In this Bar Rescue episode, Jon Taffer visits The Black Sheep in Chevy, Ohio.
The Black Sheep is owned by firefighter Scott Scherpenberg.
He opened the bar with help from his uncle Tommy and cousin Greg.
They are all equal partners.
Scott does the day-to-day operations while the other two are silent partners.
They were successful at first earning $70,000 a month.
Scott has another job as a carpet installer and left the business to run itself.
The staff, have been left unsupervised and have let things fall apart.
Cleanliness standards are poor and they are constantly running out of product.
The staff are playing at work and try to get organized but have no authority.
Customers are now leaving with the low standards and they are losing $8000 a month.
Scott has taken personal loans to keep the bar open and he is in danger of losing everything.
Jon recons the bar in the daytime with whiskey expert Peter O’Connor and expert chef Brian Duffy.
They do not like the exterior as it looks unlively and they all think the name is bad.
Jon sends his wife Nicole into the bar to spy on the bar service.
She enters and asks for a Guinness and it is poured incorrectly and Peter thinks the glass is dirty.
Nicole orders cheese sticks and they are cold and greasy.
Scott talks to Nicole and tells her how another restaurant has the best cheese sticks in town.
The chef is found outside smoking instead of working.
He then proceeds to clean out the outdoor ashtray before going in.
Jon has seen enough and goes in to sit and speak with Scott.
Jon sees the problem is management as Scott has other jobs and no time to put into the bar.
He also sees Scott has taken out some high risk loans that his partners are unaware of.
The staff are gathered and they inspect the bar with the experts.
The glasses are stacked and moisture is in the glasses.
The fridges are dirty and the kitchen is filthy and smells bad.
There is old food and produce in the fridge and bacteria growth in the fridge.
There is also grease on the walls of the kitchen.
Scott is asked to fire Billy the cook but he defends him.
Billy is given a chance and told to clean the kitchen and behave better or he will be fired.
Billy cleans all night and on inspecting in the morning Jon is impressed.
They have a staff meeting and the partners are present too.
The staff say they have been abandoned.
Natalie complains of trying to keep it all together without the authority.
Jon reveals he surveyed the competing bars in the area.
He found them to all be the same bland storefront set up.
He also reveals they will be making the bar more German – Irish to tie in with the neighbourhood.
Peter trains the staff on making some new cocktails that fit the theme with Bushmills whiskey as the base.
Brian trains Billy and the other staff on the basics of some kitchen tools.
Jon sits with the owners outside to catch the partners up and set up a business plan and repayment plan.
The partners are surprised at the news of the credit card loan Scott took out.
They cannot hire a GM because they are not making payroll.
The two partners promise to step up and get involved so they can make ends meet.
The staff are all gathered for a tasting of the new menu, which is an infusion of Irish and German dishes.
Scott will be expediting in the kitchen.
Tommy will be behind the bar helping and Greg will be helping on the floor and front of house.
They quickly set up for the stress test.
The crowds are let in and the orders fly in.
The bar staff are slow and have to play catch up.
Tommy is confused not knowing what to do
Soon customers are left waiting 45 minutes.
They run out of glasses and the customers are chanting for drinks.
Tommy gets into fight with Peter behind the bar on the glasses situation.
He walks out, overwhelmed by the pressure.
The bartenders keep it going and the kitchen Billy is doing great.
Scott is confused sending orders to the wrong table.
Jon is frustrated when food goes the wrong table twice.
Jon holds up a white towel to end the night.
Jon reprimands the owners for how they let the team down.
Tommy comes back while they are doing the feedback to apologise to Peter and the staff.
The next day they are back for more training on their signature recipes.
Jon sits with the owners.
He wants them to decide to have at least one person around as none of them are good at managing.
Jon tells them they need to manage costs to get them out of the hole they are in.
The owners make the decision to make Billy the Kitchen Manager.
Natalie will be the operations manager and Stephanie the promotions manager.
Jon wants the bar to be the certified Guinness pourers.
Three members of staff will be sent to Ireland to tour the Guinness facility.
Scott and Billy are sent for this trip.
Natalie and Stephanie compete in a mix-off for the opportunity.
They have 2 minutes 30 seconds to make two of their signature cocktails.
Stephanie is the winner because Natalie did not finish her pour on one of her cocktails.
The other staff are kept at training.
The bar is renovated over 3 days because of the Ireland trip.
The three meet the master brewer and are taken to the Gravity Bar.
They will teach them on how to pour the perfect Guinness in six steps.
When the staff are back from Ireland, they are all gathered at sunset to reveal their new bar.
The bar has been renamed and now called The Public House Bar and Grill.
There is a new exterior space that looks like a pub.
Inside the space is warmer with a marble looking bar top.
There are pub setting seats and pictures of sheep and Guinness posters on the walls.
There is a Future POS system, a beer garden with deck and 48 seats for extra income.
They use an hour to prepare for relaunch and Natalie is the manager directing everyone.
There are Irish dancers and music is played outside to entertain the waiting customers.
The partners all open the bar to the customers and they go in.
On relaunch, the orders come through quickly.
The staff are proud to tell the customers all about their Guinness experience.
Greg and Scott soon get into trouble delivering dishes.
Billy steps in to correct them and takes charge.
The customers love all the changes and say it all stands out to them.
The back patio is being used and customers are having fun with games.
What Happened Next at The Black Sheep?
One month later, the bar is still popular.
Sales are up 20% and they are seeing profit.
All of the three managers are thriving in their roles.
The Black Sheep / The Public House Bar and Grill is open.
Reviews are mostly positive and there are many compliments to the food.
Click for more Bar Rescues
Previous episode - The Olive Pit
Next episode - Weber's Place
This post was last updated in February 2024.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments will be moderated prior to being published. Those with spam links, offensive language or of an offensive nature will not be published. All comments are the opinion of the commenter and do not represent the opinions of the website owner.