Katie Stuart: Bar Daddy

Katie Stuart is a TikTok star. The bar manager of Richmond
restaurant Foo Dog, in the Fan, has more than 170,000 followers
on the social media app. While she joined TikTok in 2019, she was
able to focus more on content creation when she found herself
stuck at home during the early days of the pandemic.


"The lockdown happened and I didn't have a job anymore," she
said. "I was stuck inside with my roommate who was also a
bartender. So, it was a way for me to pass the time and stay
creative."


Using the handle BarDaddy_, a nickname she earned behind the bar
at now-defunct Richmond restaurant Fatty Smokes, Stuart posted
drink recipes and funny skits to keep herself and her growing fan
base entertained.


"It was a hobby at first," she said. "Now it's a whole tax form.
Now it's a responsibility. I have contracts. I have deadlines.
Stuff that I never really expected to happen." Brands reach out
to Katie now, hoping she will review their product or create a
recipe using their spirit.


It seems to be working as BarDaddy fans have been known to show
up at Foo Dog to meet their favorite TikTok bartender in real
life.


"On Friday I had three people at the bar and they were just
staring at me. And they're like, 'Can we ask you a weird
question? We love your Tiktok and we want to know if we could
take a picture with you?' I was like, you guys came here because
of my TikTok? And they're like, 'Yeah, that's where we found
you.'"


The Randolph Macon graduate uses her psychology degree to try and
read guests as they approach the bar to better meet their needs.


"Body language says a lot," Stuart shared. "When somebody sits at
the bar, they're either looking for our conversation or just
wants to eat and leave. So it really depends if people maintain
eye contact or if people's sentences are short."


Her approach seems to be working. In addition to her growing
TikTok following, Stuart has been named among the best bartenders
in Richmond by the readers of Style magazine. Learn much more
about Katie "Bar Daddy" Stuart on this episode of Eat It,
Virginia!


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