50 Great Ideas

Tabletop taps

Plenty of places have plenty of taps—but not right at the tables where customers can play barkeep and serve themselves.

“Our inspiration was to bring something new to the table—literally,” declares Lucas Stoioff, co-owner of the Public House in Chicago. Each of the gastropub’s 12 tables sports three taps, two for draft beer and the third dispensing spirits. The system tracks the flow of liquids, and customers pay by the ounce. Besides the table taps, six self-serve beer taps line the wall of a separate dining area used for parties, tastings and monthly beer dinners.

The novelty and convenience appeal to customers, and provide a distinct point of differentiation for the Public House. Although the taps add a couple of percent of profitability, Stoioff says the real payback is in improved customer service. “Staffers spend more face time with guests and less time ferrying drinks to tables.”

#50 | Using your noodle

#49 | Eat a pita, feed a kid

#48 | Ask the staff chaplain

#47 | I’ll be calling you

#46 | Rolling in dough

#45 | Fried chicken flies the coop

#44 | A penny for your calories

#43 | Better than a lobster bib

#42 | Bending the bento

#41 | Billboard redux

#40 | Dining at the fountain of youth

#39 | Building a better box

#38 | Roll out the barrel

#37 | Mochi Madness

#36 | A toast to Belgium

#35 | Screening employees on the screen

#34 | An Olive Garden customer sat here

#33 | Setting the e-table

#32 | The buck strolls here

#31 | Gin game

#30 | Childhood revisited

#29 | Moveable feast

#28 | Certified gluten free

#27 | Buy a car, eat a meal

#26 | Locating the best Happy Hour

#25 | Local broadcast

#24 | Tabletop taps

#23 | Double the pleasure

#22 | The three Bs

#21 | Cocktails to amuse

#20 | Fans of the grape

#19 | Whole animal accessorizing

#18 | Translucent menus

#17 | Have oven will cater

#16 | Allergic interaction

#15 | Greener produce

#14 | Competing to win at weight loss

#13 | Space saver

#12 | Test kitchen=test market

#11 | Be my guest

#10 | Plug in and eat up

#9 | Rx for pilferers

#8 | Hands free—and clean

#7 | Some like it too hot

#6 | Chicken fried steak gets its day

#5 | The staff that reads together…

#4 | Twinkle toast

#3 | Stick with this

#2 | Stamp of approval

#1 | From seed to fork

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Tabletop taps

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