Liquid Measure: Under the Influence

Houlihan’s upgrades to a third-party provider for responsible alcohol-service training.

By Maya Norris, Managing Editor -- Chain Leader, 3/1/2006

Adults are the center of attention at Houlihan’s. Unlike most casual-dining chains, which cater to families, Houlihan’s targets Gen Xers and baby boomers. So alcohol plays a big role, making up 20 percent of the chain’s sales.

But alcohol service also means stringent laws and high costs. Forty-three states plus Washington, D.C., have laws that hold restaurants and bars financially and legally liable for the actions of intoxicated guests after they leave those establishments. More states are requiring servers to take alcohol-service training. And liquor-liability insurance comes with both high premiums and deductibles. So Houlihan’s was looking for training that would provide responsible alcohol service without affecting sales.

Taking Responsibility
The company switched to a third-party program last August from its outdated, in-house alcohol training. Designed to train all front-of-the-house staff to serve alcohol responsibly, Houlihan’s new alcohol-service training program covers alcohol law, recognizing and preventing intoxication, checking IDs and handling difficult situations with guests.

The staff completes the program in three to five hours under the guidance of a unit manager certified to teach it, before taking an exam. Employees at new stores are required to take the advanced test, a secured exam proctored by the instructor and graded by the training-service provider. Staff at existing units can take the primary exam, which covers the same content as the advanced exam but is not overseen by a proctor. Those who pass either exam receive a certification valid for three years.

Director of Beverage Dave Brown says the training is more current than the chain’s in-house program, which hadn’t been updated in seven years and only took 30 minutes to complete; the training service plans to update the program every three to four years. Brown also finds the information to be thorough yet easy for the employees to digest because it is presented with a lot of visuals and case studies and uses role-playing to illustrate important points.

And the program is not only accepted as an approved alcohol-training program in 45 states, it also has state supplements to address state-specific requirements—essential for an expanding national chain like Houlihan’s, which plans to open 60 units in the next two years, Brown says.

The Bottom Line
But most of all, Houlihan’s new training program gives servers confidence, Brown says: “A lot of programs that you’ll see out there scare people from serving alcohol. But this educates them and makes them feel more comfortable.

“A lot of servers are young and inexperienced with alcohol, and when they feel uncomfortable, they tend not to suggest it,” he explains. “And when they feel more comfortable about what they can or can’t do, they’re more comfortable about suggesting it. So if anything, it would help your sales rather than hinder it.”

The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation developed the training, called ServSafe Alcohol. By bringing together a cross-functional group of experts ranging from chain operators to physicians to law-enforcement and regulatory agencies, the NRAEF wanted to create a program that balances responsible alcohol service with a restaurant’s bottom line. “Some programs out there are opposite of that. They recommend slowing service and doing some things that maybe aren’t right for the operation,” says Julie Kanouse, director of ServSafe Alcohol. “And that’s one of the key things: This was created by industry for industry.”

Peace of Mind
Houlihan’s has already seen a return on investment. While Brown will only say that the company had “minimal” legal claims filed against it in the past, Houlihan’s hasn’t had a claim since implementing the program. In addition, the chain uses a third-party auditing system that sends “checkers,” aged 21 to 25, twice a month to units to test whether employees are carding customers. Initially some units failed, but currently all stores have passed.

Since it has found success with the training, Houlihan’s plans to use the online version introduced in January. It also expects to purchase the program for managers, which is currently in development. Houlihan’s won’t say how much it paid for ServSafe Alcohol, but Brown says, “At the end of the day, the cost is more than worth it to have that peace of mind and know that you’re putting your people in a position where they feel comfortable.”