What should I check before buying a bar and grill?

A bar and grill sits between a pub and a full restaurant. Guests come for a meal, a drink, or both, and the mix changes the whole business. Checking it as if it were only a bar, or only a kitchen, misses the point. Start by learning how the two halves earn and spend money, then look at the people who run them. If sports crowds are a big part of the draw, see what to check before buying a sports bar.

Split the food and drink sales

Ask the seller for sales reported separately for food and for drink, by month, along with the cost of each. A place that sells mostly drink in the evening and little food at lunch behaves very differently from one that fills tables at midday. Ask what happens on slow nights, which half carries them, and whether the point-of-sale reports match the figures in the financial statements.

Two crews, two sets of habits

The kitchen and the bar usually have separate managers, schedules and pay arrangements. Ask who hires, trains and schedules each crew, how long the key people have stayed, and who would cover if one left. Speak with the managers if the seller allows it. A bar that runs smoothly while the kitchen turns over every few months is a different purchase from one with steady people in both.

The kitchen as its own cost centre

Kitchens carry food costs, waste, repairs, cleaning and often the largest wage bill. Ask whether the kitchen earns enough on its own or is carried by the bar. If it is carried, ask why the owner keeps it, and whether guests would still come without it. Check the menu’s age, the supplier arrangements and the condition of the main cooking equipment.

Chef dependence

If one cook designed the menu and holds the recipes, the food side may leave when that person does. Ask whether recipes are written down, whether the seller or a chef owns them, and whether the chef will stay or sign a transition agreement. Your lawyer can tell you how to make that commitment binding.