As I mentioned earlier at weeklystandard.com, not only is Grey Goose vodka easy for a bartender to grasp thanks to its long neck—it also makes for a handy weapon.
As noted by the New York Post, that bottle (used in a fight between club owner Adam Hock and the entourage of the prince of Monaco) cost $500 since it was brought tableside as part of the bottle service.
Really? Half a grand? Seems like only yesterday bottle service would set you back a mere $300. In that first mention of bottle service in the New York Observer in 2004, Sheelah Kolhatkar writes:
The table-comment card that Crobar employees fill out after each table settles its tab says everything about the mercenary nature of the bottle-service enterprise. In addition to writing in the customer’s name, the number of people, the brand of liquor ordered and the check amount, waitstaff evaluate the group on “Easy to Sell?” (“YES/NO”), “Group Appearance” (“Great/Good/Bad”) and “Rating” (1-10). The information is stored in a database, so the club can keep track of whom to coddle and invite back and whom to give the cold shoulder.
We were so innocent back then.