If you are opening up a new small restaurant this summer, and you have been approved for a liquor license, it is important that your entire staff is on the same page about serving customers alcohol in a responsible manner. It is your staff's job not just to serve alcohol, but make sure to serve it responsibility. In most states, your business can be held responsible for improperly serving individuals alcohol, which is why you need to make sure that your staff is on the same page about safely serving alcohol in your restaurant.

1. Have Your Employees Complete an Alcohol Training Program

If your state requires servers to have a liquor license to serve alcohol, make sure that all servers and bartenders have the right license before you allow them to serve alcohol.

If your state doesn't require a liquor license or specific training for servers and bartenders, you can still make sure that your employees have the right training. You can send all of your employees who will serve alcohol to an alcohol serving program at an anderson valley winery; this will provide your employees with formal education on best policies on serving alcohol and how to do so in a safe manner.

2. Always Check Identification

Second, make it a policy within your restaurant to always check identification. Make sure that your employees know that regardless of how old someone looks, they are always required to ask for identification. If someone is ordering two drinks, ask to see the ID of the person ordering the drinks, and the person whom the other drink is for.

Make sure that your employees know how to properly check identification and are familiar with signs of a fake identification.

For true regulars, you may be able to relax asking for identification for someone who comes in five times a week, but otherwise, make sure your servers know that it is just company policy to always ask for identification, regardless of how old someone looks to them.

3. Always Measure Alcohol

Some people really enjoy just freestyling while making drinks. However, when serving drinks at a restaurant, it is important to measure the alcohol that you put in the drinks; this will allow you to know how much alcohol you are serving to individuals and when to make the judgment call to cut someone off. Measuring out the alcohol and keeping it consistent with your drinks will also help your customers better determine their own limits. If you serve them one drink that is really weak, and the next two drinks they order are significantly stronger, a customer could easily over-order because they think they are ordering less alcohol then they really are. Measuring alcohol protects you and your customers.

As a restaurant owner, make sure all employees who serve alcohol have proper training in how to do so. Create a restaurant-wide policy for always checking customer's identification, and require anyone who makes drinks to measure them out and keep them consistent for everyone's safety.