Las Vegas Bartender Claims You’re Ordering Tequila And Jack Incorrectly. Then She Reveals What To Order Instead: ‘OK So Not A Shot?’

Remember the first time you went to a bar and had no idea what to say to the bartender?

It’s an experience shared by many. Whether the nerves were down to simply not wanting to sound like an idiot, or due to your ID having some legitimacy questions, becoming dumbfounded at a bar is something that happens to a lot of people in their early bargoing years.

Hopefully, years of going out and talking to bartenders will teach you how to properly order a drink at a bar. However, there’s always a chance that, somehow, these drinking lessons totally passed you by.

If that’s the case, you can always look to TikTok, where bartenders are sharing their advice for how to request a drink at a bar. According to one bartender, even experienced drinkers are ordering drinks incorrectly. What’s the right way to do it?

How Do You Order A Drink At A Bar?

In her video, TikTok user and Las Vegas bartender Jules (@vegasbornjules) says there’s an issue many people have when ordering drinks.

“Did you know that if you want to order a shot of alcohol on ice, or a double shot on ice, you just have to ask for that alcohol on the rocks?” she starts.

While it may seem obvious, Jules says that many order a shot of Jack Daniel’s, for example—then, when she asks if they want anything else, they interrupt her to clarify that they’d like it over ice.

“OK, so not a ‘shot of Jack,’” she says. “You want Jack on the rocks? Not a problem. But that’s not how you order it.”

The reason for this distinction, she says, is both clarity and to speed up the ordering process.

“Help us help you,” Jules states. “We can be quicker if you order simpler.”

Jules closes the video by reminding viewers to tip their servers.

Why Do We Order Alcohol ‘On The Rocks?’

In this case, Jules isn’t saying that one should or shouldn’t order a shot over ice. Instead, she’s simply noting that it’s a different order than just a shot. As noted by the MICHELIN Guide, if a customer is ordering a shot, they usually don’t plan to sip it—they plan to just drink it down. In contrast, a shot served on the rocks is more likely to be sipped and savored.

Still, the distinction makes one ask an interesting question: Why do we order drinks “on the rocks,” anyway?

To answer the terminology question, no one really knows. There are folk stories about Scottish whiskey drinkers of yore cooling their drinks using river stones—thus literally putting drinks “on the rocks.” However, there are also claims that “rocks” simply emerged naturally as a slang for ice, given that ice can look like rocks.

Regardless of where it came from, it certainly caught on. Now, patrons can go to pretty much any bar in the English-speaking world and beyond, order a drink “on the rocks,” and receive a beverage with ice.

Is There A Reason To Order ‘On The Rocks?’

Forget the history—is there any reason to order a drink “on the rocks” in the first place?

As stated above, there’s a different drinking experience when ordering on the rocks vs. a shot. However, what many might not realize is that that drinking experience is not just “a shot but colder.”

Putting ice in a drink both chills and dilutes it. This can soften harsher flavors while also opening up the beverage’s aromas, making for a more pleasant and vibrant drinking experience. Plus, if you’re a person who is sensitive to the “burn” that can come with drinking straight liquor, ice can round off the edges of the burn and make the beverage more pleasant to drink.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if you order a drink as a shot, with ice, or any other way. The best way to approach a bar is to be polite and as clear as possible about what you want—and, as Jules says, always tip your server.

How Does She Deal With Such Requests?

In an Instagram direct message exchange, the TikToker explained that, in situations like these, she will sometimes try to gently correct customers.

“If it’s something where they call me back to say, ‘On ice,’ I’ll usually say something like, ‘OK, so on the rocks’—like, almost trying to teach them while correcting them, but never trying to embarrass them,” she stated.

“It’s not like something I have to really explain, but, for a guest, it would certainly help the bartender, help the server, help anyone if they knew exactly how they wanted to order,” she added.

In order to improve one’s ordering, Jules advises that one can simply talk to their bartender or server.

“I encourage guests to ask us questions vs trying to figure it out on their own. Most of us are happy to help,” she shared. “I might tell them I can offer an easier way they can order that to keep us from getting confused about what they want.”

Even for experienced bar-goers, a few questions can help the experience.

“I serve most of my neat or on the rocks drinks as doubles, but some properties may not, so maybe I would encourage the guest to ask for a double if they like it,” Jules explained. “Now it doesn’t always mean they can have that; it depends on the policy of each property.”