What’s your favorite drink to make?
A Manhattan. It’s a classic cocktail. It’s got very simple ingredients in it, but for some reason, you mix it just perfectly, and it becomes the most amazing beverage in the world.
What’s your least favorite drink to make?
Any super fruity cocktail. Any daiquiri, any daiquiri ever. I don’t like that.
Can you think of your most memorable customer?
Well, I had a guy that was coming in for a while and he would always order the most girly, fruity drink you could think of, which would annoy me, but then he would go on these elaborate war stories about Vietnam, like, these hardened war stories. But he would come in and order white wine spritzers and the sweetest sorority girl drink. It was such a weird dichotomy.
What’s the strangest thing you’ve seen happen in a bar?
One time I had a bunch of drag queens come in here, and they went into the bathroom and then they all came out just in their underwear on roller skates. No one bought a single thing. They just went in the bathroom, came out, rolled away. No explanation, no nothing, no words exchanged.
If I want to piss you off as a customer, what do I do?
Order a Bloody Mary at 1:50 in the morning. If it’s last call and you order a Bloody Mary, you have gotten onto my list of mortal foes. I mean, during the middle of the day, I expect a Bloody Mary. I can spin a Bloody Mary in under 60 seconds. But if it’s the end of the night, and I’ve been running around all night long, and you want a Bloody Mary at 1:30 in the morning, I’ll probably just pour you a beer and hand you a shot of whiskey and I’ll be like, “Just pretend. Pretend it’s a Bloody Mary.”
If I want to make your job as easy as possible, what do I do?
If you get up to the bar, know what you want to order. Know what you want, tell me straight up and have your money ready. People always seem to forget that they have to pay for their drink.
What’s a drinking trend that you’d like to see go away?
Super sexual drink names. Can’t stand it. Just like, “sex on the beach,” “blow job,” “orgasm,” “pussy licker.” I don’t need to hear these names, especially when I’m thinking about a drink. Please. Cut it out. You can be a little more creative than that.
