SLA Busts Bars For Selling Cheap Booze In Top-Shelf Bottles

Records obtained by the NY Post confirm that many NYC nightclubs, bars, and restaurants have been doing what many of us long suspected: refilling top-shelf liquor bottles with cheaper alcohol and watering down drinks. It's unclear exactly which establishments have been committing the crime against sobriety, but Marquee paid a $100,000 settlement to the SLA in October; violations included allowing a "disorderly" climate that led to fights, unregistered security guards and "contaminated" bottles. SLA spokesman Michael Smith says, "We may find contaminated liquor or contaminated products, which may include refilling of liquor bottles with inferior liquor or fruit flies contaminating the bottle." According to Marquee, fruit flies were the problem, not well liquor in top-shelf bottles. Meanwhile, BLVD/Crash Mansion paid a total of $16,500 in fines to the SLA last year, but the club's owner says, "We paid $8,000 for a fruit fly" in a bottle of Jack Daniels. And in April, an anonymous bartender griped to the Feedbag about the DOH: "The obsession with fruit flies is a bit absurd. In the warm weather months they’re here and places do everything they can, but fruit flies will always be around."

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By John Del Signore in Food on July 13, 2009 11:20 AM

Comments [rss]

NannyState

Nightclubs watering down the premium liquor? All of New Jersey will be filing that class action lawsuit now...

wobbleSmith

when it comes to ripping off club-rats, i'm all for it. but when it comes to ripping of me, i'm all against it! i don't know what feelings to feel...

maybe a nice drink will clear it up.

Loulou

Went to some bar around 14th street awhile back and I remember drinking some Johnie walker black that tasted so watered down it was like someone left an ice cube to melt inside of it..sad thing was is that I asked for it neat..so I automatically knew some sh!t was up..

Never again

jaycjay

Swapping cheap stuff for something like Johnny Walker Black is pretty dumb, because many people drink it straight, drink it exclusively, and so know the taste. It'll be noticed.

Cheap vodka used in place of the overpriced stuff in mixed drinks, though, is easy to pull off.

jaycjay

I'll agree at least with the anonymous bartender that keeping a bar completely free of fruit flies is pretty close to impossible.

REALITY CHECK

I know an old bartender who just throws long sheets of saran wrap over the bottle openings. Presto, no fruit flies.

kapusta

...bars?...watering down drinks?...amazing!...next you'll be reporting that the pope is catholic...all the bars from here to andromeda water down the alcohol...duh!!

hotstepper

mixed drinks are for little sissy boys. real men drink beer.

Kojak

& Scotch, neat.

REALITY CHECK

I agree, real men drink Scotch. Beer is manlier than a vodka cranberry, but definitely won't put hair on your chest like straight-up whisky.

kellas

I just tweeted about this a couple of days ago! I saw the bartender at O'Neil's do this right in front of the patrons around 4am. Smirnoff into the Grey Goose and Kettle One bottles.

Dirk

The three people reading your tweet really got the advance scoop!

Peter

All these nightclubs are total sausage parties. Ten men for every woman, or even worse.

billybob

Is this actually surprise to anyone? The nightclub weasles have been doing this forever. Johnny Walker Black shouldn't give you heartburn immediately.

felixthecat2

LOL

Kojak

Ok so you charge $350 for a $32 bottle of Grey Goose. But that would put too much pressure on profits so what do you do? You fill it with $12 Leeds Vodka.

Cheap bastards. Next time I'm sticking to beer.