Two Martinis, Empty Stomach, Keys on the Bar
At 7:40 p.m., a 115-pound woman who arrived at 6:55 p.m. straight from a workout orders her third vodka martini. Each martini contains 1.5 oz of 80-proof vodka. She drank the first two quickly, finishing the second by 7:35 p.m., and has eaten nothing since lunch. She is flushed, laughing too loudly, and her words are slightly slurred. She insists she is 'totally fine,' says she lives ten minutes away, and asks you to hand over her car keys along with the drink. House policy allows you to offer food, call a taxi, or involve a manager, and the bar is busy with two other servers on the floor.
1. Estimate her approximate blood alcohol concentration and explain why the number is only an estimate. What does that estimate tell you about serving a third martini?
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Pure alcohol per drink: 1.5 oz × 0.40 = 0.6 oz. Two drinks = 1.2 oz of pure alcohol.
Widmark-style estimate: BAC ≈ (oz alcohol × 5.14) ÷ (body weight in lb × r), minus roughly 0.015 per hour since drinking began. Using r ≈ 0.66 for women: (1.2 × 5.14) ÷ (115 × 0.66) = 6.17 ÷ 75.9 ≈ 0.08. Subtracting about 0.01 for the ~45 minutes since her first drink gives roughly 0.07.
Why it is only an estimate: her drinks may be poured heavier than 1.5 oz; she drank on an empty stomach, so absorption is fast and she may still be rising toward peak; body composition and liver metabolism vary; the elimination rate is an average. Her actual value could be at or above 0.08.
Service decision: the legal limit is not a safety threshold. She is already showing visible impairment-flushed, slurred speech, volume-so a third martini is out. The estimate supports the refusal but does not replace observation: you refuse based on visible impairment, not on a precise number.
2. What do you do about the drink and the keys, and what do you say?
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Do not serve the third martini and do not hand over the keys. Handing keys to someone you have just judged too impaired to serve undermines the refusal and creates foreseeable risk.
Say it plainly and without judgment: 'I'm not going to make you another drink-you're showing signs that you've had enough, and I'd be doing you a disservice. I'm also not comfortable giving you your keys right now. Can I get you water and something to eat, and call you a cab or a rideshare?'
Practical steps:
- Keep the keys secured per house policy; do not physically struggle over them.
- Offer food, water, and a ride; give her time to cool down.
- Involve the manager early, especially if she becomes angry or insists on driving.
- If she attempts to drive, follow house policy-manager intervention, and call police if necessary to prevent a foreseeable crash.
- Document the time, observations, refusal, and actions taken.
Reasoning: the goal is to separate her from the car and from more alcohol while preserving dignity. A server who refuses the drink but returns the keys has solved only half the problem.
3. She says she will just wait 30 minutes and then drive. Does that resolve the situation?
Read the worked answer
No. Elimination is slow-about 0.015 per hour on average-so 30 minutes removes only about 0.0075. If she is near 0.07–0.08 now and still absorbing her second drink, she may not even have peaked. After 30 minutes she could still be around 0.06–0.07 or higher.
Food and coffee do not lower BAC. They may make her feel more alert, which is worse because it can mask impairment. Only time reduces BAC, and impairment in judgment, reaction time, and coordination begins below 0.08.
Response: 'Thirty minutes won't be enough to make driving safe. I'm happy to keep you here with water and food, but I can't give you the keys on that plan. Let me call you a ride-you can pick the car up tomorrow.' If she refuses, escalate to the manager and follow the house plan for preventing an impaired drive.