A cocktail menu is an excellent place for a bartender/mixologist to showcase his/her product knowledge and skills, but the reality of market trends and specific clientele demands should always play a major role in the development thereof. I have recently visited a few cocktail bars where the cocktail menu seems to be more about the bartender than the customers. A cocktail menu should showcase skills, but should remain approachable. When every cocktail requires a tableside soliloquy about amaro, and admission to the University of Obscure Vermouth, the bartender has missed the point.

We are in the customer service industry, and it is therefore the customer that should be considered first. If you are priveleged enough to work in a destination craft cocktail establishment with educated ‘boozies’ making up the majority of your clientele, by all means carry on. For most of us, however, that is not the case. I have built our craft cocktail program from the ground up, and I have made mistakes along the way. I have learned that my clientele is not receptive to ‘egg whites’ in cocktails, but if I refer to a foam as a ‘meringue’, the cocktail will have more success. Likewise, if I use the word ‘shrub’ on my menu, my patrons will most likely just think of small trees, so I have to be more descriptive.

A successful menu features great cocktails that actually get ordered. I have taken much time to get to know my customers; I know how far I can push, and with every menu I push a little harder. I have seen great progress because I let the demands of my establishment lead the way. Once I have their trust with my menu, I can wade each patron a little deeper on a one-on-one basis. In a sense, I hook them with the menu and reel them in with personal adventures into more obscure products. The result is that, little by little, as I build a rapport with my guests, I create an in-house demand for products that, otherwise, would just sit on the shelf.

In my experience, the best combination is an approachable menu that is not a complete deterrent to the newby, in conjunction with a repertoire of cocktails at the ready for those who are ready to take that plunge. This dialectic approach allows for growth of a craft cocktail program by attracting new cocktail enthusiasts, and also by catering to those further along on the journey. Cheers!