Thread: Found a bartender! - tip jar ideas?

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I looked on craigslist & there were 4 or 5 bartenders in my area, most at $20 an hour with references & a couple with websites. We hired one for $180 for the night (which covers tips so guests don't have to worry about it). We were going to ask guests for $5 each though to help cover the fee & food/drink.

He cancelled already (out of town wedding) & I found one who works for free! Well, on tips only. So we wont worry about collecting money from guests. They can just tip the bartender & we don't have to pay a thing!

I am looking for a good idea of what to use or how to decorate a tip jar to put out... Anyone?

I will also have the themed menu (3 cocktails & beer) printed & framed on each side of the bar so people know their choices.

if he is working for tips only, he might want the tip jar to be plain in site so people know that they should tip. I tended bar for many years, and usually if the tip jar isn't in plain view, people don't tip.

It'll be right on the bar at a private house party so I'm sure people wont miss it. I definitely want something people can see into to get the idea & remind them to tip. I wanted to add a cute (or creepy) tag though. Or pehaps paint jackolantern eyes, nose, mouth on a clear jar.

I would suggest you let your guests know ahead of time - it would never occur to me to bring cash to a house party.

Or just pay what you were going to pay the other person, and not worry about it.

Yes, the invites say "All cocktails & beer provided. Bartender works for tips, so make sure to have cash on hand."

I know I never carry cash unless I have a reason to. We were going to collect money from everyone before to help us pay for the bartender, so they would have had to bring cash anyway. This way we just skip the step of collecting from every single person. Plus I know some of my friends will drop a lot of money on tips, so I think the bartender will make more this way.

maybe you could dress the tip jar up like a venus fly trap/man-eating/carnivorous plant. have a long neck that dollars would slide down the neck into the jar. (also, long enough that it is peoples' faces so that people realize what it is...as snowbaby pointed out) a fun, but ferocious face with a sign hanging around it's neck...something like feed me seymore...with seymore crossed out and tips written underneath.

I love the venus fly trap idea! Here's another one: How about using one of those grabbing skeleton candy bowls that you see in all the stores - you know the ones that operate on a sensor when someone puts their hand inside? That might be funny

I think if you had some sort of unique tip jar, people would WANT to put money in it.

I like the venus fly trap idea for sure, or try something like this:

Our local Dairy Queen always has a huge clear jar (like.. more then 5 liters) that gets filled with water (they tint it blue) and then there's a shot glass in the middle of it (or somewhere in it) and then there's a little slit in the lid to drop your money in. You have to try to get your coin INTO the shot glass. This is easier said then done. I've seen that jar fill up to the top of the shot glass with people trying! (At our DQ, if you get it in, you win a free ice cream cone.)

So, maybe you could have the same idea but tint the water orange,red or green and you could have it where if somebody got it in, they could win a prize of some sort? OR say that if they get it in, the bartender can make an EVIL shot and the person can either take the shot, or tell somebody else at the party THEY have to drink it? hahaha, And then of course, the bar tender would keep all the money from the jar at the end of the night.

You could also turn it into a dare game... like...if somebody gets it in, they can dare another person to do something...or, make it more fun and if whoever they dare gets a tip in afterwards they can seek revenge on the person who dared them? (like, they would have to do the same dare that they told somebody else to do) in hopes of more people wanting to try and get the money in? Hopefully that made sense!

I just realized that this may not be the best because you're in the states and you guys use $1 bills and not loonies & toonies like us Canadians. :/

i do like your idea kerimonster, but maybe have two tip jars, one like you mentioned and then something else on the other side of the bar for bills.

What about carving up a pumpkin with the word "TIPS" and putting a plastic bucket in side to keep the money from getting gunky? You could even put an LED light in the bottom of the bucket (just ask the guy to give it back to you at the end of the night).