Bar Rescue, the nightlife cousin of shows like Restaurant Impossible and Kitchen Nightmares, is a reality series we could keep watching forever.
Jon Taffer is essentially the bar-version of Gordon Ramsey, who uses his over thirty years of experience as a food and beverage industry consultant to help desperate nightclubs, bars, and pubs reinvent themselves so they don't have to close.
But the job is an expensive one for owners of an already failing establishment. They must remodel their bars, buy new equipment, and on top of it all, someone has to pay the bill for Jon's high consulting fees.
"When I started Bar Rescue," host Jon Taffer tells Bro Bible, "I said to the network, 'Listen guys. I don't want to be set up with bars that are easy. If I'm going to do this, I want to get the worst disasters in America. Find me stuff that I can't do easily, give me challenges."
Fans of the show know that the network listened, and that Jon's task to fix these bars up is often a tall order. "I NEVER realized they could be this bad, to be honest with you," Jon adds. "You typically don't see depths of failure that bad in normal life. These people are disasters."
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Bar owners or anyone who wants to nominate a bar or nightclub can fill out a straightforward application, though show producers often do open calls in cities where they plan to film, or on some occasions, even call the bar themselves to inquire whether they're interested in appearing on the show.
Jon tells Bro Bible he's "astonished" at how hard the bar owners fight back when he's trying to help them remodel.
"For some of these people," he explains, "they're $900,000 in debt. They've lost their homes, their lives are on the line. They can't afford to buy me lunch, much less pay me a fee for being there! So I show up with a checkbook and 30 years of experience. You think they'd be thanking the heavens. It doesn't happen that way."
The 'Bar Rescue' finances are complicated.
The television network foots a lot of the upfront costs, and individual companies also cover many renovations in exchange for exposure on the show. Fans will notice that Jon often mentions how his friends hooked them up with this or that, and frequently repeats the company's name to fulfill their exposure on the series.
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Some sources say that the network's budget is quite big, in the $100,000 per episode range. These fees helps cover construction, tables, seats, a POS system, and bar taps. Accordingly, the show covers the fees for a few months until the bar reaches stable footing, at which point it's up to the owners to take over the lease terms.
And as Jon gets equity in each bar he helps remodel, in addition to his fees for appearing, consulting, and being the face of the show, he's extra motivated to make sure each one succeeds.
It is commonly believed that Taffer takes a percentage of the businesses he rescues; however, this is totally untrue. All renovations and improvements are paid for by sponsors, with no cost to the businesses.
The renovations and changes made on Bar Rescue are typically funded by the production company of the show, 3 Ball Entertainment. The owners of the bars featured on the show do not pay for the renovations directly.
The show has been running for over a decade and Taffer and the show's sponsors pay for all the renovations and changes made to the bars. Jon Taffer is a well-known bar consultant and entrepreneur and is often referred to as the LeBron James of the food and beverage industry.
Does Jon Taffer get a percentage of the bars he rescues? No, Jon Taffer doesn't get any income from the bars he rescues. He works as an independent consultant and makes money according to those rates. The bar owner will pay a certain amount for Taffer's services, and that's all.
Taffer's Tavern is the product of Jon Taffer, hospitality expert, entrepreneur, best-selling author, star, and Executive Producer of Paramount Network's Bar Rescue. Taffer's is the quintessential pub, a place to meet old friends while making new ones.
having known a bar that went through the show process, it is largely fake in the sense, the bar and the surroundings are largely not what the show portrays them as." There have also been several blog posts that have described their accounts, stating Bar Rescue's portrayal is totally inaccurate and at times, fabricated.
“Bar Rescue” host Jon Taffer may not seem like the obvious choice to dole out relationship advice on television, but the Las Vegan has a couple of things in common with Dr. Phil McGraw: Both men are built like brick outhouses, and neither has a license to practice psychology.
Blue Frog's Local 22 in Chicago, Illinois which appeared on the first season of Bar Rescue has closed. Last night was their last night in business as the owners plan to retire.
Jon Taffer saves bars that are on the verge of shutting down on his reality show "Bar Rescue." So far, he has rescued over 200 bars across the United States. While over 100 of them have remained afloat, 99 have shut their doors.
Spirits in Motion founder and Bar Rescue Star, Phil Wills joins the No Excuses Podcast. Wills talks about his success and how he's maintained a 15+ year career in the industry.
Paramount Network's hit show Bar Rescue will make its return with a fresh batch of jaw-dropping episodes on Sundays beginning February 26 at 9pm. Visit https://www.paramountnetwork.com/shows/bar-rescue for more information. Copyright 2023 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Storylines. Former employees are brought in, and bars are open to filming on days when they are normally closed, according to the former owner of Piratz Tavern from season 2. Everything is staged, from storylines to employees not being current employees, in order to make the business appear as more of a failure.
"My reaction shots were totally shot out of sequence," explained Flore. "That's why they had me wear the same shirt for three days. They show me talking to someone, and then I can tell that the reaction shot they show was filmed on an entirely different day."
Throughout the show's history, multiple bars have restored their original name or motif after filming wraps. Episodes are shot in real-time for 5-day stretches, however, considerable planning happens ahead of time. 242 episodes, including 1 removed episode (unintentionally aired), have aired as of April 9, 2023.
The bar did not keep the name and went back to the name Kiva Lounge & Bar a few months after the makeover. Here is the detailed update from when the episode aired and Kiva Lounge & Bar/The Morgue is now marked 'closed' on the Bar Rescue Updates page.
They had moved the location of the bar to a few doors down. Underworld Grill and Bar / The End closed in February 2016 after failing to renew their lease.
The minimum investment amount required to open a Taffer's Tavern franchise is $1,425,000 and can go all the way up to $2,682,500. Keep in mind, you should also allocate additional funds to live off of while the Taffer's Tavern business ramps up.
After many years of restaurant industry experience and lessons learned, Jon created Taffer's Tavern, an innovative, casual dining restaurant franchise concept that provides a solution for many of the woes that plague the restaurant industry.
Taffer is currently on Cameo, asking $200 for a personal message. Owing to the show's popularity and Taffer's success as a businessman, he is currently worth an estimated $14 million.
Do you cover the cost of the renovations and upgrades or do the bar owners have to pay some of it back? My sponsors and I pay for everything. The owner doesn't pay one dime. We even leave them with food & beverage inventory, along with plates, silverware, glassware, and everything they need.
She is best known for her work on the hit show Bar Rescue (2011) on Paramount Network as the Market Recon Specialist. She has been married to Jon Taffer since April 4, 2000.
Update: A reader reports a note on the door citing a family illness for the closure. Also, the landlord confirmed that the family didn't want to run two restaurants after a death in the family. Related stories: Metropolitain, a creperie and gelato shop, opened recently in Old Towne Orange next to Blue Frog Cafe.
The Chicken Bone / The Bone closed in November 2014. They closed after failing to reopen after closing for the summer due to low trade. They delayed the reopening many times before the business was put up for sale for $175,000, confirming that it was closing. They blame the closure on the economy.
Bar Rescue is a reality TV show that first aired on Spike in 2011. The show revolves around Jon Taffer travelling to various bars in need of repair or funding and helping the owners out. Over 100 episodes of the show have been made, including an episode that wasn't supposed to air titled "Music City Mess".
The JB Taco episode aired in July 2019 and the makeover happened in March 2019. The bar closed in early 2020, so they didn't make it too much longer after their episode aired. There is now a bar named Good Vibes Bar & Grill that is operating in that location and they opened later in September 2020.
The Corner Pocket II Bar and Grill in Hickory, located on U.S. Highway 70 SW, confirmed on Tuesday that the bar will be featured on the show. “Bar Rescue's” Jon Taffer offers tips on how to renovate and improve the management of struggling bars across the country.
Some sources say that the network's budget is quite big, in the $100,000 per episode range. These fees helps cover construction, tables, seats, a POS system, and bar taps.
The series stars Jon Taffer, owner and chairman of bar/nightclub consulting firm Taffer Dynamics, Inc. Taffer is a bar and nightclub owner who has started, flipped, or owned numerous establishments in a career that spans over three decades.
Introduction: My name is Patricia Veum II, I am a vast, combative, smiling, famous, inexpensive, zealous, sparkling person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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