Linda Lou's Time For Two / Purser's Bar - Bar Rescue Update - Open or Closed?

In this Bar Rescue episode, Jon Taffer visits Linda Lou’s Time for Two in Layton, Utah.

Linda Lou’s Time for Two is owned by Brandon Purser who had the dream of running a bar since he was 12.

The bar was financed mostly by his mother Winona George, who thought it would be a steady means of income.

He bought a popular profitable local dive bar in 2013 but his inexperience has led to the decline of the bar.

Brandon fell into a depression making it hard for him to show up at work.

Winona had to step in with $50,000, the last of her retirement savings to keep the bar running.

The bar has so many problems as the building is in serious disrepair and they constantly run out of supplies.

They are currently $300,000 in debt and are losing $8000 every week.

Jon is unable to recon the bar out front because of the busy parking lot so he uses a space close by.

He is joined by expert mixologist Phil Wills and they both note the odd colour choice of green curtains and pink awning.

They think that the branding is very wrong for a bar.

Jon thinks that it gives the impression of a closed tea parlour.

Jon gives Phil the low down on the ownership situation and how they are now just days away from closing.

Anthony is a bartender and good friend of Brandon and Amanda and Trina are also bartenders.

It is Utah law to have food available to be served with drinks but there is no kitchen or cook at the bar.

Jon calls in hockey players Ryan Reeves and Nate Schmidt to go undercover to try out their service.

They order cocktails including a Taco Berry Lime and Kiss Me.

Brandon is still sitting in his office, even though there are customers in the bar.

The Taco Berry Lime is too sweet and they are out of whipped cream for the Kiss Me cocktail and serve it without.

They immediately ask for margaritas after rejecting their initial drinks.

Trina, who is serving them makes many mistakes as she doesn’t have the proper tools to make the drinks.

The margaritas are served and they are too sweet as well.

Next, they order chicken wings which are prepared by Trina in a fryer.

She doesn’t use any gloves, leading to cross contamination.

The chicken wings they receive are far too greasy.

Phil then goes in to the bar to see how they react to him coming in.

He immediately meets the other two bartenders and has them demonstrate making margaritas and it is a disaster.

Jon decides to step in and Brandon finally comes out of the office.

Jon gets the feedback from his spies and they say that the food, drinks and environment don’t give them any reason to come back.

Jon tells Brandon that he is wasting his mother’s time and money.

The staff are surprised when they hear that they are four days from closing and will be looking for new jobs.

Jon is not sure if he can save the bar in just four days.

Brandon is made to clean the bar that evening.

Jon comes in the next day and meets with all the staff.

Anthony is the longest serving member of staff.

He has worked at the bar for 6 years, as long as it has been open.

The staff say that the biggest problem is that they don’t know what Brandon does behind the scenes.

They say that they are frequently are out of supplies so lose paying customers when they can’t serve them what they want.

Brandon is so overtaken with emotion that he steps away to cry in private.

The staff join in the tears as they know how much he has on his plate and how much he has put in to the bar.

Jon decides to let Brandon take the day off and be with his family.

The staff, led by Anthony, will work to get ready for the stress test.

Phil comes in to train the staff on making a margarita cocktail.

Anthony is the most senior staff but he isn’t confident at mixing cocktails.

On the night of the stress test, Brandon is back and asked to stay in the back as an owner.

He take notes of changes that need to be made and Anthony is officially in charge for the night.

It is immediately apparent the bar area is too small for the staff to serve drinks to multiple customers.

They are constantly piling up to get to ingredients for cocktails with only one workstation.

Communication is not good between the bartenders causing bottlenecks and delays.

There is a plumbing accident as a flood builds up from the dishwasher and the floor behind the bar gets slippery.

The bar is shut down because of this hazard as it is not safe for the staff to be rushing around.

Jon and Phil have a short meeting afterwards and devise a plan to draw customers to the bar and solve the kitchen situation.

Phil comes in to train the staff on some more cocktails creating a new cocktail programme with novelty glassware.

Jon meets with Brandon and Winona and tells her they are working so Brandon can feel less guilty spending time at either work or with family.

It will also mean that Winona doesn’t have to come in to help out anymore.

Jon’s team not only work on remodelling the bar but also fixing the plumbing issue to get it ready for launch night.

The bar is revealed and it has been renamed the Purser’s Bar.

A speakeasy concept has been created with a sign that says The Laundromat and then reveals its real name.

Inside the front area is an actual laundromat with a secret door that goes into the bar.

The interior is darker and has been made more modern with a snack station.

Jon reveals they can make more money selling snacks than their poor chicken wings and it complies with state law.

There is a new workstation and three new Harbour Touch POS systems.

There are new table bases, bar stools and a new fireplace.

There is also a light to show when someone comes into the laundromat.

Brandon is happy with the changes and excited to show it to his mother.

On relaunch, the bar staff are happy and motivated, making drinks confidently for the customers.

The customers love the new concept and the drinks and bar snacks are a big hit.

Jon shows Brandon the fixed plumbing problem and he is relieved it has been sorted.

What Happened Next at Linda Lou's Time For Two / Purser's Bar?

Sometime later it is revealed the community has embraced the new speakeasy concept.

The sales and customer numbers continue to increase.

Linda Lou's Time For Two / Purser's Bar closed in December 2019.

Many regulars didn't like the laundromat front and many customers didn't realise there was a bar there.

Brandon posted that there was a 67% decline of customers and the owner was seeking to undo some of the changes.

The bar was listed for sale for $200,000 in January 2020 with all of the fixings and furniture and was sold fairly quickly.

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This post was last updated in March 2022.