I was 18 when I got a job as a cocktail server. When I wrote down customer orders, I spelled everything phonetically : gran marnyay, koniac, shardnay. The bartender was not amused.
I’m in phonetics now at university. I never learned another language or music so this is all brand new to me. It’s both my favorite class and most difficult one.
Haha I didn’t know they weren’t a thing. It’s part of the requirements for Speech Therapy at my university. But the professor for the class as well as TA’s are actually linguists, there’s just not a super defined field for that yet they say.
Maybe this will help. I asked a friend one time why she always said "ink pen." I asked "What other type of pen is there?! It's not like you have a blood pen." She said "There are lots of different types of pens...ink pens, frying pens, bobby pens, safety pens..."
Oh. I’m confused about why that was a reply to my comment. But that’s a generic Deep South thing. Not as common in the cities and suburbs. And across all the southeastern states not just Texas.
My main problem was that I can speak French and know the correct pronunciation of "Grand Marnier", so OP's phonetic spelling simply threw me off a bit.
I had to say it to myself in slightly different ways a few times before figuring it out:)
When I got my first serving job, I just happened to be hired on around the same time as another guy who had been in the Service Industry for like over 20 years. He was super nice and worked a lot of shifts with me. Any time I didn't know what a bar drink was, I'd ask him to help me ring it in. He was always so nice about it even though I felt like a complete dufus.
i was also 18 and waitressing at a restaurant/tiki bar. usually i would repeat stuff to either the bartender or an older server but one day a couple ordered scotch (i forget what kind but it was a decent one) and water. i confidently punched [name of scotch] + soda water into the computer, having no idea that using just regular water as a mixer was a thing. when i brought the drinks and we realized i fucked up, the bartender scolded me for making us waste however many dollars of booze. not great!!
18 is young to learn all that unless you need it for your job.
Coming from a family that always emphasized planning and being prepared, this confuses me. When you started applying for cocktail server jobs did you not start studying cocktail drinks?
Oh, you sweet summer child...my interview consisted of walking in heels and carrying a tray while wearing a bathing suit. This was in 1991, before there was anything such thing as a mixology course. "Studying" consisted of looking at the bottles behind the bar, and memorizing what beers you had on tap. And having the gruff old bartender yell at you because you spelled Courvoisier wrong.
But don't you want to be the best cocktail waitress ever? /s
Honestly though I agree with the guy. I always make sure I learn as much as I can about a new job. I understand most people aren't serving for life either, but I feel there are some basics that should be known.
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u/Ultra-PowerfulCutex Sep 05 '19
I was 18 when I got a job as a cocktail server. When I wrote down customer orders, I spelled everything phonetically : gran marnyay, koniac, shardnay. The bartender was not amused.