In honor of our Liquid issue, we thought it only fitting that we hit up some bartenders for their take on
Boston’s current cocktail scene. The typical poisons of choice are pretty predictable: beer, wine, martinis. So we just had to ask: what’s the strangest drink request you’ve ever received?
Laurie Hamilton, bartender at Red Sky (16 North Street, Boston, 617.742.3333): “Some guy asked me to make him a drink to pour on his head. He’s a regular and was just being a freak. But I didn’t do it — the bar was full, and my boss would’ve been like, ‘Why are you pouring drinks over people’s heads?’"
Ragan Kerney, bartender at Masa (439 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.338.8884): “A shot of gin and milk. That’s disgusting. This guy came in and asked for it, shot it down, and left. He said, ‘Just a shot, please.’ In my 10 years of bartending, that is probably the most vile thing I’ve ever experienced. We were all taking bets on if he was going to go outside and throw up.”
Shanna-Marie Beattie, bartender at Vinalia (34 Summer Street, Boston, 617.737.1777): “We have an ice display in the middle of our bar, and there are silver martini glasses in it. Someone came in the middle of the day and ordered a martini, and they demanded it be in one of the silver glasses. [The drink] was a Stoli Doli ($10), which is vodka with pineapples. I don’t know why he asked for it in that — you can’t even see what’s in the glass. People ask for some weird garnishes too, like olives in a Cosmo.”
