Bartender says there's one thing people ask for that they really hate

Working as a bartender is not a job for the weak.

Spending your nights stood behind a noisy, crowded bar taking relentless orders from drunk customers can be an absolute nightmare to deal with.

However, if you're looking to improve your bar etiquette, there are plenty of bartenders on hand to tell you exactly what to do (and more importantly what not to do) when you head over to order your next drink.

Read the menu before going to the bar. (Getty Stock Image)

Now you may think that ordering a complicated drink - such as a cocktail - in a busy bar would be the biggest sin you could commit, but it turns out there's one phrase that bartenders detest more than anything in the world.

Unsurprisingly, if you've ever gone up to the bar and said the words 'surprise me' to a bartender then you've just committed a cardinal sin.

What's wrong with asking a bartender to surprise you, you ask? Sometimes a menu might be filled with obscure drinks you've never heard of, or you're feeling like venturing out of your comfort zone.

You may think you're being an easy customer by giving the server free reign to make whatever they like, however it turns out an indecisive customer is every bartender's worst nightmare.

No, your bartender doesn't want to surprise you. (Getty Stock Image)

Sharing her experience with Chowhound, veteran bartender Samantha Follows explained why hearing those two words is every bartender's worst nightmare.

She pointed out that in a crowded bar it's almost impossible to magically come up with a drink which is exactly to the customer's taste - and can often waste limited time and resources, especially if you're not fond of the mystery drink and request something else instead.

"​​It's like, do you like sweet drinks? Do you like bitter drinks? Do you like whiskey," she said.

If you're absolutely adamant on asking for a wildcard, make sure you tell the bartender any preferred drinks or tastes rather than forcing them to do extra unnecessary work when making your drink.

Fellows isn't alone in hating this request either, with bartender Ben Smith - @benjispears - blasting the phrase in a video on his TikTok account.

Just pick a drink. (Getty Stock Image)

While the video itself may have been staged - the customer revealed after asking for a surprise drink that she was allergic to pineapple, prompting Ben to hand her a beer.

The clip clearly struck a chord with an entire industry of exasperated customer service workers after going viral.

"Half of y’all clearly haven’t been a bartender, ‘surprising’ people is what gets drinks wasted and p****s people off when it’s not what they want," one commenter wrote.