Diary Of A Club Guy Part 1
The Buser/Barback
The buser/barback - A bartender’s assistant. Their role is to set up the bar, and make sure the bartender has everything needed to do their job as efficiently as possible. This can include cutting limes, stocking liquor, picking up glassware, and washing dishes.
My hand sign was an “E” for East Bar Movement. That was the name of the bar I work behind in Stereo
Recently, I made a series of Twitter threads called “Diary Of A Club Guy” describing some of my experiences working in nightlife.
Afterwards, numerous people told me how much they enjoyed them, how they could relate to them, and how I should turn them into a book.
Well, a book seemed like a little much so instead, I decided to write a series of blog posts!
Over the next few weeks, I will release them. Enjoy!
Who knew 2013 would be such a monumental year in my life?
One year after dropping out of university, I got a job as a barback (not quite a doctor…oops!).
My goal was actually to be a DJ, but the only way I could get a gig in nightclubs was to first work there so I could meet the right people. That’s why I applied as a barback at Stereo Nightclub.
I had no idea if I would like it, I just knew I had to do it.
Dressed in a suit, I showed up to the interview and got the job quickly. I definitely stood out considering what I was wearing. A little different for a barback.
What Was It Like?
The first night I worked was a UV paint party. Not normal for a regular club, but Stereo was far from normal.
We had 750 people in the club painting each other, and the walls, furniture, and anything else they could find.
These parties were a mess. Needless to say, I was shocked on my first shift, but I loved it.
I started working at 7 pm and finished around 5 am. The hours were late mainly because the clean up was so long. I was not even close to the last staff working that night.
That’s what the job was like. Long hours, once or twice a week, super fast-paced, super social and honestly, quite fun.
Shifts normally started with the team shotgunning a Redbull and end with the staff sharing the craziest stories that happened that night.
There were a lot of crazy stories.
One time we had to break up a couple who was having sex in a puddle of pee on the floor of the bathroom. That’s one of the grosser stories.
The number of fights that happened was unbelievable, and they were ridiculous.
I had to hop the bar to stop a guy from choking his girlfriend, hold a paper towel to the head of a guy who got cracked with a baton, and pull shot glasses out of guys’ hands who were throwing them at people.
The stories are endless.
Working at Stereo was the first time I ever really got attention from girls. I won’t lie, it was a lot at times, but I liked it. Definitely a confidence booster.
My theory is girls feel safe talking to bartenders, or barbacks because they are less creepy than the guy staring at their ass on the dancefloor.
The money was great too - especially at 21. On numerous nights I walked out with over $400 in tips.
It’s funny because when you start working in the industry and you have a few nights like that, then you start taking for granted how good it is just to make $200 in tips. Still works out to $30/hour with your wage, if not more.
Here we are, 10 years later, and there are labour jobs paying half that.
Those in the industry are blessed and I would say the majority take that for granted. I don’t believe there is any better job to have as a student.
What Did I Learn?
The first and most important lesson I learnt working as a barback was that drunk people aren’t all that bad. That’s right, I said it!
Everyone you encounter has come out with the intention to have fun, and you’re there to help them. That means the majority of people you talk to, love you. That’s pretty rewarding in itself.
The next lesson I learnt is that most people who work in the nightlife industry have a drinking problem (whether they admit it or not).
If they’re not drunk on the job, they’re probably drinking after the job. In the best-case scenario, they get heavily drunk on Sunday with the rest of the industry folks. Often Monday & Wednesday too.
People in the hospitality industry have to put up with everyone around them getting drunk every time they’re working, so when it’s their turn to drink… they release.
You never really realize how many people puke in a nightclub either until you start working in one.
On my first shift, I was running with a bus bin picking up cups and I picked up a cup full to the rim with puke. It splashed all over me…
Welcome to the nightlife industry.
Some Memorable Experiences
Every night was a new experience - no two were the same. That means that every night was memorable, but always for good reasons.
One night we had three barbacks no-show for their shifts (the club usually had 4 working). That means it was me barbacking the whole club with 900 people, and on top of that, DJing two 30-minute sets. It was insane… and fun.
On the longest shifts, we would get off as late as 9 am sometimes. The ones who stayed latest were always overtired and we would go get breakfast together. Not very healthy, but memorable.
MGK came to Stereo and the club was packed. Fights were everywhere, and riot police showed up with shields as MGK stood on top of a speaker with his joint in his hand, pointing the middle finger at the cops. People started throwing bottles at the cops. Ridiculous.
I had to fill up the ice well which meant going through the pack of people to get to the ice machine. I took a clean garbage can with a bag and filled it up.
As I carried it over my head through the crowd, everyone started chanting “Ice! Ice! Ice!” and moved out of the way for an open path back to my bar. It was awesome.
Stereo hosted an Export A party and I ended up working over 30 hours straight. These parties had all the industry people coming out to party. In three hours we did over 50k in sales.
The inventory was a mess and a few of us stayed behind to help, which meant staying until the following afternoon. What some people don’t know is we were open the night before, and I hadn’t slept yet because I had to drive around picking up 200+ coconuts in the morning for drinks that night.
Our bar top was constantly filled with girls dancing on it. I must have saved a dozen girls from smacking their heads and slipping while they tried to twerk.
I used to have a good compilation of videos of guys staring at girls, but unfortunately, I lost them. Not going to lie, having them dance up there increased our bar’s traffic tremendously.
Takeaways
Many people don’t realize, but most clubs would not function without barbacks. You see the bartender working and miss the guy behind him grinding away.
They were likely there hours before the bartender setting up, and will be there after them cleaning.
Barbacking is not an easy job, it’s quite tiring, and often underappreciated.
They rely on the bartender to tip them out and often, the entitled bartender will try to undercut their helper. A kind bartender will tip them out 25-50% depending on how hard they worked. However, I’ve seen bartenders try to only tip-out 10%.
The arrogance can be irritating.
What I’m getting at is that if you are a customer, and you see someone doing all the work behind a bartender, show them some appreciation, they deserve it.
Overall, it’s a great job and gave me experience I’ll never forget. It made me a harder worker, not mind long hours, and appreciate every position in a bar.
Working for months as a barback led to me having the opportunity to DJ more.
As I continued, I wanted to do more for the club, so I focused on bringing more people out to party. That ended up leading me to work as a VIP host.
That’s where the story will continue.
Until next time,
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