How to Run a Tab

Published on Monday, December 3, 2007, by Duggan McDonnell / Edit Post

How to Run a Tab

Cantina bartender Duggan McDonnell clarifies when, and how, to whip out the plastic in a bar.

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POST A COMMENT |16 Comments

COMMENT

  • goodness people. i bet you have been miffed many a time by patrons ahead of you in line who have no clue about simple etiquette. you have probably wished someone could school them in things you learned in kindergarten. well, these sorts of chow tips fit the bill, imo. if this tip serves to educate one person, then it's done it's duty.

  • I am totally ready to go to the bar now. All this time, I never knew what was holding me back

  • I love that you are all so fired up about this tip! As the person trying to constantly troll for as many tips as possible to keep the site fresh and changing (and who also has seen too many people not realize that when they hand a card they are opening a tab, not paying, at the bar), I am in constant search for good ideas. I would love your good ideas. I mean it--I know you have many among you!...+READ

    I love that you are all so fired up about this tip! As the person trying to constantly troll for as many tips as possible to keep the site fresh and changing (and who also has seen too many people not realize that when they hand a card they are opening a tab, not paying, at the bar), I am in constant search for good ideas. I would love your good ideas. I mean it--I know you have many among you! Hand them over. Meredith of CHOW (meredith.arthur@chow.com)-COLLAPSE

  • I think if Chow people can spend the time and money to put this dribble on the internet, a bar can accept a credit card as payment for one round of drinks.

  • Maybe Cantina needs to operate like so many other bars in San Francisco: Cash only.

  • Whether or not the per-swipe fee is $1.50, if the bar accepts credit cards, legally they have to accept them, even for one drink. As to the 1 minute the barman spent running the card, printing the receipt, etc., while I, indeed, "could just have easily handed him a 10 spot," it was the bar's decision that they accept credit cards, and the time and effort is, no doubt, figured into the price of...+READ

    Whether or not the per-swipe fee is $1.50, if the bar accepts credit cards, legally they have to accept them, even for one drink. As to the 1 minute the barman spent running the card, printing the receipt, etc., while I, indeed, "could just have easily handed him a 10 spot," it was the bar's decision that they accept credit cards, and the time and effort is, no doubt, figured into the price of the drinks. If a single shot costs $10, the bar is already making a pretty good markup on the actual cost of the liquor. The credit card fees are just the cost of doing business. If the bar doesn't want to chance a customer using a credit card for a single drink, they have a choice: not accept any.-COLLAPSE

  • Truly, this section and the drink recipe area are the weekest of chow.com

  • when it ended, i just thought something must be wrong with my computer, because the tip hadn't happened yet.

  • Future Chow Tip: How to ask for ice in your drink.

    1) Address the bartender: "Hello, Bartender."

    2) Place your order: "I would like a Scotch, *on the rocks* (wink wink, nudge nudge).:

  • If I remember correctly, the per-swipe fee to the business can run up to $1.50. Add to this the fact that the barman had to spend at least 1 minute just running your card, printing your receipt and having you sign it when you could just as easily have handed him a 10 spot, and you begin to understand why plastic should only be used for purchasing more than a single drink or single round.

  • Yes, the use of plastic payment has become ubiquitous in our modern society, but there are associated costs for the business when processing a transaction. If I remember correctly, the per-swipe fee to the business can run up to $1.50. Add to this the fact that the barman had to spend at least 1 minute just running your card, printing your receipt in double or triplicate, and having you sign it...+READ

    Yes, the use of plastic payment has become ubiquitous in our modern society, but there are associated costs for the business when processing a transaction. If I remember correctly, the per-swipe fee to the business can run up to $1.50. Add to this the fact that the barman had to spend at least 1 minute just running your card, printing your receipt in double or triplicate, and having you sign it when you could just as easily have handed him a 10 spot, and you begin to understand why plastic should only be used for purchasing more than a single drink or single round.-COLLAPSE

  • Well, whatever is convenient for the bartender I guess :P

    We are living in a day and age where debit cards are used for a $3 cup of coffee at Starchucks - so why shouldn't I use it for my $10 martini with a $2 tip?

    I can always chose to NOT visit the "Cantina" I suppose.

  • are you kidding?

    WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE

  • "When you put a Chow Tip on the bar I assume you're going to slip a tip in there somewhere"

  • hmm... duh. isn't that common knowledge?! how does this become a chow tip?

  • I'm make a video of me watching this and call it "how to waste 12 seconds of your life"