HuffPost surveyed bartenders and etiquette experts on the propriety of sending back a cocktail, and the consensus is: it depends. Clear errors — wrong liquor, dirty glass, a stray bug — merit an immediate and polite request for a remake, sources agreed.
If the drink is simply not to your taste, experts say it's acceptable to set it aside and order something else, provided you're gracious about it and don't drink half of it first. Bartenders interviewed said they're mostly unbothered by sends-backs, though several admitted they're reluctant to do it themselves when they're the customer.
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