Consulting · Bar consultancy
Bar consultancy for cocktail bars and hotels
Bar consultancy means working alongside your bar so the menu, product, processes, costs and team all perform better. I visit during live service, we draw up a prioritised plan and put it into practice together, as a one-off project or ongoing, with monthly hours for calls, recipe reviews and costings.
I offer bar consultancy to bars, cocktail bars, restaurants and hotels that want their bar to work better: the menu, the product, the processes, the costs and the team. I work as a one-off project or on an ongoing basis, as the drinks consultant you can rely on. We start with a conversation.
Is it right for your project?
Bars and cocktail bars
Your bar is doing fine, but you know the menu, the service or the margin could be doing more. You want a bar consultant who looks at it from the outside and from behind the bar.
Restaurants
You want a drinks programme that lives up to your kitchen: cocktails, zero-proof drinks and pairings that make sense together.
Hotels
You have several outlets (bar, terrace, restaurant, breakfast, banqueting) and need a drinks programme that's coherent and easy to maintain.
Owners and groups
You run more than one venue, or have no permanent head bartender, and need someone to own the drinks side on an ongoing basis.
From a working bar.
I'm co-owner and creative director of Stillroom, a gastronomic cocktail bar at Calle Moreto 9 in Madrid with a cocktail menu, small plates, vermouth and brunch, so I know a bar's problems from the inside. Before that I spent three years behind the bar at Baldoria, in Madrid. And I run all 10 courses at Stillroom Academy.
How I work
Every bar needs something different, so I don't sell a fixed package. The method, though, is always the same.
Conversation
You tell me what's worrying you and what you want to achieve. In that first chat we see whether it makes sense to work together.
Visit during service
I watch your bar in action: the menu, the product, the mise en place, the workflow and how your team sells.
Prioritised plan
I set out what to change first, what can wait and what's best left as it is.
Work in your bar
We put it into practice together: menu, spec sheets, processes, purchasing and training, as needed.
Follow-up
We review how it went and fine-tune. If you want continuity, we turn it into a monthly retainer.
What you get
- A visit during service and a review of your menu, product and processes
- A work plan in order of priority
- A drinks programme for each outlet in hotels and restaurants: cocktails, zero-proof drinks and food pairings
- Spec sheets and costings for every drink
- Set-up of Miselup (recipe costing, stock and HACCP) and Timlup (opening, closing and cleaning checklists), which I distribute
- Team training on everything we change
- On a retainer: monthly hours for calls, reviews of new recipes and costings, and regular check-ins
- Duration
- Indicative: a full drinks programme usually takes 2 to 4 months, plus follow-up; ongoing consultancy runs month by month.
- Format
- Hybrid: in-person visits in Madrid and remote follow-up.
- Price
- Bespoke — ask for a proposal
For the day-to-day running of the bar, I set up Miselup and Timlup, the management software I distribute.
Before we start
How is consultancy different from a specific service, like a menu or an audit?
Specific services solve one problem with a defined deliverable: a menu, an audit, a training programme. Consultancy looks at your whole bar and combines whatever is needed, as a one-off project or on an ongoing basis. If you already know exactly what you need, a specific service will probably suit you better.
How does ongoing consultancy work?
It's a monthly retainer with hours included: calls, reviews of new recipes and costings, support when something unexpected comes up, and regular check-ins. It usually makes most sense after a first project, once I know your bar.
Do you work with hotels?
Yes, hotels are one of the clients this service is built for. In a hotel I organise the drinks programme by outlet, with its menus, spec sheets, costings and training, plus a follow-up schedule.
What do I need to prepare?
Your current menu, your sales by product if you can pull them, your costings even if they're incomplete, and your list of suppliers. Above all, I need to see the bar during live service.
Do I have to use Miselup or Timlup?
No. They're tools I set up as a distributor because they handle costing, stock, HACCP and shift routines well. If you already use other tools, I'll work with those.
Pairs well with: bar audit and cost control, cocktail menu design and bar staff training.
Tell me how your bar is doing
Tell me about your venue and what you'd like to change. I'll come back to you with a bespoke proposal.
Ask for a proposal