by Debbi | Sep 9, 2011 | Downtown, Events, Good Things
The Fun Police are back for the fourth year!
Bartender Danny has been a huge supporter of the National MS Society for years now, riding in the annual MS Ride to help raise money for multiple sclerosis research. The Sandbar is proud to sponsor the Fun Police this year. Here's a picture of our logo on their cool new jerseys.
This year's Kansas City and Topeka rides will converge in Lawrence, with overnight camping in South Park. Also, a festival!
On Saturday, Sept. 17, South Park will be the site of a fundraising party with bands, children's activities and food and drink vendors. The festival is from noon-9 p.m.
Click here to read more about the festival on Wellcommons. Sounds like a fun activity for the family and a great way to help support a good cause.
You can also donate to the MS Society through Danny's personal donation page. His goal this year is $3000 and he's so close. Click here to visit his page, read about his experiences with the MS Ride and the Fun Police and make a donation.
For the first time this year, Sandbar art director Justin is also participating in the MS Ride. If you'd like to donate and help him reach his $300 goal, click here.
by Debbi | Sep 8, 2011 | Around the World, Guest Blogs
Several months ago, we introduced our friends at Team Cocktail and they wrote a guest post about their company. They also graciously provided some tips for our fans about tropical drinks, islands and bars- in case you feel like traveling! Lyndsey wrote this several months ago, so we'll check back in with them to see if these are still Team Cocktail favorites, or if they've discovered new favorites.
Favorite Tropical Drink: It's so hard for us to choose just one because our motto is: Travel Global, Drink Local. So wherever we are, we drink the local beverage of choice, and we love that. But if we had to pick just one…it would probably be the Painkiller from The Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost Van Dyke, a British Virgin Island. It's one of those tropical drinks that has a tendency to sneak up on you after only a couple. It's a delicious mix of rum (lots of it), coconut creme, juices and fresh nutmeg.
Favorite Tropical Island/Bar: Well obviously we love the Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost Van Dyke from our answer above. Jost Van Dyke is a secluded island that is untouched by commercial development. Remember Kenny Chesney's song "Somewhere in the Sun," well this is the island he is singing about. Picture perfect white sand, turquoise blue waters, friendly people and a few beach bar/shacks along the beach not a hotel or resort in sight.
A few other favorites are Bikini Beach Bar on Orient Beach in St. Martin, The Boatyard on Barbados and Reggae Beach Bar on St. Kitts. We could list so many more but these top the list!
Where has Team Cocktail traveled, what places are up next? Wow, I don't know that you would even want to read about all of the places we have traveled, nor do I think I could list them all. But let's just say that between all four founders we have been to almost every Caribbean island, Maui, the Mediterranean, the UK, Europe and around the U.S.
You'll be able to read about our upcoming adventures as well as our past travels at http://blog.teamcocktail.com/.
It's probably no surprise that those of us at the Sandbar are jealous of Team Cocktail's travels to tropical locales! If we're ever able to get away from the bar for a tropical vacation, we'll definitely give them a call for tips on where to go and what to drink.
by Debbi | Sep 7, 2011 | Drinking Rules, Guest Blogs
This post was written by long-time Sandbartender Danny and originally appeared on his blog, This Blog Will Waste Your Time. Danny graciously gave us permission to repost it here, in hopes that more people will read it and learn something about proper behavior in the bar.
Hi! Are you a bar customer on a busy night? Do you need a drink? Let's run through some scenarios involving knowledge of the bartender's name to demonstrate some key principles of bar etiquette. Come along and bring your mind's eye for this magical journey!
Situation: You do not know my name and would like a drink.
Appropriate action: Wait patiently. You may not realize it, but in the 2 seconds it took me to glance up, I did see you and I now know you want a drink. I will get to you.
Situation: You want to know my name (for whatever reason)
Appropriate action: When I get around to serving you, you may politely ask my name along with providing your drink order. I will likely make an on-the-spot judgement of you to determine whether or not you're a "yeller". If you seem on the level, I will tell you my name. If not, you'll get a fake name. Something that I can easily ignore. No offense, of course, but I'll still know you want a drink, and it won't make any difference to you.
Situation: You know my name.
Appropriate action: Use my name in situations like "Thanks for the drink, Danny!", or "Nice to meet you, Danny!" or "Congratulations on whatever thing you recently accomplished, Danny!" etc….
Keep in mind that I did not include the phrase "Danny, I would like a drink." Which leads us to…
Situation: You know my name and you want a drink.
Appropriate action: Wait patiently. As before, it won't take me long to see you waiting. Do not yell my name. Since I am already aware you want a drink, this serves only to demonstrate to me that you think you shouldn't have to wait your turn. This also makes me less inclined to want to serve you and may lead to a longer than normal wait for your drink.
Situation: Somebody asks you "What is the bartender's name?"
Appropriate action: Regardless of whether you know my name or not, you should simply say "I don't know." The reason for this is because the question "What is the bartender's name?" is almost without fail followed by "HEY DANNY! CAN I GET A BLAH BLAH BLAH AND COKE?" These people are referred to as "yellers". They are lumped in with the glass-tappers, the money/hand wavers, the bar pounders, and the whistlers. Of this group of very special people, the yellers are perhaps the most annoying, and usually get to wait the longest for service because of their brilliant contribution to my bar atmosphere.
Situation: You are my friend, you know my name, and you want a drink.
Appropriate action: Wait patiently. If you think you're my friend and are under the impression that yelling my name to get a drink faster is appropriate, you're probably not actually my friend. You're at best an acquaintance, and more than likely a random person who just asked the person next to you what my name is. You're also a "yeller". The difference between you and an actual friend of mine is that anybody who is actually friends with me knows not to yell to get my attention. And they probably tip better than you as well.
And you wonder why they always seem to get served before you.
So, there you have it. A veteran bartender's advice on how and when to use his name. Stay tuned for more bar etiquette posts; we've got lots of advice.
by Debbi | Sep 5, 2011 | Around the World
Our friends at Team Cocktail sent us this picture of a Sandbar shirt. They spotted a Sandbar fan wearing his shirt at the Team Cocktail tailgate party before the Kenny Chesney concert at Arrowhead.
Thanks, Team Cocktail! We've got another guest blog from them coming up in the near future with tips about the best tropical islands and drinks.
by Debbi | Sep 3, 2011 | Our Ghost, People
The Sandbar family got some bad news a few days ago.
One of our former employees, Dean, passed away this week. Even though we haven't seen him in several years, Dean remained near and dear to our hearts.
Dean started working here on Sept. 2, 2000. We don't always remember the exact date someone starts working, but this one was significant: it was the day manager Dave got married. Most of the staff was attending the wedding, and Dave needed someone to work.
Dean had become a regular at the bar, drinking Miller Lite and wearing loud Hawaiian shirts. And, he was from Florida. We couldn't have picked a better hire for a tropical beach bar! So, Dean's first shift was on a Saturday night, which was probably a normal Saturday until the wedding party descended after midnight and then left the new guy to figure out how to close the bar.
Dean was a trooper, though, and he figured it out. He was going to school at KU, working on graduate degrees in the music department. He loved the Florida Gators and made sure everyone knew it. Dean was a loyal employee and always willing to work, and everyone loved him.
Dean was one of the first people to experience the Sandbar ghost. Our first documented evidence of the ghost is from the night after St. Patrick's Day, 2003, and Dean was there to witness it.
He eventually finished his degrees and left Lawrence for Indiana. He was back in town in November, 2007, and Dave was thrilled to see him.
Then, he came back a few months later in March, 2008, and several of us were able to enjoy an evening of sushi and drinking with him. We'll always remember the fun we had that night.
The picture below was taken when Dean was here in November, 2007.
We'll miss you, Dean, and raise our Miller Lites in your honor.
We're hoping to plan a memorial at the Sandbar sometime soon, so Dean's friends and former customers can come together and share memories. You can also leave your memories of him in the comments.
Visit the Facebook memorial page for Dean to see lots of pictures and read many great memories that people have of Dean.
