The New School of Bartending Tattoos
If you glance through the hashtag #bartendertattoo on Instagram or TikTok, you’ll see a veritable grab bag of body art — a cornucopia of colors and styles offering tribute to one of the world’s most prominent professions. You’ll see black-and-gray Champagne coupes and wine bottles, script-fonted song lyrics dedicated to whiskey and rum, and linework designs honoring the city in which their wearers sling drinks.
Naturally, those in the thick of the scene pick up on these trends more than anyone. “I’ve seen a lot of bartenders with jiggers, shakers, mixing glass, and bar spoons tattooed on them,” says Thea Engst, a Providence-based bartender, recipe developer, and writer who’s worked in Massachusetts’ hospitality industry since 2009. But all art morphs with the times, and the specific ink on those behind the stick is no exception.
For the Love of the Game
“Just last night, I met a bartender in Williamsburg, Va., who had a Fernet tattoo — I’ve seen a bunch of those over the years, which speaks to the almost religious sacrament drinking is among bartenders,” says Greg Benson, a Brooklyn-based writer, former bartender, and host of “The Speakeasy” podcast. (His co-host, Damon Boelte, has the handshake-favorite inked on his chest.) “I’ve also seen a few Chartreuse tattoos in my day,” Benson adds, “Although I imagine they’re a lot more expensive to get now. Ba-dum tshh.”
One such professional with a Chartreuse tattoo: Kitty, a bartender at NYC cocktail bar Paradise Lost. Early in their career, they got a tribute to this line of work after quickly realizing it was their life’s calling.
“I was maybe two years [into bartending] and I was like, ‘I know that I’m going to do this for the rest of my life,’” they say. “This has always been my dream. … I have to solidify it. I have to get a tattooed.’” The ink, a pinup girl pouring an arc of Chartreuse, honors both the artistry and ingredients of the vocation.
“If you’ve ever sat at a bar and seen someone pouring from the bottle from above their head, but their jigger’s [on the bar], … it’s just this really long, beautiful pour,” they say. The industry veteran also has a “very ridiculous, cartoon, American-traditional purple snake” on their thigh, a playful design born on the back of a coaster during a post-Cinco de Mayo shift with a friend.
Throughout their years in the industry, Kitty has seen plenty of tattoo trends come into prominence, noting that, for some, “tattoos are a kind of benchmark of being a bartender.” They still see many peers in the industry with pineapple tattoos — a fruit that has, they explain, a complicated history and iconography. But in the bartending world, they remain a strong symbol of hospitality.
Other ingredient-focused tattoos may flow in a more metaphorical direction. “My first tattoo ever was a barley sheaf on my left arm,” says Benson. “The official story is that it’s about the dawn of human civilization when the domestication of grain enabled us to go from a nomadic hunter-gatherer society to one that could put down roots and establish laws, art, and, eventually, the modern world as we know it. But for the most part, it’s a beer tattoo.”
Given Engst’s expertise in cocktail recipe development — her most recent book, “Spirits of the Tarot,” covers 78 builds, each inspired by a card in the tarot — it makes sense that she has a Manhattan inked on her arm. “Strong and stirred is my specialty,” she says.
New Look, Same Vibe
While there may be as many bartending-themed tattoos as there are Margarita riffs, there are some through lines in the industry — some newer than others.
“It’s just so commonplace that tattoos are sometimes worked into events. Sometimes a gateway tattoo is one that you get during an event, party, or activation.”
“A couple people I know have a Negroni in the American traditional style,” says Kitty, but adds that these wearers are typically their age or a little bit older. “I think [big American traditional-style pieces] are kind of going by the wayside, and we’re starting to see more of what I think is called the ignorant style, [which involves] intentionally scratchy, wiggly, not entirely straight-looking coup glasses or rocks glasses.” If you’ve ever spotted a Martini, cocktail cherry, or a wine key sketched on your next server’s arm, you’ve seen the trend in action.
“I think that, for the newer generation of bartenders, they’re getting this really cutesy, smaller-line work as opposed to this really big, full-of-shading, full-detail style of tattoo,” Kitty explains.
Thanks for the Memories
Another growing trend that’s gained exponential traction in the social media era: tattooing and tending bar in the same space.
“It’s just so commonplace that tattoos are sometimes worked into events,” explains Kitty. “Sometimes a gateway tattoo is one that you get during an event, party, or activation.” At Paradise Lost’s own GamerBoy pop-up series, local bartenders John Nutter and Mikey Reihill brought an artist in to offer guests flash tattoos inspired by their favorite games and the menu’s drinks.
“Being a bartender, you’re always on display, and you become these walking billboards even more so than the average person who doesn’t work a job that’s so much in the spotlight.”
Sure, flash tattoos tied to events aren’t necessarily unique to the service industry. But thanks to bartenders’ natural talent for putting a creative twist on a classic concept, the two art forms feel harmonious. Benson echoes events as a good spot to mix drinks and ink, whether domestically or internationally.
“Many years ago, when I was working for BrewDog in Scotland, the company ran a promotion where anyone who got the logo tattooed onto themselves would get a 20 percent discount at all their bars for life,” he says. “I have no idea if they’re still honoring that, but a bunch of our regulars took them up on it — as did a few of my coworkers.”
Forged in Ink
Similar to the attachment you might form with the bartenders at your favorite neighborhood spot, hospitality workers often forge special bonds with the people who bring art (and joy) to their bodies.
“I think there’s a special relationship every person has with their tattoo artist,” says Engst, who has gotten multiple pieces by artist Dave Norton. “But there’s something unique for hospitality workers, especially [front-of-house] people, and their artists. Being a bartender, you’re always on display, and you become these walking billboards even more so than the average person who doesn’t work a job that’s so much in the spotlight.”
To that effect, Kitty says they’ve met new-to-the-trade, ink-free folks who worry about not looking like a “real” bartender — but there’s no one way for people in this industry to look.
“We all come in all shapes and sizes and genders and everything,” they say. “As long as you can make a good drink and make people smile, that’s the majority of the work.”
Ultimately, the link between bartender and ink can be summed up in a simple word: fun. It may seem reductive or even cliche, but it makes perfect sense for those whose livelihoods bring joy to countless people each day.
“Sometimes, tattoos have this big meaning that people put into them and take years to do,” says Kitty. But other times, they’re simply “little treats that you give yourself. … It’s the same thing as getting a cocktail.”
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