Bartenders criticizing beer choices

I bet the bartender had been getting complaints... they add lots sugar (aspartame, I believe) to Lindeman's Framboise to cut the tart/sour flavors. He was just trying to warn your brother.

Now, calling it a girly drink... I don't think that's appropriate. I work in hospitality and I have a saying "Friendliness, not Familiarity". Calling it something a "girly drink" is fine if you're with your buds, but it's not an okay thing to say to your customers. Something more along the lines of "just so you know, that beer is very sweet and tart" would've been appropriate.

Now, Lindeman's Cuvee Renee (Gueuze & Kriek)... The bartender would've been like "sir, this beer is very tart and smells like shit in a good way".

 

In Italy, I'm not sure If I've ever been asked if I wanted another one. Frustrating, as it takes a while to get servers attention around here. But as soon as I cross the border into any other European country it's a different story. Hell, in quite a few beer halls I've been to in Germany and Austria they don't even ask, they just give you a new one.

 

To be honest, Lindemans Framboise has nothing to do with traditional lambic’s & is considered to be for women in Belgium. It is delicious.


I have gotten complaints and looks plenty of times for the beers I ask for. A far more frequent situation is that I will ask for whatever is the rarest on the menu, they will go check and come back saying that they don’t have. After about this happening 3 times or so they will usually get very angry at me and I will ask for the safest choice.


I did once get into a big argument over Lindemans Faro – I was ordering for someone who kept asking for sweeter beers so eventually I asked for that one. That is basically glass in a sugar. The bar was located in Brussels & had a big old time poster hanging about Faro being the traditional drink of Brussels. Which made the fact that he got into a whole discussion about me ordering it even weirder. He basically said that faro is not a real beer style, I don’t know anything about beer & that I should be ashamed. I hold similar opinions but I was not a fan of the reaction. I got into a whole argument with him because he started teaching me about beer in a condensating tone. Needless to say, service got quicly much worse afterwards. That is about as bad as it ever got.

European culture is quite diverse – in England indeed. In Belgium, plenty of places will do nothing if your glass is empty unless if you make it very clear that you want another one. Not all places but it happens frequently enough. I once waited for 20 min. after asking and was eventually asked to leave because I was not drinking anything.

 

That should never happen. The server should always respect the patron's choice and even if they don't, they should always keep it to themselves.

 

No living bartender has ever criticized my beer choice.

 

Some people are not smooth or glib or even diplomatic . In a restaurant or pub if someone goes out of their way to tell me not to have something I usually listen. That's experience talking as I have seen the kitchen and I will never tell!

 

I've never had that happen to me, and I've never seen it happen. At least not from a bartender I'm unfamiliar with. I've had bartenders at places I frequent give me a hard time if I order something cheap, but they're obviously just joking around with me.


Speaking of Firewaters in AC, I was just there about a month and a half ago, and the bartender that was working was really cool. Seemed to know his stuff when it came to beer. Too bad you ran into an idiot like that one.

 

The proper way for the bartender to handle that is to say "Have you ever had that before?" if the answer is yes then pour it, if the answer is no the they should offer a small sample before the full pour.

 

I had the exact same reaction to ordering the exact same beer (Framboise Lambic) from a bartender at Duckworth's in Charlotte.

Yeah, I know what it is, and I still want it...jerk.

 

That is most common in the US, as well. The only times that t is not is in a very busy bar where the demand for drinks far exceeds the ability for bartenders to be able to handle the normal process of keeping up on who's glass is empty. The OP mentioned that the place was busy and to give you context, Atlantic City is a gambling city in the US, like Las Vegas. This bar is in a casino hotel called the Tropicana. So picture it as a mix of the show Jersey Shore meets Swingers meets Beer League.

 

I agree as long as the bartender is polite about it. Example, I was a BJ's Brewhouse and started off with their house IPA. After I finished it I decided to switch up styles and go with their imperial stout. When I ordered it from the bartender he politely told me that the Tatunka (or whatever it was called) was a very different style that what I had just drank and tasted completely different, which I already knew. The point is he was polite about it, which is what makes the OP's story frustrating. If a bartender is going to tell you not to purchase something, don't degrade but be polite and explain why the customer may not like it.

 

Exactly, I'm more likely to complain to a bartender because I see them pour my drink so I know they aren't spitting in it. Food is another story, I don't know and can't see what they do in the kitchen after I complain.

 

Awhile back I was drinking Rye of the Tiger (Great Lakes Brewing) at a local bar. After the bartender served it to me, she poured herself a taste and immediately exclaimed, "This is BAD!" and poured the rest of hers down the drain. This was all in front of a lunchtime crowd of about 15. What a salesman.

 

shoulda just ordered a beer made for men....

 

Most bartenders, waiters, etc. should realize that criticizing a customer's choice can effect their tip. I worked in the restaurant business for too long and I certainly would take a comment like that into consideration when it was time to pay and tip. It's different if you say you like hoppy beers, for example and then order something un-hoppy; a comment would not be out of line in that situation. Or if you say you like a certain style and ask for suggestions - but to come right out and say you won't like something without knowing you or having said what you do like is stepping over the line.

 

Why didn't you stop her and make her pour the rest of hers down your throat? That stuff is good.

 

I was in an Iron Hill trying to convince my fiance's "I don't like beer" friend to try a Pumpkin Berliner Weisse (I don't think it even tasted like a Berliner so much as a pumpkin pie martini). We explained this to the waitress who responded "That one? Are you sure? That one makes me nauseous, I dry-heave a little."
I don't think it's a coincidence that the friend's response mimicked the waitresses...

Not condescending like the OP, but it was weird to disparage your house beer, and frustrating given the situation...

 

AHA! That answers the question: Why did the OP's experience occur?

 

Wow, things got weird in here pretty fast.