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As I once said to a police officer who was checking my ID wen he saw me staggering home, "Ive been 21 for a few years now." In the past few years I have found both good bartenders and bad ones. I have had bartenders who knew my name after my first trip to a bar and I have had bartenders who seemed to pour me a drink and then ignore me for the rest of the night. I have seen it all.

A decent bartender is easy to spot. They will ask you have greeted you and started pouring your drink before you have a chance to sit down. They will make small talk with you when time permits and never let you go more than a few seconds with an empty glass.
A great bartender will offer you a smile and knows what you want before you have a chance to speak. He or she will also slip you a few free ones whenever the boss isn't looking, not because they know you tip well but because he or she knows you as a person. The great bartender will never leave your glass get empty, the down side of this is that it is hard to tell the great bartender that you don't want to drink anymore.
A bad bartender is a horrible person who has no right to be behind the bar in the first place. They will take their time in asking you for your order and you will be lucky if you get your first drink by closing time. They will card you every time you go there no matter how well you tip and no matter how often you frequent their bar. The bad bartender will sometimes be seen sitting next to you taking shots.
There are bartenders of all levels in between these three kinds. I have become somewhat of an expert on them, as I drink on a nightly basis. The decent bartenders always get a good tip and a pleasant customer, the bad ones get a a good tip too "You need to pay attention to your customers better." But they cant really spend advice.

Learn more about this author, Michael Morini.
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