Campus House bar training

Frequent restaurant-goers seek out the beverage programs at establishments that can truly enhance their dining experience -- by ten-fold if done well.  A great dish, paired with an exquisite wine can make the whole meal sing.  For those of us that long to start a meal with something stiff, sometimes the absolute best appetizer is a perfect sip of Manhattan or martini.

A selection of Campus House Vodkas and Gins

Campus House knows this well and takes full advantage of the opportunity to train its students in the finer points of beverage service.  Unfortunately, far too many servers, bartenders, cooks, and managers in the hospitality industry learn bar skills exclusively on the job, including all of the bad habits that are easy to acquire.  In its efforts to produce the highest quality of hospitality professionals, Campus House and the Buffalo State College Hospitality program want to give students all of the training and tools necessary to be consummate professionals, especially in the arena of drinks.

Campus House uses a variety of traditional glasses

As a society, American diners are becoming more savvy every year, expanding their knowledge of fine wines, demanding higher quality beers, and yearning for skillfully made and expertly crafted cocktails.  The Hospitality program here is rising to the challenge and meeting those needs with ever-expanding wine, beer, and mixology training for students. 

Campus House offers many fine rums and tequilas

First and foremost, the student servers at Campus House receive the opportunity work shifts behind the club bar, so they can understand the basic flow and attention-to-detail rigors that bartending requires.  Campus House strives to stock its bar with high-end, sometimes unusual, and always high-quality beverages, so students get the crème de la crème bar ingredients to work with and learn from.  Beyond the day-to-day bar service at the club, students are also crucially involved in wine, beer, and liquor selection and service at the various specials events and themed dinners hosted by Campus House and the Hospitality program, so their bar exposure is varied and dynamic.

Manager and instructor Josh Blumberg teaches students about wine

In addition to this on-the-job bar training in the learning labs, Campus House students are actively involved in mini-seminars, lead by Campus House managers Josh Blumberg and Krista Constantino, the resident beer and wine expert and cocktail extraordinaire, respectively.  Students learn the proper names and procedures for stemware, drink glasses, and bar tools.  They are given background on the wine or beverage du jour, allowing them to formulate talking points for guests.  They are shown correct procedures for wine and beer pouring; the best techniques for drink mixing; and the right way to suggest food and beverage pairings.  Most importantly, students gain the confidence to speak intelligently about beer, wine, and liquor in a multitude of situations.

Campus House manager Krista demonstrates proper cocktail mixing

For those students who wish to delve deeper into the growing field of oenology (the study of wine and wine making), a wine-specific HTR 335 Wine Essentials, taught by Campus House manager and instructor Josh Blumberg, is also offered through the Hospitality department -- where students get to expand their tasting, pairing, and wine speak knowledge.  In addition, various bar service skills are touched upon in a number of other Hospitality lab and lecture classes.  These skills run the gamut from the history of beer and wine to dram shop laws for responsible liquor service (including a bar service certification called TIPS).

Josh goes into the finer points of a wine service

We hope to see you soon at Campus House, where you will receive, not only world-class service, but world-class drinks as well!

We also hope to see you at our 20^th annual Hospitality Ambassador Awards.  This year’s celebration of Hospitality industry professionals will take place at the Burchfield Penney Art Center, followed by a gourmet reception at Campus House.  Please join us for this year’s festivities!  We are celebrating progress in both the hospitality industry and progress in the ever-changing Buffalo cityscape.  Please call Campus House at (716) 878-3300 for more details.