Going to be a B.Y.O.B Room

highrun55 said:

I have fought against going b.y.o.b. for 15 years now and things are so tough in the pool world now that I must change to stay in business a while longer.

My landlord isn`t to happy with me at the moment, but since he owns the bar where Im located he is happy im letting people drink so he can sell more beer.

As soon as I get the extra insurance it`s on.

How do you guys deal with it, any problems I need to look for ?

Will Diamond lease the 3.5 x 7 tables to you ?


thanks

highrun55

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I'm assuming you already serve beer?

On byob (liquor) -
By law we had to keep the bottles brought in behind the bar (brown bagged).
We charged $5 per person using the bottle which covered their cup and ice. Sodas were regular price.

Once we found a few people try to get over on the $5 charge by topping off their soda cups from McD's and Burger King we made a rule - no store-bought drinks of any kind could be brought in. They could mix their own drinks using the cups we provided but the bottle had to remain at the bar at all times.

What you don't want is loss of beer revenue because a bottle is floating around.
It's also a good idea to monitor the bottle folks a little more closely and cut them off when appropriate.

Its call survival, and do what you must too.

The pool room in Delaware (yes there is only one) doesn't serve any alcohol. If I want to drink I bring a flask, buy a soda from the machine and be discrete. I'm not one to get sloppy drunk and out of hand.
There is probably drinking going on already you just aren't seeing it. BYOB brings it into the daylight and lets you regulate it. Follow the rules or you're cut off should be the mantra.

:wink:

When we first opened it still took three more months to get our beer license. During that time we decided to go byob. While everyone thought it was great, it started attracting a less than desirable crowd. People were coming in with small ice chests with beer and getting very drunk, not playing pool, or doing anything else that made us any money. By the time we got our license I was fearing that we had made a huge mistake even opening the pool hall because it was such a low class crowd. Fortunately as soon as the license came in the low class crowd left. It turns out the were only coming because it was a very cheap night out. So take that into consideration when you decide. I think we should have charged a cover at the door of $10 per person or something like that to bring your own alcohol. The riff raff would have steered clear rather than pay the cover and the better class of people would have realized that it was still a good value.

Here is another good idea for you too. If you charge a $10 cover offer free pool as well. It seems silly but if you figure it up you will be surprised. Example - you have 5 people hanging out at one table playing pool. They are either paying by the hour or per game. Our pool hall charges for a maximum of 2 players per table. That comes to $8/hr for 5 people to play pool. If you charge a cover and free pool, you are now getting $50 for them to play pool. By the hour they would have to play for 6 hours or 50 $1 games for you to make that amount money. It works for us. Initially you will get flak from customers that dont want to pay a cover but when they realize that they cannot go anywhere and do anything for $10 they will change their mind.

B.y.o.b

We do a Friday Night special that seems to be working out.
We charge $10.00 a person @ the door from 9pm to closing 3,4am.
Free BYOB, Free music, Free Pool. We have only 10 tables so we end up with a waiting list, but no one complains. People don't mind letting stranger join them when there not paying an hourly rate. We have never had any trouble makers so far.

byob...interesting........

My Buddy has Pizza Place, it is BYOB. Has a Special Permit from the State of AZ so he is legal. He provided, Glasses, Ice, Wine Bottle Openers. He has a regular cliental that drinks Beer & Wine, and has non of the liability. Works for him well.

highrun55, I recently opened brand new small room here in Upper Southampton Township Pa.

We debated back and forth about getting a BYOB, we decided against it. With 7 tables, It seemed like a good idea. I opened June 20 and since then, I have had maybe, 10 people ask me to bring alcohol in. For us, the RISK/REWARD factor wasn't there. In most cases, trouble comes in the same bottle as the beer.

I haven't had a ton of success with my new venture, but I am doing some new things to promote business, and they seem to be slowly working...

Kevin
Corner Pocket Billiards

did you have to get a special liscence to allow byob?

highrun55 said:

no, Ijust started doing it on my own, they must show proof of age and pay a one time $2.00 membership to the byob club
highrun55

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are you sure it is legal? im trying to find out if the same could be done here in maryland, but i cant find any info about it.

Hi Micky
This is Mike over at Main Line Billiards, not to far from you. We are BYOB as well. I cannot speak for anyone elses business, as I am sure it is different in each town/city, but it has worked out good for us. I would check with the township about the rules. It is pretty simple up here. You just need a food handlers license so that customers have the option to put some food in their stomach throughout the night (absorb the alcohol). That is what they told me and I have never had a problem. The fee to renew the food handlers license each year is $125. I hope that helps. Best of luck. Give me a call if you have any questions. 610-647-8805.