Start a Sports Bar & Restaurant
The combination of alcohol, food and professional sports has allowed sports bars and restaurants to thrive in the United States. These venues range from national chains, such as Buffalo Wild Wings, to local sports bars and restaurants that serve hundreds of patrons each night. Aspiring bar and restaurant owners may not realize that hundreds of these businesses fail each year due to saturation of the marketplace. Your sports bar and restaurant has to offer good food, plenty of televisions and something different from competing bars to survive.
Instructions
1. Explain your approach to competing with established sports bars and restaurants in your business plan, which should detail sponsored events and future investments that will make your business competitive in the first five years.
2. Locate a retail space near local arenas, stadiums and fields that will offer regular traffic to your sports bar and restaurant. Look for old restaurants and storefronts that match your ideal layout for a bar, a small stage and seating.
3. Apply for an operating license and health permit from your city before opening a sports bar and restaurant. Submit copies of your business plan, rental agreement and other documents pertinent to your business to smooth the licensing process. Schedule a health inspection with a city inspector to determine if restrooms, kitchen spaces and dining areas meet minimum health standards before opening.
4. Register for a liquor license with the state government. States like Vermont require applications, application fees and a recognition of state liquor regulations before licenses are issued. Hang your liquor license behind the bar to show that you will adhere to state liquor laws governing underage drinking, designated drivers and other situations.
5. Install tables, bar stools and booths throughout your sports bar and restaurant with good sight lines in mind. Your furniture from a wholesaler, such as Millennium Seating, should be arranged for clear views of the wall-mounted TVs. Select a variety of seating options to accommodate families, large groups and individuals coming to your establishment.
6. Write lunch and dinner menus for your sports bar and restaurant that are geared toward customers for each meal. Your lunch menu should feature foods that are lighter and quicker to prepare for busy professionals taking quick breaks. The dinner menu can be more substantial for patrons who are willing to hang out after work and school.
7. Arrange for monthly deliveries of food and alcohol to your sports bar and restaurant through a food wholesaler. Your food wholesaler should stock traditional bar fare like pizza, burgers and fries in addition to specialty items, such as crab, that can set your business apart from the competition. Diversify your alcohol selection by mixing wholesale liquor and beer with foreign brews that cannot be found elsewhere in town.
8. Subscribe to a satellite TV service, such as DirecTV, that features special rates for sports bars and restaurants. You should request satellite boxes for each TV in your business to make it easy to switch between football, baseball, basketball and hockey games depending on customer preferences. As your sports bar and restaurant grows in the future, you can invest in specialty sports packages that transmit every game in each sport for diehard fans.
9. Employ waiters, cooks and bartenders that can fill every shift at your sports bar and restaurant. Look for novices and experienced hands who have outgoing personalities and the ability to handle difficult customers. Your entire staff should arrive during the week prior to opening to set up chairs, go over ordering procedures and get acclimated to the restaurant environment.
10. Promote your sports bar and restaurant at least one month prior to opening to get a good crowd for your first weekend. Hire temporary workers to hand out coupons and flyers in high-traffic areas in your city through your opening weekend. Post a large sign outside of your building to promote the grand opening that matches the message and look of other advertisements.
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