Miller's Ale House - Lady Lake
 

We stopped in Saturday night and sat in the bar. The restaurant was crowded. We have been there before and always had a nice experience.

The bar tender was complaining under his breath to his girl friend who was sitting at the bar by herself about the "cheap" Villagers who would take up his seats and not tip. He went on to say every month they (Villagers) come to the car show at Spanish Springs and then crowd the restaurant not tipping.

His girl friend was taking up a bar seat with her lap top, phone and book open and did not order anything while we were there.

The two of them continued to complain about the guests saying they attend the car show looking at the same cars every month "but they all have dementia so they (Villagers) think the cars are different".

We found the remark rather insensitive.

We go to the car shows every month they are enjoyable. As far as tipping I'm a former bartender I always tip the bartender before ordering a drink you get a better drink and service.

Wow bartender is a real class act. Wrong not to tip the guy but he should not be having that conversation there.

sounds like the barkeep is an unhappy person...most likely through no fault other than is own...and in the wrong line of work

he's missing out on a lot of great conversations and the ability to create 'a following' as a result of his narrow mindedness

I've seen a lot of barkeeps in my day, some worked it like a Hollywood actor and were handsomely rewarded for their performance by the patrons and then there were the others that just seemed to go through the motions

...IMHO tending bar is 1/3rd knowing how to make a good drink, and 2/3'rds being alert and knowing how to work the crowd...it's all theatre

the secret to happiness is to go forward with joy, rather than going forward seeking joy

I would have not tipped, and upon leaving, I would have told him that I had dementia, and if I hadn't already left him a tip, it was because I forgot.

To me it is weird that so many people would go there after the car show when there are so many restaurants at Spanish Springs without getting you car and leaving the Villages. If he paid better attention to his customers, maybe he would get more tips.

Well, I'm sure his girlfriend will help him sweep before they leave the joint.

Wondering how the bartender knows all the folks are Villagers! They didn't arrive there by golf cart!

Probably just assumes

Let's see, over 120,000 old folks living in TV, doesn't take advanced algebra to figure what the odds are that the biggest share of the customers are going to be villagers. That and the entitled attitude so many have.

Unless she was holding a big sign stating bartender’s girlfriend, it could have been an assistant manager. They usually sit at the end of the bar with view of almost all of the restaurant, using a laptop and sometimes multiple cellphones. If you pay attention you will see a person in those spots in 90% of restaurants.

Even worse if asst manager criticizing their customers

Bartender prob. mad because he's not sitting home like his friend getting enhanced unemployment and minimum monthly income.

WOW!! Sounds like the same bartender at Cane Garden about a year or more ago saying the same stuff about the cheap Villagers. Hope the owner or manager sees and hears about that person. He needs to go work elsewhere!!

This young lady had her shoes off, sitting on her legs, short jean cutoffs with large tattoo on her upper leg. Not a manager.... at least not on duty. Pretty sure not an employee of this restaurant.

Maybe not his girl friend but a friend.

The whining about no tipping was secondary to the dementia comment. We left without having dinner after that comment and will think hard about returning. Hopefully neither of them have someone they care about suffer from dementia.

What is an appropriate tip? Many servers expect a 20% tip . Some provide substandard service and then call out the customer for being cheap! It's obvious the bartender doesn't know the Never Have Your boyfriend/ girlfriend at the bar.. He also shouldn't be spewing his problems out loud. According to your report the Ale house needs to clean house!

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I had an experience there a month ago. I had ordered a Prime Rib weekday special, (BTW I've had before it is excellent) to-go for pickup late at night near closing. About 15 minutes before I was ready to leave they called me and told me they had run out. OK no biggie. I had canned Chef Boyardee ravioli, to go with my bottle of 2010 Bordeaux instead. The next day I received an email request for a rating. So I replied, giving them a low rating, not really complaining but saying they should have estimated their supplies better. No sooner than I had hit the send button and the General Manager immediately called me and profusely apologized and sent me a 25.00 gift card.

Millers is a great restaurant and a wonderful addition to the area. The burgers are huge, the best I've had recently. The Mahi-Mahi sandwich is outstanding. Good selection of beers at a fair price. Service has always been great and the food is consistently good.

Squeaky wheel theory gets the gift card.

If I want a performance I’ll turn on my television or go to a play. I don’t want a bartender to perform. If it’s “all theatre,” the drinks will probably be poorly measured and mixed and won’t taste right. If I’m paying $10 or more for a fine cocktail, I expect it to be perfect: accurately measured, fresh ingredients (no margarita mix or bottle simple syrup or factory reconstituted lemon juice), top shelf liquor. I don’t want the glass to be sticky because the bartender poured six drinks at once from a bottle without measuring.

(But if it’s not that sort of place and it’s two-fers, I usually just a gin and tonic from the well or something like that, as I’m not sure a mixed drink there will follow the recipe exactly.)

But I tip really well and have only scorn for those who don’t tip or carefully count out ten percent of the cost of a beer as a tip. People need to make a living.

This is a common complaint among the wait staff near here. There have been several stories about cheap Villagers who leave little, if any, tip. There must be some truth to it.

No tip
 

No wonder he gets lousy tips.

Hopefully the owners will get wind of this and remind their employees to keep their opinions to themselves.

I guess the truth hurts many people. Tip like you should and you will have a happy employee who will go out ofhis way for you. Be cheap and leave a lousy tip or no tip then know that you deserve his comments. And there are MANY cheap Villagers. I have never had an issue and tip very well. Believe me, the workers remember you and treat you very well. Dont tip and you would actually expect anything but the bare minimum?

An interesting post. Yes, the bartender and the woman were both very wrong, regardless of her affiliation to him or the bar. Their behavior is quite inappropriate.
All of that being said why post this here. Tell the manager or investigate snd inform the owner.

On the other side, there is always some truth to complaints like this. Perhaps those of you that do not respect service industry workers, should start tipping. These people are often, depending on the state, paid less than minimum wage and they work for tips. They are not you servants, yip them.

If they were absolutely rude or terrible then leave them a dime.

If they tried but they just did not get the job done give them 10-15%.

If they were friendly, responsive and helpful then offer them 20-25%.

Stop being such a grouchy old fart and recognize their efforts, they work much harder than you think.

I presume most bartenders are pretty smart because I have to remember a few hundred recipes for drinks, however this bartender obviously will never get anywhere and has a bad attitude in life. Personally if I heard that I'd get up walk up to the maitri day or manager I mentioned to him that the bartender has a bad attitude. In actuality maybe it's hard to get decent help these days. But I guarantee the bartender is getting pretty good earnings from a filled up restaurant. He doesn't know how hard it is to work for a living like being a carpenter or bricklayer in the hot sun in the summer in Florida. Oh and by the way I would talk to the bartender and tell him he should quit as obviously he doesn't know how lucky he is to have a job in today's world

The last sentence is rather funny I thought. Ad to tipping I think although in general he's right. In part that's why katie beles is gone. People go in and sit and don't consume. I have been surprised how some tip terribly. Shame on them.

And the Winner is!!!

Ohiobuckeye
 

Next time you leave, leave him a Nickle tip!

I don't think so. My friends and I tip 20 to 30% and on occasion I have tipped 75%. I'm thinking some of this complaint of low or no tips may come from some of the less affluent locals nearby. There are plenty of non-Villager people that come here. This bar-keep needs to get another trade.

You reap what you sow.... A smile, a happy thought to your customer.... tips appear like magic.... distracted by your girlfriend..... no tip.... Always made "bank" bartending by being smart..... not everyone is smart....lol!

life is all theatre...

Interesting comments. During the peak of the pandemic and I was getting many pick up orders, I gave 20 to 25% as I’d see the runner bringing the order to the car. And some people think they didn’t wait on you like it at a table so leave a buck. It’s not fair to them because sometimes they work as hard as if they’re giving full-service. Having been a waitress early in my life I understand the need to get bigger tips.

I have heard that Asians respect their "elders". And maybe in some counties in Europe young people respect the retired age group. But, that does NOT exist in the modern US. There was SOME dwindling respect for the elderly when I was a child. I lived in a northern city, so maybe there was some mutual respect shown in the small rural towns of the south or midwest - that I was not aware of. I would be curious if someone has an opinion as to WHY the lack of respect? Perhaps someone with psychology training on that subject? Thanks.

Amazing how many defended the bartender and blames the customer.

If I owned the bar the guy would have been shown the door. Keep his opinions to himself.

I did a little bartending and serving growing up and considered any tip found money. My son also bartended and served at some of Atlanta's most expensive restaurants and low or non tippers was a real thing. Trouble is, servers and bartenders both have to tip out a percentage of a tab to other non-tipped workers. On top of that the IRS 'assumes' a certain level of tipping occurs whether reported or not and taxes accordingly. My son would come home some nights really beaten down when he worked all night for little to no income after tipping out etc. and he was ALWAYS considered one of the best at the restaurants and bars he worked. So although the bartender was frankly dumb saying the things he said where they could be overheard, my wife & I have a rule. If we can't afford to properly tip we don't go out to eat. Period. The only thing that will change that is when restaurant workers are all making $15/hr or more, if we can still afford to pay what they'll have to charge for the food & drink we won't have money to tip, too.

First of all I do agree that the bartender’s behavior and his friend’s behavior was inappropriate....

That said, after working at a local ACE for 5 yrs, 2 1/2 of those years as an Assistant Manager, I can personally attest to the fact that MANY, MANY Villagers are CHEAP !!! I won’t bore you with example after example but I will leave you with this “joke”...... that will illustrate my point....

A bar opened up just outside of The Villages serving draught beer for 10 cents and mixed drinks for 15 cents...... needless to say, the bar was packed all the time........ then one day an out of towner stopped in for a drink and noticed that there was a table of 4 sitting there not drinking....... the man asked the bar tender if he know why ?? The bar tender replied, “Oh, they’re from The Villages and they’re waiting for Happy Hour !! LOL !!!!

There is more truth to that story than you will ever know !!

And YES, I do live in The Villages, first home bought in 2005. We’re in our second home and will be building our third (and hopefully final) home later this summer.....;)

I would venture to say its a lot of truth.

Either way , complaining on a site that has only a percentage of those who live in TV is not getting any results. Most need to have first hand experience before not returning to an establishment.

If as a patron one is offended in any way, speaking to management would have been, a better result, even if one chooses to leave after. In no way will this post get to the establishment, and they will continue to serve customers, and those in question will continue to work there.

As for anyone they care about suffering from dementia, that is pretty much a given, considering the length people live these days.