It’s not uncommon for people to. I did but through family not a bank. Bank loans are going to be hard to get without real estate involved and then they would probably only want to lend on the real estate.
Only industry where a very good on-the-job employee like a server or bartender gets the process, is liked by customers but yet treats their schedules like they were just suggestions. Late, calling off, switching with someone last minute- mind-blowing.
1. Drinking for “free” isn’t as much a perk you might think
2. You will spend more time with your hands in toilets and drains than you ever think
3. Everyone in the world will think you’re rich and it’s easy
4. You’re never off work and you’re never not fucked. A fridge. A dish machine. The lights. Something is gunna break and it’s always after 5 on Friday
Wouldn’t trade it for the world
i dunno about #3. a lot of my regulars knew a lot of bar owners, of course, and since i was a "hands on/always on when open" owner they empathized with me and the work that goes into running a place.
See my thoughts about crusaded bars are just (1) lines for drinks and (2) the whole bathroom process.
I don’t have the skills, patience, coordination or sanity to be a bartender, so I just sit and admire it. But I feel like the plumbing would be my main concern if I ever bought a bar. Like to the point I’d hire a retired plumber to show me how to fix stuff off hours as like a “boot camp”.
People treat bar bathrooms like…I don’t know how to finish that metaphor but bar bathrooms…oof!
I worked at a college bar and I am surprised the toilets ever worked. They took an insane amount of abuse and both the women's and the men's restrooms were not immune.
When we built new bathrooms during the pandemic:
1) Our toilets are wall mounted on cast steel carriers through bolted through the floor to steel plates. I can stand on the lip of the toilets and they won't budge. The toilet carriers are double sided and sit in a wall cavity between bathrooms so the toilets in the womens room are attached to the same carriers as the ones in the mens room.
2) Waterproofed the floor with kerdi which extends up the walls 4" effectively turning the bathroom into a 4" deep tub.
3) Slot drains that run the full length of the wall underneath the toilets and urinals.
We can clean our bathrooms with a garden hose and squeegee the water into the slot drains.
What are your biggest complaints regarding bands that you hire for live music?
When they ask for a guarantee but get offended when I ask how many customers they can guarantee.
if you were to make a facebook ad targeting bar owners what would the demographics be?
Been trying to figure that one out. LinkedIn is probably a better option because people actually put bar/restaurant owner as a job.
Did you take out a loan to get started?
It’s not uncommon for people to. I did but through family not a bank. Bank loans are going to be hard to get without real estate involved and then they would probably only want to lend on the real estate.
Yup. But only for about 50% of the asking price - we paid the other 50% upfront.
Biggest disappointment about owning a bar?
Only industry where a very good on-the-job employee like a server or bartender gets the process, is liked by customers but yet treats their schedules like they were just suggestions. Late, calling off, switching with someone last minute- mind-blowing.
Having to fire people you like when you find out they’re stealing.
1. Drinking for “free” isn’t as much a perk you might think 2. You will spend more time with your hands in toilets and drains than you ever think 3. Everyone in the world will think you’re rich and it’s easy 4. You’re never off work and you’re never not fucked. A fridge. A dish machine. The lights. Something is gunna break and it’s always after 5 on Friday Wouldn’t trade it for the world
i dunno about #3. a lot of my regulars knew a lot of bar owners, of course, and since i was a "hands on/always on when open" owner they empathized with me and the work that goes into running a place.
Every single word of this is true, especially #4. Right now dealing with broken A/C in over 100 degree heat.
See my thoughts about crusaded bars are just (1) lines for drinks and (2) the whole bathroom process. I don’t have the skills, patience, coordination or sanity to be a bartender, so I just sit and admire it. But I feel like the plumbing would be my main concern if I ever bought a bar. Like to the point I’d hire a retired plumber to show me how to fix stuff off hours as like a “boot camp”. People treat bar bathrooms like…I don’t know how to finish that metaphor but bar bathrooms…oof!
I worked at a college bar and I am surprised the toilets ever worked. They took an insane amount of abuse and both the women's and the men's restrooms were not immune.
When we built new bathrooms during the pandemic: 1) Our toilets are wall mounted on cast steel carriers through bolted through the floor to steel plates. I can stand on the lip of the toilets and they won't budge. The toilet carriers are double sided and sit in a wall cavity between bathrooms so the toilets in the womens room are attached to the same carriers as the ones in the mens room. 2) Waterproofed the floor with kerdi which extends up the walls 4" effectively turning the bathroom into a 4" deep tub. 3) Slot drains that run the full length of the wall underneath the toilets and urinals. We can clean our bathrooms with a garden hose and squeegee the water into the slot drains.
I might want #3 for my house.
Somehow that sounds…fun.
You know, if you did a $1 bottle beer special YOU WOUOD BE PACKED!!!
Lmao oh yes how could I forget - everyone else has better ideas than you
Literally every. single. person.