Ch. 2 - Bar Management, Mixology, and Barista Skill Set

Ch.
2 - Understand the Principles of

Cleaning and Maintaining Public Areas
Metalanguage
• Public Areas – this refers to the areas of the bar wherein the guests/customers
have access to roam and chill around.
Essential Knowledge
CLEAN AND MAINTAIN PUBLIC AREAS
BAR CLEANING CHECKLIST
•Wells - Bartenders and bar backs dispose of empty bottles in accordance with
local requirements and restock the bar's wells. Each bottle of liquor must be
removed from the well, the well wiped down thoroughly with a sanitized bar rag and
the bottle wiped down and replaced. Depending on local sanitation laws, the bottles
may need to be covered in plastic wrap before leaving for the evening.
•Glassware - The bartender or bar back disposes of broken glassware and
restocks the shelves and hangers with the necessary number of glasses. Dirty
glassware is washed in accordance with local sanitation laws, which typically
involves hot water and a strong cleaner. The bartender or bar back then hangs the
glassware in the bar to airdry and sanitizes the wash area.
•Mixers and Garnishes - The bartender throws out or stores garnishes in
accordance with local sanitation laws and company policy. Premade mixers are
wiped down, labeled with a "day dot" to ensure freshness and refrigerated. Fresh
mixers are dumped and the containers cleaned. Typically, the bar back pulls fruit for
the garnishes and fresh-made mixers to store in the bar's refrigerator, ready for the
next shift.
•Floors - Large rubber mats line the floor of the bar and become sticky and foul-
smelling from spilled beer and cocktails. Each night, the mats are moved outside
where they are rinsed thoroughly with a high-pressure hose. The tile floor in the bar
is washed, scrubbed and run over with a squeegee broom to push the dirty water
into the drains built into the floor. The mats are air-dried and replaced in the
morning before the first shift begins.
•Tables and Bar Top - Each table and all of the bar top is cleaned last. All trash is
tossed and the surface wiped down with a rag soaked in a cleaning solution
according to local regulations to clean and sanitize. Condiments and sugar caddies
are also wiped down with the rag soaked in sanitizing solution. Wood along the bar
is treated with an appropriate wood cleaner while brass, stainless steel and other
metals are cleaned with a metal cleaner. Mirrors are wiped down with a paper towel
and glass cleaner until they are streak free.
•Bartender's Guide to Sanitation - Food safety and sanitation aren't limited to the
kitchen. Bars should also have procedures in place for a sanitary environment.
Quite frankly, we want to know the restaurants and bars we attend are clean and
safe, so we're more than willing to share some tips we've found from top bar and
restaurant owners that help them run safe and pristine bars.
Tips & Tricks
The most basic advice is to keep everything clean and orderly. If you're revamping
your food safety program, this is the place to start. It sets the tone for how you're
going to run your bar.
• Make sure bartenders frequently wash their hands. This is just as important as
someone working in a kitchen. Our skin is a host to loads of microbes, and it's
constantly exposed to other sources of microbes: food and money come to mind
first. Keep antibacterial hand soap behind the bar to encourage bartenders to
wash their hands more frequently.
• An obvious but vital tip is to properly sanitize dishes, bar tools, equipment and
glassware. Soak plastic cutting boards in a bleach solution, use nontoxic
biodegradable cleaners for bar tools and equipment, and make sure your
glassware cleaner leaves glasses free of spots, cloudiness or caked on bits of
food from the previous customer.
•We've had our fair share of experiences with dirty glassware, finding things floating
in our brand-new drink or "crusties" on the side of the glass. Ack! Let your
customers enjoy their drink inside the glass without worrying about whether or not
it's clean.
•Frequently wipe down and sanitize countertops and surfaces. Bacteria from hands
and foods can multiply quickly, and you don't want to spread. In addition, make
sure your sanitizing solution is fresh, and test to be sure you've got the correct ppm
level. Use our Chlorine Test Papers if using quats, and be sure to check out our
other sanitizer test strips in the Food Service Industry Category.
•Beer taps can also be a food safety issue. The buildup of bacteria, mold can cause
overly foamy beer, affecting quality. Lines should be cleaned g its taste and avoid
contamination. There are out regularly to Q variety of tools and systems out there
to help you keep draft beer taps and lines clean.
Ed Sherwin, a food-safety trainer has shared 12 of the most common food safety
issues he encounters behind the bar:
 Be aware of expiration dates for fresh drink ingredients, such as juices, half &
half and eggs. Sherwin recommends powdered eggs or egg whites, which don't
contain the same pathogens as egg yolks.
 Keep coolers set at 41’F or lower. If the temperature is set higher than that, food
and drinks are at risk.
 Make sure that the sanitizing ingredient does not get depleted from mechanical
glass washers. Otherwise, you are just "washing" glasses with water.
 Bartenders need to wash their hands just as often as chefs.
 Do not use direct hand contact when cutting fruit and garnishing — use gloves
or tongs.
 Fruit needs to be thoroughly washed before using it in drinks or you run the risk
of including pesticides, fertilizer, dirt and bacteria in customers' drinks.
 Make sure that cutting boards, knives, shakers and other equipment are
thoroughly washed, and avoid cross-contamination.
 Don't use drink glasses to ladle ice; use a bar scoop. Drink glasses can break
inside the ice bin or transfer germs to the ice.
 Clean the nozzles and diffusers for soda guns often, as they tend to get slimy
and disgusting.
 Watch for fruit flies, which are attracted to the yeast in beer and fresh fruit.
 Clean glass chillers regularly. Sherwin often sees chillers filled with shards of
broken glass, as well as mold that has formed from.
• Bar snacks That should communal be bowl served of nuts in individual or snack
mix into which multiple guests may be filled with germs.
• Remember, at most establishments, we see everything happening behind the bar.
If you want to impress and retain your customers, make sanitation a priority.
General Bar Hygiene Issues:

Beverages are classified as food and all the requirements applicable to safe food
handling also apply to beverages.
The following actions are the basic requirements for people who work behind
a bar:
 Use a fresh glass for every drink do not re-fill a previously used glass, as this
may be a source of contamination to drinkers
 Handle glasses by the base or stem to avoid contamination of the glass by your
fingers — do not touch glasses around the rim of the glass
 Use a fork or tongs when putting fruit or in a glass — do not use your fingers
 Do not re-use any fruit, straws, beverage, garnish left by a customer or which
come back from the tables — all waste must thrown out.
 Ensure drinking straws are correctly stored - they should be stored so they are
kept from flies, dust and contamination. They must be able to be obtained one at
a time without the others being touched so it is not acceptable to store straws in
a drinking glass on the bar counter.
 Check glass washing machine has detergent, and is operating at the prescribed
temperature (70’C).
 Put de-naturing agent in drip trays there must be sufficient de-naturing agent to
actually de-nature the waste beer and stop the premises pouring this waste beer
back into the barrel
 Do not re-use 'waste' beer (waste beer includes beer left by patrons or beer
derived from flushing out the beer lines prior to ending trade for the day, or prior
to cleaning them) — this includes beer returned from tables in glasses and jugs
 No smoking or spitting behind the bar Wash hands at all times kitchen-based
food handlers are required to wash their hands such as after handling
chemicals, after using toilet, after handling rubbish
 Ensure you have clean clothes, hands and fingernails
 Stay away from work if ill or suffering from an infected cut: notify doctor of food
handler status — bring a medical clearance stating fitness for work on return
 Do not substitute brands or water down any beverages
 Ensure all glassware and utensils are clean — plates and glasses must also be
free of chips and cracks.

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Ch.

2 - Understand the Principles of

General Bar Hygiene Issues:

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