In years past, a bar’s regular patrons could often count on an unofficial but consistent token of the staff’s appreciation: the good old “buyback.” Bartenders and bar owners would remove a drink or two from the regular’s tab before closing it out, reducing the patron’s nightly expenses as a nod to their loyalty.
But recent chats with bar hoppers around the country and the bar owners and bartenders who keep them well-quaffed confirmed something that we already suspected from our own anecdotal experiences—buybacks aren’t nearly as common as they used to be. So what happened to this friendly “secret handshake” between bar regulars and bar staff? And if buybacks are no longer viable for bars in 2025, how can bartenders show their tried-and-true guests how much they’re appreciated? We went to the experts to find out.
Buybacks used to be a fundamental part of operating a bar, but the end of this tradition has been coming for several decades.
The buyback’s heyday dates back to the 20th century; although plenty of bars continue to offer this perk, the practice is nowhere near as widespread as it would have been decades ago.
“In my experience, people have long forgotten the ‘buyback,’" says Abby Ehmann, owner of Lucky and Hekate in New York City. "It hasn't really been standard operating procedure since the 90s."
A few factors contributed to the buyback’s fade, but the obvious involves the higher costs associated with operating a bar in the 2020s. As costs rise and profits dwindle, bar owners have far less room to offer freebies to long-time customers.
“If fewer bars are handing out free drinks, I would assume it's because profit margins have been reduced to almost zero,” Ehmann tells us.
Another reason for the buyback slowdown? Potential liability for the participating bars. “The brakes began to be pressed on this practice more than 20 years ago when intoxicated guests who got into accidents [discovered that they] could sue the bar/restaurant as well as the bartender/server who served them. This became a real liability for the operation and many places began stopping this practice,” says Izzy Kharasch, president of Hospitality Works, a consulting firm focused on the bar & restaurant industry.
Also, the growth of large restaurant groups and the presence of fewer and fewer independently owned bars could be a contributing factor. “When I first started bartending in Pennsylvania nearly 19 years ago, I might not have known the term ‘buyback,’ but it was definitely a common practice," says Adam “George” Fournier, a veteran beverage director in Los Angeles and a consultant for Bottled In Bond LA. "Over the years, and especially once moving to Los Angeles and moving into more standardized, corporate settings, the idea of a buyback has definitely been something I've seen less and less of."
But the final nail in the coffin for widespread buybacks was the COVID pandemic. “I think the pandemic really marked the turning point,” says Matt Piacentini, managing partner & director of operations at The Up & Up in New York City.
He also points out that drinking culture since the pandemic has changed in many urban areas, with cocktail bars growing at a faster pace than dive bars and other casual (and lower-cost) establishments. “I think there is a fundamental misunderstanding on the part of the public as to what they are paying for when they order a drink at a bar. It’s not just the ingredients. The ingredients are the least expensive thing that goes into the calculation of a drink’s price. The drink they order has a big job to do. It has to cover the cost of the ingredients, the portion of rent for the space the seat is occupying, the payroll of the staff who’s making it, serving it, cleaning up after everyone has left, liability insurance, trash pickup, electricity, and every other cost incurred in keeping the lights on. People think a comped drink only costs the bar a couple dollars of booze, but it actually costs much much more.
"Keep in mind also that in a dive bar, people might order four or five drinks in a night, while at a high-end cocktail bar like ours, the average per person is only two," continues Piacentini. "Buying one of those back is a 50% loss in revenue for that cover. It’s not feasible in an NYC cocktail bar where the average guest only orders two drinks before moving on."
Instead of “buying back” drinks, many bars have shifted to offering additional drinks for free.
In the strictest definition of “buyback,” the term refers to a bartender removing an already-consumed drink from a regular’s tab (thereby “buying” the drink back from the guest). According to Ehmann, this model incentivized regulars by encouraging them to stay in their seats and keep drinking to get the most out of their “reward.” “Back when people expected buybacks, it was a nice gesture to make customers feel welcome," she says. "I always recognized it for what it was: If you're paying $6 per drink, and you get the third one for free, it's really just reducing the price of each drink. So the drink cost is $4 when you get the third $6 drink for free. It seemed more like a tactic to keep that customer in their seat spending more money."
But “buyback” has also been used as shorthand for any kind of regular-patron freebie, and in today’s market, many bartenders and bar owners prefer to add a “gift” to their guests’ tabs rather than removing a drink.
“Instead of buying back drinks, we give something extra," says Piacentini. "When someone orders a drink, they have already agreed to pay for it. If I let the person pay for that drink and then give them something extra, like a shot of good whiskey or even a whole additional drink, I am still getting the $20 to cover my expenses and am only losing the cost of the ingredients for the extra item. The math is simple. It’s the difference between losing $20 of expense coverage or $2 of bourbon.
"In addition to saving money, it also fosters an understanding among staff that people come into the bar to spend money, so let them," continues Piacentini. "If they spend a lot, or are really nice, you can still show gratitude without hurting the business. I think the method of giving extra instead of buying back works really well. People feel just as special, and that’s the whole point of the business, isn't it?”
Some bars choose to put comp tabs in place to account for gifted drinks.
While buybacks and comped drinks have traditionally been “off the books” deals, some bartenders are now seeing the merits of building these gifts into their accounting models. “I definitely have seen and implemented dedicated ‘comp’ tabs to allow for certain giveaways and guest appreciation," says Fournier. "I also try to build in specific beverages that can be added on to guests’ experiences to enhance them. But I do believe in tracking all goods to make sure that costs are appropriately documented."
Special events, price transparency, and generally excellent service can be ways for bars to show their appreciation without offering buybacks, as well.
As our consulted bar pros explained, buybacks and free drinks for regulars can be difficult perks to offer when margins are as tight as we frequently see in the industry these days. That’s why it can be helpful to come up with other ways to show appreciation for loyal guests and industry friends.
Overall, “the best way to show appreciation for guests is to give them incredible service," says Kharasch. "If my bar and restaurant clients have great guests who come in once a week or more, we might comp them their desserts or an appetizer. We also do the same thing for recovery [to make up for a mistake or poor service].”
Another idea involves a focus on price transparency; with menu prices growing higher and higher by the day, it can be helpful to shed light on what exactly your guests are paying for, whether that be with notes on the menu, bartenders who are trained and ready to explain the value of their ingredients and methods, or social media posts that allow followers to see behind the curtain of the cocktail development process.
Guests like to feel appreciated and bartenders/bar owners like to reward their devoted repeat customers. Finding ways to do that without compromising the bottom line is a worthy challenge for hospitality pros, and we commend the bartenders who take on this task every day.
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