15 Apr A Day in the Life of…
Coco’s Outback is an Amsterdam institution where anything goes! Over almost 35 years, we’ve gained a reputation for being the best night out in the city, and it takes a lot to make things go smoothly during the chaos! Perhaps you wonder how we coordinate everything and can continue providing an incredible experience day after day, year after year.
Here’s a behind-the-scenes peek into what makes your favourite bar and nightclub run day and night, every day of the week!
Morning
The morning staff generally arrive around 10 and immediately begin setting up the bar, floor, and terrace. This can take more work than you might realise! Tables need to be scrubbed and reset, cocktail fruit needs to be cut, and the shelves need to be restocked with liquor, all while welcoming in those lunchtime guests who stop in for a cheeky cocktail or tasty burger. At this time, the staff also complete side projects, setting up sauces, cutlery baskets, and generally making sure everything is immaculate and prepared for the insanity of the night shift. When you think about the vast volume of drinks and food we sell, you can maybe imagine how busy this keeps our staff!
It’s the small details that really make an ideal day-shifter stand out. You have to have attention to detail to notice the lights are too bright or not bright enough, that the music isn’t the right fit for the day, or that someone the night before has hidden a bottle of Heineken behind a wall sconce! You also have to be quite self-motivating, as it can be hours in between guests during the week. On the other hand, you could also have a massive horde of tourists come in and have to serve them yourselves, proving that you can never let your guard down when you work at Coco’s Outback!
Afternoon
When sports are airing, particularly during the weekend, a devoted manager will coordinate the dozens of screens and commentary tracks to bring you every second of the action. This can be trickier than it seems, as we often coordinate games across regions, continents, and even languages, all of them found on separate platforms and channels! This keeps our managers fit, as they dash up and down the stairs to bring you every international game you can possibly wish to see!
Occasional mid shifters will help out where needed, running drinks or taking orders on our bustling terrace. We are also proud to be a host to several walking tours that make Coco’s their stop along their city-wide travels. On other occasions, we take larger reservations for stag parties with an all-you-can-eat option, requiring us to run around with an occasionally limited daytime staff. That is why, even though it isn’t quite as hectic as the night shift, a day and afternoon shift is always sure to keep our staff on their toes!
Night
Insanity descends after 20:00, especially on Friday and Saturday. This is when our staff members really have to shine! Drink and food runners often have to sprint up and down the stairs several hundred times a night to make sure things get to your table in a timely manner! Think about that the next time you have to head upstairs to use the toilet; at least you only have to do it once or twice! Dinner service is often a hectic affair, but we take care to serve every tasty dish with the proper sauces and cutlery and to do so with a smile!
At 22:00, you may see us carrying all the furniture in the restaurant upstairs to our lofted balcony seating upstairs or tucking tables away to make room for you to bust a move! This is perhaps the trickiest time of the night as we get a huge boom of cocktail orders for happy hour, all the while carrying heavy, bulky couches and tables up flights of stairs. Still, we make sure to rush so we can come back and keep serving you the beers, wines, ciders, and cocktails you know and love! As the DJ starts spinning, we truly settle into our groove and bring you the party vibes you came to Coco’s for! Staff take orders outside until late, while others serve nonstop on the bar and others collect glasses from tables to ensure the safety of our guests and the cleanliness of the premises. This is when our managers show what they’re worth, coordinating dozens of staff, plus bouncers, DJs, and more! The nightclub may be the craziest part of our week, but it’s also the most fun! We thrive in the insanity and we hope it shows!
Early Morning
Just because the party is over for you doesn’t mean we get to head home yet! There is still a ton of work to do behind the scenes, not the least of which is bringing all that heavy furniture back downstairs once again! We also scrub every bar top and counter for sanitary purposes, restock the fridges, and generally tidy everything up to limit the strain on our daytime staff. Managers count tills and balance the books while staff members tie up loose ends and make sure everything is as good as it could possibly be. Our dedicated squad of cleaners wax and polish floors, clean the toilets, and keep us hygienic and safe day after day.
At the end of another long shift, we generally share a drink together and toast to Coco’s and to the loyal customers that allow us to do the work we love! We may work in occasional periods of chaos, but our staff lives for the madness, just like you! After this, we head home and rest up so we can continue to welcome you back to Coco’s for another fun night of warm beer and lousy food!
Next time you stop in, keep an eye out for the staff that make all of this possible as they work to give you the top-notch service you deserve! We look forward to seeing you down under soon!
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