# Leave the bottle... how does that work **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking, liquor-alcohol\ **Created:** [January 23, 2021, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320 "2021-01-23T22:10:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/1 "2021-01-23T22:10:59Z")
A common enough trope - a barfly walks into a bar, the bartender brings over a shot glass and a bottle. They pour a shot, turn to walk off and the patron says, “Leave the bottle”. How do figure out how much you owe? Or does that even happen in real life? ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/2 "2021-01-23T22:16:17Z")
Many clubs/bars have bottle prices on a some of their alcohol choices, but you don’t buy a shot from a half empty bottle and then say “Leave the bottle” in those situations. Instead your initial order is more likely to be “1 Macallan 12, 2 Veuve, please” ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/3 "2021-01-23T22:16:19Z")
Dunno if it happens in real life, but the idea is (I think), the patron is buying the entire bottle. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/4 "2021-01-23T22:36:16Z")
And paying a rather hefty price on it I’d think. Even if the bar sells at by-the-bottle prices instead of 750 ml = ~ 25 ounces \* anywhere from $2 to $7 per ounce shots, they’re still likely to be charging a lot more for that bottle than Discount Liquors would. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/5 "2021-01-23T23:11:08Z")
Yeah, the bar would be selling 10-15 shots from that bottle, so I’m assuming the price of “feeling sorry for yourself” would be expensive. Does make me wonder if it’s a “cliche tough guy movie” thing. Never seen it in real life. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/6 "2021-01-24T03:03:18Z")
I bought a bottle of Sam Adams Utopias (beer) at least once. I shared it with friends, doing shots. It was around $120 if my pickle brain remembers correctly, circa 2009. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/7 "2021-01-24T05:09:18Z")
It has to be legal to serve that way. They will mark the bottle at the level when you start. Sometimes just on the label, or on a piece of tape on the side, or they may use something like a grease pencil. At the end they’ll come up with a number some way or another. It’s not going to be done accurately, that would destroy your romantic notion of drinking the way Hemingway did, and you’re drunk too so you’ll think you got a good deal. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/8 "2021-01-24T05:54:31Z")
I’ve seen bars in Thailand where you can buy fifths of Johnnie Walker Red or Black for as little as $60 including free mixers. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/9 "2021-01-24T08:38:18Z")
Using typical Atlanta prices, the sample order I gave earlier would be $750. $300 for the Macallan 12, $225 each for the Veuve. You also get some juice and soda mixers thrown in. At most clubs you also get a table included with your bottle service, the size of which is typically dependent on a minimum number of bottles (or spend in some cases). So a single bottle might get you a table for 2 to 4 people in a less desirable location. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/10 "2021-01-24T08:51:37Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > It has to be legal to serve that way. They will mark the bottle at the level when you start. Sometimes just on the label, or on a piece of tape on the side, or they may use something like a grease pencil. At the end they’ll come up with a number some way or another… I was at an Italian restaurant in Vancouver about twenty years ago that did this. There were two bottles of house wine on your table; one red and one white. There was a “ruler” made of cardboard, shaped to include the neck of the bottle, and it was calibrated in ounces. The starting level was marked on the ruler, and you could drink as much as you liked. At the end of your meal, the finishing level was marked on the ruler, and you paid for the ounces you consumed. They did have a wine list, which offered bottles, but if all you wanted was a glass or two of the house wine, it was a handy way to offer it. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/11 "2021-01-24T09:27:53Z")
Big difference between those. That’s a great price for the Black (for a bar), but I wouldn’t pay 10% of that for the Red. ---
**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/12 "2021-01-24T11:09:23Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > I was at an Italian restaurant in Vancouver about twenty years ago that did this. There were two bottles of house wine on your table; one red and one white. There was a “ruler” made of cardboard, shaped to include the neck of the bottle, and it was calibrated in ounces. The starting level was marked on the ruler, and you could drink as much as you liked. At the end of your meal, the finishing level was marked on the ruler, and you paid for the ounces you consumed. And then they stopped doing it when too many customers would order several glasses of water and a funnel. ---
**Author:** ![Manwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e480ec/32.png) [@Manwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manwich)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/13 "2021-01-24T11:41:29Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > I’ve seen bars in Thailand where you can buy fifths of Johnnie Walker Red or Black for as little as $60 including free mixers. Siam (Mr Sam) did not fully explain but many other things are also cheap in Thailand. It works because rent and wages are low. For locally produced spirits, the prices can be much lower, as low as $10. But nobody goes alone like this without expecting company. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/14 "2021-01-24T12:24:35Z")
I ran a movie projector in the back room of a bar, in college. I once observed a patron order something, and, upon observing that the bottle was low, inquire as to whether there was another bottle of the same on hand. On being informed that the only other bottle of that type of alcohol was a different brand, the patron, in language other than “leave the bottle” requested that what was left in the bottle be reserved for him. The bartender, instead of replacing the bottle with the others, put it aside, and served only that patron from it. I do not know this person’s name, but I can tell you he was a regular at the bar, as I knew his face. He came into the films about once a month, usually sober at the beginning, but would order at least two drinks, usually more, so the waitress would not have to interrupt the film, and would be pretty red-faced by the end. So I’d say that when the bartender put the bottle aside, he had fair confidence the guy would finish it, and even if he didn’t, someone who was going to come back the next weekend, and the next, would come back happy, and probably tip well. Just an example of this playing out in the real world. Like a lot of things, lengthier, and messier than the concise Hollywood version. Also, I cannot say whether this would be done for a stranger, but I doubt it. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/15 "2021-01-24T13:28:35Z")
It’s traditional/customary in many bars for the last drink from a bottle to be free. I’ve been at a bar, bored, studying the back bar for near empty bottles, then ordering a shot that I get for free. Also, the last of a kicked keg (less than a pint) is typically free. I’ve had a bartender alert me, for instance, that the Bell’s Two Hearted is gonna kick, allowing me to order it and get a free partial pint. 🍻 ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/16 "2021-01-24T19:07:10Z")
Same topic from 2001: > [@Old Western saloons--Giving the customer the whole whiskey bottle with the glass](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-western-saloons-giving-the-customer-the-whole-whiskey-bottle-with-the-glass/65221): > > You know how in all those Western movies the man walks into the saloon and orders whiskey. The barkeep puts the whole bottle in front of him and then the customer pours his own drinks. Was that the usual custom before Prohibition? Are there now specific laws against serving alcohol in this way, or is it just a custom that went out of style? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/17 "2021-01-24T19:45:18Z")
Would it be wrong to note that at any number of places in Thailand that offer such a deal, the odds of getting actual JW Black are 50/50 at best? ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/18 "2021-01-24T19:57:44Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > Using typical Atlanta prices, the sample order I gave earlier would be $750. $300 for the Macallan 12, $225 each for the Veuve. You also get some juice and soda mixers thrown in. At most clubs you also get a table included with your bottle service, the size of which is typically dependent on a minimum number of bottles (or spend in some cases). So a single bottle might get you a table for 2 to 4 people in a less desirable location. > [@Manwich](#): > > > [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > > > I’ve seen bars in Thailand where you can buy fifths of Johnnie Walker Red or Black for as little as $60 including free mixers. > > Siam (Mr Sam) did not fully explain but many other things are also cheap in Thailand. It works because rent and wages are low. > > For locally produced spirits, the prices can be much lower, as low as $10. > > But nobody goes alone like this without expecting company. New York City club version: > [@](#): > > You do not need to have bottle service to get into a club. However, if you want some dedicated real estate and are anxious about getting in, bottle service is definitely the way to go. Almost all clubs these days have VIP tables arranged throughout the club. > […] > Each table booking has a minimum spend – that is, the amount you need to spend on alcohol (and for dayclubs, food). The minimums that you are quoted never include tax/tip – which you can estimate to be about 30% (~10% tax, 18-20% tip). Gratuity is usually automatically included in the final bill at 18-20%. As such, whenever you book a table you’ll want to multiply the minimum by 1.3 to figure out how much you’ll likely end up spending. A table with 1k min will run you 1.3k, a table with 5k min will run you 6.5k, etc. > > Table service in New York on average can vary from 100 – 1000 per person depending on the venue, day of the week, event, etc. > […] > When you make bottle service reservations, you must agree to spend a minimum amount on bottles in exchange for a table. Table minimums at Manhattan clubs start around $250 at the low end, and go up into the thousands for more exclusive high end clubs. > > Higher end exclusive clubs like most of those found in the Meatpacking district typically have table minimums starting around $1,500 plus tax and tip for up to 5 people. The more people you bring, the higher your table minimum. > […] > We have covered table minimums, now let’s talk about the bottles themselves. A bottle of premium vodka (the most common order) runs between $325 to $600 depending on the venue. Other comparable premium spirits such as gin, tequila, whiskey or rum are similarly priced. Standard size champagne prices range between $150 up to $1,500 (for rare vintages). Prices reach towards $15,000 for Nebuchadnezzar (15L) sized champagne bottles. > > Some clubs even have specialty large format champagne at Price $75,000 per bottle ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/19 "2021-01-24T20:09:40Z")
They call it a fifth because it’s a fifth of a gallon. That means let’s see…25.6 ounces x whatever per shot. IANAL but wouldn’t this fall under “Just because you [bartender] can doesn’t mean you should?” You’d give up the opportunity to cut them off when they’ve had too much too fast, for instance. > **[Legal Risks Bartenders Face for Overserving Alcohol](https://alcohol.org/laws/over-serving/)** > > Bartenders who serve intoxicated patrons may be at risk for legal and civil charges as a result of these actions. Learn the details. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2021, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320/20 "2021-01-24T21:26:09Z")
> [@Manwich](#): > > Siam (Mr Sam) did not fully explain but many other things are also cheap in Thailand. It works because rent and wages are low. Yes, but the basic question is how it works. That’s how it works, you pay a set price for the bottle and get mixers. But now that I think of it, in that scenario you go in ordering the bottle. You don’t just take a shot from the bartender and then say to leave the already-partially empty bottle it was just poured from. That’s just in the movies, like those fire sprinklers that all go off in an entire building despite the sensor in only one sprinkler head detecting heat. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-the-bottle-how-does-that-work/931320.md?page=2)