STORY
Portland Well Drink Pricing
Portland Well Drink Pricing
- I shared observations on the cultural differences in how bars charge for well drinks:
- In most parts of the United States, the listed price of a well drink includes both the shot of alcohol and a non-alcoholic mixer of choice (soda, tonic, diet coke, etc.).
- Internationally, I have noticed that the culture is not the same: you pay for the alcohol and a surcharge for the mixer.
- I encountered a bar in Portland that listed well drinks for $4.50 ($3.50 during happy hour) but charged an additional 50 cents for a mixer in a rocks glass, or a full $1.00 for a tall glass (charging a buck for about 5 cents worth of gun soda).
- To bypass the mixer surcharge, I ordered my alcohol "on the rocks" along with a free glass of water, pouring the shot into the water glass myself to pace my drinking.
These facts are as Randal recalls them, but much time has passed for most of this. If you find a factual error, please email realmerlyn@gmail.com.