So while I do not have anything like a master
bartender's familiarity with bitters, syrups, or single malts, I do have some familiarity with what
bartenders see across the
bar when someone takes a
seat at their station.
In Buenos Aires, every time you buy a drink
at the
bar you must first order from one of the cashiers
seated at the end of the
bar, who then writes out your order on a receipt which you must then hand to the
bartender (which seems overly bureaucratic, especially on those occasions when I had to complete this process even when the
bartender was simply standing next to the cashier waiting for the transaction and exchange of receipts to occur).