“I’ve hit some roadblocks in understanding how to meet new people and make friends,” Cole said. “When things open up again, I don’t feel comfortable going out and having to deal with people.”
Mac Rosenquist, a bartender at Pink Rabbit in Portland, Ore., sees his role as helping to reduce that friction. She said bar staff are tour guides and their first priority is ensuring guests are satisfied.
“Bar staff should be there for you, help you, welcome you and make you feel good,” she said. She encourages guests to ask questions and loves talking about her favorite cocktails on the menu. When people find a bar’s staff and atmosphere click with them, becoming a regular can further put anxious guests at ease, Rosenquist said. Familiarizing yourself with the bar’s layout, menu, and customers can help ease the stress of social situations.
Another way to attract family-oriented people is to make your bar feel more like home. At The Carriage, a bar and shop in the college town of Florence, Alabama, co-owner Caleb Banks designed the bar’s interior and service style to fit the way he hosts parties at his home. Guests are encouraged to move around the space, perhaps lounging on one of the comfy gold sofas, before moving onto the sunny terrace to mingle with another group. Sometimes it can be difficult for staff to keep tabs on guests who are particularly active. “They feel like this is their place, not a bar, and that’s almost to our detriment,” Banks said.
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The bar also offers an upgraded “parlor pour,” which is a generous nine-ounce pour of wine, a step up from the standard five-ounce pour. Banks said the way he served his friends was to pour them a little heavier and serve them in the spirit of friendship. From the simple drink list (printed on a standard piece of white paper) to the friendly bartender’s banter, the Wagon’s purpose is to help guests exhale, not overthink.
“When people come to bars, they’re tired of making decisions,” Banks said. “They need to be able to trust you or the bartender behind the bar to tell them what’s good. There’s a comfort in that.
Carefully curated meal-centric hybrid events claim to offer lonely Gen Z a pathway to real-life friendships in the city. But can simply breaking bread create a lasting connection?
Much has been written about how Generation Z is upending food and drink norms. But as they default to socializing at home, they’re forcing bars to return to the basics of hospitality: making guests feel at ease. While previous generations might have been beholden to speakeasies and incomprehensible cocktail ingredients, drinkers turning 21 during the upheaval of the pandemic want a less frictional experience. They are here just to have a good time, with no social barriers to cross.
Pubs may need to make some adjustments to lure these homebodies away, but dcdx chief executive Andrew Roth says there’s good news: young people are seeking the social connection that bars and restaurants offer.
“People are relying on food and drink to get them through this. That’s where the promise is,” Ross said. “As a generation, we recognize that things like dinner parties and these spaces are the solution. We’re just not sure how to do it.
