I like totaling everything in my head as I drink and paying with cash without interacting with the bartender when I want to leave. Plus tipping for beers by writing lines on a piece of paper feels all wrong.
I hear ya but this place was a bit different as "everyone knew your name." I even went to a couple of the bartender's weddings and still keep in touch with them ten years later.
That is the one benefit of paying with cash - if you are at a bar and need to go for whatever reason, you can drop down your money and just go. I did this once when an older gentleman was getting in my face and I couldn't get attention from the bartender to close my tab. Tender did get a shitty tip because I had limited cash, but also because I couldn't get his attention for the life of me.