Starting a tiny Brewpub/Craft Beer Bar

Don't take this the wrong way, but why on earth would you go with Square when you're making this kind of investment? Get something that is efficient and will maximize your profit. Take that $500 for a mural and invest it into a decent POS system with better processing rates.

 

If you want to keep costs down and stay efficient, I would go with an iPad POS system. They're usually significantly cheaper than standard POS systems. I personally use POS Lavu, but it really depends on your personal preference and what you're looking for in a system. All in all, this will be a larger investment up front (I spent roughly $1,500 for the license and one terminal), but your processing fees will be significantly cheaper.

 

I'm at 11 cents a swipe with a 0.15% rate with Visa, Discover, and Mastercard. That's not the best rate in the world, but it sure beats the 2.75% a swipe for Square. American Express sets their own rates so you'll be stuck at 10 cents a swipe and a rate of 3.5%.

 

on the food thing, another option I didn't see was soliciting every restaurant that can reasonably deliver food to your establishment and get menus and make a few 3-ring binders with them in them and offer that as a food option. works really well at Dragonmea in MI. Food trucks are raging now and a new place in Indy, Triton rotates food trucks on Thurs, Fri, Sat and gets a cut of their sales. You need to hire 1 great employee who can run in your absence. hire some young motivated go-getter and pay them well and will keep you going thru thck and thin. Be selective on your opening hours. reduces overhead and will create some exclusitivity and buzz.
250 sq. ft is awfully tight but well constructed you'll be able to get some folks in the door. A buddy who has owned and operated restaurants and bars forever, once told me "remember for every Friday and Saturday there is Mon, Tues., Wed." my answer to him was then don't open on Mon., Tues., Wed. !
One thing you need to consider is what do you do when you have 15-20 people in there and another 10 folks wanting to get in. Good problem to have but look at how many business have failed because they cannot support the demand for services or products over time. heck look at the animosity unleashed on some of these craft breweries who won't distribute to this town or that market.
Sincerely wish you the best of luck. cool idea, relatively low risk and your expectations are modest. good start and serve some good brew and you'll be alright.
PS - invest in something like Quickbooks or something to keep your finances in order. that will be the most painful part of your venture.

 

On the topic of POS, I say go no plastic, cash only. In a city the size you seem to be in, there'll be an ATM nearby, and you save yourself all those costs. Save plastic and an actual POS until you outgrow this space and move into a bigger one. This place in PDX gets crap here in the NW forum for not taking plastic, but they don't have any trouble filling the joint: http://apexbar.com/

 

The last post reminds me of the Mountain Sun/Southern Sun/Vine Street Pub mini chain in Co and a number of small places in Bushwick & Williamsburg in Brooklyn, who have their own ATMs but take nothing but cash. That way customers who didn't bring cash can still pay with their credit/debit card (but they, not you, pay the service charge.)

This pisses off some people but way more people than you might think accept & adapt to it. The ATM is either free to you or you might negotiate a slice of the service charges from the vendor, as rent.

 

I would personally love to see the layout. Fitting everything you need in 250sq feet, with 15-25 people sitting comfortably boggles my mind.

 

I have been to the Rake in Londan, it has a good sized patio, so it can have a lot of people there.

This is the smallest I have been to. It seats 9. If you are at the bar on a barstool, you can lean back against the wall. It is cozy, but I liked it.
http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/vi...n-franciscos-black-horse-london-pub/1s5jjvzz5

Good luck on your venture.

 

I haven't read all the previous comments so forgive me if I am redundant. Here are some of my thoughts
-keep lots of pretzels around. Also maybe an eclectic mix of local pickled goods. That would be fun and interesting, and also a way to keep it local
-once a week see if you can team up with a local barbecue or meat smoker or taco truck or something
-don't sell beers bigger than 12 oz. you want people buying lots of beers, not nursing one giant one all night. 9 and 12 oz pours.
-beer flights are a great way to make more $$ per ounce
-Have a couple tv's for Monday Night Football
-keep one tap for a local home brewer
-have lots of beer events like "stout tasting night"
-be prepared to work your ass off!