With students cramming into Athens' drinking establishments, local bar owners do all they can to prevent under-agers from getting in and getting served.
We don't tolerate it at all
said Bill Stamp, owner of The Union Bar & Grill, 18 W. Union St. We do everything we can to deal with the creative things kids do to get drinks here.
The Union cards at the door. Patrons under 21 receive two large X's on the backs of their hands.
Most kids go out of their way to rub them off. Some have even gone as far as to put Vaseline on the backs of the hands Stamp said. The Vaseline allows for a person to rub off their X-stigmata with greater ease. I catch them all the time anyway Stamp said.
Stamp said those caught trying to get served are informed of what they are doing wrong and are asked to leave.
At Skipper's Bar & Grill, 22 W. Union St., manager Mike Korbee said his establishment used to use the X-method but moved to wristbands after underage kids were washing them off.
It's that big of a problem for us
he said. Those under 21 are given a different color wristband than those over 21. If you're wristband is gone
you're gone.
People also try to sneak in their own beer to the bar he added. Sometimes
at the end of the night
we'll find a can of Natty under a table.
Mike York, manager of The Blue Gator, 8 N. Court St., said the most common method he sees underage kids using to get served is asking over-21 friends to purchase alcohol for them from the bar.
But our bartenders are trained to ask to see their wristbands
York said. It's not that big of a problem for us
though.
Both those over and under 21 involved in the illegal transaction are kicked out of the bar, York said.
One of the most creative things I've seen was the time one kid acted like he fell
and distracted our bouncer while another
his friend
