[Drinking] What is your preferred way of ordering drinks in a pub/bar?

[Surf's Up]

Traditional for me - and when I've elbowed my way to the front I like to say, in a relatively loud voice - "Can I get a pint of Harvey's/glass or Rose/Bag of crisps or whatever" - that's an order not a request and I know that the phrase "Can I get....." is a massive wind up for many people so what's not to like!!

 

[Surf's Up]

Traditional for me - and when I've elbowed my way to the front I like to say, in a relatively loud voice - "Can I get a pint of Harvey's/glass or Rose/Bag of crisps or whatever" - that's an order not a request and I know that the phrase "Can I get....." is a massive wind up for many people so what's not to like!!

e.g. see post 15 above - excellent!

 

[BN9 BHA]

Traditional for me - and when I've elbowed my way to the front I like to say, in a relatively loud voice - "Can I get a pint of Harvey's/glass or Rose/Bag of crisps or whatever" - that's an order not a request and I know that the phrase "Can I get....." is a massive wind up for many people so what's not to like!!

 

[Hotchilidog]

Scrum for me and a good pub will ensure you are not waiting too long. I will always give way if someone else has clearly been waiting longer than me, it's just good etiquette. Single line queuing, ordering on the app and having to book a table just to have a drink can all get in the bin.

 

[um bongo molongo]

Yep, used to be be a skill / part of the job for the bar staff to keep tabs on who's next. Dislike pubs where the staff take no responsibility, in reality know and either serve who's nearest them or push it onto the customers to sort out and generally good manners and courtesy are less prevalent than they used to be.

In my bar tending days I would pride myself on this, and my ability to do fast arithmetic in my head (pre electronic tills of course). However, all the tips used to go my bar tending colleague who was totally hopeless but had a great rack and a seemingly endless collection of low cut tops.

 

[Lenny Rider]

Wench, two bottles of Corona please, doesn't seem to have the same clout anymore.

 

[Washie]

I think that anyone who orders a drink by saying “Can I get a …….” should be sent, un-served, straight to the back of the scrum. But I’m old.

"Can I get" is perfectly cromulent.

 

[METALMICKY]

I say "single file queue", but what I actually mean is the "traditional scrum at the bar" where people are aware/polite enough for everybody to more or less get served in order.

Unless I luck out massively and get served before about 20 people by pure luck of standing at the right place when the bar staff happens to look up. I'll take that every day of the week.

The scrum at the bar should work particularly if people are considerate and critically you have experienced bar staff. Sadly, increasingly you get feckwit individuals on the customer side of the bar who don't give a monkeys!

 

[jackanada]

In my bar tending days I would pride myself on this, and my ability to do fast arithmetic in my head (pre electronic tills of course). However, all the tips used to go my bar tending colleague who was totally hopeless but had a great rack and a seemingly endless collection of low cut tops.

Competent barman plus dappy bint with a corking set of Bristols is the preferred barkeeping double act.

 

[METALMICKY]

Wench, two bottles of Corona please, doesn't seem to have the same clout anymore.

So outdated It's biaatch, two bottles................

Jokes aside I never address bar staff as ' mate ' as that would wind me up.

 

[Cotton Socks]

Yep, used to be be a skill / part of the job for the bar staff to keep tabs on who's next. Dislike pubs where the staff take no responsibility, in reality know and either serve who's nearest them or push it onto the customers to sort out and generally good manners and courtesy are less prevalent than they used to be.

In my bar stints, this was what set apart the best from the rest. And on the rare occasions you weren't sure you would look at 2 people and say 'who's next' and see who answered less uncomfortably.

Waving 20 pound notes didn't get you any further up the list than you deserved. Serving the beautiful lady ahead of her turn, whilst understandable, was still not de rigeur

In my bar tending days I would pride myself on this, and my ability to do fast arithmetic in my head (pre electronic tills of course). However, all the tips used to go my bar tending colleague who was totally hopeless but had a great rack and a seemingly endless collection of low cut tops.

It was the first thing I was taught when I got my first bar job, it was the first thing I taught new staff when I had my own pub later. It absolutely drives me nuts if I go into a pub & see a member of staff not looking around, if they have a phone in their hand as well, I consider it to be a hanging offence.

 

[Cotton Socks]

Wench, two bottles of Corona please, doesn't seem to have the same clout anymore.

It's because you haven't put 'now' at the end of the sentence.

 

[Sid and the Sharknados]

The scrum at the bar should work particularly if people are considerate and critically you have experienced bar staff. Sadly, increasingly you get feckwit individuals on the customer side of the bar who don't give a monkeys!

I don't remember a time when there haven't been people who try and jump ahead or take advantage if the bar staff got to them first. Happily most people still seem to say "oh he's first" if they know they're not next in my experience.

Obviously if they don't I do some serious judging of them and say absolutely nothing about it.

To be honest, the queuing thing isn't something I give a shit about, but I was amused to notice when I just googled it to try and understand why anybody would care that this story appeared over a year ago and seems to have suddenly flared up again for some reason.

 

[Easy 10]

I had a poor experience at the Uni bar pre-match on Saturday. It was busy scrum, with 3 serving, but it wasn't long before I had my elbows on the bar. It was still taking AGES to get served though, and then the twunt next to me went and ordered a guinness and three cappucinos. What an absolute COCKSPANGLE. It was all I could do to stop myself from gobbing in his hood.

So I'm still waiting, and this group of 4 lads stroll in through the door and past me towards the other end of the bar, just at the VERY MOMENT the barmaid at the far end shouts "can I help anyone ?" FFS, so of course, they're straight in there.

What a bunch of arse. At least its only circa £4 a pint though, but its worth getting yourself 2 in, so as to avoid another BUNFIGHT.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Wench, two bottles of Corona please, doesn't seem to have the same clout anymore.

Very true, Covid didn’t do that brand any favors what so ever.

 

[SkirlieWirlie]

It was the first thing I was taught when I got my first bar job, it was the first thing I taught new staff when I had my own pub later. It absolutely drives me nuts if I go into a pub & see a member of staff not looking around, if they have a phone in their hand as well, I consider it to be a hanging offence.

I used to frequent a pub in central London after work and was always amazed at the memory of the older gentleman behind the bar.

Place was always rammed and no matter how large the first round, he'd always ask "Same again?" when ordering again. (And he wasn't looking it up on the till either!)

Was in William the Fourth a couple of weeks ago and having quickly finished the first couple of drinks asked the same young lady that had served us for the same again please, to be met with "How would I know that"

Trouble is, I'm getting to the age it takes me a while to remember myself

 

[BevBHA]

Never ever want to go for a beer with anyone who voted single file queue. Criminal!

 

[Badger]

I do have a certain love for the traditional scramble at the bar to order drinks. However, I've voted table service here, partly because I've been in Canada too long and I'm used to it now. The main reason is because it lets me drink at my own pace.

When I'm back in the UK, ordering at the bar inevitably leads to getting into the "rounds" system. That usually ends up with everyone drinking at the pace of the fastest person and having to down quarter of a pint to be ready to get the next round in. I'm not a particularly fast drinker and I can't handle the quantities I used to be able to. Then of course I always want to make sure I buy my fair share of drinks, so the round has to be a multiple of the people involved.

Having said that, my last drinking session in the UK was the Spurs match a few weeks ago. I was more than happy to keep drinking then.

 

[Anger]

One may 'prefer' all day long but if one must go into a pub/bar then one has to take what's on offer.

If invited to advise a young entrepreneur on a new venture, I would tell them to research their market. What I prefer is neither here nor there. Becuse I won't be drinking in your pub/bar.

(My personal preference would be to be delivered my selection on a tray to my lounger, by a naked lady, with the order taken by telepathy).

 

[Hovegull]

Passive aggressive “you go”