Jul 25, 2025
Cocktail Menu Traps
What we’re fixing tonight: menus that look good but slow service and kill margin.
Cocktail menus are meant to help the guest.
Instead, they often do the opposite.
Too many cocktails.
Too many ingredients.
Too many stories.
What happens on the floor:
Guests take longer to decide
Servers lose confidence explaining
The bar slows down
Margin disappears quietly
This is what you coach in pre-shift:
The menu is not the strategy.
The recommendation is.
If your team hides behind the cocktail list, you’ve already lost control.
So here’s the behaviour to train tonight:
Before the guest opens the cocktail menu, the server should lead with one drink.
Language to give them:
“If you want something refreshing, I’d start with the X.
If you want something stronger, the Y works really well.”
Two options.
Two styles.
Both fast to execute.
Both good margin.
Why this matters:
You reduce decision time
You protect bar speed
You push drinks the team can execute well
What to watch on the floor tonight:
Are servers leading with cocktails or handing menus?
Are the same two drinks being recommended consistently?
Is the bar staying ahead instead of chasing tickets?
Send this out in pre-shift.
Listen for the language on the floor.
Debrief which cocktails actually moved.
Menus don’t sell drinks.
People do.
