College Bars vs. The World

The bar I work at is adorable. It's a tiny little dive bar called the Cavern that transforms into a late night, Jäger-fueled dance party. We have a teeny DJ booth right next to our jam packed dance floor. It can get pretty weird, and I dig it.

Before moving to Atlanta, I worked at a giant club with a clientele predominantly made up of Disney tourists and weirdos. Like, really weird. Drinks were expensive, the music was terrible (sorry DJ Freddie, but it's your fault I hate LMFAO with such gusto) and the people were shady. There were fist fights every night and scantily clad fat women and black & milds in the urinals. I almost didn't get the job because the boss said I was "too classy." My mother still laughs about that.

Pictured: Too Classy (right), property of Steak 'n Shake

Other than that, most of my experience at bars are would fall under the "college bar." The Cavern has a lot of 20-something patrons, but it's not super close to any colleges. I've been noticing some definite differences between the college bar scene and the neighborhood bar.
Disclaimer: My college bar research has all been gathered from the other side of the bar, the party side. I was not a bartender in college. I was a preschool teacher. Blog post to come highlighting the similarities of the jobs.

• Last call.  In my bar and other "real" bars, I've noticed that people don't much care about last call. They maybe get another drink, act like there's no rush. The other bartenders use the time to clean up and such, but I think it's pretty annoying. Spend more $$$ and then close your damn tabs. In college bars, last call means run to the bar, get another round of drinks, buy one last shot for the hottie you're trying to close on and get them out of there before the lights turn on. Game time.

• Men and vodka. In college, I don't know if I knew a single man who drank anything besides whiskey or beer. My roommate would have the occasional rum and coke. I saw maybe one gin and tonic a week. Now, I would say vodka soda is the most popular drink I pour. 

Why would this GIF even exist?

TANGENT: The "manliness" of drinks has been a hotly debated point with my friends over the last year or so. We can safely say ordering a well whiskey sour on a first date is not winning you any points with me. I say a martini, vodka- or gin-based, is manly because it's basically a glass of straight booze. Also, James Bond. Some of my girlfriends disagree, citing the shape of the glass. The Cosmopolitan has forever femme-ified the martini glass.  

My old boss said the only acceptable drink for a man to order on a date is a double shot of a well-aged whiskey with three ice cubes. I'm not going to lie to you, that would impress me.

• "Embarrassing" friends.  Grown-ass people in real bars feel actual shame for their stupid friends who yell at the bartender or throw up. They apologize and tip you and feel bad. Obviously, there are plenty of people whose terrible personalities keep them from being sorry in any situation. But in college bars, you get the sense that it is your God-given right to be shitfaced and act a fool. And it kind of is.

Even though I've been out of college for a while, I still sometimes feel compelled to order tequila shots when we all should have switched to water 45 minutes ago. My eye still twitches at last call. But hey, I'm in grad school. Totally fair game.