Barfly wins “best column” in California!
Barfly wins 1st place in California Journalism contest (mailchi.mp)
It pays to be nice
He seemed so much older to me back then. But when you’re a 22-year-old trainee bartender everyone seems so much older. In a bar environment, they…
Spring cleaning? Start with cocktails
Thursday is the spring equinox. For those who don’t know, there are two solstices and two equinoxes. An equinox is where night and day are equal…
Finding the truth isn’t always easy
It was a Wednesday night and it was buzzing like a beehive. If you’ve ever seen a video of the interior of a beehive then you…
Seeing bad dates from behind the bar
I’ve seen a lot of first dates. In 30 years of bartending, it’s probably around 10,000. There’s an idiom floating around that it takes 10,000 repetitions…
When people fail to see the bigger picture
We took our seats on the banquette, as instructed, and waited for our table. I smiled at the term. Anachronisms abound in the restaurant business. Maybe…
People don’t leave bad jobs, they leave bad bosses
“You’ll never work in this county again,” said the manager. He didn’t say it to me. He had said it to my predecessor. But, I thought…
New Podcast Appearance!
Jeff Burkhart-Barfly Author & Award-Winning Columnist and Bartender | Dare to Be Great, Dare to Be You Hosted by Shawn Langwell
No eggs? Aquafaba to the rescue!
There’s an old saying that goes: “Build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door.” However, a better modern adaptation might…
Royal treatment at the Palace
We pulled up to the valet stand in the parking lot across the street from the hotel. One must remember that San Francisco’s “New” Montgomery Street…
Customers shouldn’t call the shots in an emergency
The bubbles in the glass of champagne being poured foamed up, necessitating a slight tilt and then a full stop to let them subside before continuing…