Sick of wasting your warm summer nights waiting with dozens of other drunks at a local watering hole for a bartender to catch your eye? Here's a helpful guide from Brent Baker, a popular bartender at Newport Beach's Blue Beet.
The best way to get my attention is a smile on your face and cash in your hand. The smile tells me you're polite, and the cash says you can pay for the drink and you know what you want. Don't ever flag me down by waving money at me, then after I ask what you want, have no clue or turn around to your friends and ask what they want. If you do, I'll just move on to someone who is ready.
If you tip good, that's fine. I'll try to remember you, but what we really remember is when you're polite. You know what you want when I come over, you tell me your name, maybe say this is the first time you've been in here—I'll remember that. I'll try to make you feel more at home. Maybe I'll make your drinks stronger, or I might throw a shot your way if I have anything leftover.
Flirting is fun, but to me, most of those girls just want free drinks or strong drinks. Every once in a while, I'm mixing drinks and hear over my shoulder “Hey, watch me get his attention” and then turn around and see boobs in my face. That's great, but usually I'll just turn to whoever's next in line. Remember that if you give these girls a drink, five minutes later, they're just making out with some other guy.
Now if you want a bartender to ignore you completely, just snap your fingers or whistle. If you don't tip me and I have to serve you, you're going to get weak drinks. But really, the best rule is don't be an asshole. Don't act like you're better than the bartender, like they're just there to serve you. Bartenders are used to a certain amount of power—it can be a bit of a power trip having 100-plus people wanting you at the same time. If you're an asshole, then you're just a dollar sign to me.
