Pub etiquette is designed to promote sociability in a society known for its reserve.Standing at the bar for service allows you to chat with others waiting to be served. The bar counter is possibly the only site in the British Isles in which friendly conversation with strangers is considered entirely appropriate and really quite normal behaviour. "If you haven’t been to a pub, you haven’t been to Britain."This tip can be found in a booklet, Passport to the Pub: The Tourists’ Guide to Pub Etiquette, a customers’ code of conduct for those wanting to sample "a central part of British life and culture".