A good bouncer is a bartenders best friend

October 14, 5:40 PMBartender ExaminerKathleen Neves

Previous Next

1 comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Bartender Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

"Big Ken"  Photo Credit: Elizabeth F. Clayton

A really good bouncer can either be a bartender’s best friend or their worse nightmare. The bouncer is the “face” of the bar or club because this is the first person a customer sees when they come inside the business. The first interaction between the bouncer and the customer is important. This interaction sets the mood of the night for the customer. A really good bouncer will set a positive vibe for the customer, providing a pleasant introduction to the bar or club. Bartenders benefit from this by having happy customers to serve.

Bouncers are the big guys who sit or stand at the front of a bar or club’s entrance, checking IDs of patrons and patrolling the traffic coming inside and outside of the building. Being big in size and asking to see a patron’s ID isn’t all that is required of a really good bouncer. A really good bouncer will be able to maintain the security of a bar’s staff and customers by not letting the obnoxious drunks or potential troublemakers inside the building. Intimidation and applying some sort of negative force (whether it be mental or physical) doesn’t make someone a good bouncer. Really good bouncers can turn a potential volatile situation into a peaceful, even humorous one just by using their quick wit. These guys also maintain the flow of traffic going inside so that the bar doesn’t get slammed all at once with thirsty customers. They act as a bartender's back up should a customer need to be cut off or asked to leave. Bouncers may also help customers leaving the bar or club hail a cab.

Really good bouncers go above and beyond their call of duty by acting as a host, seating customers, bussing tables with dirty dishes and glassware and providing an extra set of eyes and ears out on the floor for the servers, bar staff and management. Having a really good bouncer helps the bar or club function well and run efficiently. They are an important member of the team, along with the servers and bartenders.

Big Ken is the perfect example of what it takes to be a really good bouncer. He has been a bouncer for the past 29 years. Big Ken is a San Francisco nightlife icon. His love for his profession along with his charming personality and physical size makes him a natural fit for working the door of a bar or club. He has even acted as a bodyguard for many famous people including Prince, Stevie Wonder, Rick James, Mickey Rourke, Sam Kinison and Ralph Nader.

His height and size make him look intimidating to most people, but it also helps him to keep order at the door by not having to fight when he finds himself in a difficult situation. Instead, he can always talk a person out of a fight just by simply being the voice of reason, often times with the use of humor and common sense. In all of the years Big Ken has been a bouncer, he has only been in five fights, never once being arrested or detained for his actions.

Big Ken does his job effectively and with passion, each and every night he works the door. He takes care of the establishment, the customers and the entire wait, bar and management staff. In return, his bar staff always takes care of him at the end of the night with a shot of Fernet and a chilled glass of Boddingtons.

Not every bar or club is lucky enough to have a really good bouncer like Big Ken. If you have a really good bouncer working at your bar or club, be sure to show your appreciation for all of the hard work they do every night by thanking them. Really good bouncers are the unsung heroes of every bar and club.