A woman who was two years sober from alcohol says that she was mistakenly served an alcoholic beverage.
Sam (@thirdplacebarnyc) is a creator who runs alcohol-free social events in New York City. Her TikTok about her experience at an unnamed Bridgehampton, Long Island restaurant has received over 81,000 views.
In it, she says she ordered the only non-alcoholic beverage on the menu, a sparkling wine called French Bloom. She says she had tasted the drink before, thanks to frequent PR packages from non-alcoholic beverage brands for her business.
“I take a sip and can immediately tell that there is alcohol in it,” Sam says in the video.
When the server returned, she says she told them the drink tasted like it had alcohol in it. She says she politely questioned whether there could have been a mix-up. Sam adds that she then requested to see the bottle.
Sam says the server brought her an unopened bottle of the French Bloom—not the bottle which her drink was poured from. Satisfied that this was the correct bottle, she says she continued to drink what she thought was the non-alcoholic wine.
Later, she says another staff member came out to ask Sam about the drink. That worker mentioned that she had also tried it, and it tasted “off,” according to Sam. Sam says that worker believed the non-alcoholic wine had fermented—the process by which regular wine becomes alcoholic. The staff member, she says, poured her a new glass from the unopened bottle.
@thirdplacebarnyc What would you do?! #sobercurious #sobertok ♬ Moonlite Love – Abir’yah
“It was completely different,” Sam says. “The first glass I got was really on the nose. It smelled like alcohol.” She explains that she wondered to herself whether the staff was lying or trying to cover up their mistake.
“If they really messed up and accidentally poured from an open bottle of regular sparkling rose, I wish they had just admitted it,” she continues.
Viewers weigh in
The alleged mix-up may have been a mistake. However, commenters noted that accidentally serving someone alcohol could undo years of effort to stay sober.
“Even if it was a genuine mistake, that is an extremely awful mistake to make. Just one drink can undo someone’s years of progress and potentially ruin their lives,” a commenter writes.
“I haven’t drank in 10 years that would absolutely devastate me,” another says.
“One of my biggest fears,” a third adds. “I always tell the server/bartender I’m a recovering addict and to please make sure I’m not accidentally served alcohol.”
People who order non-alcoholic beverages and then accidentally get served alcohol is not unheard of. Another woman, also two years sober, only found out she unintentionally consumed alcohol after the bill arrived.
It’s also not uncommon for servers to make customers who don’t want to drink alcohol feel uncomfortable with their choices. A woman who was seven months pregnant says a server questioned her decision to order a mocktail. She told the Daily Dot at the time that she wanted “to encourage bartenders to use discretion when someone ordered a nonalcoholic drink because you never know why someone isn’t drinking.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Sam via email for more information.
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