What makes a bar great?

[Cdubneeddeal]

music, friends, and some type of entertainment.

 

[RaDragon]

No cover charge.
No "Cash Only" bar.
Should have diff. types of "areas" -- booths/tables if you wanna sit, tall tables if you want to stand.
Loads of shelves or places where you can put down your drink if you want to.
No smoking throughout or designated "Smoking Area"
Servers who are actually nice and not bitchy all evening long.
Full-bar for fru fru drinkers

 

[ViperVin2]

hot bartender is a must. a few hot bartender is actually a must. good music with DJ playing live. a chill relaxed ambience. not a fan of smoking. keep a seperate patio for that.

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: ironwing

Originally posted by: UDT89

Originally posted by: ironwing
Non-smoking, no TV sets, music volume that doesn't blow your eardrums out, no drunks, non smoking, free sodas for the designated driver, good food at cheap prices (subsidized by the cost of drinks), and non-smoking, music that is dancible. Then again I might be getting old.

really no tv's?

TVs are annoying. If you're just going to get drunk and watch TV you might as well stay home and save a few bucks. Bars should be for socializing.

Lots of socializing about what's on TV as well (ie sports game or news)... and you don't HAVE to watch the TV

 

[Turnpike]

it depends on the type of bar you're trying to create. younger or older crowd? sports bar? afterwor/professionals k hangout? singles meeting place? college bar?

 

[UDT89]

guys thanks for all the replies.

yes im on long island in NY so there is no smoking. Nothing i can do about that. The place we're looking at doesnt have a patio or a kitchen, which im not thrilled about but from personal experience kitchen cost and upkeep sometimes outweigh any benefits it may bring. The NYS department of health arent the easiest to please. I might want to add an larger overhang outside for smokers, but here in NY people are used to going out front to smoke, its turned into its own social setting in a way

Its a small place, like 1200 sq ft, and is more a lounge/bar. the current business, been driving by every evening and weekend, is amazing. Always packed, and a weird mix of people. Seems to be both young, under 30 and older over 40. lol those mid 30's people i cant figure out. So if we get this place its pretty much already successful, but it could use a lively new owner to take it to the next level.

There also is expansion possibility with space next door, but i need to research it.

 

[LS20]

by far, #1 is good music (for downtown weekend type bar..but also applies to kick-back afterwork bars)... #2 is pricing, #3 is customer crowd

i dont care who serves me

 

[american trash]

Originally posted by: loup garou

Originally posted by: american trash
Foosball, dartboard, and drink specials

Funny that you posted in this thread. There's a bar called American Trash down the street from me.

Good name :thumbsup:

 

[HardcoreRobot]

girls in underwear

 

[LordMorpheus]

Originally posted by: loup garou

Originally posted by: mercanucaribe
The ambience. People would rather be in a nice bar than some crappy place with white tile floors and crappy card tables.

Not really. Some of the best bars are dives.

not 21 yet, so my opinion maybe not so valued.

Anyway, I spend a fair amount of time in bars for live music, my favorite place to hang out is a joint called Mojo's in Columbia, MO. From the outside looks like not too much, its actually a trailer, but the place is great inside. worn wood flooring and walls give it a great warm feeling inside, live music everynight, small local bands that are fantastic. I've gotten to know a fair amount of them, and when I'm in the area I love to go catch a gig at the place. Probably not what you are aiming at, but it would be my kinda hangout.

 

[UDT89]

the bar i worked in was a live music venue. We had some pretty big names come through there. check out the website The Downtown

it went out of business and i was trying to find a backer with enough money to help reopen it, its only closed 2 months, but i wouldnt even think of paying them what they want for it anyway.

yea so back to the topic.

I went in the bar last night, and it was once again packed. When i say packed, i mean 20-30 people all having a good time. I guess thats not really packed, but for a monday night i think thats pretty good for that area, its only 1600 sq ft. Plus it wasnt really a monday night football crowd, there were 5 people watching the game. I'll try to get pictures one day soon, but its hard without tipping off anyone there the bar is for sale.

 

[Pocahontas]

Clients, digital jukeboxs are the way to go, live music once in awhile, always have drink specials, have some kind of "happy hour", sell some kind of food, chips, prezels, always have meds too.

 

[UDT89]

Originally posted by: Pocahontas
Clients, digital jukeboxs are the way to go, live music once in awhile, always have drink specials, have some kind of "happy hour", sell some kind of food, chips, prezels, always have meds too.

meds?

im totally going the digital jukebox route, i love that thing

 

[DaShen]

Ambience, the general look of the bar. Pub, Retro, Advant-garde all have people that will be attracted to it. It seems though in Houston, bars are just a place to dress up and be seen, not as casual as some other towns. :thumbsdown:

 

[Scarpozzi]

This is the trick.....if you're in a college town, go searching the sororities for employees. Hire the hottest that apply with experience bartending or serving. They'll reel two crowds.....the frat guys (big drinkers) and the old men (other big drinkers)...but they're your beer crowd....have a good selection of brews for them. (it would be good to offer at least 15-20 kinds of beer....a bar here in town has 53 taps and at least 200 different labels in bottles. Anyhow.....Both of these groups will bring their S.O.s to the bar to drink and hang out with them and you'll have your third tier of customers. For these customers, you'll need to offer light mixed drinks in addition to the beer...as well as finger foods and things that they would come to the bar to eat even if they were drinking water. Just get a Robert Orr/Sysco book and see what you can order to flash fry and run a fryer in the back.

So that's the secret to running a good bar in a college town....it's not difficult, but you must remember to have live music and a place that people can dance if possible unless you hire a DJ. Throw promotions as often as you can for dollar domestics, but make shots accessible enough that people will want to buy them as well on those nights. It's good to have shot deals as well...premix a watered down shot and offer it for $3 per drink. It will save your bartender's time and allow for quick returns.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

Great beer on tap!

 

[UDT89]

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
This is the trick.....if you're in a college town, go searching the sororities for employees. Hire the hottest that apply with experience bartending or serving. They'll reel two crowds.....the frat guys (big drinkers) and the old men (other big drinkers)...but they're your beer crowd....have a good selection of brews for them. (it would be good to offer at least 15-20 kinds of beer....a bar here in town has 53 taps and at least 200 different labels in bottles. Anyhow.....Both of these groups will bring their S.O.s to the bar to drink and hang out with them and you'll have your third tier of customers. For these customers, you'll need to offer light mixed drinks in addition to the beer...as well as finger foods and things that they would come to the bar to eat even if they were drinking water. Just get a Robert Orr/Sysco book and see what you can order to flash fry and run a fryer in the back.

So that's the secret to running a good bar in a college town....it's not difficult, but you must remember to have live music and a place that people can dance if possible unless you hire a DJ. Throw promotions as often as you can for dollar domestics, but make shots accessible enough that people will want to buy them as well on those nights. It's good to have shot deals as well...premix a watered down shot and offer it for $3 per drink. It will save your bartender's time and allow for quick returns.

You sound like you were in the business at one time. I've done ALL that before lol.

My dream is to own a college town bar, but this is just a stepping stone and a learning experience for future ventures.

 

[shud]

I'll rank my preferences:

1. Drink specials! Honestly, you can sell $1 12oz drafts and make money. Do it once in a while.
2. Ambience
a. The crowd - plenty of sitting room or force people to stand?
b. The music - only allow the jukebox to be operated every once in a while...I'm sick of hearing the same fvcking classic rock songs all the time! One of the best bars around here is a Fox & Hound that plays new, edgier stuff most of the time and it's REFRESHING.
c. Televisions - going to show sports?
3. The beers you have on tap...I love going to a place that has Yuengling, Bass, etc. on tap.
4. FOOD! Our university has a happy hour on campus every Friday and they offer free food (good stuff...tortilla chips, hot dogs, grilled cheese, soft pretzels) during it. It's awesome. You need to have SOME kind of food unless you're running a pure college dive bar.

 

[broon]

Location is largely the key as well as drink menus. A good beer selection and martini selection is a must. TVs are OK but volume low. Live music (guy + guitar) on Friday/Saturday night. Seperate smoking section. Good food. There needs to be a gimmic like a mug club where you pay to have a mug stored there but you get it filled for less or something like that. Dart boards/pool tables/pinball are nice to have but require a lot of space that could be used by patrons instead.

 

[mitmot]

Originally posted by: andylawcc
hot bartender. /thread

qft

 

[Ausm]

Exotic dancers

Ausm

 

[mryellow2]

What draws the customers that are already regulars? Don't want to alienate an already established clientbase with big changes.

 

[gigapet]

1) good wings + cheap
2) atmosphere not so loud that you cannot hold a conversation
3) some obscure beers on tap
4) NO COVER CHARGE
5) NO SMOKING
6) NO BATHROOM LINES
7) Live entertainment a couple nights a wee
8) Hot babes getting hammered nightly
9) well drinks served in pint glasses
10) NIGHTLY BEER AND DRINK SPECIALS

 

[shud]

When I watch "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" it just makes me want to own a bar. When I watch "Scrubs" I want to work in a hospital. And when I watch jail movies I kind of want to be in prison. :/

 

[captains]

definitly need a full kitchen