Given the way those burritos have returned to haunt Faye, I'm seriously concerned that the ER is definitely in her near future and the only involvement of alcohol will be in the antiseptic wipes she uses to clean herself up!
That said, I don't think that there's really any particular significance to Sven's presence, especially as nothing of any particular emotional significance came out of it other than Faye reminding herself that, just because he's attractive, doesn't make him someone she particularly likes being around. I've got this feeling that Faye has had a similar conversation with herself several times in the past year or so with varying degrees of success. The time when Bubbles used a kind of weird psychology to make Faye think twice is he closest she's come to falling off the wagon before this.
Yeah, I'm with you on this one. I also don't think, as many here seem to do, that Sven's presence or Faye's interactions with him here are having any bearing on her wanting to drink. It seems more like a general feeling of "needing" to drink whenever in a bar, at a party/celebratory environment, etc. You know, the general social expectations we deal with on a daily basis.
I like a drink every once in a while, but whenever I am visiting my father's side of the family for a birthday or something, I always get certain looks and even comments whenever I opt for a soda instead of alcohol (you know, just because I feel like it), because it is socially expected to drink and if you don't you're weird. In fact, I know some relatives will have alcohol even when they don't really feel like it, because they feel like they 'need' to.
This appears to be a good development of Faye realizing that it is in fact not a need but a desire. This desire could be due to actually wanting the drink itself, or a desire for a drink to feel part of the occasion and/or social group.