If you are a bartender, then it is important for you to know how to make certain drinks without having to look them up. When a customer asks for a drink, another customer may come up immediately after that and ask for another drink. As the bartender, you should know how to make certain drinks so that you don’t get behind. Other customers may get tired of waiting for the bartender to make a drink if he or she has to look it up.
Certain cocktails that are new or specific to a certain area are not expected to be known by bartenders who do not live there. However, the martini, Manhattan, Long Island Iced Tea, Old Fashioned, Margarita, Black Russian, Mai Tai, Pina Colada, and the Whiskey Sour are very common drinks that every bartender should know how to make.