From sports bars to martini bars, dive bars to whiskey bars; the atmosphere of your bar can completely change your restaurant and overall business.  For restaurants with bars, a lot of profit can be generated with liquor sales.  Having the right type of bar for the area is key.

Define Your Restaurant

First, it is important to compliment your restaurant with a suitable bar, not just have a bar with food.  It doesn’t make sense to bring down a classy atmosphere with a dingy bar area.  If your dining room is nice, the bar should match it.  For fancier establishments in upper-class districts, consider having a martini bar with well lit gin bottles on shelves behind the bar; if your restaurant is in a more blue-collar area, maybe a whiskey bar would be a better fit.

JOH_7396 by John, on Flickr.  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic License.

Design Your Bar

Because liquor sales can generate so much profit for a restaurant it is essential to have a well designed bar area.  Your space should be reserved specifically for having a drink or two, away from the quieter eating area.  It’s always a smart idea to have the bar at the front, so people can see the arrangement and varieties of liquors before even looking at a drink menu.  Also, don’t be cheap in your bar.  Buy the best equipment to attract the best customers.  To save a little extra money, buy everything you need at one time from big box retailers, or online discount sites like The Restaurant Discount Warehouse, and still get the best brands.

Be A Restaurant

Don’t let your bar define your restaurant.  If you wanted to be in the bar business, you should have opened a bar and not a restaurant.  Never be afraid to be selective with the variety or types of alcohol you serve.  The drinks should compliment your unique food, and the food should attract the customers; alcohol sales are just a good way to help bring in extra revenue to your business.