Welcome to Lavish Bar Academy.
Learn what goes in the glass, how to serve with confidence, and what it takes to build beyond the bar.
Start with the full Bartenders 2 Bosses course, ask about responsible-service training, or connect with the academy community. Choose the path that fits your next step.
Four instructor-led classes. Sixteen hours connecting the craft of bartending with the business behind it.
Train with May Johnson, a certified TIPS trainer. Ask about standalone training or training for your bar, restaurant, hotel, or event team.
Contact May for pricing, dates, format, and team arrangements. Official certification requires successful completion of the approved process.
Ask about TIPS or staff training ↗Connect with the academy beyond the website. Explore announcements, conversations, resources, and available classroom offers.
Check Skool for current access and pricing. Community membership and full-course enrollment are separate.
Explore the Skool community ↗This course connects professional drink preparation, responsible alcohol service, and the practical work of running an event bar. Learn the language, the measurements, the guest experience, and the numbers behind the business.
You’ll work through lessons, demonstrations, calculations, scenarios, recipe practice, and skill assessments—with May’s real business experiences woven into the conversation.
All 13 chapters, from your first event plan to TIPS exam preparation. Open a chapter to see the topics and what you’ll practice.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEDraft a client event plan and a clearly defined service offer.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEWork through ID-check and refusal-of-service scenarios.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEExplain your next steps in a realistic guest-service scenario.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICERead a bottle label and calculate the alcohol in a serving.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEDescribe wine styles and recommend a direction based on guest preferences.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEMeasure wine portions and explain a menu serving to a guest.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICESelect and inspect the right glass for a drink.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICETranslate a guest’s order into a clear preparation plan.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICECost a drink and complete an inventory exercise.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEDemonstrate measured pours and calculate the cost of repeated overpouring.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEPrepare a shaken drink and a stirred drink for instructor feedback.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICESeparate business registration, alcohol permissions, and training in your own checklist.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICEComplete the required training and take the official TIPS examination.
“I don’t want people to make the same mistakes that I made.”
We’re talking about the business decisions behind the brand, too. May brings her own experience with buildings, proposals, partnerships, and a $2.3 million investment opportunity she passed on after a business partner convinced her against moving forward.
These conversations connect the course’s business foundations to the questions, choices, and setbacks entrepreneurs actually face.
Work through the lesson, see the demonstration, and put the skill into practice. Written work, real service scenarios, and observed demonstrations help you see where you’re growing and what needs more practice.
Understand the lesson and ask questions.
See the technique demonstrated.
Start pour drills with water.
Show your knowledge and practical skills.
Use feedback to improve.
Four instructor-led classes. Sixteen hours of training. Choose live virtual learning or join us in person in Maryland.
Register for your class ↗Pay in full or select the 50% deposit option on the registration form. Remaining balances are due before the first class. Friend-package prices and deposits cover both students.
Select your preferred training dates and attendance format on the registration form. Workshops and private coaching have separate availability and enrollment details.
I’m May. I’ve worked behind the bar, built businesses, taken chances, and learned some lessons the hard way.
After I started selling drinks in 2015, things took off. My first liquor expo opened a new chapter. My journey has taken me through Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt hotels, weddings, birthdays, kids’ parties, Caribbean festivals, Artscape, AFRAM, and Pride. Back-to-school drives and community events are part of my story, too.
I’ve bartended for DTLR celebrity interviews and celebrity parties. Some of my favorite experiences were with Saucy Santana, Lyrica from Love & Hip Hop, and Nipsey Hussle.
During COVID in 2020, I turned my trunk into a little store and served drinks like it was a bar. Yes, my trunk! I also created Drinks in the Park at the waterfront. I didn’t know it would get as big as it did, and eventually I had to stop. That’s another story for another day.
Lavish Bar Academy is where I bring the experience and the lessons together. I want to teach you the craft and talk honestly about the do’s and don’ts of business—so you can ask better questions and make informed choices about your future.
The course, the cost, the training, and what comes next.
Back to the full curriculum ↗Complete beginners, bartenders who want to strengthen their skills, and people exploring mobile bartending or event-bar business ownership. The course connects drink preparation, responsible service, and business fundamentals.
The full course covers 13 chapters: mobile business, alcohol responsibilities, alcohol in the body, ABV and proof, wine knowledge, wine service, glassware, bar language, profit pouring and inventory, pour practice, 100 popular cocktails, licensing and certifications, and TIPS knowledge and exam preparation. Explore every chapter above.
The teaching approach is learn, watch a demonstration, practice, complete an assessment, and review. Expect workbook activities, calculations, service role-plays, and practical skill demonstrations. Water is used for initial pour practice.
In-person Maryland training is $350 for one student or $580 total for two. Live virtual training is $249 for one student or $440 total for two. Pay in full or choose a 50% deposit: $175 in-person individual, $290 in-person friend package, $124.50 virtual individual, or $220 virtual friend package. Remaining balances are due before the first class. Choose your preferred dates and attendance format on the enrollment form ↗.
No. You must complete the assigned coursework, required practical activities and demonstrations, and passing requirements, including the required official TIPS examination. The academy completion certificate and official TIPS certification are separate credentials. Your trainer provides the official assessment rules.
Yes. May Johnson, a certified TIPS trainer, delivers the approved TIPS training and examination. The workbook supports that training; it does not replace the official materials or examination. Official TIPS certification depends on successful completion of the approved process.
The full course includes four instructor-led classes of four hours each, totaling 16 hours. Choose Live Virtual Training or In-Person Training—Maryland on the enrollment form. The form lists evening and Saturday training dates in Eastern Time. Visit our Skool community ↗ for community updates and available classroom offers.
No. The workbook uses water or other nonalcoholic training liquids for pour drills. Students do not need to consume alcohol to demonstrate a skill. Age, participation, supply, and classroom requirements will be provided before enrollment.
Yes. May will share lessons from her own business journey, including partnerships, proposals, missed opportunities, and decisions she wishes she had handled differently. Her goal is to help students ask stronger questions and make informed decisions.
A training certificate is separate from business registration and alcohol licensing. Course completion does not automatically authorize alcohol sales or guarantee employment, bookings, or income. The course teaches you to identify the appropriate next steps for your situation.
This website explains the academy, curriculum, pricing, and common questions. Facebook is for updates and community connection. Skool is our classroom and learning community ↗. Check each offer for its access and enrollment details. You can enroll through the registration form ↗. Community access details are separate from class registration.
Click Enroll now ↗ to open the Bartenders 2 Bosses registration form. Enter your student details, choose your preferred training dates and attendance format, indicate whether you’re enrolling with a friend, and submit your registration. Joining a Facebook group does not automatically enroll you in a paid class.
Ask about course enrollment, TIPS training, staff training, or private coaching. For event bartending through The Lavish Bar, send your event date, location, guest count, and service needs.
bartenders2bosses@gmail.com · Baltimore, Maryland
Ready to get started? Choose your training dates,
select your attendance format, and complete your registration.