.
Deep dives
Character in Vodka Production
Vodka should have distinct character, which is achieved through careful production methods rather than being flavorless or odorless as some brands suggest. Kettle One Vodka employs a unique blend of pot and column still distillation using a wheat base, which contributes to its subtle yet notable flavor. This technique enhances cocktails without overpowering them, making it an excellent choice for a variety of drinks such as martinis and cosmopolitans. The brand's commitment to quality is further emphasized by their invitation for drinkers to visit their distillery in the Netherlands, backed by over 330 years of family distilling expertise.
The Importance of Hospitality in Bartending
The essence of successful bartending lies in hospitality, which prioritizes guests' experiences above all else. Understanding that timely service is crucial, bartenders must focus on creating better drinks while ensuring they reach patrons efficiently. It's essential to balance the desire for craftsmanship in cocktail preparation with the need for speed in a busy service environment. This dedication to hospitality not only enhances customer satisfaction but also cultivates a welcoming atmosphere in bars.
Techniques for Faster Service
Bartenders can improve service speed by mastering techniques that involve order of operations in drink preparation. This means learning which drinks to start with and how to build cocktails efficiently, while minimizing time spent handling ingredients and tools. For example, prioritizing shaken drinks that require citrus first, followed by stirred drinks that have shorter shelf lives once served. By implementing these techniques, bartenders create a smoother workflow, ensuring rounds of drinks are delivered promptly to guests.
Building Rounds Effectively
Effective round building involves preparing multiple cocktails in a way that maximizes efficiency without compromising quality. Bartenders need to recognize the importance of resonating with their guests, understanding that a well-timed drink enhances the overall experience. By building rounds strategically—like addressing highball drinks, shaken drinks, and stirred drinks in a specific order—bartenders can serve patrons more efficiently. This ensures every cocktail reaches the guest at its best quality, maintaining the drink’s intended flavor and freshness.
Continuous Learning and Adaptation
A successful bartender is always open to learning and adapting their skills, regardless of experience level. The bartending industry is constantly evolving, and it’s important to embrace new techniques, ingredients, and trends to provide exceptional service. This willingness to learn can range from understanding new spirits to expanding knowledge beyond cocktails, such as wine and beer education. Ultimately, the ongoing pursuit of knowledge enhances not only a bartender’s skill set but also the guest experience.
Our "Techniques" episodes often focus on processes and drinks that require expensive equipment and esoteric ingredients. But today we’re returning to the fundamentals of bartending to answer a seemingly simple question: How do you build faster rounds and, in turn, put out better drinks? Joining us to answer that question is an expert on t: Haley Traub, the general manager of Attaboy and Good Guy's in New York’s Lower East Side.