By Marta Daniels of How To Be A Better Restaurant Customer - Reprinted with permission.

If you order a cocktail with no ice because you don’t want your drink watered down, I get it.  That’s smart.  If you order your drink with no ice because you don’t like drinking cold beverages, I get that too.  But if you order your liquor with no ice (ie. straight up) that’s a shot! You’re not going to receive a glass full of liquor.

People do the same thing with long island iced teas and margaritas.  “Oh, hold the ice,” they’ll say.  Then when I bring them a cocktail in a smaller glass than the margarita with ice, they say, “Oh no, I want the other one, the big glass!” So we bring them a margarita goblet 2/3 full and they say “Where’s the rest?” To which I reply “The rest would be ice!” You can’t cheat the system and get another half a drink worth of liquor by asking for no ice because, well, we’re not stupid, and my restaurant would actually like to make money.

The same applies if you order a salad with light lettuce and no onions.  That’s perfectly acceptable if you don’t like onions and a whole lot of lettuce.  But don’t expect me to bring you a bowl of cheese, tomatoes and homemade croutons either.  There are specifications for the amount of each item the salad guy puts in our salads.  He may toss in a little extra to compensate for the lack of overall volume in the bowl, especially if you ask for extra cheese and croutons.  But let me reiterate, you’re not going to get a bowl of cheese.  Period.  You really don’t need all that cheese anyways, do you?

People, stop trying to cheat the system with clever little “Hold the this and light that” requests.  Of course you could get a whole fifth of Jack for $15 or $20 and we’re charging you $5.75 a shot.  I also know you could make our house salad at home for about 83 cents and we’re charging $2.75.  But we are neither a liquor store, nor are we a grocery store.  You’re paying for the ambiance, the service, all that jazz.  That’s how restaurants make money!

Essential Glassware You Must Know As A Bartender

By: Jeremy Sherk

As a bartender, it’s essential to serve drinks in the correct glassware. The whole essence and experience of a drink is in the quality and style of the glass it’s served in.

Would a nice cognac really be the same in a highball glass as opposed to a snifter?

Would a glass of wine really be the same in a rocks glass?

Would that sexy cocktail really be the same in a pint glass as opposed to a frosty, chilled cocktail glass?

Glassware isn’t just designed for the look and feel of a drink either. There’s often a beneficial purpose behind the design. For example, the slim, tapered neck of a champagne flute is designed to prevent the bubbles in the champagne from escaping. Also, the wider bowl of a red wine glass is designed to let the wine breathe.

Now I’m not going to list every shape and style of glassware in the universe. I’m going to focus on basic, ESSENTIAL glassware you’ll be expected to use and be familiar with as a bartender. I want to help you succeed, not intimidate you with dozens of different glasses out there.

Remember also that good-quality, sparkling clean glasses make a huge difference to the customer. Drinking is a ritual and all aspects of the ritual should be perfect, so glassware is something you should take very seriously.

Ready? Let’s go.

Shot Glass

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Shot Glass
1 – 2 oz.
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You’ll have more of these break on any given night than any other glass. The kind of people pounding shots back will naturally slam them down on the bar, which often chips and even shatters them.

The most common are 1 oz. or 2 oz. shot glasses. Shot glasses are used for any shot or shooter. From a flaming shot of Bacardi 151 to a layered B-52 shooter.

Shooters with juice in them, like a Broken Down Golf Cart, should go into a 2 oz. shot glass so that the customer gets their 1 oz. of booze in the shot.

Used as a measuring tool as well, shot glasses are a must have in every bar.

Rocks Glass (Old Fashiond)

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Rocks Glass (Old Fashioned)
4 – 9 oz.
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Known as a rocks glass because it’s used to serve many drinks with ice in them. The rocks glass is used for serving any built, single cocktail on-the-rocks.

When you’d use this glass:

- if a customer asks for their drink “short”

- for a “scotch on the rocks”

- for a “vodka martini on the rocks”

- for a Black Russian

- for a Gin & Tonic

You get the idea.

Highball Glass

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Highball Glass
8 – 12 oz.
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A “highball” is any drink that mixes alcohol and a mixer. i.e. vodka cranberry, rum & coke, gin & tonic, whiskey seven, etc. Thus, the highball glass was developed to accommodate these types of drinks.

While “highballs” can just as easily be mixed into a rocks glass, it all depends on what the policy is where you work, as well as the volume of the glass. I will use highballs for ‘doubles’ and rocks glasses for ‘singles’. I’d rather give the customer a little less mixer on the ‘single’ which is why I use a rocks glass in that situation.

Highballs are by far your most versatile glass.

Cocktail or Martini Glass

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Cocktail/Martini Glass
4 – 6 oz.
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This glass has true presence. You can take a simple cocktail, like a screwdriver, and shake it with ice, pour it into a frosty cocktail glass, add a nice garnish and voila! You’ve got a very sexy cocktail!

Any martini must go into this glass unless requested otherwise. Only shaken drinks will go into this glass as well, you’ll never build a cocktail into this glass, that would be very low-class.

Also, because of its ‘V’ shape, having ice in this glass is very awkward because it will keep hitting your teeth when trying to drink the concoction. Never add ice to a cocktail in this glass, unless a customer requests it, which does happen occasionally.

Brandy Snifter

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Brandy Snifter
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Despite the often large size of the brandy snifter, don’t pour more than a couple of ounces of brandy into one. The short stemmed bowl design is meant to be cupped to allow you to use your hand to warm the brandy.

Also, the size of the snifter will greatly influence the strength of the aroma, and unless you warm your brandy you will likely prefer to have a snifter smaller than 16 ounces.

Beer Mug

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Beer Mug/Glass
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For some, there’s nothing better than a frothy, big headed mug of beer to satisfy one’s craving. Not every bar has mugs but your bar should have some type of glass designated for beer.

There are so many types and styles out there. In Belgium for example, each beer has it’s own signature glass!

Generally beer glasses are very thick and sturdy compared to other glasses.

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The author of this article, Jeremy Sherk, is an expert, world-class bartender who has helped thousands of bartenders land their dream job and explode their level of cash tips.

Rather than hitting your head against a brick wall trying to succeed on your own, let him take you by the hand and show you exactly how to land the bartending job of your dreams making hundreds in cash per night! 100% Guaranteed! Click here now for all the details!