Foreword: Insights and Background on Best Bar None™
Discover the story and purpose behind Best Bar None™. In this foreword, we share the insights and experiences that shaped this program and set the foundation for what lies ahead.
Do you serve alcohol? This handbook is an excellent and rare case of an expert and consultant producing something of considerable value. In the business of alcohol-licensed establishments, there is nothing better! It combines common sense, standard practices, and innovation. Suppose money is the primary reason why you are in the business. In that case, you are in the business; you cannot continue operating without this book as a constant reference. If money is your only purpose, even more so!
If, when serving alcohol, you do not have the perspective that you are in the business of providing for the safety and security of your customers, it is time that you willingly change that perspective. It’s better to do it on your own. Finding out the hard way will cost you money, stress, and heartache. It is easy to change that perspective. Simply imagine that every customer is either the same as you love the most, your best friend’s family, someone who just cared for you at the hospital, a first responder, young students unwinding, or a soldier celebrating their homecoming. The moment they step onto your premises, they are under your care. They should be able to enjoy their drinks and know who they are with, knowing they are not at risk in some way.
All business is ‘people’ business. More than perhaps that you realize, your personnel are committed to their customers’ wellbeing, safety and security. Support them in fully fulfilling that promise. Integrate the practices and insights in this handbook into their job descriptions. Train them. This handbook provides extensive and systematic ways. You have a legal duty to provide a safe and secure environment for all your personnel.
Let’s be real. We know fully well that some customers will not be as responsible as others. Unfortunately, this is predictable. If you are in the business of serving alcohol, then it is your business to prepare or to anticipate, detecting, diffusing, and responding to customers and situations accordingly. Even the most stubborn ones want to go home safe and sound. In a worst-case scenario, it will be your job to make your best effort to ensure all customers’ safety. You have to know what you’re doing.
The Best Bar None Accreditation Program, described in Chapter 1, is a gem of innovation. With that accreditation, customers will know where to go. Everyone wins! This handbook is a trusted source of practical and useful information. There’s no doubt about that. Can your customers trust you?
Alexander Berlonghi, M.S. – Founder, Special Even Risk Management Author The Special Event Risk Management Manual (1990), and Special Event Security Management Loss Prevention, and Emergency Services (1994)
As is the case with many people, my career has taken numerous twists and turns. Each twist and each turn have led to creating professional relationships and personal friendships with many interesting individuals. One such individual is Jeffery Jannarone, author of Best Bar None, The Industry Standard: A Handbook for Alcohol Licensed Establishments. Our friendship developed during the COVID crisis after meeting in an alcohol management class during a Zoom call. We each came to the program with different objectives; I, a college professor, was looking for material to enhance an event and facility management class I teach each fall semester; Jeffery, a well-known subject matter expert, was wanting to expand his already broad knowledge in the area of the liabilities associated with alcohol service. Together we found a friendship that has led us to this foreword.
The Center for Disease Control (Center for Disease Control, 2024) estimates that 178,000 people die annually from excessive alcohol consumption. Of these deaths, approximately one-third (61,000) are the result of excessive consumption at one time. This statistic includes alcohol poisoning and automobile accidents (Esser, M.B. et al., 2024). The sad truth is that many of these deaths and the associated heartache, financial loss, and lost “life years” could have been and could be avoided if the concepts promoting responsible alcohol management outlined in Best Bar None had been implemented. The good news is that these concepts are not difficult to implement and are based on Mr. Jannarone’s extensive background in law enforcement and years of experience as an expert witness.
At one point in my professional career, I had the privilege of working with Dr. Gary Praetzel, Dean Emeritus of the College of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Niagara University. Gary famously said when asked why the Sport Management program was part of his college, “You cannot have a sporting event without food.” After nearly 25 years of working closely with sports organizations such as the NFL, NASCAR, and the NCAA as a Sports Business professor, I would add “or alcohol” to that statement. Regardless of what sector of the entertainment industry you find yourself in, you have a legal duty to provide a safe environment for both patrons and staff. Best Bar None provides you with practical guidelines and actionable items can help accomplish that goal.
I will conclude with these two thoughts:
First, Mr. Jannarone’s passion for creating an environment for safe and responsible alcohol consumption and management is evident as you move through the material in Best Bar None. Ignore his advice at your own peril.
Second, from this point forward, one of the sources of lecture material for the aforementioned event and facility management class will be Best Bar None, not because Jeffery is a friend, but because I want my students to be the best equipped candidates for the jobs they will be pursuing in the sport and entertainment industry.
Dexter J. Davis, Ed.D. Professor of Sport Business, University of Tennessee Alumni Association 2022, Outstanding Teacher of the Year
When I started working in the field of addiction treatment and prevention more than thirty years ago, drug dealers and bar owners were “the bad guys.” They were concerned only about profits and endangered the lives of their customers. Fortunately, as I embraced the developing community coalition movement, a new idea began to emerge: inviting bar and restaurant owners to partner with law enforcement, treatment and prevention organizations, and neighborhood associations. It quickly became apparent that most establishment owners were in the hospitality industry because they wanted to create venues for people to come together, relax, celebrate, and have a good time with friends. They knew that if they served minors, turned a blind eye to violence, or promoted excessive drinking, their livelihoods were at risk. Jeff Jannarone was there at the forefront of this new approach, so the Illustrative Scenarios he includes within each chapter of this book are based on real experiences. In Best Bar None, The Industry Standard, he has written the easy-to-implement guide we all wish we had back then.
Steve Liga, Licensed Master Social Worker and Substance Abuse Treatment Professional
As the New York City Police Department (NYPD) Traffic Officer and liaison to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), I genuinely wish we had a resource like “Best Bar None, The Industry Standard: A Step-By-Step Guide” I sought collaboration from local alcohol service establishments to develop the Stop DWI campaign in our fight against drinking and driving. Jeffrey Jannarone’s achievement in compiling this extensive information into a clear and concise blueprint is remarkable. This book will now be the go-to manual for anyone in any profession working to reduce drinking and driving. I have no doubt that the implementation of its guidance will save countless lives.
Richard Pepe – NYPD Retired
A timely text which guides the reader in the safe serving of alcohol. Best Bar None provides a ready reference to alcohol management that is useful for anyone in the alcohol serving industry as well as governmental planners, police and security professionals.
Professor Chris A. Hertig, CPP, CPOI
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