# Would you buy a Cocktail at a restaurant like Outback? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 27, 2015, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042 "2015-01-27T19:37:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/81 "2015-01-29T00:18:17Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > It only makes sense for the restaurant since the markup on alcohol is WAY higher than the markup for food. Also a bar takes up less floorspace. > > Besides this is just the way things are turning. The days of “Cheers” style drinking only bars is on the way out. For a business to survive they need to serve food all day and then drinks all night. They can still do all the traditional “bar” stuff like host Superbowl or New Years Eve parties or dancing where they clear out the tables and setup a big party and dance floor but they also get ordinary restaurant business including families. Applebees is big on this. And yes often they still get guys who just want to go sit at the bar, talk, and drink. Were there ever a lot of drinking-only bars that weren’t clubs? Maybe it’s a function of my age and where I live, but ever since I was a kid, it seems that most bars (as opposed to clubs) were “Archie Bunker” type bar-and-grills rather than drinking only. Not a big enough menu to be called a restaurant, but sandwiches and burgers. OP, try going to ChillAppleFridays later than 5:30 sometime. Like after the game ( whichever game ) has started. In my experience, there will be plenty of people at the bar drinking and watching the game. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/82 "2015-01-29T00:25:20Z")
> [@Missy2U](#): > > Hell - if I could get a Gin & Tonic at McDonald’s I would. Why wouldn’t I? **Aceplace57** , I really don’t understand the disconnect here. [Vincent Vega:] All right. Well, you can walk into a movie theater in Amsterdam and buy a beer. And I don’t mean just like in no paper cup, I’m talking about a glass of beer. And in Paris, you can buy a beer at McDonald’s.[/Vincent Vega]. That isn’t just some bullshit movie quote either. I have ordered beer at McDonalds in Europe a bunch of times. I hear they sell it in vending machines in Japan. Americans are weird about drinking in certain contexts but not others. There are all these invisible lines that don’t make much sense if you think about it. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/83 "2015-01-29T00:50:33Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Even better than that? Brew/distill/ferment your own drinks. Much cheaper and tastes better too. I make all my own alcohol, mixers, and so on. > > I also blow glass so I can make my own tumblers, wine glasses, etc. > > Because home-made is always so much better dontchaknow. Do you have a kiln for the plates and pots? ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/84 "2015-01-29T01:02:04Z")
The op is odd. But does boil down to “is this really a thing” I also don’t drink booze at dinner. I just don’t (except for once at our anniversary dinner when we were at a pretty fancy place) but I know people who won’t go to a restaurant if it doesn’t have a full bar. A friend wanted to do know about an upscale burger place I had been raving about because her husband wanted a really good burger. She asked if the place had a bar and after I said “Just beer and wine” she was completely uninterested. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/85 "2015-01-29T01:44:15Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > While I’m at it, I really don’t get the hatred for chain restaurants. Sure, your hole in the wall might have the best food ever, but it is usually pricier and often has things I don’t want. Like we went to this Lebanese restaurant which was the best Lebanese food I have ever eaten. Hands down, no doubt. But, it was $100 for two people and we didn’t even order that much food. Consider that most meals around here for two people with appetizers and a drink run from $30 to $50. There are probably 50 restaurants within a mile or two of my house where I can have dinner for 2 for under $25 if I try even a little bit. Some of them are even BYOB. Am I going to have delicious ethnic homestyle food for not very much money, or am I going to travel further to have mediocre chain burgers for more money? No contest, really. (Of course there are probably another 50 places within a mile or two of home where I could blow $100 on a dinner for two, and some overlap between the two categories depending on what you order.) This is a really competitive town for restaurants. I love it! ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/86 "2015-01-29T01:51:12Z")
I don’t order cocktails (martinis, daiquiris) very often in family-oriented chain restaurants, because I’m not in that frame of mind, but I wouldn’t hesitate to order one if I was in the mood. More often, I’ll order water, soda, or a glass of wine. ---
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/87 "2015-01-29T04:24:13Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I didn’t realize there were so many cocktail drinkers here. For some reason, I thought cocktails for dinner was a declining trend. Something Don Drapper and his buddies did in the 1960’s Blame Don Drapper if you want to, but cocktails are very much in and the trend is increasing. Everything is cyclical of course, but a well made cocktail is a thing of beauty and is trending heavily now… Chains are a tad behind of course, but top restaurants are featuring their bartenders now for exactly this reason… ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/88 "2015-01-29T04:49:08Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > While I’m at it, I really don’t get the hatred for chain restaurants. Sure, your hole in the wall might have the best food ever, but it is usually pricier and often has things I don’t want. Like we went to this Lebanese restaurant which was the best Lebanese food I have ever eaten. Hands down, no doubt. But, it was $100 for two people and we didn’t even order that much food. Consider that most meals around here for two people with appetizers and a drink run from $30 to $50. Plus the owner kept coming over and chatting with us. I don’t want to be the owner’s friend. I came with my SO to have a lovely evening with him. > > Sometimes chain restaurants are good, sometimes bad, and sometimes they vary from region to region. Think of that! I have had the exact opposite experience, sit down chain restaurants are usually overpriced especially the bar. Hole in the wall ethnic places are usually cheap as dirt! My favorite place for fajitas in Houston was an unmarked bar in the back of a carniceria in a run down shopping center, it was like a dollar a piece! ---
**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 29, 2015, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/89 "2015-01-29T04:58:01Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > \ I associate drinking with clubs and bars. Live music, dancing. A fun night out. > > Grabbing a family meal is a different experience for us. We eat early and are home by 6:30 to 7pm. I guess others see it differently. See post 13. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/90 "2015-01-29T05:28:35Z")
> [@Eva\_Luna](#): > > There are probably 50 restaurants within a mile or two of my house where I can have dinner for 2 for under $25 if I try even a little bit. Some of them are even BYOB. Am I going to have delicious ethnic homestyle food for not very much money, or am I going to travel further to have mediocre chain burgers for more money? No contest, really. (Of course there are probably another 50 places within a mile or two of home where I could blow $100 on a dinner for two, and some overlap between the two categories depending on what you order.) > > This is a really competitive town for restaurants. I love it! By BYOB, you mean Bring Your Own Beer/Booze, right? That’s really strange for them to do if they don’t already serve it. Even if customers just bring it in themselves, they’d still have to car a liquor license and follow all the same rules as a regular bar (at least in my jurisdiction). And liquor licenses can be very expensive. In my city, a Class B license (what a bar has) is, I think, $600 a year, in some cities near me there’s a one time fee of $10,000 to get the license on top of the yearly fee, which may be lower or higher depending on what that city chooses. Be it $10,000 + $600 a year or just the yearly fee, you have to pour a lot of free wine to make up for that. I’m not saying it doesn’t happen, I’ve just never heard it. Also, like I said, you’re still responsible for what happens on your premises. So if someone gets drunk and does something stupid, you’re going to get the charged as if you served them the alcohol. I guess, now that I think about it, I’ve heard of people bringing their own wine to a nice restaurant (which usually charges a corking fee and already has alcohol to begin with). I’m just imagining a cheap restaurant that doesn’t serve alcohol and people bringing in their own six packs of Coors Light. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/91 "2015-01-29T06:27:15Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > While I don’t like the overpriced part of it, I do like the weak part. I like frou-frou drinks with just enough alcohol to ever so slightly go to my head. So yes, I certainly do order cocktails at these kinds of restaurants, but I never sit at the bar (and rarely go in groups these days). > > I am not a heavy drinker by any means, but I’ve grown to liking a glass of something during my evening meal. But what I drink can barely be termed alcohol - it’s so diluted. still, I have gone from drinking maybe once every six months, to a glass of sangria most every night over dinner. Makes sense. Although the price part is also why I rarely order appetizers. (That plus the large portion sizes…can barely finish a regular meal!) I just can’t bring myself to spend as much on apps or drinks as I did on the meal itself. ---
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/92 "2015-01-29T08:27:14Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Even better than that? Brew/distill/ferment your own drinks. Much cheaper and tastes better too. I make all my own alcohol, mixers, and so on. > > I also blow glass so I can make my own tumblers, wine glasses, etc. > > Because home-made is always so much better dontchaknow. Glass is a little effete, though, isn’t it? I find it’s much more authentic to grind my own vessels from obsidian, and so much better for the planet. Icelandic obsidian, of course, not that cut-price Mexican stuff. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/93 "2015-01-29T09:13:02Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > By BYOB, you mean Bring Your Own Beer/Booze, right? That’s really strange for them to do if they don’t already serve it. Even if customers just bring it in themselves, they’d still have to car a liquor license and follow all the same rules as a regular bar (at least in my jurisdiction). And liquor licenses can be very expensive. In my city, a Class B license (what a bar has) is, I think, $600 a year, in some cities near me there’s a one time fee of $10,000 to get the license on top of the yearly fee, which may be lower or higher depending on what that city chooses. > Be it $10,000 + $600 a year or just the yearly fee, you have to pour a lot of free wine to make up for that. > I’m not saying it doesn’t happen, I’ve just never heard it. Also, like I said, you’re still responsible for what happens on your premises. So if someone gets drunk and does something stupid, you’re going to get the charged as if you served them the alcohol. > > I guess, now that I think about it, I’ve heard of people bringing their own wine to a nice restaurant (which usually charges a corking fee and already has alcohol to begin with). I’m just imagining a cheap restaurant that doesn’t serve alcohol and people bringing in their own six packs of Coors Light. Where I am, they have a set number of liquor licenses that can be bought and sold in each town. That means that getting the license is a pretty big one-time expenditure (like closing in on 7 figures for a full hard liquor license some places, although it’s also a bit of an investment in and of itself since you can always sell it on later) and so a lot of especially newer restaurants will do the BYOB thing for a while to feel out whether they want to try to buy a license or not. I can think of a couple that have been that way seemingly forever, though. I think they do require them to do the alcohol training for their servers, but that’s pretty cheap. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/94 "2015-01-29T14:28:27Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > I think you hit on something when you mentioned you don’t go to bars very often. Not being snarky or anything but your question strikes me a bit odd. 5:30 is too early for cocktails? He meant 5:30am. But still, it’s Happy Hour somewhere on the planet all the time. Might as well enjoy it. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/95 "2015-01-29T14:37:00Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > **He meant 5:30am**. But still, it’s Happy Hour somewhere on the planet all the time. Might as well enjoy it. (bolding mine) He did? Where’s he posting from, Skid Row? :eek: Just kidding; you might be right but I didn’t read it that way at all. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/96 "2015-01-29T14:38:02Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > By BYOB, you mean Bring Your Own Beer/Booze, right? That’s really strange for them to do if they don’t already serve it. Even if customers just bring it in themselves, they’d still have to car a liquor license and follow all the same rules as a regular bar (at least in my jurisdiction). And liquor licenses can be very expensive. In my city, a Class B license (what a bar has) is, I think, $600 a year, in some cities near me there’s a one time fee of $10,000 to get the license on top of the yearly fee, which may be lower or higher depending on what that city chooses. > Be it $10,000 + $600 a year or just the yearly fee, you have to pour a lot of free wine to make up for that. > I’m not saying it doesn’t happen, I’ve just never heard it. Also, like I said, you’re still responsible for what happens on your premises. So if someone gets drunk and does something stupid, you’re going to get the charged as if you served them the alcohol. > > I guess, now that I think about it, I’ve heard of people bringing their own wine to a nice restaurant (which usually charges a corking fee and already has alcohol to begin with). I’m just imagining a cheap restaurant that doesn’t serve alcohol and people bringing in their own six packs of Coors Light. In Chicago and the area, it is not uncommon for a small family restaurant to not serve alcohol and be BYOB (and quite often, without any corkage fee.) A good number of ethnic restaurants in my area are this way. ETA: [Here is a whole article on/list of them](http://www.timeout.com/chicago/restaurants/best-byob-restaurants-in-chicago) in Time Out Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/97 "2015-01-29T17:32:35Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > While I’m at it, I really don’t get the hatred for chain restaurants. Sure, your hole in the wall might have the best food ever, but it is usually pricier and often has things I don’t want. Like we went to this Lebanese restaurant which was the best Lebanese food I have ever eaten. Hands down, no doubt. But, it was $100 for two people and we didn’t even order that much food. Consider that most meals around here for two people with appetizers and a drink run from $30 to $50. Plus the owner kept coming over and chatting with us. I don’t want to be the owner’s friend. I came with my SO to have a lovely evening with him. > > Sometimes chain restaurants are good, sometimes bad, and sometimes they vary from region to region. Think of that! Chains are usually very consistent. If you went to Chile’s in New York, you pretty much know exactly what you’re going to get at a Chile’s in San Fransisco. Non-chain restaurants are highly variable, both in price and quality. Which means, among other things, that there are very expensive places with crap food, but also plenty of really cheap, really amazing places (along with cheap, crap places and expensive, amazing places). If you’re local, you know which ones to go to. If you’re a stranger in town, it’s basically a crap shoot. Still, I can go to Applebee’s anywhere. If I’m in a new town, I’m going to sample its local offerings. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/98 "2015-01-29T18:07:16Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > If you’re local, you know which ones to go to. If you’re a stranger in town, it’s basically a crap shoot. Maybe 10 years ago. Now, Yelp, urbanspoon and the like make it very easy to find the excellent local options that are within your price point. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/99 "2015-01-29T18:57:38Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Maybe 10 years ago. Now, Yelp, urbanspoon and the like make it very easy to find the excellent local options that are within your price point. True, but only for relatively popular joints. I’ve been to some hole in the wall restaurants (not fine dining, of course) with excellent food, where the only Yelp review was some asshole who gave it one star because they didn’t like the dining room music or the waiter’s mustache or something equally irrelevant. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042/100 "2015-01-29T19:04:04Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > True, but only for relatively popular joints. I’ve been to some hole in the wall restaurants (not fine dining, of course) with excellent food, where the only Yelp review was some asshole who gave it one star because they didn’t like the dining room music or the waiter’s mustache or something equally irrelevant. I haven’t had a problem finding good reviews on even the smallest hole-in-the-wall joints over the past 5 or 6 years, but your experiences are obviously different than mine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-buy-a-cocktail-at-a-restaurant-like-outback/711042.md?page=6)