When you walk into a club the first thing you take note of is perhaps the music and how packed or loosely packed the spot is. The DJs, the ambiance of the place, and the music give the first impression of the club or lounge.

For a lot of people though, the bar is the one place that gives the longest-lasting impression of the place. Most club-goers spend 90 percent of their time at the bar flirting with the bartender or buying a drink for a new girl they met while walking in. The bar experience sums up the night for most. Therefore, the design of the bar, the look of the bartenders, and the quality of drinks on hand are key indicators of how the night will be. That is why event venues spend a lot of money to ensure that the bar area is up to par.

That goes to show how important bartenders and bar personnel are to the success of a lounge or a night club. A top bartender is a customer service person, they do not only satisfy people’s cravings for good drinks, but they also become a point of contact between the customer and the club. They are directly and constantly engaging with new and old customers, therefore, they are probably the best people to go to when lounge management wants to hear what customers have got to say about the establishment in general. In summary, they are your customer care personnel.

I have met quite a number of bartenders or “startenders” as they like to call themselves but there are two that have stood out for me. Not just because they are experts at getting the mixes done right but also because of the several other elements they bring into bartending. One of the most eye-catching things they do is the way they go all out to promote events in the establishments they work for. They do so in some of the most creative ways ever, adding a touch of public relations to their bartending role. That really helps in getting customers in the door.

Meet Sydney McCauley who we all know as Raasta Chic, the pretty dread-locked girl that smiles all day at the bar, and Jamila, another pretty young girl that is able to creatively combine bartending with a host of other activities.

Sydney is an independent, traveling bartender (among other things). In 2015 she started as a cocktail waitress at a popular bar in Broad Ripple and was promoted to a bartender a year later where she gained a majority of her experience as a startender. Since then she has worked her way around multiple bars and clubs in Indianapolis and eventually became a bar brat working multiple places every weekend. According to Sydney, Jameson or Malibu are her go-to for unique cocktails/ shots. Green tea shots and skittles are some of my favorite shots. Over the course of her career, she has bar-tended at top spots that include Brothers Bar & Grill, Sunking, The Casba, and Club Kalakutah.

Jamila A.K.A MilaThemami is also a well-known bartender in Indianapolis. She has gained a reputation for herself, the service is excellent and the drinks are served just in the way the customer wants it. “I started off at the Indiana Grand casino and has kept on growing”, Jamila said. The 25-year-old mother of two says she is passionate about bartending and has a long term goal of owning her own Nail and hair bar.

Both Bartenders have been utilized as video vixens in a couple of top music videos to drop in the city. Jamila recently featured in Rilo’s Loke video while Sydney McCauley made a cameo at Afrorolls Alasiko video