Cheers to First National Tap House, Eugene

I've never even been to, or heard about this place, and the OP set off my 'plant' alarm.

 

While he might not be related to the owner, is this the type of establishment that encourages people to go on BA and write positive reviews?

 

Just clicked the link to their website and saw this on the front page:


We were shocked to receive reports of credit cards being compromised at our newly opened business. Hearing this happen to other businesses in our area is just as disheartening. We want to report we've addressed the issue (the virus that compromised our system), we've complied with visa/card services best practices and installed additional firewalls to have the highest security to further our system from anything like this happening again. Please accept our sincere apology for the inconvenience this had on our fans.

 

I patron on occasion because I like to support the growing beer culture in town. The tap list is goodish usually. At least something worth drinking. The pricing system as Johnmichaelson said is terrible. I have also not met a person who likes it. The space is very nice. I will also never use a card there because of the above post. A LOT of people had their cards straight jacked. Some with their bank accounts cleared out. Yeah, no thanks. That said, it is nice to see downtown getting businesses like First National, Sizzle Pie, Belly, Barnlight and that other fine dining place whos name I can't spell worth shit in that area as a contrast to the Barmuda Triangle right down the street.

 

Is this place owned by a Libertarian former stock broker? I can't imagine anybody else thinking that this ridiculous "market demand" system would be anything other than a terrible experience for the customers.

"As kegs become low or if a rush hits, it’s price can increase dramatically, but that will immediately be balanced by the market demand."

what a joke

 

This thread is extremely useful, as I'll be traveling to Eugene next week and will now make sure to avoid this spot.
There's a place in Austin called Brew Exchange with a similar pricing scheme - they even have the beers go by on a stock-market type ticker - and I've avoided it like the plague, partly because of this statement:

"Each time someone orders a beer, the price goes up for the next person who orders the same beer. The others in the category go down by the same amount. The more popular the beer is, the higher the price goes, while those not being ordered continue to fall. If you’re a fan of staple beers such as Miller Lite, Bud Light or Lone Star, don’t worry prices for those beers stay the same."

 

Been lurking around this thread with interest. Not that I ever care to go there but I just don't understand the business model. What demographic are they appealing to? Eugene is a college town! Students? Not any student I ever knew will like being charged more than the previous order. Unless your beer of choice is PBR, then you're OK.
Just curious.

 

George is getting suspicious.

 

Presumably, I could see this appealing to some people if you knew that there would always be at least one especially cheap beer on draft. Then again, knowing that you're getting a cheap beer because nobody else wants to drink it isn't really an awesome selling point either. <shrug>

I imagine the website would do better to emphasize that lower demand = cheaper beer, rather than the current version that emphasizes the high demand, low supply, higher cost angle (seriously, even when they mention getting a cheap round they use language that emphasizes higher prices). When I first read it it sounded like "every time somebody buys a beer the price goes up! Hurry in, because by the end of the night we'll have a bunch of nearly-empty kegs that are prohibitively expensive to drink!"

Examples from just the first few sentences of the website's description just makes it sound unappealing to me:

"your choice directly affects how much you draft costs" = I see you like that drink. Now that I know that, I will charge you more next time. MWAHAHAHA.

"watch as the decisions of your fellow patrons shift the price ... from either your mobile device or the dynamic price screens" = Sit in a bar full of strangers (not friends, just fellow patrons), creepily watching them in those rare moments your face isn't glued either to a TV screen or your phone watching numbers roll by.

"Cause the supply to lean in your favor and be ready to dash in to buy a round of your favorite pint that just moments before was priced dramatically higher!" = Manipulate those around you into drinking stuff you don't like -- otherwise, that beer you want will remain stupidly expensive.

"As a commodity market in it's [sic] own right, The First National Taphouse Draft Exchange System watches every ounce of precious beer poured and determines the value of each keg based on the actual living supply and demand of the patrons at that moment." = We're watching you, watching your every move. Do we want to offer you a better product, a place you feel comfortable, or ensure you have a good time? Ha! If that's what you want, perhaps you belong with the plebeians, drinking amongst friends on Main Street. No no no, this is Wall Street. We're carefully watching the market at all times, making a science of it, in order to extract every last ounce of profit we can from this "precious beer."

 

This is funny to me.

 

There's a place like this in Washington DC. My brother-in-law avoids it like the plague.

 

Fuck that place. I'll stick to 16 Tons, The Bier Stein, and the plethora of other Eugene bars and breweries that don't employ the World's Most Ill-Advised Pricing System.

 

I nominate this for post of the month.