A bartenders-eye view of your Valentine's date night...
Valentine’s - whether you’re into or not, it’s happening. Millions of people will be heading out for a V-Day date to celebrate (/get some lovin’ - let’s be honest here) but what about the third person involved in your date? Unless you’re feeling thoroughly modern (good on you), we’re talking about your bartender. The last piece of your first date puzzle - vitally important and equally judging of your suitability to your new partner.
Bristol Syrup Co queen Dee Davies, former manager of Red Light in Bristol and award-winning cocktail bartender, shared some of her (second-hand) first date experiences…
Do you just know when people are on a date as soon as they walk in?
It's usually pretty obvious if someone is on a date, especially a first one. They both tend to be a little shy, try and sit close to each other (if it's going well) lots of coy side eye and they'll be on their phone texting their pals when the other nips to the loo.
Should you judge someone on what drink they order on a first date?
Naaaaah, you can't really tell what someone is like from what they order. Plus they might be stepping out of their comfort zone to impress you. Instead, watch how they treat the staff serving you, genuinely nice people tend to be very polite to bartenders/wait staff.
Is there a least favourite cocktail for you to make on Valentines (or any night for that matter)?
It's a myth all bartenders hate making certain drinks. Most are happy to make you whatever you want (as long as they have the ingredients). However they'll probably get bored with what's on offer for the night as they'll end up making hundreds.
Funniest thing you’ve seen happen on a date?
Had a great first date once, both were hammer legends. At the end of the evening when they were paying up, she was telling me how impressed she was with the date, finishing it off with "he's definitely scoring tonight". The look of delight on his face was priceless.
Any car-crashes?
I once witnessed a date go so badly (he was being the absolute worst) she stood up in the middle of one of his sentences, payed for her drinks and walked out. But not before publicly handing her number to the bartender.
Recipes
And of course we couldn’t do a Valentine’s blog post without adding some recipes in there too. We’re keeping it super simple with these two sparkling wine cocktails - the syrup really does do all the work for you in these…
Strawbae - 20ml Strawberry Shrub syrup (new!)
Raspberry Fizz - 20ml Raspberry syrup
Add syrup to champagne flute. Top with sparkling wine and stir. Add strawberry or raspberry to garnish.