## Why we start with templates

Most bars repeat the same physical logic: where the bartender stands, where backup bottles live, and where cold storage sits. The starter list on Build Your Bar mirrors how experienced operators already think about the room — not a rulebook you have to follow.

This is your map. Rename stations, delete what you do not have, add rooms we never imagined. The inventory program only needs names that match how you walk the bar.

## The three wells — read left to right

Wells are the speed rail: open bottles in reach while the bartender faces guests. In a classic three-well layout, order usually follows traffic and pour volume.

well

### Main Bar

The center of gravity — usually the middle well or the station with the highest-volume spirits. House vodka, house gin, core rums and tequilas, whatever moves every shift. If a guest orders "whiskey and soda" without a brand, it probably comes from here.

well

### Service Bar

The service well — backup and support for the main during rush. Often mirrors the main with duplicates, or holds the second tier of call brands. Banquet bars, dining-room service bars, and cocktail stations frequently use this name even when they are the only well in the room.

well

### Point

The point of the bar — the station farthest from the service well, often at the end of the rail where the layout turns or dead-ends. Lower-volume or specialty pours live here: mezcal, aperitifs, niche amari. Physically it is the "far corner" of the bartender's reach, not a second main.

Typical rail (guest side at bottom)
Point Main Bar Service Bar
Point = furthest from service · Main = center / volume · Service = support well

## Back bar — same names, different job

Back bar stations are display and depth, not the speed rail. We repeat Main · Point · Service so your voice walk sounds natural: "Back bar main, top shelf, left to right…"

- Back Bar Main — showcase shelf; premium and call bottles behind the primary station
- Back Bar Point — bottles behind the point well; often liqueurs and accents
- Back Bar Service — overflow and duplicates behind the service side

Single-shelf room? Keep one back bar row and delete the other two. Long wall of shelving? Add rows like "Back Bar North" — whatever matches your walk.

## Coolers

- Wine Cooler — by-the-glass whites, rosé, bubbles; not the kitchen walk-in
- Beer Cooler — draft backup, singles, shift stock at the bar
- Walk-in Cooler — bulk beer, keg overflow, case goods — the big cold room

Split beer between bar cooler and walk-in if that is how you count. Combine wine into one station if you only have a single fridge. The type badge is a hint for reporting later, not a law.

## Best practices for a visual map

1. Order stations the way you walk. Top of the list = first stop on your voice note. Reorder with the arrows until the screen matches your feet.
2. Name it like you say it. If you call it "Well 3" on the floor, rename the template. The AI and your team parse familiar words faster than our defaults.
3. One station = one physical place. Do not merge the dining well and the patio bar into one row — split them so counts stay honest.
4. Delete before you drown. Unused templates are noise. A tight map of six real stations beats a perfect list of twelve empty ones.
5. Back bar follows wells. If you only run one well, keep Main and drop Point/Service — or relabel Service as your only well. Consistency matters more than our labels.
6. Coolers last. Finish the rail and shelves, then cold storage. That mirrors how most first walks sound on a voice memo.

## Take liberties — it is your setup

High-volume nightclub, hotel lobby, brewery taproom, or German hotel bar with a nine-day cycle: the templates are a starting sketch. Operators routinely:

- Run one well and one back bar for a small cocktail room
- Add "Server Station" or "Event Bar" as extra wells for catering
- Rename Point to "Service Well" when the room is L-shaped and language gets local
- Skip back bar rows entirely when everything lives on a single speed rack

You are building a map for counting, not passing a health inspection of nomenclature. Get the geography right for your team; the program handles the rest.

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