We all love a good cocktail, right? That perfectly mixed concoction that just *hits* after a long week. Whether it’s a vibrant mojito or a sophisticated old fashioned, the magic often happens thanks to the skilled hands behind the bar. But have you ever paused to think about the wizard juggling shakers, ice, and a dozen different bottles, all while trying to keep the good vibes flowing? Yeah, being a bartender is tough work, balancing perfectly crafted drinks with a thirsty, sometimes impatient, crowd.
While most bartenders are genuinely happy to whip up whatever makes your heart sing, there’s a secret list of drinks that make their eyes roll, their shoulders slump, or their internal monologue scream ‘Please, no!’. We’re talking about the cocktails that are a nightmare to make during a rush, demand too much fuss, or just don’t make sense for the setting. It’s not that these drinks are inherently bad—many are classics for a reason—it’s the ‘when’ and ‘how’ that can turn a passionate mixologist into a weary server.
So, if you’ve ever seen a bartender’s smile falter slightly after you place your order, you might just find your favorite drink on this list! We’ve gathered insights from seasoned pros across the U.S., social media chatter, and Reddit threads to bring you the inside scoop on the cocktails that bartenders secretly hope will stay off your order pad, especially when they’re slammed. Get ready to rethink your next happy hour choice!
1. **The Mojito: Minty Fresh Nightmare Fuel**Ah, the Mojito. A refreshing, tropical delight on a hot day, with its bright lime, sweet sugar, and invigorating mint. Sounds heavenly, doesn’t it? Well, to a bartender, it often sounds like the soundtrack to a slow-motion disaster, especially when the bar is packed to the gills. It’s one of those notoriously disliked drinks for a reason, and it’s not because they don’t appreciate a good muddle.
The truth is, making a Mojito is a *messy* affair. Jackson Strayer-Benton, Beverage Director for Hen of the Wood, Doc Ponds, and Prohibition Pig in Vermont, nails it: ‘The mojito is an easy cocktail to recreate at home using fresh mint from your garden or local market. Make it for your friends and family, but leave the mint at home when you go out to your favorite bar/restaurant and order something from their professionally crafted cocktail menu.’ It’s all about the muddle, the fresh mint, the lime juice, the sugar, and the layered soda water. Each step takes precious seconds that multiply into minutes during a busy rush.
Beyond the mess, there’s the sheer time commitment. During a busy bar service, this cocktail can clog the drink line and frustrate everyone behind the bar. Samantha Follows, a veteran bartender at The Baked Potato in Los Angeles, shared her experience with fresh ingredients, saying that while most bartenders look forward to working with them, ‘once the club gets packed, it starts to be a bit of a hassle to muddle a mojito.’ Rummaging for mint, picking leaves, racing back to muddle, all while a dozen other orders stack up? Not ideal. Many bartenders secretly wish you’d opt for a daiquiri instead – all the refreshing, less of the fuss. So, next time you’re craving that minty goodness, perhaps consider if it’s the right moment, or if you can satisfy that craving with a simpler, equally delicious alternative. Your bartender will silently thank you.
2. **The Bloody Mary: A Salad in a Glass, and a Mess to Match**For many, brunch isn’t complete without a vibrant Bloody Mary, often adorned with an impressive array of garnishes. It’s basically a meal in a glass, bursting with flavors from Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, and a medley of vegetables. But what looks like a beautiful presentation to you can often look like a disaster waiting to happen for your bartender, especially outside of brunch hours.
Laura Thompson, Bar Manager at Prohibition Pig in Vermont, expresses her disdain: ‘My least favorite is a Bloody Mary, especially after 5 p.m.’ She emphasizes the mess and the inconvenience of having to ‘dig out a bunch of garnishes you put away hours ago, and do an extra shaker clean. It just gums up the works when you are busy, you know?’ The sheer number of ingredients required—vodka, tomato juice, black pepper, celery salt, Tabasco, lemon juice—makes it a marathon, not a sprint.
Every bar also seems to have its own unique twist on this classic, meaning bartenders might be guessing your preferences. Luke Slater, founder of The Cask Connoisseur, notes that with so many different riffs on the Bloody Mary, ‘it can sometimes be difficult to guess what a customer may like in their drink.’ This often leads to awkward do-overs, slowing down service even more. Plus, these aren’t usually ordered individually; people tend to want them in rounds, turning drink service into what feels like a kitchen shift.
3. **The Ramos Gin Fizz: The Bartender’s Endurance Test**If you want to test a bartender’s patience and arm strength, just order a Ramos Gin Fizz. This cocktail is a true classic, known for its incredibly frothy, creamy top and delicate balance of gin, citrus, egg white, cream, orange flower water, and sugar. It sounds exquisite, and it *is* delicious, but it’s also a colossal headache for anyone trying to make it efficiently.
David Mensch, owner of Spencer & Lynn Wine and Spirit Merchants in Connecticut, minces no words: ‘When asked this question, an old nemesis immediately comes to mind. The Ramos Gin Fizz is a classic and delicious cocktail but it is a nightmare to see on a ticket.’ The reason? Time. ‘This cocktail can easily take 10 to 15 minutes to do correctly and there is no multi-tasking during this period. This includes around 8 minutes of dry shaking. No one has time for that. Period.’
Mixologist Elissa Dunn, in a TikTok video, compares making it to cooking a delicate soufflé, highlighting the necessary ‘really long’ shaking time, especially without a hand blender. Josue Castillo, Beverage Director for Boston’s Next Door and Pazza on Porter, further details the painstaking process: it involves a dry shake, then a shake with ice until diluted, then pouring into a specific glass, letting it settle, adding soda water for foam, and *then* letting it settle again. In a busy bar, this drink can literally bring the entire operation to a grinding halt.
4. **The Moscow Mule: Copper Mug Controversy and Questionable Quality**A Moscow Mule sounds simple enough: vodka, ginger beer, ice, and lime. But this popular drink comes with its own set of challenges, from the particular glassware it demands to the quality of ingredients often used. Bartenders are often not fans, and their reasons range from practical to philosophical.
Firstly, there’s the copper mug. A Moscow Mule is traditionally served in a specific copper cup, which no bartender wants to dig out and clean, especially during a rush. It’s an extra step in a fast-paced environment that can feel unnecessary when other glassware is readily available. It might seem like a small detail, but these small details add up when dozens of drinks need to be made.
Beyond the hardware, some mixologists question the drink’s fundamental quality. David Kravitz, beverage director at The Smith in New York City, remarked that the drink is ‘just not very good.’ He explained, ‘The vodka does nothing to enhance the ginger beer other than add alcohol. A great cocktail is about a spirit and its blending components becoming more than the sum of its parts.’ For purists, a Moscow Mule often falls short of this ideal.
Anthony Pullen, a mixologist, also notes that Moscow Mules often aren’t good because they tend to be made with lower-quality, high-sugar ginger beer. If you’re going to order one, he advises doing so only if it’s on a special drink menu and you know what kind of ginger beer is being used. Otherwise, you might be setting yourself, and your bartender, up for disappointment.
5. **Pina Colada (and other Frozen Drinks): Blender Blight and Vacation Vibes**The Pina Colada, with its creamy, tropical allure, instantly transports you to a sunny beach with waves crashing nearby. And that’s exactly where many bartenders think it belongs: a vacation spot with dedicated blenders. In a standard bar setting, these blended beauties are often seen as a massive inconvenience and a noise nuisance.
Michelin star chef Joe Isidori, founder of Arthur & Son’s Restaurant in NYC, puts it plainly: ‘Bartenders hate making pina coladas. Too sweet and typically reserved for tourists. God forbid you want one frozen in a blender. You better hope they don’t throw it at you!’ While he playfully admits his own love for them, the sentiment among bar staff is clear. Blenders are loud, slow, and often shared with the kitchen, and frozen ingredients make a mess that demands immediate cleaning, wasting valuable time.
Samantha Follows, working at a super intimate music venue, vividly recalls the grating sound of the old blender hacking away at ice cubes during live performances when asked to make a frozen Pina Colada or blended margarita. It’s disruptive for everyone, musicians and patrons alike. Julien Whaley, a bartender at El Granjero Cantina in Los Angeles, also expresses concern about being asked to whip out the blender, especially during private events where staff are often understaffed and ill-equipped.
Cleaning the blender after each use is a must, but it’s also a huge time-waster. Plus, the demand for customization—’No salt, extra sweet, add strawberries’—only complicates matters further. If there’s no blender on the bar, getting your margarita on the rocks will save everyone a lot of hassle and noise. Bartenders prefer shaking a classic margarita over firing up the blender any day.
6. **Whiskey Sour (with Egg White): The Double Shake Dilemma**The classic Whiskey Sour with egg white is a thing of beauty: a velvety smooth texture, a balanced tartness, and a delightful froth on top. It’s a craft cocktail that showcases a bartender’s skill. However, when the bar is bustling and orders are piling up, that egg white becomes less of an artistic flourish and more of a workflow bottleneck.
The main issue lies in the preparation method. To achieve that signature frothy top, the drink requires a ‘dry shake’ (without ice) to emulsify the egg white, followed by a second shake with ice to chill and further dilute the cocktail. This essentially doubles the prep time for a single drink, which can be a real headache during peak hours.
Pape Konte, Bar Manager at The Standard, East Village in NYC, highlights this challenge: ‘During a busy bar service, making whiskey sours can be a hassle because of the time it takes to dry shake the cocktail and separate the egg whites.’ While he acknowledges the flavors ‘make it well worth it!’ the practicalities remain. When multiple orders for egg white sours come in on a Friday night, it transitions from an enjoyable craft to a demanding chore. It’s not that bartenders *hate* the drink; it’s the timing and volume that become problematic.
7. **Layered Cocktails: A Test of Patience and Precision**Layered cocktails, like the Pousse Café or a B52, are visually stunning, with different liquids forming distinct bands of color in the glass. They look impressive on Instagram and can be a fun novelty. However, behind the bar, these vibrant creations are often met with a groan, as they are a royal pain to execute, especially when the clock is ticking and a line of thirsty patrons is forming.
Paul Kushner, mixologist, pub owner, and CEO of MyBartender, describes these drinks as ‘a royal pain in the butt.’ The difficulty lies in the delicate pouring technique required. ‘You not only have to pour each layer carefully to avoid breaking the surface tension, but you also need to remember the proper order of ingredients or it could turn into a muddy mess,’ Kushner explains. This isn’t a quick pour-and-serve situation; it demands meticulous precision and a steady hand.
In a busy environment, this level of focus for a single drink is incredibly challenging. The risk of error is high, and a ‘muddy mess’ means starting over, wasting ingredients and precious time. While the end result might be beautiful, the journey to get there is fraught with potential for delay and frustration, making them a definite contender for the ‘secretly hated’ list, particularly when the bar is slammed.”
Okay, so we’ve peeked behind the bar at the drinks that turn a busy shift into an obstacle course. But hold onto your shakers, because there’s a whole other category of orders that make bartenders cringe, not because they’re hard, but because they’re, well, *awkward* to make, uninspired, or just plain out of place. We’re diving into seven more sips and habits that mixologists secretly hope you’ll skip, helping you be the thoughtful customer every bartender dreams of.
8. **The Dirty Vodka Martini: A Palate’s Puzzler**The Dirty Vodka Martini, a staple for many, often evokes a polarizing reaction among those behind the bar. It’s not the complexity that’s the issue here, but rather the fundamental balance of flavors. For some seasoned mixologists, this drink simply doesn’t hit the right notes, regardless of how expertly it’s made.
John Ware, mixologist and spirits director of Forsythia in NYC, minces no words, telling Thrillist, “I’ve been making cocktails for quite a while, and my palate has had to conquer many an acquired taste, but I have never thought any version of this drink tastes good. It’s unbalanced at its core, and the vodka and the brine often bring out the worst in each other.” He admits he’ll make them with a smile, but confesses, “I prefer cocktails I can stand behind 100%. The DVM will never be it.” It’s a classic, but one that challenges the very notion of a well-balanced drink for some pros.
What’s truly interesting is that despite this professional disdain, many bartenders will still serve it up with a smile and no visible judgment. They pride themselves on service, after all! But if you’re looking to impress your bartender with your discerning palate, perhaps a more harmonious spirit-forward drink would be a better choice. The dirty martini, in its essence, often falls into the category of drinks that are more about personal preference than true mixological artistry.
9. **The Chocolate Martini: A Sweet, Sticky Situation**For those with a sweet tooth, a Chocolate Martini might sound like the perfect dessert in a glass. However, for bartenders, it often represents a sugary, sticky, and ultimately unrewarding endeavor. It’s not just the high sugar content that’s problematic, but also the inevitable cleanup that follows, turning a simple drink order into a mini-chore.
Carolina Gonzalez, Beverage Manager and Mixologist for WoodWind in Chicago, points out a key issue: “There’s something about the high sugar content that I dislike creating for my guests.” She explains that an “overly sweetened palette disallows a guest to enjoy or appreciate another cocktail after a chocolate martini,” effectively ending their adventurous drinking for the night. This isn’t just about personal taste; it’s about guiding guests through a balanced drinking experience.
Beyond the palate, there’s a very practical mess to contend with. Gonzalez adds, “Secondly, it is a nightmare to clean the chocolate swirl around the glass that guests enjoy in a traditional chocolate martini.” That decorative flourish, while visually appealing, clings to glassware and requires extra scrubbing during a busy shift. So, while it may be a treat for you, it’s often a sticky challenge for the person mixing it.
10. **Espresso and Coffee Drinks: When the Bar Isn’t a Coffee Shop**Espresso martinis and other coffee-based cocktails have been having a major moment, offering a jolt of caffeine with a boozy kick. And while they can be delicious, the biggest hurdle for bartenders is often the simple fact that most bars aren’t set up to be coffee shops. This can turn a seemingly straightforward order into a disruptive, time-consuming quest.
Dee Broughton, a recipe developer with over a decade of bartending experience, vividly recalls the frustration: “My least favorite request was anything with coffee. I’ve worked in many restaurants and bars and not one of them stocked coffee behind the bar.” Imagine being in the middle of a rush, and having to leave your station, find a coffee machine, brew a cup, and then return to the bar just for one drink. It’s a massive workflow interruption.
Julien Whaley, a seasoned bartender, further elaborates on the espresso martini trend, noting that while some craft bars do prepare them with real espresso, many customers wince at the authentic coffee flavor, often expecting a purely sweet drink. If you’re only in it for the sugar rush and not the actual espresso, you might be setting yourself, and your bartender, up for disappointment. It’s a reminder to know what you’re truly ordering, especially if it’s a specialty item.
11. **The White Russian: A Creamy Conundrum**The White Russian, forever linked to “The Dude,” holds a special place in pop culture. It’s a comforting, creamy concoction that many enjoy. But for the person tasked with making it, the cream itself presents a unique set of challenges. It’s less about the difficulty of the recipe and more about the practicalities of handling dairy in a fast-paced bar environment.
Ben Potts, co-founder of Unfiltered Hospitality, shares his perspective: “While I enjoy consuming them, I’m not a huge fan of making White Russians. Dealing with cream of any kind can be somewhat challenging as it likes to coat things pretty effectively.” This means extra cleaning, and cream tends to linger on shakers and tools, potentially contaminating subsequent drinks if not meticulously washed.
Katy Guest, an industry veteran, adds a humorous but pertinent point about the timing of such an order. She recounts a time when someone ordered a White Russian at 2 a.m. in a nightclub. Her response? She just told the customer “no.” As she questions, “Who trusts dairy from a nightclub at 2 a.m.?” This highlights the “inappropriate context” factor—some drinks are simply not suited for certain times or venues, adding another layer of frustration for bartenders.
12. **Fancy Drinks at a Dive Bar: A Mismatched Mission**We all love a good dive bar, right? They’re unfussy, affordable, and often brimming with character and great stories. But here’s the thing: a dive bar is not a craft cocktail lounge. Expecting a bespoke, multi-ingredient creation in a spot known for its cheap beers and well shots is a recipe for disappointment, both for you and the bartender.
A bartender on Reddit candidly shared their frustration: “I work at a dive bar and it drives me bonkers when someone comes in and asks for a fancy martini. We’re clearly not that kind of joint.” They lament having limited ingredients, often only one dusty cosmo glass, and the futility of trying to cobble together something that the customer won’t be happy with anyway. It’s a stark reminder that context is truly key.
Samantha Follows, a veteran bartender, echoes this sentiment, recalling the challenge of making a Manhattan at an old-school jazz club not equipped for craft cocktails. They lacked proper ingredients like “a really yummy dark cherry” or even simple syrup, leading to a drink that disappointed connoisseurs. When you’re in a dive or a simple local haunt, opt for the classics they *can* do well—a Jack and Coke, a beer, or a simple well drink. Save the elaborate concoctions for places that specialize in them.
13. **The “Surprise Me!” Order: A Riddle Without Clues**Ah, the “Surprise Me!” order. It sounds fun, adventurous, and like a chance for a bartender to show off their creative flair, right? Well, sometimes. But on a busy night, when orders are stacking up, this seemingly innocent request can become a major headache, leaving the bartender playing a frustrating guessing game instead of efficiently crafting drinks.
Samantha Follows, a seasoned bartender, reveals this as one of her least favorite orders during a busy shift. Why? Because it leaves “way too much up in the air for a busy bartender with a limited supply of fresh ingredients.” Without any guidance, the bartender has to guess your preferences. “It’s like, do you like sweet drinks? Do you like bitter drinks? Do you like whiskey?” she explains, highlighting the vast possibilities and potential for error.
While some specialty cocktail bars might welcome such a challenge, equipped with diverse ingredients and time for consultation, a regular bar often isn’t. If you want to be surprised, give your bartender a hint! Specify a spirit you love (or hate), a flavor profile (sweet, sour, refreshing), or even just your mood. A little direction goes a long way in ensuring you get a delightful surprise, rather than a drink that’s quickly discarded.
14. **Anything “Off-Menu” or From a TikTok Trend: The Unprepared Performance**In an age where viral trends spread like wildfire, it’s no surprise that TikTok cocktails often make their way from screens to bar counters. While a bartender’s creativity is usually a welcome sight, requests for elaborate, off-menu concoctions or trendy, often visually-driven drinks can bring a busy bar to a grinding halt.
These drinks frequently require special ingredients the bar simply doesn’t stock, or intricate techniques that aren’t feasible during peak hours. As the context explains, when a guest pulls out their phone and asks for a “Gummy Bear Vodka Shooter” or a three-layer color-changing cocktail, it throws off the entire flow. It’s not just about the recipe; it’s about having the right tools and components on hand to execute it properly.
Mixologist Eric Trueheart advises, “If the bar is busy, bartenders hate making anything with more than three ingredients that’s not on the menu.” He suggests saving those complicated requests for when things calm down. Bartenders love to create, but they also need to maintain efficiency. So, while curiosity is great, choosing a drink that aligns with the bar’s offerings and the current atmosphere will ensure a smoother, happier experience for everyone.
So there you have it! From time-consuming muddled masterpieces to vague requests and out-of-place orders, we’ve covered the full spectrum of drinks that can make even the most patient mixologist sigh internally. It’s not that bartenders hate these drinks themselves; it’s often the timing, the effort, or the context that turns a good drink into a dreaded one. The next time you step up to the bar, take a quick scan of the scene, consider the menu, and maybe, just maybe, skip the 2 a.m. White Russian. Your bartender, though they’ll always smile, will silently thank you for being a thoughtful, savvy drinker. Cheers to making their job a little easier and your experience a little smoother!
