Edge of Town / Water’s Edge - Bar Rescue Update - Open or Closed?

In this Bar Rescue episode, Jon Taffer is heading to Edge of Town in Blue Springs, Missouri.

Edge of Town is owned by the owners of Longshots Sports Bar.

The bar was rescued in 2013 and was owned by Mark Wilson.

After the rescue the bar was very successful for the next six months.

However, the landlord refused to renew the lease so it was forced to close.

He took everything he had learnt and opened a new nightclub called Vertigo.

Vertigo was successful for five years and he met manager Ozzie at the club.

They got engaged and he handed over The Edge, one of his other bars to her to run.

They believed that they were putting in place everything that they had learned from Jon’s visit.

It doesn’t however seem to be working at this bar.

The bar is outdated, inconsistent and the staff are problematic.

Business is suffering because of Ozzie’s lack of leadership and they are losing $30,000 a month.

Jon recons the bar with expert bartender Amy Koffsky and master chef Vic Vegas.

They think that the exterior looks boring and plain.

Jon fills them in on his history with Mark and how things had progressed in the 6 years since his intervention.

Mark spends more time at Vertigo while Ozzie is at the bar.

Jon’s main objective is to see if they are using anything they learned previously to run the other bar.

On the footage they see the cook Frank, servers Caitlynn and Mona, and bartenders Mi’Kayla and Will.

Jon has asked news anchor Gina and soccer player Kelyn to spy on the bar and their service.

They arrive at the bar and order a margarita and mai tai.

Both drinks are too strong and warm and there was no ice or garnish.

They order some food including chicken wings and potato tots.

They see Frank undercook bacon and serve it to a customer.

Jon is so upset that Ozzie has been trained by him.

He can see that she is failing at managing this new place and goes in to confront her.

He shows her the cocktails and the undercooked meals served to his spies and asks her to call Mark over from Vertigo.

Jon confronts the cook on the food and he admits the food is undercooked.

Ozzie and Frank want to start cleaning up the kitchen as Mark arrives at the bar.

Jon confronts him how he is not supporting Ozzie as the bar also needs him.

Mark admits he may have let somethings slip with the chicken and the garnishing of drinks.

He sees a member of staff down a shot and tries to get the truth from her but she insists she served the drink and he drops it.

The next day, Jon has a suspicion the staff act different when Mark is not around.

He meets with the staff and reminds them that it is not just a job but Mark and Ozzie’s dream that is at stake.

He also lets the owners know that all the lapses were not mistakes but choices to be subpar.

Jon also has the sculpture inventory report from the week.

There is a lot of missing alcohol that was consumed but not rung in and paid for.

Jon shows the staff footage of the staff drinking on the job even while Ozzie was there.

He says that the owners need to start treating staff like employees rather than family or friends.

Jon brings in Amy and Vic and they give their assessment of what they have seen so far.

Amy has noticed a lack of organisation or understanding of the basics of drinks making and that there is a disconnect from guests.

Vic noticed that raw food was being served to customers.

Amy trains the staff on making an old fashioned and walks them through it as they make it to correct their bad habits.

Vic takes the kitchen staff through cooking sauteed chicken.

Jon meets Ozzie and Mark before the stress test to remind them that their focus should be on quality.

Ozzie will focus on the bar and Mark on the kitchen but they can bounce back and forth as needed.

When the doors open, orders start pouring in and they start poorly.

The bartenders are nervous dumping poorly made drinks.

The servers are making mistakes on food tickets and incomplete orders are going out to tables.

They are overwhelmed in the kitchen and wait times are approaching 10 minutes.

Frank starts burning food and has to fix it by starting again.

Jon and Vic commend him for pushing through.

Once Jon had seen all the issues, he decides to shut it all down.

The next day, Amy trains staff on simple tropical drinks.

Caitlynn has to step up to bartend as they will be a man down for relaunch.

Vic trains Frank on island signature sauces and believes he can handle something more complicated like a pineapple potato tot.

Jon’s team work long hours to be ready for the relaunch.

They unveil a new bar and the bar has been renamed to Water’s Edge Island Bar.

There is new branding on the windows so anyone passing can see them.

Pro Designs supplied the new signs for the bar.

The interior has been made warmer with tropical beach themes and a water fall behind the bar.

Mark and Frank get emotional and shed some tears at the unveiling of the new bar.

There are now three workstations with a video system for PR created by OneStone Hub.

The ceiling has screens to simulate the sky with videos of the rolling clouds and a starry night.

East Coast Chair and Barstool provided the chairs and tables.

They have a lifetime subscription to Sculpture Hospitality for inventory and TVT for training.

There is a new Orange Door entertainment system with over 50,000 songs for karaoke and bar trivia games.

Mr Electric wired everything together including the terminals and projection systems.

Last is a new chef’s jacket for Frank.

They open the doors to customers for the relaunch.

The bar is doing great and Caitlynn is doing well.

In the kitchen, Frank is on time and good food is being sent out.

Ozzie is loving the new vibrant energy in the place.

Jon gives them a commemorative plaque and tells them that he expects to get a wedding picture soon.

What Happened Next at Edge of Town / Water’s Edge Island Bar?

Some time later, sales are up 25% and business is going well.

Frank is doing well in the kitchen.

Mark and Ozzie have finally set a wedding date.

They kept the name Water’s Edge Island Bar.

Water’s Edge Island Bar is open.

Reviews after the show are mostly positive with the karaoke and bartenders getting rave reviews.

Click for more Bar Rescues

Previous episode - Stix & Stones Bar and Grill / The Pitstop

Next episode - Wildefire Bistro / The Prime Bar

This post was last updated in March 2022.