A Bar Without Bartenders Just Opened in Nashville and as a Former Bartender, I Have Thoughts

New Nashville Bar Eliminates Bartenders With Drink Machines

Recently, I saw a couple of Facebook posts about a new bar in Nashville that has eliminated the bartender. Yep. You walk up to a machine, stick your card in, select a drink, and then walk away. It's basically a soda dispenser for alcoholic beverages.

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Now, you might think, that’s great! Ew, people! But it feels like a slippery slope that could leave a lot of people without jobs. And the human interaction we desperately need just keeps shrinking.

As a former bartender, I have thoughts.

My First Bar Job at The Boiler Room in Owensboro

Many years ago, long before my time as an editor, I had a totally different life where I didn’t go to bed at 9:30 or turn down music that was "way too loud."

The day I turned 21, I spent my first legal night out at the Boiler Room in Owensboro. That name might bring back memories for some of you. My 21st birthday was also the day I got my first job at a bar.

My cousin Cindy worked at the BR and introduced me to the manager. I was a little out of it, but I left that night knowing I had to come back the next day to sign paperwork and start learning the business.

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What It Was Like Serving in a 21+ Bar

I really liked it because I previously worked at restaurants that served food and the only food the BR had was a self-serve popcorn machine and hot dogs on the weekends. Oh, and it was 21+.

I didn’t have to deal with people who wanted 14 types of dressing and that you ultimately couldn’t please, families who would stockpile phone books to get the coupon in the back that they'd use every week and tip on the discounted rate, snot-nosed kids who would take 20 minutes to decide they DID want chicken fingers and ketchup after all, or the couple who came in multiple times a week and tipped in homemade, moldy potpourri. Yes, all true stories from my restaurant server days.

Working in the Evansville and Owensboro Bar Scene

I started as a server. My job was to take the drink order at the table, tell the bartender what you needed, pay for it at the bar, deliver it to the table, and collect the cash. Hardly anyone used cards back then, and it was usually just to start a tab.

We had to make exact change, get drink orders right, and make customers feel comfortable. We also had to scan for underage kids with fake IDs, keep an eye out for fights, and watch for anyone who had too much to drink and needed a ride home.

Eventually, I moved up to bartender and worked in the local bar industry for years. I worked at the BR, the Duck Inn, Harpole’s, Marina Pointe, Oxygen, Moonlite BBQ Catering, and most recently Hush on Main (which sadly closed but the former owner is going to start hosting murder mystery dinners).

I was finishing my degree and going to school full-time. Working nights and weekends was my lifeline. The generosity of strangers through tips allowed me to live independently and support myself while I was a student.

I even kept bartending after I graduated because entry-level jobs don’t exactly pay the bills. Covering weekend shifts helped bridge the gap. And when a friend recently opened a bar and asked me to help out, that extra money came in handy for my daughter’s horse obsession.

Bars Are More Than Just Drinks

Bars get a bad rap. And yes, I saw sadness and meanness walk through those doors. But there were also laughs, celebrations, friendships, and memories.

Some of my very best friends to this day were made behind the bar.

As a bartender, you become a budget therapist. You look out for people who are in danger. You handcraft drinks your own way. You put on a show. You read the room. You create connections.

A machine can pour a standard drink. But it cannot read the room. It cannot dream up a wild shot that brands a bachelorette party’s memory into your brain. It cannot look someone in the eye and say, “Baby, you’ve had enough. Here’s a soda. Who’s your ride home?” And it definitely cannot sit quietly on the other side of the bar and listen to a broken heart spill out with the whiskey.

What Can You Do?

AI and robots could replace the equivalent of 300 million full-time jobs globally by 2030. Roughly 25% of work tasks in the U.S. and Europe will become automated, according to Goldman Sachs. Robots work faster, don't need pay or benefits, and you never have to worry about staffing issues, except when they go down. Ask McDonald's about their ice cream machines. 

I hope that if you see a bar that is replacing bartenders with machines, you walk away. RUN! Money talks. Some local grocery stores that eliminated check-out lanes with cashiers for self-checkout are going back to cashiers after theft increased and sales plummeted.

I get that you'll save a buck or two in tip money, but what are you giving up? If this is where nightlife is headed, we need to turn this around in a hurry. Because once the people disappear, the stories usually go with them.