BENGALURU: One sunny afternoon last week, my friend and I decided on an experiment — to determine whether popular pubs in the city entertain under-age drinking. And my, what an adventure it was.
We were excited, secretly hoping some pub would serve us free alcohol. Unfortunately — or not — we were just served a couple of glasses of still water.
Our first stop was at a pub on Church Street. We took our seats, and the first thing we were given was the drinks menu. “Aha. Our first defaulter,” I thought triumphantly.
We ordered a beer and a Long Island Iced Tea (LIIT). Now, the classic LIIT, like they say in the movies, is just a bad decision mixed enticingly in a tall glass.
But the management sensed something amiss, and immediately asked us for our IDs. We feigned surprise, but they shook their heads apologetically and said a while ago, they were caught serving minors, and ever since then they’ve been very vigilant.
They have notices plastered on their walls, against drinking below 21. We walked out gracefully. This one had passed the test.
Next, we hopped to a pub right across the street. We ordered some potent cocktail here — no, we do not remember the names, we are not connoisseurs — and waited patiently for them to bite the bait. Fun fact: This pub greets its customers with an enthusiastic, ‘We hate dry day’.
When it felt like we were almost going to be served, I jumped up and asked to see the manager. I proceeded to ask him what the legal drinking age was, and he said it was 21. When I asked him why he didn’t ask for our age proof, he sheepishly replied that they don’t usually see a young crowd on weekdays, and it was only on weekends that they had a bouncer downstairs. The management glared balefully at us as we hurried out... We weren’t particularly enthusiastic about running the risk of getting beaten up for this reality check.
At a couple of watering holes further up the road, we were going to be served our beers. But at that precise moment, again, we ran out, citing an emergency. They didn’t ask for our ID proof here either. Now I had begun to wonder — did I really look that old?
However, innocent visits to two pubs on the opposite line yielded better results. When we ordered alcoholic drinks — mostly beer, but once we wanted to be risque, and we asked for a Sex on the Beach — we were turned down. They refused to serve us without displaying our age proof, and we were impressed.
Our last and most entertaining stop was at a pub on the other end of the road. We order a mug of beer, hoping that they would ask us for our age proof. But no such thing happened, and I had to rush to cancel the order before we fled. However, before we left, we asked the manager why he didn’t ask for our credentials.
He replied in frustration: “What should we do? Asking and not asking for ID proof is a problem. Youngsters don’t come back when they are asked for proof, and asking women is a nightmare. So let them come and enjoy.”
I resisted the urge to laugh, thanked him effusively and left. These encounters were entertaining. But jokes apart, under-age drinking is cause for concern. Still, for all the effort, perhaps we might at least have been allowed a cold beer...
Before we left, we asked the manager why he didn’t ask for our credentials. He replied: “Youngsters don’t come back when they are asked for proof, and asking women is a nightmare. So let them come and enjoy.”