on ordering cocktails at a bar or restaurant

[J.Brown]

a good friend of mine was just featured in an ad for bombay sapphire in this months GQ as one of like 16 innovative bartenders (congats to Cody Robertson, looking good man) and after checking it out i got to thinking.....

i couldn't order any of these elaborate beverages with a straight face if i had to. not that they would be tasty or refreshing or get you drunk or any of the other reasons that you have a cocktail, but jeez.

a side note is that i am a pretty simple consumer of alcoholic drinks. give me a gin martini up, a glass of pinot noir, a damn bottled beer, anything simple like that and i am more than satisified.

it is no fun to order something you have to explain how to make to the bartender. you look like a douche imho and i guarantee the server thinks you are one.

i am never ordering something with a "big" name.
ex. lemon tarragon tart or fire on ice. seriously.

alot of fancy, hip, new cocktails have 8 ingredients some of which many bars never carry.
(i am not refering to stuff on a menu, they are obviously within the limits, but still a bit much sometimes)

i could go on and on, but i want to ask these questions:

what is the most elaborate drink you can feel comfortable ordering?

does anyone have something they always order that they have to explain how to make everytime?

do you ever make your own multi ingedient, muddled, strained, mixed, set on fire cocktails at home?

i want to hear about edf's cocktail choices.

the simpler the better! [img]/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img] cheers. J.

[punkass]

I tried buying 7 mind erasers for co workers, and the bartender at the bar/restaurant couldn't make it right. it came out mixed 3 times. This is why I don't like ordering complex drinks. Mind erasers isn't even that complicated, and they manage to eff that up.

I'm with you. gin and tonic. A yuengling, a Bass, or Killian's. Maybe scotch. That's what I order. Can't mess those up.

[NLSoldier]

wtf i thought mind erasers were quite standard, altho ill admit i dont have a clue whats actually in em.

[J.Brown]

[ QUOTE ]
wtf i thought mind erasers were quite standard, altho ill admit i dont have a clue whats actually in em.

[/ QUOTE ]

NLSoldier,

you are proving my point a bit, lol.

i wasn't really talking about shots or what not, but they totally apply to this topic as well.

how about just drinking some jager or shoot some whiskey or something? won't that do enough damage?

i actually heard some straight dudes (they seemed straight) order some "cowboy [censored] suckers" at a bar recently.

WTF?!

carry on, carry on.

[Henry17]

[ QUOTE ]
how about just drinking some jager or shoot some whiskey or something? won't that do enough damage?

i actually heard some straight dudes (they seemed straight) order some "cowboy [censored] suckers" at a bar recently.

WTF?!


[/ QUOTE ]

I tend to agree. I've always felt guys should stick to just pure alcohol. Leave the mixed drinks for the girls.

Shots: JD
Drink: cognac or cider/beer

There was a week where I started drinking Kir Royals then I realized it was a pink drink in a flute with a big strawberry so it had to go.

[AceLuby]

I stick to the rule 'if I don't know what's in it, don't expect a bartender to know'. This is why I stick to vodka gimlets, gin or vodka tonics, shots of whiskey, and beer. On special occasions I'll order a special shot like a bazooka joe or jager bomb.

[Tartufo]

[ QUOTE ]

There was a week where I started drinking Kir Royals then I realized it was a pink drink in a flute with a big strawberry so it had to go.

[/ QUOTE ]

I actually like this as an aperitif, although the strawberry thing is new to me.
In fact, some good cocktails/aperitifs are based on champagne: the Kir royal can be modified by using any kind of liquor instead of creme de cassis. If you're in a decent place they'll ask you how dry you want it, and if you have it very dry it's almost like having champagne but with a little tangy twist to it. I can also appreciate a good bellini (pureed fresh peach with prosecco), although here in Canada few places seem to know what it is.

[punkass]

[ QUOTE ]
wtf i thought mind erasers were quite standard, altho ill admit i dont have a clue whats actually in em.

[/ QUOTE ]

I too thought it was standard. Learned my lesson.

Layered drinks I guess shouldn't ever be considered standard, huh.

[phiphika1453]

Use this website when you have a bunch of random [censored] laying around the house to mix drinks with.

http://idrink.com/

[raptor517]

i ordered an appletini for theusher one time as a joke, and he countered with a melontini. i was v sad.