Where do you work?

Bradmans Wine Cellar. It was founded by father & son John and Tom Morris in May 2018 with a wide knowledge of wines from around the world.

Bradmans Wine Cellar, 9 Town St, Duffield, Belper DE56 4EH, United Kingdom

Tell us a little bit about yourself

I started my bartending career by chance, I needed a job, and there was a vacancy for a bartender. I had no experience and no interest in a career in the bar industry, but it's something I developed a passion for and something that I immersed myself in. Within five years of being behind the bar, I'd become a UK Bartender Champion, a UK Bartender of the Year, a European Bartender of the Year, and was named as one of the top two bartenders in the world in 2019. During that time I'd progressed in my role to a Master Bartender, one of only three worldwide, as well as consulting for bars in the UK and South America. The next step was to take everything I'd learned and put it to use on my own team and on a bar that I could be the driving force behind, which is why I became a Bar Manager.

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Define your role and the tasks involved in your role.

My role is to look after my staff and guests. To make sure everyone enjoys their time at the bar and leaves with a smile on their face. It involves managing a team and controlling budgets. Coming up with ideas to keep the bar moving forward, and helping not only the bar grow, but my staff as well. Keeping them engaged and ensuring I'm getting the best out of them. It involves being empathetic and understanding, whilst being firm and unmoving in not only the standards of the bar, but mine too.

Gary Burdekin also worked at TGI Fridays as their Master Bartender and is always on the lookout for the next big thing in spirits. He is a judge at the London Spirits Competition.

What questions would you ask the bar owner before you plan your sales growth strategy?

To assess where we were to where we are now, and to create a clear revenue goal. To identify exactly what our target audience is, and to create a SWOT (strength, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis.

How can suppliers work with you to drive sales?

Being hands-on and passing on their knowledge of their products to us and the guests. The supplier will be able to answer any question a guest has and will in turn be able to engage them much more.

Give us an example of a profitable bar menu program with examples of brand names and why you have them on your menu.

That would be when you get to the stage of looking at what your menu is really going to cost the business relative to the price you're charging a guest. What I mean by that is, you're costing everything, when you're making a drink, you're not just costing the spirits that go into it, but you're costing the syrups, juices, sodas, garnishes, or anything else you may include in it. When everything is priced out and accounted for, you have the true cost of the cocktail.

What do you look for in items that qualify for house pours?

Affordability and quality. Cheaper isn't always better.

What do you look for in items that qualify for non-house pours?

Quality.

Whilst competing at the World Bartender Championship competition in Texas in 2018, he finished 1st in Europe and 2nd in the world.

What are the four main things you focus on daily in your role?

1. Staff/guest happiness.
2. Budgets and daily targets.
3. Managing inventory.
4. Training and driving sales.

5 ways to upsell drinks at the bar

There are no five set ways to upsell, I would never upsell just for the sake of it to get more money out of my guest. I would upsell for a specific reason, for example, if I were making a Cucumber Martini with Beefeater gin, I would offer an upsell to Hendricks gin because of the cucumber infusion in the gin. It complements the drink and enhances the flavours, a perfect reason to upsell.

Tips on training new bartenders

Have patience. Everyone learns differently, there's no set way to train someone, some people learn better being hands-on, some learn better with their head in a book, some may take a week to get it, some a month.

What's trending in the UK drinks scene? Which cocktails, brand names and categories?

The non-alcoholic sector is thriving right now, huge brands like Tanqueray and Heineken have come out with 0% expressions. Tequila is gaining a new following due to celebrities releasing their own range (Dwayne Johnson, George Clooney, Kendall Jenner).

Teremana tequila is one of the hottest brands, recently winning the 2021 USA Spirits Ratings Tequila of the year. The tequila has now become bartenders’ favourite after George Clooney’s Casamigos Tequila.

What's customer service to you?

Identifying what THEY want, not what YOU and YOUR business want. Customer service is different for every guest who comes in, everyone's different, with different tastes and preferences, so your service has to be tailored to each individual.

Define a good bartender.

They would have a passion for the bar industry, be humble, be willing to learn, and be a good multi-tasker!

How do you manage non-performing brands?

Re-evaluate the product's profile, compare it with competing products. Re-evaluate current marketing position in the bar, from use in drinks to display positioning.

How can you increase your beverage sales with the selection you already have?

Constantly coming up with fresh ideas, one ingredient can change an entire drink, for example, you have a Whiskey Sour, add red wine on top, and you have a New York Sour, completely different taste profile, which will help target a brand new audience.

New York Sour Cocktail. Check out Gary Burdekin's favourite cocktails and their recipes here.

What else do you look for in a brand before saying yes apart from quality, value, and package?

What's the selling point? What's the story behind it, where did it come from, what was the inspiration behind it, where did the name come from? Just to name a few.

Give us an example of a common problem in the bar business and how you handle it.

A common problem is low inventory, losing stock, an odd bottle missing here and there, half a bottle here, few cans missing there. Daily counts are a start to helping solve this, even counting once in the morning and once at night on key items that are down. If your bar free pours, turn to jigger pouring until all bartenders have proven themselves adept at free pouring.

Your favorite places to enjoy drinks in London?

Very easy, Tāyer & Elementary.

What's the best part of your job?

The unsocial hours.

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