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He takes a deep breath and shrugs. “You need a job, and I need the help.” He stands. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to everyone.”
I follow him out of his office and back into the main area of the bar.
“Listen up everyone,” he shouts. “This is Riley, she’s going to be your new bartender. So be nice and tip her well.” He turns and looks at John. “Would you mind showing her the ropes today?”
“Sure, no problem,” he agrees.
“Alright, I’m going to go fix the schedule to add you to it. John, any days you want off now that we have a third bartender?”
“I’m free whenever, man,” John tells Travis.
Travis walks back to his office, leaving me alone with John.
“It’s nice to meet you.” John holds out his hand to shake.
I slip mine into it. “You, too.”
“You bartended before?”
“A little,” I reply.
“Alright. Why don’t we focus on learning the register, then.” He leads me to it. “Here’s a price list so you don’t have to remember how much every drink costs. Soda and bottled water are a dollar. Energy drinks are three. Most beer is two-fifty, but some are cheaper or more expensive, so here’s a list of those. For the liquor, all prices are marked on the bottle. You add fifty cents if you’re making a drink with soda and a dollar if you use energy drinks. For example, Jack Daniels is four dollars a shot, but if a customer wants Coke with it, that’ll be a total of four-fifty. Got it?”
I nod. “Sounds easy enough.”
“Now, here’s how you work the register.”
I listen to him carefully and watch as he shows me which buttons to push. He shows me where the manual is too, just in case I forget any steps. After a quick rundown on the register, he shows me where the money bag is kept in case I need to make change, and then he lets me run the bar while he sits on the other side, watching and helping when needed.
“You from around here, young lady?” an older gentleman asks.
“I was born and raised here. Moved away right after high school,” I answer.
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Tom and I’m here every day, damn near all day. If you have any questions and these yahoos aren’t around, you can ask me,” he says, motioning toward John and Travis’ office.
I smile at him. “Thank you.”
A man a few barstools down waves and offers up a grin. “I’m Ted.”
“Nice to meet you.”
He raises his beer. “Brian should be getting in soon. We’re the three amigos for this place.”
John laughs. “That’s right. They’re our everyday customers. The ones who are the most dedicated.”
We’re all laughing when Travis walks out of his office with a few papers in hand. He seems surprised that we’re all laughing, but he doesn’t mention it as he hands a paper to John. “This okay with you?”
John looks at the paper and nods “Yep, this is fine.”
Travis hands a paper over the bar to me. “And what about you?”
I look at the paper to see a schedule drawn up. He has me opening the bar all week. “This is fine.”
“Once you get a little more practice under your belt, I’ll give you some night shifts so you can make more tips. But it’s better to start slow.”
“Sounds good,” I agree, folding the paper and sliding it into my back pocket. I turn and grab a rag, wiping down the bar top and the shelves in the back that house the liquor bottles.
“How’s she doing so far?” I hear Travis ask John.
