Hot Takes from One of the Largest Bar Trade Shows

Earlier this month, Pre Shift readers joined us for a special event at Bar Convent Brooklyn in partnership with Square.

The Pre Shift Lounge offered a space for bartenders and other industry professionals to recharge, unwind, and connect with fellow attendees. We gave away limited-edition Pre Shift x Square swag along with gifts from brand partners like Jacobsen Salt, Yeti, Lauren’s All Purpose, Naomi Soap, Smithey, Bixby, Psyche and The Reluctant Trading experiment.

We hosted the event at Sahadi’s, who provided coffee and bites, and — of course — we also had a bar. There were plenty of Bloody Marys, Pineapple Jalapeño Margaritas, N/A Mojitos and more to go around.

BCB is one of the largest bar and beverage trade shows in the world, so we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get the industry’s hot takes on everything from overrated drinks to underrated ingredients to the red flags and pet peeves they can’t stand behind the bar. Here are some of the standouts:

If you were able to make it, thanks for stopping by! And if you missed us this time, we hope to catch you at the next. The best way to know about future lounges and other industry events is to subscribe to Pre Shift—we’ll let you know when we’re popping up in your city next.