March 1, 2007
It’s a slow Monday night and my barback, Nathan, is getting frustrated. “Jesus, Jeff, when am I going to get to make some real drinks?!” “In time, Nathan-san”, I reply, “In time.” “You keep saying that, but all I’ve done for the past two months is make a bunch of old lady drinks! You make | Read More
February 27, 2007
Newcomer Dr. Bamboo not only has (well, just two so far) some of the best articles on classic mixology, but he does his own fantastic illustrations to accompany his articles. Take a look at his site here. Natalie at The Liquid Muse leads a charmed life. Cocktail Goddess to the Rich and Famous, she writes | Read More
February 27, 2007
Hey Everyone I just learned that I will be at the Las Vegas Restaurant Show next week! I’ll be in town from Sunday the 4th through Tuesday the Sixth, so if any of you are going to be there, let me know. I’ll also be blogging just about everything I see and do, so stay | Read More
February 27, 2007
You see younger bartenders doing this a lot. I even did it my first week or so, until someone told me to know it off. It was too hard to describe, so I had to take a picture. Yeah. The filthy-bar-rag-in-the-back-pocket thing. It’s so gross it makes me want to puke all over the place | Read More
February 22, 2007
Sugar is a wonderful thing in the world of cocktails. Sugar and bitters are the barman’s equivalent of the chef’s salt and pepper. But just as novice chefs overuse these master spices, the novice bartender will manage to ruin a perfectly good cocktail. Sugar can make a drink taste, well, more like itself. A mojito | Read More
February 20, 2007
The last time I was in my hometown in California, we made the obligatory visit to my hometown bar. It’s a British pub located downtown, and although it’s changed a lot over the years, I always make sure I stop in every time I’m home. It’s a solid little hometown pub where everyone knows you, | Read More
February 19, 2007
Although there are only three states on the West Coast of the United States, many people can only name California. Few people east of the Rocky Mountains can even pronounce Oregon (Or-uh-gun). Yet in the world of alcoholic beverages, bartending and mixology, Oregon is becoming a strong force, alongside such historical greats as New York, | Read More
February 7, 2007
Hey Bartender I was hoping you could settle a debate that has begun in my office. The men say that most women drink for free (men buy their drinks) and expect to drink free. The women (myself included) believe this is an old wives tale as we have not the experience of walking into a | Read More
January 26, 2007
Brenda over at The Spirit World alerts us to a Playboy article about the top ten bartenders in America today: America’s best bartenders are not those oh-so-talented men and women who can juggle three liquor bottles while singing country tunes. And they are not the folks who merely give you a free round (though that | Read More
January 24, 2007
Jennifer sends along this article about the Beverly Hills Trader Vic’s that I had the pleasure of visiting last year closing its doors and making way for a Waldorf-Astoria hotel. There’s some sort of classic-versus-tiki debate sitting there, but I wouldn’t dare touch that one – I’ve gotten into enough trouble lately.
January 13, 2007
Hey Bartender As you stated in your recent post, we can’t possibly be expected to know the full gamut of odd-named and (sometimes) purely awful drinks that tend to get ordered every once and a while. I was wondering, is there one comprehensive (preferably small and inconspicuous-looking) cocktail book that covers a large percentage of | Read More
January 11, 2007
The wonderful Joe at joebartender.com has posted an interview we did together… How did you go about getting your first bartending gig? Was it tough to land your first one? Through the campus job center, I found – and was hired for – two jobs on the same day. One was bussing dishes in a | Read More
January 9, 2007
I can’t believe I forgot this one. It should be right up there in the top ten bar myths, ever. Read on. 11. You have the right to a free drink on your birthday. I wish I knew how this one got started. It seems really bizarre to me, and it’s something that some people | Read More
January 6, 2007
The world of booze can be mystifying to people that don’t work in bars or around alcohol all the time. I hear a lot of assumptions about the industry I’m in that are — much like 90% of what you hear in bars — completely false. Here are a few you’ve probably heard yourself. 1. | Read More
December 29, 2006
Hey Bartender I have a question about this twisted industry you (we) are in. Right now I’m serving and bartending at an independent bar/restaurant and will work until about 1 or 2am every shift. It’s throwing the rest of my life out of wack. How’s your social life been? I’m wondering what it’s going to | Read More
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