Question about service (shift-changes)

I was at a local drinking establishment this weekend - you can figure out which one if you read the thread where I ask about good bar locations - and was faced with a tipping/complaint situation I didn't know how to handle.

The crux of the issue was that our visit (I was there with a friend) straddled the afternoon shift-change behind the bar. The first bartender provided adequate if not above-adequate service. Not the friendliest guy in the world, but he took multiple appetizer orders from us, cleared dirty dishes, made sure we had plenty of napkins, etc. About an hour after we arrived at the bar, the first bartender moved to the other side of the bar - drinking with a coat on - and a new bartender took over behind the bar.

We had zero interaction with this new bartender. A number of dirty dishes were left on the table for some amount of time (the basketball game we were watching went into two overtimes) and never were we offered another round (did I mention the game went into two overtimes?). I wasn't really wanting another round, but would have liked the bartender to acknowledge the dirty dishes and/or the empty glass in front of me.

I knew I was going to have to do something about the situation, but, after my team royally killed over and died, I just wasn't in the mood. The breaking point was that I had to go to the bar and ask for the check. In presenting the copy for me to sign, the bartender went out of his way to thank me for my business in the form of "I really appreciate it." There's just something beyond tacky about preemptively expressing thanks for a tip you did not earn (at all). I took the bill back to the table, discussed the situation with my friend, and decided to leave a paltry tip and call it a day.

I wish I had said something to the manager (who well could have been this very bartender), but, mostly due to frustration directed at my team, I just decided to move on to better things (a home-cooked meal upcoming). I also wish I knew that the first bartender was not screwed over by this second bartender. It was clear the first bartender had his people and the second one had his (UK regulars). The first was nice enough to treat us as customers while the second was too self-involved to seem to care. Did I screw over the first guy in some way?

I had a five-dollar bill in my wallet and that was it aside from plastic. I considered leaving the second guy no tip (on the slip) and giving the five to the first guy, who was still at the bar. Decided against as my least desired end was to get into the middle of an unnecessary situation.

What would you have done? What about the people in the business? How are these "shift-changes" supposed to be handled?

Most likely the first guy got the tip or part of it. He may have been off the clock but I bet he said to Bartender number 2. " Those are my guys there.. Leave it in an envelope." That is what my guys would do. Of course you never know.

I definitely would have followed your instincts and given a tip directly to the first bartender.

This used to happen to us a lot when we started our evening festivities later. We would start a tab and close our tab before the shift change so that we could tip the first bartender. If we didn't open a new tab or get anything else from the second bartender, there is no need to leave a tip. You have to catch the bartender before they cash out though. Sometimes it's more trouble for them than it's worth to settle you up after the fact. Another idea would be to not leave a tip for the new bartender and give the cash to the first bartender which I think you mentioned.

I worked in the biz for a short while, so I'm not completely in the dark about these things. Just rusty on protocol that varies from locale to locale.

The reason I did not end up giving the 5 bucks to the first guy was, for no other reason, than he 1) did not offer to close up with us or 2) acknowledge that the new dude would be taking care of us. I used to go to the Granville just about every Friday. We were regulars, so I went out of my way to make sure I closed the tab with the afternoon barkeeps and re-opened it with the evening staff. The "close/re-open" maneuver is the waiter's responsibility to make happen, not mine.

The first dude didn't check in with us at the end of his shift and the second dude never checked in with us. Managing the shift-change in hopes of maximizing money made involves teamwork. These guys clearly didn't have it, or, more likely, just didn't seem to care enough to put it to work. I'm thinking the second dude made plenty on the UK game.

I think I'll just keep the five bucks in my wallet and give a little bonus to the next really-good server I have. Or for that matter, one that is really really bad but at least trying.