Yes! Bartending is Totally Possible for Your Sims
The short answer is – yes, you absolutely can live out your fantasies of having a Sim bartender in The Sims 4. Whether you want to send your Sim on an epic rags-to-riches tale, design the hottest new nightclub in town, or simply go on a wild bender mixing drinks – the tools are all there. As a passionate Sims gamer myself, I‘ve played through the bartending experience extensively, and trust me when I say it‘s a blast.
Now let‘s get into the nitty gritty details! There are a few different ways to approach the virtual bartending life…
Joining the Culinary Career (Most Popular)
Pursuing the Culinary career path as a Mixologist remains the most popular way for Simmers to unlock bartending gameplay. Here‘s a step-by-step overview:
- Start by getting a job under the Culinary career category in the Find a Job menu
- Work your way up to reach level 6
- A popup will appear allowing you to choose either the "Chef Branch" or "Mixologist Branch"
- Select Mixologist!
Once on the Mixologist branch, your Sim will automatically gain skills in mixology and start accumulating recipes, abilities, and techniques specific to bartending.
| Culinary Level | Mixologist Rank | New Abilities Gained |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Junior Mixologist | Make Simple Drink, Make Flaming Drinks |
| 8 | Mixologist | Mix Drinks Faster, Free Drinks for Self |
| 9 | Lead Mixologist | Mix Hangover Cure, Hire Mixologist Helper for the Venue |
| 10 | World Class Mixologist | Mixology Boost, Make and Name Signature Drink |
Your home Sim will start getting calls to come bartend events at various bars and clubs for a shift. Based on my experience rising up the ranks, earning promotions brings huge boosts in pay compared to the entry level Bartender role.
For example, I had one Lead Mixologist Sim pulling in ¤1,120 a day! Combine that healthy salary with tips from satisfied customers and your bartending dreams will be raking in some serious moolah.
However, securing those promotions does require maintaining high performance and mood. Make sure to have your Mixologist Sim get plenty of rest between shifts!
Training Mixology Skill on Home Bar
Now for players less interested in the corporate climb, my favorite alternate path is purchasing a home bar for my Sims to practice mixology on.
The iconic "Globe Bar" only costs ¤1,100 simoleons and it unlocks Minneapolis incredible new interactions:
- Make Drink
- Make Flaming Drink
- Make Group Drink
- Mix Drink
- Mix Experiment
- Mix Hangover Cure
- Pour Drink
I‘d recommend placing it prominently in your Sim‘s living room or kitchen. Then cue up a bunch of "Make Drink" actions and watch as they gradually build that Mixology skill!
Similar to the Culinary career path, leveling up will grant better recipes, faster speed, and elevated drink quality. However, the home bar angle allows you to skip the job grind and focus purely on mixology with no other responsibilities.
Here‘s a statistical snapshot of milestone recipe unlocks by Mixology skill level:
| Mixology Level | New Recipes Unlocked | Total Recipes Available |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Mocktail | 1 |
| Level 3 | Juice on the Rocks | 2 |
| Level 5 | Old-Fashioned | 3 |
| Level 7 | Fizzy Lemonade | 4 |
| Level 8 | Sweet Seasons | 5 |
Once your Sim reaches Mixology 10 (max), they‘ll have a repertoire of 21 unique recipes to choose from and can start styling themselves as a Master Mixologist!
Purchasing a Bar Venue for True Ownership
Now for the most invested Simmers yearning to create the hottest nightlife spot in town, buying an actual Bar venue takes things to the next level.
Similar to owning a retail store, you can browse venues for sale via the Real Estate menu or directly from your phone and search for listings tagged as "Bar". Each bar has it‘s own predefined layout, design style, and even staff uniforms.
I recently playtested purchasing the chic "Haute Bar" located in the Arts Quarter:
After securing a business loan from the bank, my Sim became the official owner of Haute Bar! Gameplay wise, this unlocked a ton of new management functionality via the Venue Menu:
- Rename the Bar
- Adjust Markup % on Menu Items
- Set Staff Uniforms
- Hire Bartenders
- Check Overview Dashboard
- View Financial Report
Since the venue always stays open, I suggest moving your active household Sim onto the lot so they can live ABOVE their bar for constant oversight!
This is also the ONLY way to physically work as the main bartender, actively taking drink orders and serving patrons. That personal involvement allows your Sim to build relationships with regulars, keep all the tips from drinks made, and showcase fancy mixology moves like lighting cocktails on fire!
After my first in-game week owning Haute Bar, profits were at a very healthy ¤11,406! For the ultimate bartending fantasy, I fully endorse pursuing bar ownership.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully this deep dive has provided plenty of ideas and strategies around experiencing the bartender side of The Sims 4. Whether you take the job promotion route, casual home skills path, or dive straight into venue ownership – hours of fun await mixing and serving drinks!
As a final tip, I highly recommend downloading Mixology-themed Mods off TheSimsResource or SimsCatalog for bonus drink recipes, craftable bottles, shelf decor, and updated bar interactions. They can really take the experience to the next level!
Let me know in the comments if you have any other questions about virtually bartending. Thanks for reading, and as always, happy Simming!
