Bar Behavior

The Post talks to Ty Wenzel about her new book, Behind Bars: The Straight-Up Tales of a Big-City Bartender. Wenzel was a bartender in the East Village for 10 years, but now lives in East Hampton with husband and child. She categorizes bar regulars thusly: Expert, Name-Dropper, Snacker (noshes olives and cherries out of the garnish tray), Babbler (chats obliviously through a rush at the bar), Big Spender (blows cash on everyone except the bartender - "Wall Street types and frat boys. They act like they're made of money - until the tip") and her favorite, Floorshows ("People always try to get them drunk to see what they'll do")

But Wenzel's tips about how to hook up at bars are even more interesting:
- Forget pickup lines. They never work.
- Don't waste your money buying a drink for that glamorous stranger at the other end of a bar. That never works, either.
- Make eye contact, strong and subtle. ("I remember one couple that was staring at each other one night for the longest time," she says. "The funny thing is, they ended up married.")
- Tip well. It shows you're a good person - and it can buy you the bartender's sympathy.
- Get drunk. "It's the fastest way into another person's bed."

Yes, Gothamist is very familiar with some, and maybe all of, these things, and they are true. Previously, the Post and Gothamist looked at bars conducive for getting your mack on.