Visiting a bar for the first time? Don’t know what to order at a bar for beginners? When it comes to ordering alcohol, there are a few things you should always keep in mind. For one, don’t be embarrassed if you can’t handle alcohol. If you can, order wine or beer instead. Secondly, make sure to order in advance so you have time to research the drink and choose the right bottle. Sometimes that drinks can get pretty expensive. Here are some tips to help make your buying experience as smooth as possible:
Let’s Take A Quick Look At Popular Bar Terms
If stepping into a bar for the first time makes you nervous, then that’s quite normal. You may have lots of expectations when stepping into a bar as a newbie, but if you don’t research a bit beforehand, then your expectations may vary from your reality. Let’s learn how to order shots at a bar:
● Straight up:
When you ask for a drink served “straight up,” that simply means that you want the drink stirred over ice or shaken to chill the spirit. Typically, it refers to mixed drinks or cocktails with ice.
● Sour:
It’s a traditional family of mixed drinks. They will simply add bar lime mix or margarita mix to your main drink.
● Shake and Strain:
The bartender simply puts ice and all the ingredients into a shaker tin. After shaking and straining, the drink is ready to serve.
● On the rocks:
It refers to a drink with ice. If you order whiskey and then you say on the rocks: the bartender will put ice in your drink and nothing else.
● Premium:
Typically, it is a top-shelf liquor or premium alcohol.
● Neat:
This is one of the commonest bartending terms. When you ask for a whiskey neat, they serve you a shot straight out of the bottle in a whiskey glass without ice.
● Dry:
A combination of martini and vermouth. The drier you want, the less vermouth is added to your drink.
● Dirty:
A dirty martini is called when olive juice is added to a martini.
You have to memorize these terminologies if you want to dig further into how to order drinks at a bar. The smartest way to get equipped with the bar that you’re planning to visit is to look up at their menu to get a brief idea regarding the drinks they serve. Most importantly, if you’re confused about what to order at a bar for beginners, don’t think twice to raise a question with the bartender.
Best Drinks To Order At A Bar:
Below are some drinks to order at a bar for beginners. These are some popular drinks that never go out of trend. These are not only classic drinks but also affordable too.
- Cosmopolitan
- Moscow Mule
- Seven and seven
- Old Fashioned
- Rum and Coke
- Whiskey Sour
- Margarita
- Sidecar
- Mint Julep
- Martini
- Manhattan
- Negroni
- Mojito
- Negroni
Visiting a bar for the first time may not put an end to your hesitation. If you want to play safe, then you must know about the safe drinks to order at a bar. Moscow mule, rum and coke, and mojito are the safest options of all.
Order Drinks Right Away!
Choose The Right Drink For Yourself
When you want a mixed drink, never forget to name the liquor first. When you want a mixed drink of a particular brand, try to mention the brand first. Once you’ve decided what to order, then only walk straight to the bar to place your order.
In case you’ve not made up your mind what to order, don’t stand there unnecessarily. Try to avoid overcrowding. If you feel like asking for a recommendation, then ask them wherever the bartenders are free. Don’t shoot your questions to the bartenders when they are busy.
If you are confident enough regarding what to order at a bar for beginners, prepare yourself to shoot your answers smartly as soon as they hit you with the questions. It’s better to have a plan B as well. In case they don’t have the drink you are asking for, try to replace your order immediately.
Pay For The Ordered Drink
Well, there are myriad ways to pay for your drink. It depends on you how you want to pay via cash or debit, or credit card. Most of the bars offer you both the facilities. You can open a bar tab if you feel. The bartender will add each one of your drinks to the bar tab and charge you once you are done. Or else you can also pay after every order.
Tipping For Regular Goers
If you become a regular customer, then you must bring this into your practice. If you prefer paying in cash, you can tell the bartender to keep the change with him/her. When you prefer to pay by debit or credit card, you can mention it verbally.
If you are confused about how much you’ve to pay for tipping, then let us put this straight. It’s very simple to find out how much to tip at a bar. You can simply follow the rule of thumb: $1/beer or wine, $2/ cocktail, and 10-20% for large tabs. If you consider yourself thoughtful, then you can pay $2/beer or wine, $3/ cocktail, and more than 20% on larger tabs.
How To Order Gin & Vodka?
Well, this may sound tricky, but you’ve to be very specific when you decide to order vodka and gin. You have to specify which top shelf or premium alcohol you want to have. If you don’t mention it, the bartender will simply choose a low-quality liquor that won’t go well in this combination. For instance, if you want to order a martini, be specific to mention how you like to have a martini (shaken, dry, or dirty). You have to mention the drink type.
The Right Way To Order Whiskey:
Be specific about which brand or type you want to drink. There is a wide range of whiskey. It’s a broad term used as a whole. If you forget to mention which one you want, the bartender may simply use any bottle they want. Honestly, that may cost too much, and you may not afford that also. Whiskey comes in different brands with different price tags and a wide range in quality also.
First of all, mention the brand that you want, then be specific about how to want to have that whiskey. For example, ‘Neat: if you want to taste the real whiskey, it’s better to order neat,’ ‘On the rocks: if you want whiskey with some ice, say, “I would like a whiskey on the rocks, please?’
Wrapping Up
Well, we hope this article has hit all your queries on how to order shots at a bar, how to order vodka at a bar, and most importantly, what to order at a bar for beginners. When you are hoping to visit a new bar, you may google beforehand too.
