Bartender courses | European Bartender School - London

Pablo Lopez

Tomé el curso en Septiembre de 2024 y fue una experiencia muy grata, sobre todo por el staff encargado. Agradecimientos a Robbie, Jason, Oceane y Arsham

Pablo Lopez (Zonofsun)

Muchas gracias por hacer del curso una experiencia inolvidable, muy dinámico, entretenido y mucho que hacer con las actividades que ellos disponen

Lennart

Cleanliness was a major concern, particularly in the bar area. The lack of basic cleaning facilities, such as a dishwasher and even a proper brush, made it difficult to maintain hygiene. This was evident from the very first day, as captured in the attached photos. The instructor himself failed to adhere to basic hygiene standards, often sitting on the bar where ingredients were prepared, kneeling with his shoes on the work surface, and handling fresh ingredients without washing his hands.

Course Equipment was another area where the course fell short. While it was a positive aspect that fresh fruit was purchased daily, the quantities were often insufficient, leading to shortages of essential ingredients like eggs and limes. On one occasion, the pomegranate used for making grenadine was already spoiled, but no replacement was available, so we had to use it nevertheless. The course also suffered from a lack of critical materials, such as sous-vide bags and gas cartridges for the siphon, which ran out before participants could fully explore the given recipes. When it was posible to make the ingredient there was a Lack of prober ways to storage them in bottles or other packaging. If there was a bottle or a glass there was a full absence of caps resulted in leaking bottles in the refrigerator, forcing us to use cling film as a makeshift solution. But sometimes we didn’t even made it to that point because vital equipment was missing like a cheesecloth for the Falernum. This scarcity extended to basic tools as well; with only four cocktail shakers, one mixing glass, and two jiggers with measurements it was very difficult in the exploration time to prepare cocktails at the same time. Some participants even resorted to purchasing their own supplies, such as Aqua Vitae or Mezcal, due to the course’s inadequate provisions.

The Instructor, although an active bartender in London, failed to meet expectations in several areas. He frequently arrived late, typically starting the course about 30 minutes behind schedule. But on the other hand he had a close eye on the watch when 3 p.m. was approaching. This tardiness and the resulting disorganization meant that the course often began late and proceeded in a haphazard manner. A typical course day started about 20 minutes late. After about 10 minutes, we would move on to the first recipe, which was prepared by 1-2 people (out of 10), as most recipes couldn’t be effectively prepared by more than a few people (e.g., a syrup or cocktail). The rest of the group would wait. Once the preparation was complete, we would usually taste the result and then move on to the next recipe, repeating the cycle. As a result, a significant portion of the course consisted of waiting. When I asked if we could prepare all the recipes at once and then taste everything together at the end, the instructor ignored my suggestion. Instead, he often complained that everything was taking too long, and he skipped several recipes and even the dehydrator entirely. A other major issue for me was the creation of our own cocktails at the end of the course. While it was positive that there were no restrictions on how often we could experiment or how much of the ingredients or alcohol we could use, we frequently had to deal with material shortages. In my case, there was no Mezcal left, and another participant had to buy Aqua Vitae herself. The day before our final cocktail presentation, I approached the instructor to ask how I could improve my cocktail, as it didn’t taste the way I wanted. He simply replied that he would be the one judging the cocktail and didn’t offer any help. Overall, the course lacked a systematic approach to cocktail creation.

Jana

I participated in the Barista Course that EBS is offering in October 2023 and it really fulfilled all my expectations! The whole class, given by an amazing teacher is interesting and fun. Arsham made sure to include everybody the same and put every effort into making us understand the theory and practical parts of coffee. The equipment of the school is very great and the espresso machines are lots of fun to work with. I learned a lot of amazing informations on coffee and being a barista in this class and am very happy with the result. I didn’t regret spending my money on this course at all and would do it again any time! Even after the class ended, Arsham is open to stay in contact with his students and gives them even more knowledge and tips about anything about the coffee world. I highly recommend taking this class to anyone who has an interest in coffee and preparing coffee’s!

Neil Walker

I did the two day Mixology course in Barcelona and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you're remotely interested in cocktail-making but don't want to do the full 4-week bartending course, then I can highly recommend this! Not having done the full 4-weeker beforehand, I was thinking I might be at a disadvantage, but the course tutor (David) and other students helped me out where necessary. I got a more formal introduction to the drinks I like - and picked up lots of useful tips and ideas for how to 'mix things up' a bit! Would highly recommend if you fancied a cocktail-based activity for a long weekend away ... plus it was great to sample the drinks we'd all made. The Bloody Mary that David makes will spoil you for life, it was that good ! (and the physalis-based Mead Cobbler below was another personal favourite.) Thanks EBS ?

Luísa Ramos

Studying at EBS London was an amazing experience! The school has excellent facilities, and the instructors are highly skilled. A special thanks to Robbie and Jason for being so supportive and motivating throughout the course. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to become a professional bartender or improve their skills! Don’t forget to study!

Tilly Phillips

The instructors Océane, Robbie and Jason are genuinely 3 of the funniest, nicest people you’ll ever meet - their dedication to make every day interesting and fun is phenomenal. Their day to day enthusiasm and passion makes it apparent how much they love their jobs and the industry. They really make the course amazing!

Erica Cunico

I did the 4 weeks course and it was the best experience ever! I got to know, live and work with some B•E•A•utiful people: being at school together and sharing a home with them created a really strong bond between us.
So basically…EBS is not just studying, but is also creating memories that will last forever: you live with your classmates, you party, laugh, argue, study, even share some tears at the end with them. And there’s no better feeling.
But what makes EBS London the school that you should choose between them all are the amazing people who work there. It was a privilege working with Jason and Robbie: they are both extremely talented and passionate about what they do, they are always willing to help students and most of all they will constantly try to make you laugh and smile as much as possible.
I also attended the mixology course and although it lasted only two days it was actually quite useful and interesting. This course was held only by Jason who once again proved to be not only a very competent person but also an extremely genuine one.