De-escalation training for bars & restaurants

It's hot out, and in my experience that leads to more folks being angry. Given that, I thought I'd share some tips on safe de-escalation from general all star and friend of Brave New Bar Darian Everding.

Darian manages London Underground, a craft beer and whisk(e)y bar in Ames, IA and also works for the SAFE Bar Network.

Below you'll find some very quick bullet points from Darian's approach to de-escalation training, but please make sure to read the full article and watch the short video clips for more in-depth tips:

• Sometimes staff don't bring up difficult customers because they feel like it's a personal issue, not the business's. Of course, that's not true.
• Staff need to feel comfortable talking about problem customers, so it's your job to create spaces for it—in regular meetings, group messaging, etc.
• Consider being on call for staff so they can reach out if there's a bad situation brewing.
• Train your staff on de-escalation—believe me (and Darian): they crave it.
• What is de-escalation training? This isn't a technical definition, but de-escalation is a set of skills you use to slow a situation down so that it doesn't escalate into violence or danger.
• Darian recommends these resources: SAFE Bar Network, Right To Be and Healthy Pour.

Like I said above, please check out the interview clips for more in-depth tips from Darian, and if you have any follow up questions please just reply to this email and I can get you in touch with Darian.

Why it works

Customers can order more quickly, meaning your bartenders can serve more customers, faster.

How it works

• On their own, without the help of the bartender, your customers can read your full-info Print Menu (includes beer descriptions, ABV, etc.) to hone in on what to order.
• Then they can step up, look at the TV Menu, and just say “I”ll have a number 4” to the bartender.

The interaction is finished and significant time saved—no asking what's on tap, no samples, no back-and-forth about what to order.

This time savings can add up quickly on a busy night, and the more time saved means the more folks served per hour. And that means more sales.

David Hayden of multi-state chain Up-Down says this phenomenon "works out to thousands of additional dollars on a Friday or Saturday night."

How can I do it at my business?

You could do this manually. Google the beers you have, copy the info you need, drop the info into your Print Menu doc and your editable TV Menu, then adjust the design as necessary.

• Beer cups keep getting thrown onto the soccer field at the Euro Championships. Why? The group stage of the European Championships, the once-every-4-years soccer tournament, just ended, and in virtually every game fans have thrown a ton of beer cups onto the field, drenching players, journalists, other fans...basically everybody. The Athletic took a look at why this is happening. Most interesting tidbit: this tournament is an outlier in European soccer, where many countries don't allow alcohol consumption in stadiums.
• The Mount Rushmore of IPAs. Vinepair interviewed a few industry experts to see what beers made their all time best IPA lists. It's a fun list, and no real objections. I think my own would be: Bell's Two Hearted, some juicy Other Half IPA, Maine Lunch, and Alchemist Heady Topper, all of which made the list.
• More chains close locations amid widespread struggle. A couple weeks ago it was Red Lobster. Last week it was Hooters. Now a major Arby's franchisee filed for bankruptcy.