Tag: nick reed

What were you inking? Nick Reed on tatts

I recently held an employment day where I conducted over 25 interviews in one sitting. Afterwards I realised that there was a unique factor that linked all but three of the candidates: the existence of very obvious tattooing or body piercings.

Are you a mixologist or a bartender?

Mixologist. It’s the term all ‘true’ bartenders love to hate. Many even delight in ridiculing those who dare hold themselves in such a pompous regard. My opinion on this argument has always been slightly more controversial…

That’s why we can’t have nice things…

Recently one of the big banks ran an advertising campaign praising the honesty of average Australians. A characteristic I’ve observed myself. Handing in a wallet, returning a lost pet, pointing out being undercharged for an item of clothing—most people (in my experience) do the right thing when given the opportunity. However, I’d dearly like to know why some otherwise upstanding, law-abiding members of the community dispense with all propriety while in bars and restaurants.

Alcoholics Synonymous: when tasting drinks goes too far

By Nick Reed. A recent conversation with a difficult customer has been playing on my mind. The main point of contention with the woman in question was the fact that my head bartender was not straw tasting every one of his drinks as he sent them over the bar. She asked me whether he thought of himself as some sort of cocktail god. For the sake of conflict resolution I obviously did not justify this comment with an answer however what I really wanted to say went something like this. “No, I believe he’s just an accomplished bartender who can execute the same simple recipe over and over without tasting the drink every single time.” Oh if only.