The hotel bar offers a social experience: a place to sit, relax, converse with fellow guests or locals. It’s the latter cohort that many hotel operators are focusing on to design bars and generate extra revenue.
“The main challenge of a hotel bar is getting it to be a destination,” said Cullen Wyatt, restaurant developer at Indigo Road Hospitality Group. “Many hotels have bars, and while some have nicely designed bars, the hotels need to market them as destinations for people not staying at the hotel.”
Designing something that feels inclusive yet special at the same time can be tough. Hotel bars must provide something unique that is also connected to the overall guest experience. Some hotel bars offer special musical events, others focus on a great view and decor, while others offer a special cocktail program or food-specific concept.
“If you are a hotel that has a specific type of food and shares a lobby bar, the bar program should always complement the restaurant,” Wyatt said. For example, it wouldn’t make much sense to have an Italian restaurant connected to the lobby of a hotel with a bar with an “island style” decor and a rum-focused tiki menu connected to it. Also, the hotel guests need to feel like they can grab a drink without making a reservation or feel like it’s a totally separate experience.
Still, when it comes down to it, customers depend on a bar to procure their favorite drink, served with a smile.
“Consistency across service standards and quality of the drinks is a key piece of what a memorable bar experience is about,” said Miranda Breedlove, national director of bars, lifestyle operations at Hyatt Hotels Corp. “This shines in the beverage product itself and also the unfaltering hospitality of the environment, making guests feel welcomed.”
Hyatt makes sure to give its employees the training to make this happen, even providing financial support to take programs through WSET, a global organization that arranges courses and exams in the field of wine and spirits; bartender education through BarSmarts; and sommelier courses.
TECH NECESSITY
Operating a successful bar business means keeping it stocked with people to run it, but complementing the human
element with technology.
“We’re still struggling with labor,” said Amber Leith, senior director of marketing strategy, Oracle Food and Beverage, “so everything that you can automate will alleviate and free up time for employees to engage authentically and create a curated experience for guests.”
Oracle provides point-of-sale (POS) solutions for hotels that Leith said can improve the overall guest experience and streamline and turn tables quicker, which leads to more revenue. Optimizing, for example, an online menu, connecting it to an inventory system and leaving the rest to automation eases the entire service process.
Another interesting development in food and bar service is the idea of pricing based on compression and demand—just like revenue management for pricing guest rooms. Consider a bidding exercise as part of the reservations process, where guests get a food and beverage minimum for a couple of seats at a hotel bar based on what’s happening in the city, Leith posed.
Another element is dynamic pricing. “From an online standpoint, you’ve got the opportunity to dynamically price the menu based on demand,” she said. “Being able to take advantage of what’s happening in real-time and using API integrations to update your point of sale in real time is a really powerful tool.”
TRENDS & EXPOSURE
Hotels are implementing technology as much as possible and that includes SEO optimization. People find out about new hotels, restaurants and bars by scrolling through Instagram or through a top10 ranking, whether it’s a customized cocktail poured tableside or an enhanced nonalcoholic drink with the freshest ingredients, guests want to be wowed by novel techniques and special presentations that they can share on social media.
After the pandemic, many travelers have sought out private, exclusive dining experiences away from the crowds. For instance, Hyatt offers experiences through its loyalty program, World of Hyatt, such as a mixology class at the Royal Palms Resort & Spa in Phoenix, part of Hyatt’s Unbound Collection, or an interactive cocktail tasting at The Bar Downstairs at the Andaz 5th Avenue in New York.
Another upcoming trend hotel bars need to keep in mind is a pet-friendly environment. Many guests like to share special dining moments with their pets, something that hotels can use to enhance the feeling of welcomeness.
Iconic hotel bars will continue to stand the test of time even if they maintain their traditional sensibility. But for others, there will always be room to grow and new customers that want to popularize a hotel bar with a TikTok video.