Neil's Bahr

I love(d) this place & been coming here for years. I'm also trying really hard to support local businesses right now bc I understand how hard they've been struggling. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be returning here for a while, or at least until there is confirmation that one particular EXTREMELY rude & hostile bartender is no longer there. Unfortunately, I didn't catch her name bc I just wanted to get out of there as quick as possible.

When I first walked in & ordered a drink, I had zero issues. Bartender was a v friendly gentleman, great service, tasty drink, happy me. The rest of my group trickled in, & after we'd all been in the bar for a while drinking & enjoying video games, we decided to take a break on the patio.

At one point, one of our group members went inside for a drink, came back out looking halfway baffled, halfway peeved. He told us one of the bartenders - a young woman whom he didn't recognize as a regular - had been massively rude to him for asking questions about different beers. Apparently they were out of what he normally drank (no big deal in and of itself, places run out of stuff sometimes), but she was incredibly rude & unhelpful when he was trying to decide on an alternative choice. She also seemed to be clueless about the bar's own drinks and inventory, in addition to having terrible people/communication skills, which is not good for a bartender.

I took it in stride at first, thinking maybe it was just a miscommunication or something because I've NEVER had a rude bartender there, ever. I don't think this member of my group had ever ever had a rude bartender there either, hence why he looked baffled in addition to peeved.

We shrugged it off, then a bit later, I went up to the bar to order another drink. The gentleman who helped me earlier was gone, & instead was a female bartender I didn't recognize. I wondered if it was the same person, but didn't give it much thought bc I was just going to order the same drink I'd ordered earlier, & there was no reason to think anyone would have any reason to mess with me.

Yeah, wrong conclusion. She was so rude I told her I didn't even want the drink, I just wanted to leave. Her general demeanor seemed to give the impression she viewed customers as nuisances and annoyances, and she viewed our very presence and existence with disdain. It's the first time a staff member there has ever made me feel like I was some sort of unworthy lower life form, and since this is a "nerd bar" with clientele who are already more prone to social anxiety, this was an extremely distressing situation & not a good vibe for a place that's always stood out as having a warm, welcoming atmosphere.

I can totally understand bartenders who are tired, dealing w big crowds of rowdy jerks, or just having a personality clash with a certain customer. However, the bar wasn't crowded, nobody I saw was being rowdy, the party member who'd ordered the beer was mildly buzzed at best, and also one of the least likely people to start problems with a bartender, as he's worked in the industry himself and knows what it's like.

I just wanted another drink, and I've also worked in a fast-paced customer service job, so I tend to easily forgive someone for just being rushed or for communicating in a way that comes off as merely curt or terse. This, however, was flat out hostile and rude, which is an entirely different deal. Additionally, I was barely buzzed at all, and I'm also female, which rules out the possibility that her rudeness was due to wariness of male patrons because someone had been harassing her (which, unfortunately, is something female bartenders often do have to contend with, and while it wouldn't excuse her being rude to the other member of my party, it would at least somewhat explain it).

After that, we simply left, which was a shame bc we wanted to hang out longer & intended to spend more money there. We were also, however, trying to enjoy our time and relax, and since this woman had put at least two members of our group extremely on edge & a third was afraid to go order another drink at all due to being extremely confrontation averse, Neil's was not the environment we wanted to be in.

As we walked to a different bar down the street, the member of our party who used to bartend talked about how one of the most important aspects of the job is having the ability to "read people" & interact with them in a way so they'll have a positive experience. This bartender was the opposite of that, & because of her, Neil's lost out on us buying several more rounds of drinks.

I'm honestly hesitant to go back bc I don't want to deal with the stress of wondering whether she's working that day or not, & I definitely don't want to have to put up with the ordeal of having to interact with her if she is. This is a horrible shame because I used to love this place, but this experience has really, really put me off the idea of wanting to go back if there's any possibility she's there.