A close friend of mine made a lot of money doing this. So, yeah, it could pay off in the long haul if you're up for dealing with a lot of BS and poverty up front. But you should be warned that these guys who play up the role more then likely have been into it for years and earned their keep the hard way.
In the beginning, if you're lucky enough to get a job to begin with, you'll start off working the sh-t shifts that bring little if any tips and opportunities to meet people. Simply put, you'll work really f-cked up hours nobody else wants, tending to three, old, toothless cheap drunks that never tip and would love nothing more than to "score" with the fugly, 300 pound, sow ***** that gives out BJs freely in exchange for drunken love. Afterwords, you'll get to close up and clean up the pile of puke behind the toilet at 4 in the morning. *Joy!*
After you've proven that you love punishment for a wage well below poverty for longer than you had anticipated, you'll work your way up to slightly a bigger crowd. You'll get more love from attention hors looking for a free drink, and a whole lot less love from the two bikers that just cracked pool sticks over each others heads, which you'll have to break up. But you'll suck it up and love it, or at least appear so, because you're looking for that golden opportunity to pay off two months of back rent, and will gladly smile to get those tips you've been starving for all along.
Then one day, if you're really a glutton for punishment, you'll make it to prime time. You'll make the big bucks on a high capacity night full of even more BS. More attention hors. More fights. More puke to clean up at 4 in the morning. But it'll be worth it, because now you're actually making a living, paying bills and meeting people...at about the same salary you're probably making now. Maybe more if you're really ambitious, have no social life and love giving up your weekends (because that's where the money is made).
Of course, in the same amount of time it takes to get that far, you could earn a bachelors or masters degree, possibly even at the partial expense of your employer if they have a tuition assistance program. You also could be beefing up your 401K in the mean time, taking advantage of tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars in employer contributions over the long haul.
Brother, don't change careers just because you want to meet people and get laid more often. Weigh out all of the benefits and cons that your boring, piggish, corporate employer provides...things some shady, bar-owner who will more than likely be the first to give you a job with zero experience will not provide.
Want to meet more people? More women? Get a better social life first. Keep your day job.
Want to make a few extra dollars on your spare time? Then by all means, serve drinks and walk away from that BS whenever you want without crippling yourself financially.