A bartender on TikTok has inspired debate after calling out people who order less ice but expect more alcohol.
In a video with over 828,000 views as of Friday, TikTok user Al (@alf_marrr) plays out a skit where someone asks for less ice in their drink.
“You got me,” Al feigns. “I was going to fill this up with ice and give you less alcohol…Since you asked me to take it out, I’m definitely giving you more booze here.”
As Al states in a later video, this isn’t an entirely original idea. For example, in February 2023, a bartender shared a video from the job in which a customer asks for no ice, then is disappointed by the amount of alcohol they receive.
“Just because you say no ice, doesn’t mean you’re going to get more alcohol,” the bartender in this video stated. She then added that, if someone wants more alcohol, they should simply order a double.
This story isn’t even unique to bartending. Numerous users have complained that, after asking for light or no-ice drinks from Starbucks and other chains, they get less of their desired drink, only for other users in the comments section to remind them that less ice does not equate to more liquid.
Despite this, many users in the comments section came after Al for his video, with several offering their own reasons for opting for less ice.
“Some of us just don’t want ice in our drink melting and ruining the drink,” a user said.
“They’re not expecting more booze, they’re expecting more mixer,” suggested another.
“Me asking for less ice cuz if theres too much im gonna be crunching on ice at the bar like its candy,” wrote a third.
@alf_marrr Ya got me! Shout out @Kam for the inspo #serviceindustry #bartenderproblems #bartending #barlife #mixology #funny #server #serverlife #serverproblems ♬ Carmen Habanera, classical opera(1283412) – perfectpanda
That said, a few users spoke in favor of Al’s idea.
“I’m looking at these comments, I was a bartender,” a user explained. “When you get asked this it is almost always followed by a returned drink for not being strong enough.”
“Don’t listen to anyone in the comments, I’ve been told plenty of times that they ask for less ice to get more liquor but they just get more mixer,” offered a second.
Al later posted two follow-up videos, one where he pours a drink with more mixer to make some of his viewers happy, and another where he explains the purpose of his original video.
@alf_marrr Replying to @Edward299 ♬ original sound – Al
@alf_marrr Replying to @zuhair rahman ♬ original sound – Al
“The video was for people that order less ice, and then they say their drink’s not strong enough, and then they try and do this thing where they try to get me to pour more alcohol,” Al details. “I’ve been doing this for a little while. So it’s happened before. It’s an old bartender joke—I’m not reinventing the wheel here.”
“For the people that have sensitive teeth, that just don’t like ice… that don’t want ice hitting them in the face, this video is not for you,” he adds.
The Daily Dot reached out to Al via TikTok comment.
