In this Bar Rescue episode, Jon Taffer has asked Spike Mendelson to visit Harbor Lights in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
Harbor Lights is owned by Dave Nennig.
After 20 years in the bar industry, he bought the bar in 2015.
He had been a bouncer and a bartender before owning the bar.
Business dropped after a while.
He brought in a manager with a background to take over bar operations.
The opposition at the bar is frustrating staff.
Staff also say customers hate to come in when Dave is there.
There is too much going wrong and the bar is four months from closing.
Spike is surveying the bar along with expert chef Brad Miller and expert mixologist Alli Torres.
They see the bar has a lovely old aesthetic and is in a great location.
The interior is all confused with no clear theme.
They see the owner and staff going about their business in the bar.
All of the staff have to make the food and drinks they collect orders for.
The kitchen is a small closet where the customers can see them operate.
Spies are sent in and they order the Bloody Marys that are supposed to be award winning.
They also get the Old Fashioned along with a grilled cheese that is made on the bar in front of customers.
The spies hate the Bloody Mary and it is loaded with weird vegetables.
Dave introduces himself to the spies and tells them restaurant secrets.
The grilled cheese comes and it is soft and mushy.
Spike sends Brad in to look at the food and drinks and calls out Dave.
Dave is bad tempered and does not have respect for his staff.
Spike has seen enough and heads into the bar.
Spike accosts Dave and grills him on the award winning Bloody Mary that does not taste good.
Dave is defensive and matches Spike’s raised voice with his.
He wants to work it out but changes his mind and takes all the criticism.
The next day, the staff and owner are all gathered and Spike meets with them.
Dave shares that he sold his home and quit his day job just to keep the bar running.
Spike asks Dave to leave the gathering so the staff can speak freely.
They are scared at first but tell Spike that Dave is verbally abusive.
He also throws stuff and shows aggression in front of vendors and customers.
No one is spared.
Dave is brought back in and the staff are asked to be honest.
Dave already knows he is a problem.
He is defensive saying that he did not choose to be hard, it is the circumstances.
While the staff are talking, Dave is disrespectful.
He is made to apologize to the staff and it is only the start.
The experts are brought in and training commences.
Alli has the staff make the world-famous Bloody Mary.
Alli tears it apart then shows them how to make a traditional Bloody Mary.
They train and it is soon time for the stress test.
Spike is looking for Dave to be a calm manager.
The customers are soon let in.
The kitchen notices they do not have enough butter for the grilled cheese.
The bar starts off slow, and as drinks go out, the customers complain the drinks are watered down.
The orders coming from the tables have no table numbers so chaos ensues.
Food starts to go out to the tables but the bar is left unattended.
The food that does go out does not look appetizing.
It all falls apart with orders getting forgotten and missed.
The food is awful and everyone is getting confused.
The night is shut down and Dave is made to apologize to the customers.
The night is a disaster but Dave kept his cool most of the time so they consider it a win.
The next day, Brad, in the kitchen shows them some new equipment.
There is an oven and a panini press.
He shows them how to make a proper grilled cheese sandwich.
Spike sits with Dave and Dave opens up on his life and motivations.
They connect and Spike gets him to try to pull from a place of positivity when dealing with his staff.
The team all get together to discuss Jon’s recommendations on the seaside nautical theme because of the surroundings.
Some time later, the renovations are done.
The staff and community are gathered for the unveiling.
The name of the bar has stayed the same but they have got new signage.
The staff get to see the interior first and the bar is now livelier and more upscale with a blue back light theme.
They kept the plaque and the kitchen has been moved from the closet to an actual kitchen space.
They have a new video and audio system, new draft system and new partender subscription.
There are Skytab POS systems along with two new tablets, a new ice machine and new equipment for the new kitchen.
The customers are soon all let in including Dave’s mother, who is a calming influence.
The bartenders go straight to work and the kitchen gets new orders coming through.
The systems are making things much easier and there is a dedicated chef cooking all the meals.
What Happened Next at Harbor Lights?
Six weeks later, new customers are interested in the renovated bar.
Dave is unhappy with the rescue and is still struggling to keep the business afloat.
Harbor Lights Coastal Sports Bar is open.
They have slightly renamed the bar by adding the Costal Sports Bar part.
Reviews are mostly positive.
There is praise for the atmosphere, food and drinks.
Click for more Bar Rescues
Previous episode - Interlude II Bar and Grill
Next episode - Top Shelf Sports Bar & Grille
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments will be moderated prior to being published. Those with spam links, offensive language or of an offensive nature will not be published. All comments are the opinion of the commenter and do not represent the opinions of the website owner.