The Alibi / Garnet Lounge - Bar Rescue Update - Open or Closed?

In this Bar Rescue episode, Jon Taffer visits The Alibi in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Alibi is owned by Artie Coury, who opened his own bar in 1998.

He spent decades working in the industry working his way up from glass washer.

He hired his friends including Joey to manage the bar and they were successful and made $500,000 in a year.

Artie turned to his love of racing until he got into an accident.

His staff had free rein and turned the bar into a raunchy playground driving customers away while he was recuperating.

Artie did not rein in staff but added his love of racing to the decor of the bar, which alienated customers more.

Artie is now $200,000 in debt.

Jon recons the bar with expert mixologist Mia Mastroianni and expert chef Nick Liberato.

The entrance to the bar is confusing and the call-to-actions are telling of how much people hate the bar.

Jon has two females as his spies to the bar’s services.

They are left at the bar and no one attends to them.

The men who come in just before them are attended to.

The bartenders are drinking champagne from the bottle behind the bar and not even hiding it.

After nine minutes they are attended to and the drink they order is bad.

The cook claims he is a five-star chef and no one can tell what he is cooking.

There is a blow-up doll sitting at the bar and the spies feel uncomfortable.

The food ordered arrives and the meat is so tough.

The guys just send it back and they have to comp the meal.

There are too many sexual comments in the bar that is not female friendly.

Jon goes into the bar and the ceiling fan is causing the light to blink, which can be a problem.

Jon has all the staff gather and they admit to how much they have drunk behind the bar from the top shelf.

Jen was supposed to work but was stopped because she was too drunk.

Jon calls them out on all the comments made that night and the sex toy.

Jon leaves angrily and Artie gets into it with Jen who leaves.

The next day, Jon meets with the staff and introduces his experts who give a rundown of what they noticed.

Mia commented on the random stuff disrupting the bar.

The beer is sitting in exposed ice that does not look like it has been changed recently.

There is sludge in the drain and in the kitchen there is grease almost everywhere.

The chef says he is too busy working to clean.

They are all made to clean the bar and kitchen before training commences.

Mia checks on their basic skills and corrects mistakes.

Nick trains the cook on making a steak properly.

Jon has a quick word with the staff on respecting Artie and his money.

The staff apologise to Artie and promise to do better and be more responsible.

The stress test starts.

They soon fall behind and they run out of glasses.

Artie is told to step up and he finds some new ones but trips and breaks them all in the back area.

The drinks going out are not good as customers complain.

They shut the test down as it is a disaster.

Jon tells them they should have given free drinks for the botched steak rather than comp it.

The next day, Jon comes in and training commences with female-centric drinks and food that fits the demographic.

Jon meets with staff and tells them motorsport is not a good concept and Artie is resistant.

Jon sits down with him and finds out his story.

Mia trains the bartenders on some female friendly drinks using jiggers.

Nick trains the cook on making soft food that women would like, cooking with turkey and creating a sharing meal.

Jon meets with the bar staff so Artie can make true on his word and give Joey more authority.

The bar is then renovated over thirty-six hours and the staff are gathered to see their new bar.

The bar has been renamed and is now called Garnet Lounge.

There is a big new sign, the call-to-action is ‘ladies’ night, every night’.

The bar has been updated with hints of pink and red that is not too feminine but is upscale.

The bar is more open and there is a bottle display.

There are new glassware and the back bar has been updated with little menus.

The ceiling fan has been removed and they have new uniforms for the guys and girls.

They quickly set up for the relaunch and the mostly female customers are let in.

On relaunch, the bar gets to work with the cocktails.

The customers are loving it all from the drinks to the bar’s decor.

The bar is overwhelmed and they are encouraged by Artie to work faster.

The kitchen is making great food, going out on time and no food is being sent back.

Joey is doing more and is visibly supporting everyone.

What Happened Next at The Alibi / Garnet Lounge?

Six weeks later, it is revealed the bar is attracting more female customers.

They have increased sales by 20%, and the blow-up doll is gone.

The Alibi / Garnet Lounge closed in December 2013.

The closure was due to their debts and changes in the local economy.

Click for more Bar Rescues

Previous episode - Bungalow Bar

Next episode - MT Bottle / MT Bottles and Cans

This post was last updated in February 2022.