World Bartender Day
Creators of delicious concoctions that can make any night out better, these talented mixologists are the ultimate beverage wizards!
A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory.
Albert Einstein
The bartender might be just about everyone’s favorite person on a night out! Bartenders are able to keep people well supplied with tasty beverages – most likely those of an alcoholic variety – at any bar or pub they happen to visit, as long as they have enough money to pay for it and aren’t too drunk to be served!
More than just serving drinks, though, bartenders often offer a listening ear, a bit of information, or even some advice. Some people even consider a bartender to be their unofficial therapist. It’s time to celebrate those men and women who work behind the bar on World Bartender Day!
How to Celebrate World Bartender Day
This can be a great day to celebrate as it almost assures that a person can go to the bar! Join in on the fun by coming up with some clever ways to celebrate, or use some of the following ideas to get things started:
Show Appreciation to a Local Bartender
World Bartender Day is the day to appreciate the staff in your local bar. They work hard to keep their customers happy and often don’t get paid very well! Remember to always be friendly to the bartender, especially by being patient when it is necessary to wait to be served. Give the bartender a smile and say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ – the bartender will appreciate it and the group is more likely to get better service next time they buy a drink.
Leave a Great Tip
Most importantly, for those who are in a country where tipping is expected, it is vital to make sure they know what is expected to tip appropriately and generously to show how much their service is appreciated. As it turns out, at least in the United States and other tipping-related countries, approximately 55% of a bartender’s income comes through the kind tips of customers. Be generous and give something a little extra in honor of World Bartender Day.
Celebrate with The Blend
The Blend is a bartender engagement program meant to inspire and innovate those who are already bartenders or those who aspire to be. In honor of World Bartender Day, The Blend website hosts a variety of games, interviews, bartending secrets, video content and more. In fact, they tend to celebrate for a couple of weeks running up to the day, so there’s plenty of opportunity to get connected and involved!
Try a New Kind of Cocktail
Keep your bartender on his or her toes by ordering something that is unique and interesting. Of course, it’s best to try not to annoy them with weirdly specific requests, but they just might appreciate the opportunity to make something out of the ordinary. Or, just ask them to make whatever they want and make it a mysterious surprise!
Practice Bartending at Home
If going out doesn’t sound interesting, get behind that bar and start mixing up some drinks at home in celebration of World Bartender Day! The best way is to find recipes of drinks online that sound interesting or tasty.
Collect the different types of liquors, liqueurs, juices, salts, sugars, garnishes and other necessary items. Head to the liquor store to test out a new brand of vodka, rum, tequila or other mixables. Try to use the proper glass–or at least something comparable. And enjoy the beauty of being the bartender on World Bartender Day!
Offer to Buy a Drink for the Bartender
How often does the bartender get someone buying them a drink? It’s a kind offer in honor of World Bartender Day. But remember, some bartenders don’t drink on the job so they may have to wait until their shift is over to enjoy it.
Spread the Word About World Bartender Day
Grab a few friends or coworkers and head out to a bar for an after work drink. And don’t forget to share the day on social media so that other people know about World Bartender Day too. Get the word out so that everyone has the opportunity to thank and appreciate their bartender on this all important day!
Anyone want a drink?
World Bartender Day FAQs
What is World Bartender Day?
World Bartender Day was created to celebrate the craft of mixing and creating drinks. The day focuses on appreciating and honoring those around the world who develop, mix and serve drinks to thirsty customers.
When is World Bartender Day?
World Bartender Day falls on February 24 each year and is celebrated all over the globe. Another related day is National Bartender Day (or sometimes known as Bartender Appreciation Day) is celebrated annually on December 3.
How to become a Bartender?
The best way to get a foot in the door as a Bartender is to attend bartending school, although it isn’t required. It’s also possible to learn how to pour drinks while working at a restaurant, then get a license/certification (where needed) and try to get some work experience.[1]
Are Bartenders licensed?
Most of the time, a license is not required to work as a Bartender. Some local laws may require Bartenders to get a permit or certification and this changes based on the city or state where the bar or restaurant is located.[2]
What is Bartender Appreciation Day?
Another way to think about World Bartender Day is to think of it as a day to show appreciation and affection for the local bartender! Be sure to thank them, give them a big tip, or just be more patient when waiting for a drink.
History of World Bartender Day
Bartending is considered by some to be one of the oldest professions known to man. It is said to have appeared on the scene several thousand years ago in various geographical locations such as Ancient Rome, Greece and even Asia. At the time, these would have been the innkeepers and owners of alehouses who would make their own ales, brews and liquors, as well as wines, that they would serve to patrons. Because of ethical and legal issues, the profession wasn’t always held in high esteem.
Then, during the 15th century in Western Europe, those who created and served drinks at their establishments may have become more accepted in France, Germany, Ireland and England. Or, at the very least, they were likely making quite a bit of money compared to their peers!
It wasn’t until the 1800s that the perception of being a person who tends bar began to develop into something more of a craftsman. As certain types of alcohol developed over the years, mixed drinks became more popular and bartending became more about creating and mixing than just serving.
This was when American Jerry Thomas, sometimes considered to be the “father of mixology”, became popular for the special cocktails he created in his bars in New York City. In fact, Thomas literally wrote the first book on bartending, called The Bar-Tender’s Guide, alternatively referred to as How to Mix Drinks or The Bon-Vivant’s Companion which was published in 1862. Many of the principles set out in this book have continued to be the standard for those learning to tend bar, even today.
Since the 19th century, the profession of bartending has begun to gain more respect for the creativity, skill and attention to detail that is involved in creating, making and serving up drinks–often to no-so-pleasant customers! While the trade had a bit of a hiccup in the 1920s and early 1930s when the United States went through a period of prohibition, these tenacious characters were emboldened and came out stronger than ever on the other side.
In fact, it was after the end of the Prohibition Era, when Americans were allowed to buy and sell alcohol again, that the demand for bartending schools began. Previously, owners of establishments had tended their own bards or trained their employees to do it. But in the mid-1930s, bar and restaurant owners began needing bartenders to be pre-trained, so the schools were opened to meet the need.
Celebrating the creative genius and talents of those important people tending bars all across the globe, World Bartender Day was created in recent years. It seems to have started with a cocktail competition that happens in Australia and New Zealand, called The Perfect Blend. Since its founding, the day has only gotten more popular and the impact has grown like wildfire all over the world.
World Bartender Day Facts
Bartending has a long and fascinating history that stretches far beyond modern cocktail bars.
From ancient beer houses in Mesopotamia and bustling Roman taverns to the codification of cocktail craft in the 19th century and the global spread of bartending during Prohibition, the role has continually evolved.
These facts highlight how bartenders have served not just drinks, but also as central figures in social life, trade, and cultural exchange across centuries.
-
Bartending in Ancient Mesopotamia
Some of the earliest known “bartenders” were temple and tavern keepers in ancient Mesopotamia, where beer was brewed and sold as early as 4000–3500 BC.
Clay tablets from the city of Uruk record rations of beer and mention alewives who both produced and dispensed beer, showing that running a drinking house was already a recognized occupation thousands of years before classical Greece and Rome.
-
Taverns as Early Social Hubs in Ancient Rome
In ancient Rome, tabernae and cauponae served wine and simple food to travelers and locals, functioning as early bars as well as social and commercial meeting places.
Roman legal texts and writers like Seneca and Plautus mention these establishments, and archaeological finds in Pompeii show counters with dolia (sunken jars) used to store wine, indicating that tending and selling drinks was an organized trade embedded in everyday urban life.
-
How Jerry Thomas Professionalized Cocktail Making
Jerry Thomas’s 1862 book, commonly known as The Bar-Tender’s Guide, was the first major publication to codify cocktail recipes and bartender techniques in the United States.
By specifying standardized measures, tools, and methods for drinks like the Blue Blazer and various punches, Thomas shifted bartending from a purely practical job into a skilled craft, and historians of food and drink still cite his manual as a foundation of professional mixology.
-
Prohibition Pushed American Bartenders Overseas
During U.S. Prohibition from 1920 to 1933, many experienced American bartenders left the country to work in hotel bars in Europe, Cuba, and elsewhere in Latin America rather than abandon their trade.
Scholars of drinking culture note that this migration helped spread American-style cocktails abroad and contributed to the rise of famous hotel bars in cities such as Havana and Paris, leaving a lasting global imprint on bartending techniques and recipes.
-
The Birth of Bartending Schools After Repeal
Formal bartending schools in the United States developed rapidly after Prohibition was repealed in 1933, when reopened bars faced intense demand but lacked enough skilled staff.
Trade publications from the 1930s and 1940s describe private vocational programs promising to teach cocktail preparation, portion control, and legal responsibilities, illustrating how bartending was recast as a trained vocation within the modern hospitality industry.
-
Bartenders as Frontline Managers of Alcohol Risk
Today’s bartenders are often expected to identify intoxication and refuse service, making them informal gatekeepers of alcohol-related harm.
Public health research on “responsible beverage service” training shows that when bartenders are taught to recognize signs of impairment and check identification carefully, rates of drunk-driving crashes and underage sales in a community can measurably decline, highlighting their overlooked role in public safety.
-
Global Growth of the Bartending Workforce
Bartending has expanded into a sizable global occupation as the hospitality sector has grown.
International labor statistics show that employment in food and beverage service, including bartenders, has risen steadily in every world region over the past two decades, with tourism-heavy economies relying heavily on bar staff for jobs and export earnings, especially through hotels, resorts, and cruise lines.
World Bartender Day Timeline
700-500 BC
Ancient Greek and Roman bartenders
Likely related to serving wine or brewing their own ales, many bartenders of this time were business owners of their own inns or ale houses.[1]
15th Century
Bartenders are elite in Western Europe
Considered a bit of an elite job, bartending makes some German, Irish, English and French people very wealthy.[2]
1832
Taverns are legalized in the United States
While it was originally necessary for a patron to be staying the night at an inn, The Pioneer Inn and Tavern Law is passed allowing service of alcohol even to those who are not renting a room.[3]
1862
First book on Bartending is published
Written by Jerry Thomas, the “Father of American Mixology”, this book is first known as How to Mix Drinks and is later called The Bar-Tender’s Guide. This book becomes the essential guide for American bartending over the next 100+ years.[4]
1933
Prohibition is repealed and Bartender schools open
After 13 years of “dry” America, the demand for alcohol and Bartenders was high. Bar owners didn’t have time to train their own staff so the first schools to train Bartenders opened in the United States.[5]
Also on ...
View all holidays
National Tortilla Chip Day
Crunchy, salty, and perfect for dipping, these triangular delights are the ultimate companion to your favorite salsa or guacamole.
National Trading Card Day
Collectible pieces of nostalgia, capturing the essence of various interests, be it sports, movies, or the wonders of the natural world.
