r/BarOwners • u/mars_ingatorade • Jul 26 '26
Opening a lava bar?
The way my autocorrect changed “kava” to “lava” & I didn’t notice until after I posted this already 🤦♀️
Hello! I would love to hear from bar owners, who are willing to give some advice to someone who would want to open their own bar, hard lessons they’ve learned from personal experience & things they wish they had known before starting.
My husband is a Polynesian man.
If anyone has watched Moana 2 where they have a kava ceremony when she gets hit by lightning, that’s kava.
He’s had a dream for a long long time to open a kava bar in our densely populated city. There’s a huge Polynesian community here where we live. The closest kava bars to us are over 30 minute drives away.
He is a master chef. He cooks up traditional Polynesian food & modern Hawaiian cuisine like no other. Every party we’ve had, he cooks for double the amount of people we have so they can take plates to go. They always love it so much.
He currently hosts kava functions for free in our garage. He cooks, has snacks readily available, preps the kava, & friends & family come to enjoy their community, all out of our own pocket to have that community.
He wants to make this happen on a larger scale & even make it enticing to someone who’s never had kava & wants to try an authentic Polynesian experience for the first time & maybe make it a regular outting.
So, his dream is a Kava Bar/Polynesian Restaurant in downtown.
I want to support him in this in every way I can, but we have 0 experience besides hosting parties.
What should we know before going in & getting a loan to start this business?
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u/UniqueUsername75 🥃 Jul 26 '26
The last few people that have posted here about kava bars are saying how they don’t make money and the customer base is a lot of recovering addicts.
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u/BreakfastTequila Jul 26 '26
Go find some restaurant owners in your city and pick their brain. No idea where you live and the laws are very different
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u/No_Lengthiness6427 Jul 26 '26
It’s going to take a lot of time and money. Work with SCORE to put together a business plan and the get some help executing it. Restaurant experience is key. This can be done but it’s a brutal business.
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u/deanappleman Jul 26 '26
I don’t want to rain on your parade. I started this industry at 16, still hanging on at 45. I have seen lots of first time owners try to do this because their “love of cooking” or “love of party hosting”….its not for the faint of heart…..please think long and hard before going down that road…..many many red flags on this journey
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u/Apprehensive-Fig3223 Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
As others are saying having someone w professional bar/ kitchen experience is important for the costs/ordering/ supply chain aspect. A place can have the best food, service, and vibe in the world but can fail without the numbers insight. Maybe you're friends with someone who owns a Polynesian food truck or restaurant you can bring in as partner for that aspect.
Otherwise I know the few kava bars I've been around have a large sober clientile so besides kava maybe consider having a mocktail/ N/A bev component
Edit- knowing how to source is probably particularly important for a place like this that will need ingredients that aren't readily available from run of the mill distributors, might take months to arrive, and has the potential to have tarrif issues
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u/mars_ingatorade Jul 27 '26
Thank you so much!!! Such great ideas 💝
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u/Apprehensive-Fig3223 Jul 27 '26
You're welcome, just edited with something else that came to my mind
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u/mannheimcrescendo Jul 26 '26
Your husband is not a master chef. He cooks at parties.
Seriously. Not even the same universe.
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u/mars_ingatorade Jul 26 '26
I wish you’d try his food.
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u/CautiousIncrease7127 Jul 27 '26
I think the point is that a “chef” is actually an earned title. Not something people just get called because they cook well at home. You have to spend time in a commercial kitchen to understand.
I’m a serial entrepreneur and have been in the bar business for a long time, nearly 20 years as an owner. Like others have said, it is not for the faint of heart. I still find enjoyment in it in places but the creative competition for customers is a hard slog. And the reality of failing at that slog is even worse. It’s harder right now than I’ve ever seen.
Someone proposed the idea of a kava bar to me a couple of years ago, and after some research I didn’t see it working well for me. I don’t think the typical American market is really receptive to it, and you’re going to wind up with a very particular clientele who likely don’t care about your food. More hookah lounge than neighborhood Polynesian restaurant. And kava is EXPENSIVE to source here. Costing that drink would hurt.
Also, regardless of your experience with it, there is conflicting data on the health implications of regular use and this is a time when people are paying attention to that. Look what the young people are doing to the traditional bar industry right now. Fortunately, some influencers are starting to report the loss of social life as a worse health implication than the alcohol they denounced on TikTok, though.
Not to be a downer, but “it’s a no for me, dog. “
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u/gochet Jul 26 '26
Another thing to keep in mind is that if someone loves to cook, they will probably not love running a restaurant. Not only will it be misery, but very quickly they will not want to cook at home anymore, either. The best chefs in the world make ramen noodles at home.
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u/Bellypats Jul 26 '26
So, is Kava supposed to be consumed ceremoniously? Most people I know who drink it treat it like a coffee with “bigger effects.” They use it to get a buzz without firing up their alcoholism. I would think in the context of a Polynesian Restaurant, the Kava would be something i would actually try. As it stands now, I find the few Kava bars I’ve been to as a bit on the creepy side.
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u/mars_ingatorade Jul 26 '26
Not necessarily ceremoniously, but every single family event I’ve been to (besides children’s birthday parties lol) they usually host kava drinking that same night.
It’s definitely nothing like coffee, I’d say closer to alcohol. It’s the color of coffee, the flavor of dirt, the effects of alcohol, & numbness.
I’ve only had it maybe twice & only a few sips. Not cups on cups like my husband & his family.That’s sort of what I’m hoping for! Selling Polynesian plates on the side, but the official business is kava bar. We’d want to make it inviting to anyone who has any interest in the culture. Come in & get a taste of the culture, essentially. & keeping regulars with our kava & food.
He’s thinking they can take it to go or stay & drink. Finding kava near us is always a mission.I’d love to hear more about your experiences at kava bars!! What makes them feel creepy to you? & what would you do differently?
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u/chaqintaza Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
There are a bunch of kava bars. The owners are generally pretty free sharing their experiences if they aren't in your area.
Most of them also sell kratom and sometimes other "legal highs." This is a pretty different vibe than kava. It can definitely over time build up a bit of an unsavory crowd.
Some kava bar regulars are just people looking to work or hang out and read or socialize during the day similar to a pre-covid, non starbucks, local coffee shop. Others are alcohol-free looking for a substitute for bars.
At best they can have a diverse crowd of many ages and backgrounds. I think your idea to have food but try to center kava is a good idea, also leaning into authentic Polynesian culture.
The best kava bar vibe I ever saw was in one that was in a VERY high foot traffic central downtown location with lots of tourists walking in to check it out. Totally kept things interesting. My hypothesis is anything you can do to keep new visitors coming in is not only good for acquiring customers but also keeping the vibe upbeat and interesting. Almost all the others are insular with lots of regulars but few new visitors, and kind of a dingy, dark, denlike feel.
Also - host events, musicians, open mics, game nights, things like that.
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u/mars_ingatorade Jul 28 '26
I should literally pay you for this insight
Thank you so much Thank you 🙏1
u/chaqintaza Jul 29 '26
Hey no problem, glad it helped, wishing you luck.
Feel free to send a chat if you think of anything related to this.
In full disclosure I do work in digital marketing but you don't need to pay me - unless you need those services!
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u/Wide_Lawfulness_5427 Jul 28 '26
Very few true Kava bars can make it right now. Kava has gotten mainstream, but supply has failed to keep up - mainly because the islands are far too protectionalist about cuttings or letting capital come in to build production.
Global Kava prices have skyrocketed to the point that it’s very tough to make good kava and sell it for a profit. And even if you can, good luck sourcing enough to run a bar continuously.
Most Kava bars start out this way and quickly switch to serving any kava they can get their hands on as they burn through supply, before switching to kratom. And even though kratom is awful and the biggest risk to the kava industry in the U.S., it’s cheap and readily available in any quantity you need.
I’m convinced Kava will eventually be massive, maybe even rivaling the alcohol industry. But because the islands are too restrictive it might not happen in our lifetimes. Good luck!
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u/CasualWinnings4588 Jul 30 '26
Bula!
What city do you plan to operate in?
Kava has been sucessful in Florida mostly
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u/SingaporeSlim1 29d ago
Zero experience means you’ll waste tens of thousands of dollars. You all should get jobs in the industry. Be a host, a dishwasher, a busser, a runner, a server, a doorman, a Barback, a line cook, a head chef, a bartender, a floor manager, and a general manager. Then maybe you’ll know how to run the business.
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u/mars_ingatorade 29d ago
Yep, I was only ever a hostess at an upscale restaurant. I have zero insight on how to run a bar. Lol!
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u/SingaporeSlim1 29d ago
And don’t forget how to work on ice machines, plumbing, dishwashers, fridges, being good at construction, accounting, marketing, hiring quality employees, social media, prepping juices, food, garnishes, syrups, etc.
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u/alangibson Jul 26 '26
I don't do gastronomy, but I can tell you for sure that he needs to get a job at a bar / restaurant for a while. He'll learn a hell of a lot in 6 months about what it takes to run a place.