"The next topic was on bar design. Bar stations should be thought of as cockpits with much consideration going into tools, ingredient, and equipment placement. For efficiency's sake, everything should be in arm's reach plus or minus a pivot. Cheater bottles can help as can bartenders learning to be ambi-dexterous so that no time is wasted reaching across your body. Paul McGee added to the cockpit concept by suggesting to "treat your well like it's a desert island and make sure it is stocked for the entire night.""

As an outside observer, I'm fascinated with how tiki bartenders do their work. I can make a night of sitting at the bar and watching the assembly process. I've stolen at least one tip from every bartender I've watched for more than a few minutes. All that being said, this small peek from Frederic Yarm's visit to Tales of the Cocktail into how 3 different busy tiki bars (Lost Lake, Hale Pele, and Dirty Dick) prepare for a Saturday night of service was right up my alley.