I stopped in the Blue Parrot Bar & Grill in Wilmington recently with some friends. Three of us ordered draft beers. When the beers came to the table, my pal Andy thought the beer tasted flat. He told the server who promptly informed the manager. The manager came over.
Now, here’s the really weird part and - something I’ve never, ever, seen in two decades of patronizing bars:
Now, here’s the really weird part and - something I’ve never, ever, seen in two decades of patronizing bars:
He pulled out a straw, dipped it into one of the glasses of beer and siphoned off some with his finger. He drank what was in the straw. Then, he flipped the straw over and did the same with another glass!
The beer was perfectly fine, the manager announced.
Yowsa! We sat dumbfounded - and grossed out - for several minutes.
Our very nice server came over to check on us and he got an earful. We told him we had never seen anything like it before. Imagine, if you will, a chef walking out of the kitchen and sticking a fork into your plate of food.
But the server said it was common practice for bartenders to stick straws into drinks and try a little when a patron questions the taste.
Blue Parrot owner Mark Diamond, who was not at the bar the night of our visit, was appalled when I told him about the straw-dipping.
"That is absolutely not our policy. That's the most ridiculous thing I ever heard," said Diamond who planned to have a meeting with his staff. "There's a certain amount of common sense that goes on in this business and some people have it and some people don't."
The beer was perfectly fine, the manager announced.
Yowsa! We sat dumbfounded - and grossed out - for several minutes.
Our very nice server came over to check on us and he got an earful. We told him we had never seen anything like it before. Imagine, if you will, a chef walking out of the kitchen and sticking a fork into your plate of food.
But the server said it was common practice for bartenders to stick straws into drinks and try a little when a patron questions the taste.
Blue Parrot owner Mark Diamond, who was not at the bar the night of our visit, was appalled when I told him about the straw-dipping.
"That is absolutely not our policy. That's the most ridiculous thing I ever heard," said Diamond who planned to have a meeting with his staff. "There's a certain amount of common sense that goes on in this business and some people have it and some people don't."
Jill DeGroff, a spokeswoman for The Museum of the American Cocktail, winced when I shared the tale.
"That’s a little too close to double-dipping,” she said.
DeGroff, whose husband is master mixologist Dale DeGroff - author of “The Craft of the Cocktail” (Clarkson Potter, 2002) and a 2007 James Beard Foundation wine & spirits nominee - said if you’re very familiar with a bartender and a drink tastes off, it’s not unheard of to ask “hey, taste this - it tastes a little off.”
But only if there’s “a familiarity.”
“The job of the server is to make the customer happy. It’s [his] job to replace the beer with a fresh one. You don’t second guess the customer,” DeGroff said.
DeGroff, whose husband is master mixologist Dale DeGroff - author of “The Craft of the Cocktail” (Clarkson Potter, 2002) and a 2007 James Beard Foundation wine & spirits nominee - said if you’re very familiar with a bartender and a drink tastes off, it’s not unheard of to ask “hey, taste this - it tastes a little off.”
But only if there’s “a familiarity.”
“The job of the server is to make the customer happy. It’s [his] job to replace the beer with a fresh one. You don’t second guess the customer,” DeGroff said.
Long story short: No one wanted the draft beer.
The server, to his credit, replaced the draft beer with bottles.
The server, to his credit, replaced the draft beer with bottles.
Diamond said he will make sure the straw dipping never happens again.
2 comments:
Well, that kills any chance of me ever going there...
It would have been ok if he had used silly straw! ha ha
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