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Thoughts

Thoughts

Jake O'Brien Murphy on his quest to find the perfect bar snack

In the first of a new series, Jake O'Brien Murphy sets out his mission to find the best bar snacks around - but he needs your help too. 
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20 May, 2022
Language of flavour

Thoughts

Jake O'Brien Murphy on the language of flavour
Jake O’Brien Murphy gets the troubling issue of how to best describe flavour off his chest.
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08 April, 2022
cashless bars,

Thoughts

Cash is dead, card is king
If your bar is still taking cash, you're definitely haemorrhaging money. Mike Baxter explains why. 
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08 April, 2022
Cocktail book

Thoughts

Bartending by the book - what is the industry's required reading?
There is endless information online, but the bartender's best friend remains the book, says Danny Murphy.
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04 April, 2022
Private media

Thoughts

Private media: Should your employer have influence over your social media?
There are often blurred lines between the personal and the professional when it comes to social media. Anna Sebastian investigates whether the two can work together.
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30 March, 2022

Thoughts

Don't forget the positives - Ryan Chetiyawardana on the benefits of bartending

Ryan Chetiyawardana asks if it’s now time to refocus and talk up the benefits of bartending as a career.
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30 March, 2022

Thoughts

Will April be a financial cliff edge for hospitality?
The financial safety nets put in place to mitigate restrictions are being removed, and new costs are adding further pressure. But there are some positives, says Hamish Smith
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14 March, 2022

Thoughts

What St Patrick's Day means to me
With St Patrick's Day nearing - Thursday 17th March - Aaron Wall from Homeboy tells us what the celebration means to him.
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14 March, 2022

Thoughts

The Pinnacle Guide - how will it work?
Hamish Smith gets to grips with the plans for a new, Michelin-style bar guide
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14 March, 2022
Homegrown bar talent

Thoughts

How to attract homegrown talent to bartending
Edmund Weil sets out a ‘manifesto’ for  attracting more people into hospitality roles.
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18 November, 2021
Tayer + Elementary

Thoughts

Getting the most out of a collab
When they are done for the right reasons, partnerships with different businesses can offer all manner of positives, says Monica Berg, whose recent food/cocktail pairing collaboration proved the rule.
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17 December, 2021

Thoughts

Storytelling in bartending - a lost art?
Jake O'Brien Murphy ponders the importance of shared histories and experiences – regardless of whether or not they are rooted in fact.
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08 December, 2021
diary of a bar owner

Thoughts

Diary of a bar owner during a staffing crisis
The staffing crisis has seen many bar owners becoming more hands-on in their businesses. Danny Murphy of Berry & Rye Group diarises the experiences he and other operators have had, with a little literary licence to disassociate events, dates and the people involved.
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18 November, 2021

Thoughts

The wider constellation - why every role in the bar business matters
A stellar bar operation requires more than the star-tender. It’s time the view widened, says Ryan Chetiyawardana.
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09 December, 2021

Thoughts

Surviving the booze-pocalypse
With the supply of bar staples still faltering, Mike Baxter says there’s an opportunity to reshape tastes
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02 December, 2021
Classic cocktails

Thoughts

Do classic cocktails limit spirits innovation?
Is the bar trade's devotion to classic recipes limiting the space for the next generation of spirits development, asks Ryan Chetiyawardana
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19 October, 2021
Is the bar business still profitable?

Thoughts

Is the bar business still profitable?

Not wanting to get caught out again following the pandemic-induced financial nightmare, Iain McPherson has been busy looking at ways to diversify income and adding revenue streams to the existing business.
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14 October, 2021

Thoughts

Is the ride over? How the pandemic changed the global bar industry
Edmund Weil reflects on the carousel of global travel events that used to characterise the industry – and wonders if it will ever return to its glory days.
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07 October, 2021

Thoughts

"We're at a critically important moment for the hospitality industry"
Revisiting his home town gave Jake O'Brien Murphy reason to question the way the cocktail scene is constructed and perceived – and left him longing for a more progressive, inclusive future.
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06 October, 2021

Thoughts

86 experience (the freshman invasion)
With experienced staff in short supply, Mike Baxter rethinks the way he trains rookies.
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06 October, 2021

Thoughts

Seated but not defeated: the future of table service
What seemed like a volume bar’s worst nightmare actually proved a valuable lesson in how adapting and evolving could lead to more efficient service and improved profitability. By Mike Baxter of Gonzo’s Tea Room.
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26 July, 2021

Thoughts

Power in numbers: why I joined a union

Jake O'Brien Murphy has had it with being treated disrespectfully and decided to join a union. He now at least feels backed up against those who are using the pandemic to their financial advantage.
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26 July, 2021

Thoughts

The hook: how we should be incentivising bartending
Edmund Weil says the industry needs to rethink how it rewards its staff if it is to survive the current challenges – and that goes beyond monetary compensation.
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20 July, 2021

Thoughts

Breaking down the server-guest barrier
There are certain smart moves that a bartender can make to break down server/guest barriers and build new connections, says Danny Murphy.
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26 May, 2021

Thoughts

The new brand-bar relationship
Edmund Weil looks at some ways in which brands and bars can work together to help each other make the most of their investments.
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24 May, 2021

Thoughts

Behind the stick but not the wheel
Jake O'Brien Murphy is facing his return to work with a mixture of trepidation and excitement 
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19 May, 2021

Thoughts

The reopening and recovery of England's bar industry
It’s been six long months since we last saw bars open indoors in England. Hamish Smith looks back – and forward.
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17 May, 2021

Thoughts

If the goalposts move, create more goalposts
Diversifying your business away from your bar could be the thing that saves it, says Daniel Crowther of Hedonist in Leeds (and many other related businesses).
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25 March, 2021
Rainbow

Thoughts

Positives from the pandemic
James O'Hara, director of Public, Picture House Social, The Great Gatsby and Ambulo in Sheffield, is aghast as anyone to find positives have emerged from the pandemic.
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18 March, 2021
Distance in bars

Thoughts

Navigating a night out
Customers are going to be out of practice when they take their first steps back into hospitality, says guest writer Bradley Gough, who offers some tips on how they might navigate their nights out.
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17 March, 2021