Are You Ready to Become the Best Bartender in America
Compete, Connect, Conquer: Your Journey to Becoming the Best Bartender Starts Here
Showcase your skills, represent your city, and claim your spot as the ultimate bartending champion. This is more than a competition—it’s your chance to elevate your craft, grow your network, and make your mark in the industry.”
Understanding the Concepts
SpeedRailz: A high-energy bartending competition that emphasizes speed, precision, and execution. It’s designed to highlight technical excellence under pressure, combining time-tested bartending skills with creative problem-solving.Craft Clash: A showcase for craft cocktail artistry, judged by food bloggers, industry leaders, and the audience. It’s a celebration of creativity and flavor, pushing bartenders to innovate while maintaining impeccable technique.
Competition Structure
Qualifying Rounds
Start with a speed round in your city to prove your efficiency and precision.
Top competitors will advance to the city finals.
City Finals
Compete in a Craft Cocktail Round, judged by Industry leaders
Follow up with a Speed Round, combining scores from both rounds to determine the winner.
State Finals
Winners from San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, and Houston will compete in Houston during the week of June 23rd to be crowned Best Bartender in Texas.
Prizes
Each City's Winner will receive $500 cash Prize, a two night stay in Houston for state championship week, a B2C Creative media day at your home venue or place of business.
Our State Winner will get $1500 Cash prize
Our City qualifiers will each get two Craft Clash 2025 conference tickets
Texas Tournament Event Campaign Timeline
San Antonio
Qualifiers Feb 18th
Tournament Event Day: March 11th
Houston Suburban Showdown
Qualifier: March 19th (Porky's Backyard)
Main Tournament Event: April 1st (FAO Midtown)
Dallas
Qualifiers: April 29
Main Tournament Event: May 13th
Austin
Qualifiers: May 27th
Event Day: June 10th
Jun 25th: Best Bartender in Texas Tournament (in Houston)
Projected National Tournament Expansion Plan
New York
Chicago
Atlanta
Miami
Key Benefits For Competitors
Community Access
Join a network of industry leaders in operations, marketing, and event curation.
Connect with mentors and peers for continuous growth and collaboration.
Education & Resources
Access to group financial advising discussions with a CPA, helping you plan for long-term financial success.
A private guide to starting your own private events business, including insights on pricing, licensing, and scaling.
Complimentary industry workshops to sharpen your bartending and event planning skills.
Competition Benefits
Showcase your skills on a national platform.
Gain recognition through media coverage and sponsorship partnerships.
Winners receive cash prizes and a B2C Creative Media Day to elevate their personal brand and promote their venue.
Promotional Opportunities
Promote your own events, new bar openings, and specials through the
SpeedRailz network and community app.
Hear From Past Competitors
Interested in hosting a SpeedRailz event? Our competitions draw large audiences and spotlight your venue to a community of enthusiastic bartending professionals and fans. Fill out our inquiry form to start the conversation about becoming a host venue.We are looking for venues in Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, New York, Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Diego
Competition Onboarding
Complete the Online Registration Form
Provide your contact and industry experience details and pay the competition registration fee (also called onboarding) to cover our admin costs. (Early bird price: $50 throughout January)
Benefit from community perks like professional portraits and early media access.
What's Included in Your Onboarding Fee?
Registration and Participation: Entry into the qualifying rounds and access to all competition rounds.
Professional Branding: Complimentary updated portraits and a feature on SpeedRailz promotional platforms.
Exclusive Community Access: Join our Instagram Group Chat for real-time updates, networking, and tips.
Opportunities to Win Cash Prizes and Media Features: City winners receive a cash prize and a Media Day at their venue to elevate their personal brand.
Optional Upgrade to Full B2C Creative Media & Marketing Package
Professional Website Development: Showcase your skills and achievements.
Social Media Content: A personalized media day with professional photos and videos.
Marketing Funnels: Strategies to grow your audience and turn guests into repeat customers.
Consultation: One-on-one guidance to elevate your brand.
Get Ready For Your City Qualifying Rounds
Compete in speed challenges designed to test your efficiency and technical skills in the host venue closest to you.
Advance to main events based on performance.
Next Steps to Compete
1. Sign Up: Put your application in by clicking "2025 Tournament Sign Up" below
2. Join the Railz Chat: Finish your onboarding in our online community as well get access to rules and recipes
3. Compete: Participate in your city’s speed and craft rounds.
4. Advance: Winners move on to the city finals and eventually the state finals.
© SpeedRailz All rights reserved.
Elevate Your Brand and Stay Ahead of the Curve
Why Media Matters More Than Ever
To bartenders, bar managers, and venue owners: The industry has changed, and the days of relying solely on word of mouth or outdated flyers to drive traffic and build your reputation are over. Social media, high-quality content, and storytelling are no longer optional—they’re essential tools to stay competitive in an ever-evolving market.Too often, bars and bartenders settle for low-quality photos, overused Canva templates, and inconsistent marketing efforts that fail to showcase their true value. We’re here to change that.At B2C Creative, we’ve built a proven system to provide you with impactful content that not only looks professional but delivers real results. With our growing channels and collaboration with SpeedRailz, our clients have experienced:
Increased visibility & expanded reach across social platforms.
Professional opportunities: Bartenders landing private events, venue managers attracting better clients, and bars growing loyal customer bases.
Who is This For?
Bartenders looking to level up: If you want to build a personal brand, attract private gigs, or stand out in the industry, Media Day gives you the tools to take control of your career.
Bar managers ready to innovate: If you’re tired of outdated marketing strategies and want to draw attention to your venue, we’ll provide the content and strategy to keep you ahead of the curve.
Venue owners seeking consistent growth: Our custom media packages help you showcase your venue’s atmosphere, services, and unique features to bring in new guests and keep regulars coming back.
The Problem With Outdated Marketing
Let’s face the facts - The hospitality industry is saturated with venues competing for attention. But many bars are still relying on:
Low-quality photos that fail to capture their true ambiance.
Generic advertisements that don’t speak to their audience.
Inconsistent branding that confuses potential customers.
The result? Missed opportunities and wasted resources. Your venue deserves better, and so does your staff. That’s where Media Day comes in.
Our Solution? Tailored Media & Marketing Packages
We’re here to help you create engaging, high-quality content that highlights what makes you unique. Whether it’s an eye-catching venue tour, professional bartender portraits, or promotional videos for events, we provide everything you need to stand out.
What Sets SpeedRailz Apart?
Proven Results: Our clients have seen significant growth in reach, engagement, and opportunities, whether through SpeedRailz competitions or custom content campaigns.
Professional Quality: High-quality visuals that position you as a leader in your industry.
A Growing Platform: Content shared across our channels means you’re tapping into a community of thousands of followers actively engaging with our work.
Tailored to You: Every package is customized to match your brand and goals, ensuring your message resonates with your audience.
Think You Got What it Takes to be The Best Bartender in the Texas
At SpeedRailz, we're redefining what it means to be a part of the bartending community. Our competition and professional development platform has helped bartenders across Houston, Austin, San Antonio and Dallas not only showcase their skills but also access new job opportunities, valuable industry insights, and a supportive network that fosters growth.Whether you're here to compete, learn, or network, we've made it easy for you to get started. Below we have some details in regards to competition structure.Once you register we will walk you through everything you need to know, from qualifying tournament details and competition rules to our community resources and the benefits of joining our ecosystem.
Competition Details
Qualifying Rounds: Each city will host a qualifying blitz 2-4 weeks before the main event to test bartenders’ speed, precision, and ability to handle high-pressure situations. (San Antonio, Houston, Dallas and Austin)
Only the top competitors from each qualifying round will advance to their respective city finals.City Finals: The city finals will consist of two distinct components:1. Craft Cocktail Competition: Each bartender will prepare a signature cocktail to be judged by a panel and scored by the audience.
Judges will evaluate based on creativity, presentation, and taste.2. Drink Speed Races: Bartenders will compete in head-to-head matches focused on speed, accuracy, and technique.Scoring System: The placements (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.) from both the craft competition and speed races will be combined. The bartender with the lowest overall score will be crowned the Best Bartender in their City and will advance to the state finals.- Prizes for City Winners: $500 cash prize
- Two-night stay in Houston for the championship event.
- A media day at their home venue to promote their shifts or upcoming events.State Finals: The state finals in Houston will follow the same format as the city finals:Grand Prize for State Winner: $1,500 cash prize.The title of Best Bartender in Texas, along with statewide recognition and promotional opportunities.
Sign Up Today!
If you’re ready to take your bartending career to the next level, click the link below to apply and gather additional details plus join a community built to elevate and support your professional industry growth.
Bartender Tax Consulting
Bartenders are experts behind the bar, but when it comes to taxes, many find themselves confused and overwhelmed. During our recent 'Taxes and Tequila' event, we uncovered a major need for financial clarity in our community. From managing tips to understanding tax write-offs, it turns out there's a lot more to handling bartender income than meets the eye.That's why SpeedRailz is here to help. Whether you need guidance on deductions, navigating quarterly taxes, or finding ways to maximize your earnings, our personalized bartender tax consulting services can provide the support you need
What We Cover in Our Consulting Sessions
Tax Basics for Bartenders: Learn what you need to know about filing as a bartender, including common deductions and credits you should take advantage of.
Tip Income Management: Get clear on how to properly report your tip income, manage cash flow, and avoid surprises when tax season rolls around.
Self-Employment Considerations: If you're a mobile bartender or do side gigs, discover the best ways to handle self-employment taxes.
Record-Keeping and Tools: Understand the importance of solid record-keeping, and get recommendations on tools and strategies to stay organized year-round.
Tax Planning for Future Success: Create a financial plan that goes beyond this year, helping you to grow your income while minimizing tax liabilities.
Book a Personalized Consultation
Interested in learning how to better navigate your taxes as a bartender? Fill out our short questionnaire to let us know your current situation and needs. Once complete, we'll be in touch to schedule a personal consultation tailored to your goals.