Message 1118 of 22774 in Behind the Bar

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> are kept track of. But for draft beer, I can usually give away two 
> and write down for one, if it's the cheap stuff.

That sort of balance sounds right on the money to me.
As long as the bar receives something between the cost price and the market 
price for the drink. Upscaling to a double is no big deal.

Here's the thought...
Comps are to be used as promotional aids, not as replacements for real custom, 
hence:
Up-selling and shots are fine, as THEY DON'T CUT INTO DRINKING TIME!
If you give away a pint, it'll be 20 mins (+/-) before the customer hands over 
more cash, but they're ready to pay again right after a shot.
And with a double or top-shelf, well, they're going to drink it at the same 
rate, then be back for more. The bar wins.

As an addendum to this, note that waiting until you've figured out that they 
won't be buying any more drinks and are ready to leave is NOT the time to give 
them the freebie!
For the simple reason that by that time they have probably had enough, and you 
might be pushing them over their own limit.
(Sad personal example left unsaid here)

The trick is to give a freebie as the SECOND-TO-LAST drink, as it's pretty 
rude (IMO) to leave after taking a free one.


> The hard part is serving FOBs- 
> friends of the boss. When I first started, I had a hard time figuring 
> out who to charge, and who was drinking for free, where the owner and 
> general manager's friends were concerned. 

Ouch, you know it!

A tip here is to run a special comp tab for them, separate from your normal 
one.
Leave it on the bar, in plain sight. Make sure they know you're recording it.

If they volunteer to pay, cool. If not, slip it in with the till at the end.
You were just 'noting it down for the records' until the boss tells you who 
can drink and who can't ;-)
Cover your ass... and get kudos for doing so!

.dan.