Beer: A Social Beverage

Beer: A Social Beverage

No matter the time, the situations we find ourselves in are often defined by what we are eating or drinking. Within any restaurant you will find a different style and culture, especially when it comes to the social makeup of the restaurant. Some restaurants are intended to be places where you can be social and interact with other while others are just meant to be places for you to eat. This weekend I definitely found myself at a place that would be classified as the former. After driving for about twenty minutes I came across a bustling restaurant by the name of the Yard House.  Its entrance was filled with people waiting to be seated, and the sounds of classic rock and customers talking filled the air. After a slight wait I was able to be seated and my journey through the sights and sounds of the Yard House was ready to begin.              

                Immediately I was able to determine that this restaurant was dominated by one thing, beer. This was evident from the statement on the building’s sign, “Word’s Largest Selection of Draft Beer”. Once inside the restaurant I was able to see that the bar was situated in the direct center of the building. This was display of its centrality for the establishment. After being seated it was soon apparent that nearly every person that could have a beer was having one. Everyone from the twenty-something year olds on a date to the middle aged parents having a family meal was having a beer, and they certainly seemed to be enjoying it too. The patrons of the Yard House were connected not only by what they were drinking but also by the way they interacted with each other socially. I was unable to find a place in the restaurant where there weren’t people talking and enjoying each other’s company. This got me thinking that maybe these two were connected, and this became the focus of not only my time taking field notes but also during the following days.

                I began by looking into the role that beer has within my own cultural group. On college campuses all across the country young students experiment with alcohol with beer being probably the biggest type consumed. I have to say that the biggest way that beer is used in a college student’s life is as a social stimulant. They use beer as a way to spur them into meeting new people and having a good time. As people drink more beers, they become looser and more open to starting conversations that they normally would be too shy to start. Beer is also tends to be a beverage best enjoyed in a group; almost everyone that drinks a beer while in college does it while surrounded by their good friends. This was the same as in the Yard House where these people all had company while enjoying the wide variety of beer types.

                Through some online research I was able to find some more links between the social parts of life and beer. One of these links is the use of beer as a kind of social status indicator. The Social Issues Research Centre says that, “differences in age, class, status, aspirations, and affiliations are frequently expressed through beverage choice”.  This is clear when you compare the Yard House customers to average college students. The SIRC says that, “imported or ‘foreign’ drinks have a higher status than ‘local’ beverages”. This was shown by the attraction of the people at the Yard House to their variety of beer. With such a large selection, people are able to choose a beer that is much rarer than what they are accustomed to. Drinking a beer that is rare makes the drinker feel important unlike drinking a traditional, commonplace beer, and it also makes them look as though they are higher socially. College students on the other hand are forced to drink common, cheap beers. These beers have a reputation of being bad and poorly made, and this has a habit of then being projected onto the person drinking it. This makes college students appear to be at the bottom of the social ladder.

                The Yard House is a location where food, drinking, and fun all come together. Through an hour of observations it was able to give me insight into the ways people interact with a beverage like beer. It has connections to the way we interact socially as well as the way we view each other socially.