Dare to Flair

If you are like me, you love watching flair bartenders perform. There is a hypnotizing element to it all.

I sometimes find myself watching the same guys over and over again, without seeing what the new guys have to offer.

This segment features the rising stars of the world of flair bartending.

I am proud to feature a colleague of mine, who has been working overseas for a few years, and now he’s back ready to take on the best in the world.

Here’s my interview with Zack Prohaska.

How did you get into flair?

Well, one day while driving to work, a Movers ‘n’ Shakers ad was played over the radio. The ad offered flair bartending lessons taught by Gavin MacMillan of BartenderOne.

I didn’t know much about flair besides what I have seen in the movie “Cocktail”, but being a bartender, I figured it would be something fun to try.

The Movers ‘n’ Shakers course blew my mind! Way better than Tom Cruise could ever do! I couldn’t wait to start. Taking that course was one of the best things I have ever done.

What opportunities have come your way since?

A year later I was offered a job to flair bartend for largest restaurant and nightclub chain in Japan, Sam and Dave’s.

For 3 1/2 years I lived in Osaka. I have met some of the most interesting people from all over the world! Among those people have been some of the best flair bartenders in the world.

I have partied all over Japan, Korea, and Thailand all because I could throw a bottle around… pretty awesome eh?!

What does the future hold for you?

Now I am back in Canada. I am taking this time to really start training. My plan is to join the FBA tour and hopefully make my mark in the flair world.

Representing Canadian bartenders in front of hundreds of people would be an amazing experience… and I can’t wait to do it!

Thanks Zack, we can’t wait to see you set the flair world on fire.

All the best and good luck!

1.Practice…Practice…Practice…Practice… Practice.

2. Even though you really want to show off your skills, NEVER flair drunk.

3. Never perform anything for your guests until you can land it 9 out of 10 times in practice.

4. Practice…

5. Don’t let the show slow down service.

6. Learn how to deal with drops. They happen. Make your guests laugh with you, not at you.

7. Save the risky moves for competitions, not for work.

8. If you think you have the move, practice it more.

9. Practice with plastic bottles. You can get them from BartenderOne’s barstore.

10. Have fun and keep practicing!

For some beginner, and advanced moves, please check out these videos.

For those of you who are just starting out, there are a few things you may need to know. There are two types of flair. Working and exhibition. Working flair is high impact, low risk moves that can be performed quickly, not to slow down service. Where as exhibition flair has a much higher risk factor, and is usually only performed in competition. A lot of people spend too much time practicing exhibition moves and not enough on working flair, when working flair, is what is going to make you the money. It’s the little moves that keep your guests hovering around your bar with anticipation and money in hand. I’ll put it this way, if a guest walks into the bar and sees you juggling four bottles, what can you possibly do for an encore? It’s like walking into a movie at its climax. You need to start with small moves, and once you’ve mastered them, then move on to more difficult ones.