243 replies to this topic

[trojan69]

One thing I love so far is that there is no hard and fast budget that is allegedly in place. The Downey's reno had to be expensive as all get out. I also liked that we didn't see the reno in progress. The reveal was new to us as it was to the owner.

I'd love to know how they managed to obtain permits in a city notorious for bureaucratic indifference and hyper sensitivity to historic districts. The outside banners were definitely an improvement, yet I can't believe they were approved and installed inside of a week.

This story says the place owes back taxes in excess of $100K. Why am I not surprised?

Taxes, schmaxes

Edited by trojan69, Jul 30, 2011 @ 8:37 PM.

[Tahitian Moon]

I'm so excited that somebody else watches this show. I have never worked in a bar, so I had no idea that they could be such cash cows. Even that dump Racks took in a crazy amount of money per week (before it went down the drain). I love seeing all the little tips that the consultants come up with to pump up revenue.

[Maddingcrowd]

I find it hard to believe they were trying so hard to differentiate themselves from the attached gentlemens club and then came up with the name Racks. I also wonder why we didn't see anything from the kitchen. They mentioned how the fresh baked pizza came straight off the cardboard. All in all, I think they might get some initial customers but don't see it lasting long term.

[dizzylizzy]

I wouldn't go into Downey's after what I saw there. If you need an expert and his camera crew to tell you that having bags of trash in your kitchen and a dead mouse on top of your pizza oven and oysters that look like gray jello are bad things, I don't want you cooking for me.


And I agree Racks was a funny name for a bar trying to differentiate itself from it's strip-club sister bar. I gotta wonder what he did for the food there as it was pretty much not addressed after the pizza-on-cardboard incident.

[trojan69]

Another very expensive rehab. Nice deal for the owners.

I have my doubts that Tom wold maintain his humility and work so hard, but if he has, that is excellent. I really liked the older brother. Smart guy who had a heart. The chef was a cool guy, as well.

I noticed at the end it was claimed that a revenue increase of only 15% was claimed. That does not seem like a lot for an underused facility like that. A profit percentage would have been a better barometer of the success, or not, of the changes.

There is no way that the server (Peter) would have been fired as he was without a significant number of prior issues.

I used to go through that part of Chicago with some frequency. It is not bad, but it is not the haven of disposable income as we were told. It is a very representative area with which to see the "real" Chicago, though.

[CatrionaK]

Don't you imagine Tom hired Peter back as soon as Jon left town? People in that industry, can't they be fired at will? What would be Peter's recourse? But it does seem like he was unfairly scapegoated for doing something that the rest of the staff probably did as well (eating on the job).

It's depressing how gross these places look in the "before" segment. I don't think I could ever bring myself to go to Downey's after seeing that mouse on the oven.

I have to say I don't really like Jon, find him rather unpleasant. But he seems to get results!

[trojan69]

There is no way that the Irish to beach bar can make it so long as that Carlos dude is there. Talk about a Rasputin! This had to be one of the most wasted business interventions in reality history.

Yet, I do love that we get the effect of the reveal with no prior clue. The design they came up with was most definitely a huge improvement. I liked that the bar staff didn't fully grasp all the new drinks at first. This was a very realistic touch.

The best moment of this ep for me was when Carlos was mocking/challenging the "mixologist" that Taffer brought in. This was classic. Dude had a point as the staff was not responding very well. Here, too, I am at a loss to recall such an "in your face" to one of the hero fixers brought in on a reno.

As a viewer, this was a very interesting ep. But, it was an epic fail in real terms. Not JT's fault, though.

[h1joly]

I find it hard to believe they were trying so hard to differentiate themselves from the attached gentlemens club and then came up with the name Racks.

I don't think they were trying to separate themselves from the strip club, just make sure people knew there were two different businesses. Seemed like the atmosphere of the bar was that edgy, biker, not-quite-a-strip-club feel, and that's fine... They just needed to be making money with that concept.

I am surprised by how much I enjoy this show. I'm sure if I met Jon in person I would hate him, but he totally knows his craft and I'm really interested by all the science behind what makes a successful bar. I like that there are no fake budgets or unrealistic timelines.

[cjames]

I didn't think I would like this show because it's on Spike and I thought it would be more of a copycat show than something original. However, I'm definitely warming up to it because they've changed the format and events in ways that I love, like:
- how JT quotes statistics and talks about how small changes can result in big profits.
- that he brings in experts from different areas to help the staff because to me, he's admitting that he doesn't know everything.
- that we don't see the work on the bar until the reveal and that there's no stated budget.
- the soft open that they do to gauge reactions to the changes and to give the staff a chance to practice their new skills before being slammed with a huge crowd on opening night.

There is no way that the Irish to beach bar can make it so long as that Carlos dude is there. Talk about a Rasputin! This had to be one of the most wasted business interventions in reality history.

ITA. I think Carlos brainwashed the sisters into believing that they knew nothing and he knew everything when in fact he had no clue how to be a GM. Case in point: when things were going south behind the bar he blamed the mixologist and the new drinks instead of taking charge and making things run smoothly.

Sad as it is, if the owners can't/won't fire Carlos, they deserve to fail.

[la llorona]

Wow-- I used to live in Redondo Beach, practically right across from that Irish bar on the pier. I finally moved, not because I didn't like my place, but because I got tired of listening to screaming drunks and bad music carrying across the water on summer nights when I couldn't close my window.

My sister and I went exactly once for happy hour, just to check it out. It was overpriced and trashy, & mostly full of tourists. I think the 'beach bar' theme was a good idea, and will likely draw more regular patrons because it doesn't look like a dump anymore, but that Carlos dude needs to walk the plank.

I am surprised by how much I enjoy this show. I'm sure if I met Jon in person I would hate him, but he totally knows his craft and I'm really interested by all the science behind what makes a successful bar. I like that there are no fake budgets or unrealistic timelines.

Me too! I keep thinking that this is what Kitchen Nightmares used to be. More constructive ideas, more focus on marketing, etc., not scripted situations and silly drama. Hopefully it won't all go to hell like the aforementioned.

Edited by la llorona, Aug 10, 2011 @ 3:14 PM.

[Maddingcrowd]

I really found this last episode (Swanky Bubbles) to be strange. Something seemed left out of the equation. First off, Jon was kid gloves with the absentee partner and never asked him why he wasn't spending time in his own bar. Second, the scenes where the other partner (I think his name was Ryan but not sure) but comping everyone drinks just looked scripted to me.

Then we get the soft open with the new name which everyone seemed to like but instead of revisiting the bar, we see a postscript written at the end that the name was immediately changed back to Swanky Bubbles and that the bar failed to attract the required 2/3 women. What was the story with that? I also find it odd that Jon was so insistent about having more women come in. In every bar I have ever been too, there are more men then women. I think that just increasing paying customers should be the main goal.

I don't think they were trying to separate themselves from the strip club, just make sure people knew there were two different businesses. Seemed like the atmosphere of the bar was that edgy, biker, not-quite-a-strip-club feel, and that's fine... They just needed to be making money with that concept.

Jon did say that they needed to differentiate themselves from the strip joint-hence the new outside decor. He also said he wanted more women to come in and they wouldn't if they thought the bar was affiliated with the club. I'm sure he thought of the names Racks for the pool tables, but it just doesn't work for me in conjunction with the strip club next door.

[dfwabel]

I think that I like this show more than the restaurant makeover shows, however Jon Taffer still does not "look" right. He is like a mix of
Attorney Robert Shapiro, WWE CEO Vince McMahon and Andy Rooney's eyebrows.

[trojan69]

I didn't like the way the ownership at the Bubbles was so laid back. It was as if they knew something Jon did not. It turns out they did: they got a free makeover with no intention of changing things up.

The other odd thing to me was how Jon handled Tim, the super slow bartender who somehow redeemed himself as a food server. I simply did not see the sea change in the dude's character. He should have been launched with no chance of return.

I felt badly for the GM. He was obviously passionate about getting it right, but ownership wouldn't back him. I bet he flipped out when ownership reverted back to the old set-up after a short time.

Edited by trojan69, Aug 22, 2011 @ 11:59 AM.

[LoneHaranguer]

I don't think Jon is saying much to many of these owners about what they should do that they don't already know (outside of the statistics of the why). They just don't have the money. And, when it comes to worker attitude, it helps not to work in a dump. Can the bars be fined for the health code violations that appear on the show, or does an inspector have to catch them first-hand?

Who puts "swanky" in the name of a bar? That's a word a lout uses for someplace better than a dive. It may have fit the place pre-makeover, but wasn't the bar supposed to have been better than that when it originally opened?

[AladdinSane]

I just caught a preview for tonite's ep (8/28):
Jon can't get a chef to consult for the restaurant in the bar being rescued so he enlists the help of Spike Mendelsohn sans hat from what I was able to determine. <snark>

[trojan69]

If Jeff, the GM, was such a good "veteran" of the industry, how on earth did they continue to have 2.5 pours? Unreal. He seemed to be a diligent worker, but he can't have had much more of a clue than the owner for things to have become so bad.

I noticed they installed the same auto-pour mechanism for the draft beer that they used last week. This time, however, no mention of it. Instead, we got a lecture about the temperature being the key to minimizing waste. The Sam Adams pint glasses were pretty cool, though.

Any bets as to whether that Spring chicken wife is the first marriage for the owner?

I am stoked for the next ep! They are rescuing Champs, on Burbank Ave., in Burbank (just East of North Hollywood) which was the first bar I went to when I moved to the Valley some years ago. I never could understand why it didn't do better. The way they handled transactions had some gaping holes in it. Methinks Jon saw the same thing. (I hope he doesn't mess with the cheesesteak sandwich. yummmm)

Edited by trojan69, Aug 28, 2011 @ 11:18 PM.

[Maddingcrowd]

I think this was a good episode but I'm not convinced Jon can truly analyze the bar's problems without going over the books. Changing the pours to the proper percentage and changing the menu is a good idea, but he really needs to look over everything from salaries, to liquor and food distributors etc.

I did think it a little odd that their were not a lot of prominent televisions in the reveal. It seems like most of their crowd were sports bar types. It always seems like Jon wants to bring in more women and fancy drinker types; but neither women or the occasional fancy drinker type will be regulars.

They really need an identity like sports bar, college bar, yuppie bar etc. Not quite sure what they were going for here. As for the idea that kids are never a good idea in a bar; perhaps not in that area. But in the Chicago area, places like Buffalo Wild Wings, even Hooters have become family friendly and have huge crowds 7 days a week. Again, it would depend on the area.

[dizzylizzy]

Is Champs the one where there is a thief?


I am finding this show endlessly entertaining. I felt really bad for the owner's wife in this one (The Bone). He seemed like a hothead control-freak. I know I would be majorly pissed at my husband if I had to ditch my nice house and move to a condo 75 miles away. It wasn't surprising to me that she was much younger as this control freak seems like he would require a significant power imbalance in his marriage. I was pretty impressed that John kept working after the owner stormed out and I was sorta impressed with the owner that he came back and apologized. And I loved Spike in Top Chef and I still love him here.


All the nasty kitchens are squicking me out though. I am definitely more nervous about eating out.

[Paxton]

I saw this show for the first time last night--and I like it--but fell asleep before the end of the episode with Kilkeny's; can someone let me know how it turned out? Those sisters were scarily incompetent and it should have been obvious long ago that Carlos was a negative, not a positive. The two things I don't understand about this type of show is (1) how can people not understand that being clean is critically important in any business in which food and drinks are served, such that there is NO EXCUSE for the filth that they look blankly at (not to mention nasty nastiness like raw chicken breasts floating in undoubtedly dirty prep sinks) and (2) how can they not understand that they need to have a simple, clear point of view and stick to it? Who wants to go to a family-friendly bar, for heaven's sake? That doesn't even make sense. Or an Irish-named bar with nothing Irish about it.

I do feel like the show has some, though not enough, good information about how to actually run a profitable business. I always like focus on things like, how much alcohol should go into each drink in order not to cut into your profit margin and what causes waste.

[GoMocs]

The Chicken Bone which became The Bone was on tv Sunday night. It is all over the news. It was the bar at which Obama's illegal alien uncle was arrested for public drunkeness. Strange seeing a little hometown bar profiled on Spike TV and then the next day it is all over the news.


And from just two shows this is a better done show than Restaurant Impossible or Kitchen Nightmares. They have Robert Irvine and Gordon Ramsey acting like buffoons. RI in particular always has the "we aren't going to finish the remodel in time" scene with RI saying it has to be done!

Edited by GoMocs, Aug 30, 2011 @ 9:12 AM.

[misterbfd]

If Jeff, the GM, was such a good "veteran" of the industry, how on earth did they continue to have 2.5 pours? Unreal. He seemed to be a diligent worker, but he can't have had much more of a clue than the owner for things to have become so bad.

It is my understanding that Jeff wasn't allowed to change the pour, the owner felt that the generous pours were generating a lot of business for him. That much may have been true, but he was losing his ass on those sales.

I noticed they installed the same auto-pour mechanism for the draft beer that they used last week.

Turbo Taps.
http://turbotap.com/

All the nasty kitchens are squicking me out though. I am definitely more nervous about eating out.

Take it from me, unfortunately, it is actally worse than you think.

[mrsbaty]

My husband and I have been watching this with a friend of ours who is planning to open a business soon. Not a bar, but they will be serving things like coffee and smoothies. I think this show has really affected the way he plans to operate.

[Paxton]

On the Champs episode, it seemed to me like the bar was plentifully staffed (with thieves, lol--they all looked like, "whuuutt?" at Jon pointing out giving away drinks was stealing from what's-his-name) but the kitchen just had the cook and that's it. I felt like the kitchen definitely could have used two cooks because I could easily see how that guy was getting overwhelmed. If he was responsible for prep AND cooking AND cleaning I hope he was making a lot of money.

[LoneHaranguer]

I don't think it was really stealing because the generosity was what it took to get the customers and the owner knew it.

[trojan69]

This was the most disappointing ep for me. I was a patron of Champs for years. The problems described were very real, and then some. However, the fix they went for was a classic case of form (and cheapness) over function.

It's a friggin sports bar. Where is the BIG screen HD TV? Where are the smaller wall-mounted HD TVs? The kitchen is a ridiculously small space. No expansion of the space? Really? There is room on the North side of that building to expand (right where the kitchen is). If the choice was to renovate the "dated" exterior or to expand the kitchen, they made a lousy choice.

I was very interested to see how Jon would increase the flow of the two rooms. The solution is laughable. That first room, where the bar is, is tiny. There is no point to any flow between these rooms. If they really wanted to create some type of flow, they would have had to knock down the divider, which now also serves as the back of the bar itself. Again....on the cheap they did not do the right thing.

While the pour discipline was essential, the drink concepts were ridiculous for that place. It is decidedly NOT in an upscale area. In fact, it sits on the extreme-Western edge of Burbank. It is essentially in North Hollywood. If anyone needed one of those fancy-schmancy beer tapping mechanisms, this was/is the place. Again....cheapness prevails.

Another problem for Champs is that the Dodgers are in severe decline, and the Lakers are in decline. I believe Jon made a big mistake in deciding to keep the sports bar theme. Any local would never buy any type of upscale re-branding, so I don;t know what he could come up with. But, isn't that why he got the big bucks all these years as a consultant?

It's ironic to me the the announcement that this show has been renewed came after the airing of this ep.

Edited by trojan69, Sep 15, 2011 @ 9:53 PM.

[ubi]

I caught the newest ep last night but missed the begining exposition of why the town was pissed off at Angry Ham. What happened?

[misterbfd]

The city didn't like the name "Angry Ham's" because "angry Ham" is apparently a derogatory name for people from Framingham. But there's a lot more to the story of the struggles around Angry Ham's that wasn't discussed on the show:

http://www.metrowest...o-not-giving-up

LB and Richie had a combined SIX arrests for DUI. No wonder the city didn't want to grant them a liquor license.

[sweetlilvoice]

Just caught some of the re-runs of this show online and I like it a lot. I hope next season is good. I think this is a good take off on Restaurant Impossible but minus a lot of yelling and stupid deadlines. I wish there was more of a 6 weeks update so we would know how business was doing and if things really changed.

[runningoutofnam]

For those complain about the layout and the emphasis on getting women on that is what makes bars money.

It's a well recognized formula to make profitable bars. Look at numerous chain bars they all have the same artificial layout. A sports bar unless it attracts a number of women or serves food that is considered good with a high profit margin will not survive on the clinentle you think a bar should have namely a man cave. Most of the man cave bars went out of business unless they turned into gay nightclubs.

Kitchen Nightmares.

Never watched the British version of the F-word have you? The American kitchen nightmares concentrates more on the screw up owners because the American restaurants are worse then the worst of the worst British restaurants.

It was the bar at which Obama's illegal alien uncle was arrested for public drunkeness.

You mean the one he didn't even know? Sorry he has a lot of relatives on his father's side that he only meet once or twice in his lifetime.

Why should what they do have any bearing on him?

[Ktwo]

Bar Rescue not so appreciated by Piratz Tavern in Silver Spring, MD