Is Your Restaurant / Bar is Losing Money by Celebrating Halloween on Either the 26th/ 27th of October?

New Year’s Eve is always Dec 31st.
Valentine’s Day is always February 14th.
Christmas Day is always December 25th.
And Halloween is ALWAYS October 31st.
 
So what’s the deal with Halloween parties on October 26th and October 27th?
Sure, these two dates fall on weekend nights, but we don’t move NYE to December 28th / 29 or Valentine’s Day to Feb 8th/ 9th or Christmas to December 20/21st to take advantage of Friday & Saturday nights, do we? Didn’t think so.
 
Knowing that celebrated holidays bring in extra revenue, seasoned Food & Beverage operators know that if a holiday, such as Halloween, New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, etc fall on a day other than a weekend, this clearly presents an opportunity for extra revenue.
 
Most successful restaurants / bars are busy on weekends already, so a holiday on a non-weekend day is a restaurant revenue bonus. And should be treated as such.
 
Non-purists will argue, “Yeah, but with big parties like NYE, most people don’t work the next day.” This is true, but when fighting for revenue in a highly competitive market, it’s best that you align with a mentality that even if the following day is a ‘work day’ that this not stop your push for extra revenue. In fact, you never stop looking for opportunities for extra revenue.
 
Further,, there are numerous big party days that are immediately followed by work days. How about Super Bowl SUNDAYS? The World Cup games,, World Series games, Christmas Eve (in many markets), Valentine’s Day,etc, etc.
 
Thus. for a restaurant / bar that is run well with an abundant mindset and heathy playfulness, your scheduling should look something like this:

• Friday, Oct 26th – busy night
• Saturday, Oct 27th – busy night
• Wednesday, October 31st, Halloween – busy, celebratory night