70
Beverage Media
November 2012
“
I think one explanation for poorly
designed bars is that operators are of-
ten forced to make compromises be-
tween concept and function,” suggests
Steve Goumas, owner of the Rula
Bula Irish Pub in Tempe, AZ. “While
such concessions are unavoidable, the
result is often a great looking bar that
nightly operates in chaos. Those de-
sign changes might work on paper, but
the impact they have on bartender
productivity may result in lost sales
for the life of the business.”
The operational hubs of the bar are
the bartenders’ workstations, which
should always be facing out to the
bar top so that the bartenders can see
what’s going on. When designing a bar,
the objective is to position nearly ev-
erything a bartender needs to prepare
any drink within a six-foot radius.
Nice Ice, E-Z Access
The focal point of the workstation is
the ice bin. It should be constructed
of stainless steel with a rigid frame
construction. The balance of the
equipment and supplies should be po-
sitioned around the station to create
an effective use of space so that drink
orders can be made with a minimum of
wasted motion. Wasted motion nega-
tively impacts speed of service.
Since most bartenders are right-
handed, equipment and supplies
should be positioned so that there is a
minimum of cross-handed operations
required to make drinks, says David
Commer of Commer Beverage Con-
sulting and former T.G.I.Friday’s bev-
erage director. He explains, “Right-
handed bartenders naturally pick-up
bottles with their right hands and
glasses with their left. To maximize
efficiency, glasses should be stored to
the left of a workstation, allowing the
bartender to pick up the glasses with
T
o customers, a bar is mostly about what gets served. But to
operators, what gets served is intertwined with
how it gets served
.
While there’s no such thing as the perfectly designed bar,
some are much easier to work than others. Every misplaced step
the bartender takes costs the bar money in lost productivity. This is
precisely why smart beverage operators are passionate about how the
workstations are configured, as the logistics of drink production directly
impact a bar staff’s service efficiency.
AT
THE
BAR
Focus on Bar
Station Design
Thoughtful Set-Up
Can Improve Efficiency
&
Profitability
BY ROBERT PLOTKIN
WHEN DESIGNING
A BAR, THE
OBJECTIVE IS TO
POSITION NEARLY
EVERYTHING A
BARTENDER NEEDS
TO PREPARE ANY
DRINK WITHIN A
SIX-FOOT RADIUS.
