Happy hour is a great way to get customers—new and old alike—into your restaurant or bar. Everyone loves saving money, especially when they feel like they’re getting plenty of bang for their buck. A few drinks and appetizers later, and your customers will be telling all their friends about the great deal they just got. However, we all know that a few too many drinks can cause problems, too.

Food specials are safer

If you own a drinking establishment, consider promoting happy hour food specials instead of drink specials. We all know the risks from having one of your customers leave your establishment after drinking, then becoming involved in a legal problem due to an accident. As the alcohol provider, you could be held vicariously liable for their drinking—which means their victims could recover damages from your establishment. So why is it safer to offer food specials at happy hour, if your customers are just going to drink anyway? Isn’t that what a pub is for?

If your bar or tavern promotes happy hour pricing on drink specials, it could be perceived as encouraging patrons to drink more during this time—especially if they’re trying to “beat the clock” and drink as much as they can before happy hour is over. In legal proceedings, this could be used to show a pattern of encouraging people to drink more alcohol. Even if you’re not handing the person the keys to their car and encouraging them to drive, you can still be held responsible.

If instead you focus your happy hour or last call specials on food and snack deals, you are showing a pattern of encouraging your customers to come in for something to eat—and drinks are of secondary importance.

Being a responsible tavern owner means paying attention to all the things that could potentially put your company at risk. Training your servers to closely monitor a customers’ state of sobriety, as well as promoting and encouraging the consumption of meals and snacks in addition to drinks, isn’t just a good idea—it’s good business.

Happy hours are better with Giovanni’s

Giovanni’s Frozen Pizza is the perfect food offering for your bar or tavern. Because our pizzas are single serve and ready to bake, they’re a simple, easy solution for a food offering, right up until the end of your establishment’s open hours. All you need is an oven. Plus, with our variety of pizzas—including custom crust and topping combinations—you can offer a number of options for every taste and dietary need.

The next time your employee asks if a patron would like a drink, remember that it doesn’t take much more effort to ask if they would like something to eat. With Giovanni’s Frozen Pizza, keeping your patrons safe and sober is as easy as popping a pizza in the oven. To learn more about our pizza wholesale options and stock up on food options for your happy hour, give us a call today.