The Drink Counter Handbook

Sound familiar?

• Opened on recipes and enthusiasm, without knowing the true cost of a cup.
• Copied the menu from another shop, so no drink is a reason to choose this one.
• The bar is laid out around free space, not around the path of one drink.
• The first thirty days pass in reaction, with nothing done in order.

Each chapter answers one question

1. Chapter 1: Am I overpriced, or do I not know my cost?

   How much money does one drink sold really bring me?

   You cannot manage what you do not measure. Cost per cup is the first measurement you need.

2. Chapter 2: Do guests choose their drink, or does the menu?

   Am I selling the drinks I want to sell, or the ones that happen to be on the top line?

   The menu decides what customers buy. Arranging the menu is arranging your revenue mix.

3. Chapter 3: Is a slow bar really the staff's fault?

   Which step at my counter is holding up the whole queue?

   Ninety minutes in the morning decide most of the day. There, speed is a matter of design.

4. Chapter 4: Can a recipe card replace me at the bar?

   How do I make the cup a new hire pours on the evening shift match the one I pour in the morning?

   A recipe is only right when every shift makes it the same way. Recipe cards, shift schedules and how newcomers are coached are how cost and speed hold when you are not at the counter.

5. Chapter 5: Does a full till mean the shop is making money?

   Which numbers do I need to look at every week to know the shop is heading the right way?

   The first thirty days only matter if they become a habit of reading numbers every week. A few numbers read regularly tell you where the shop is heading before the till does.