Terminologies used by bartenders.
Mis en place; Preparation of things before peak time, or between shifts, for example cutting fruit, preparing the ice buckets, checking the cash float and making sure you have enough change to last you the day, restocking of fridges, and making sure you have a handy replacement for any bottle of spirit or liqueur which is about to finish, making sure that all necessary equipment is in good and safe working order.
Float: The amount of cash that one should start and end shift.
Recycle To rotate the bottles in the fridges, shelves, or in the storeroom, so that you use the old stock first.
F.I.F.O. First in First Out, again, in order to make sure that you use the old stock first.
House rules: Set of rules made by the management of the establishment.
House brands Type of brands that the management wishes to offer in terms of stock, due to special deals offered by some companies.
Frappe’ a liqueur served over a bed of crushed ice, served with two short straws, and garnished with a cherry, normally served in a pyramid glass.
On the Rocks A spirit or liqueur served with lots of ice —- three or more ice cubes. Straight/neat A drink served without ice or a mixer.
Stocktaking an inventory that is done, daily, weekly, or monthly to work out the income and expenditure. Requisitions
This is done on a daily or weekly basis to restock the bar; a PAR LEVEL System is normally used to keep a basic amount of stock.
Corked is a term used mainly in wine terminology, when the wine smell and taste is bad, due to bad storing or a fault in the cork.
Flat when a sparkling drink has no gas, or a beer has no froth (head) Breaking the Ice: To start a conversation with a client to get him/ her at ease.
Aperitif A drink taken before a meal to help stimulate the appetite, Digestif A drink taken after a meal to help digestion.
Cocktail A mixture of spirits, liqueurs, and juices not exceeding 2 ½ measures 7 cl of alcohol. This can be drunk on various occasions, depending on the ingredients used.
Long drink a mixture of spirits liqueurs, with the addition of soft drinks juices or carbonated waters, may be drunk at any time, if possible, not to exceed 2 ½ measures of alcohol7cl.
Bin Number: Commonly used in wine lists, this number is there to help barmen, identify the wine, help the waiter to take the order, and help the client to order that wine instead of the name of the wine, which at times could be difficult to pronounce. It can also be helpful when billing and reordering.
Par-Level: This will help the bar staff to order the right amount of stock when they want to make the requisition.
. Handover book: This is used to let the bartender write any important messages to one another, such as stock needed, any transfer of stock, or requests between bartenders.
Requisition forms: These special forms are used to request any stock or commodities from the main store. Transfer book: to record any transfers made between departments, for stock-taking purposes.