PREVRA Bar Opening and Closing Checklist: Daily Procedures for Food Safety and Operations
A complete bar opening and closing checklist covering food safety, cleaning, equipment checks, stock rotation, and cellar management for UK bars and pubs.
Why a bar checklist matters for food safety and consistency
Bars serving food — even simple items like crisps, nuts, or pre-prepared sandwiches — are food businesses and fall under the same SFBB and HACCP requirements as restaurants. An EHO inspection of a bar will check fridge temperatures, date labelling, glass washing procedures, and pest control just as they would in any kitchen. Bars that overlook food safety because "we only serve drinks" are caught out when the EHO checks the bar snacks fridge.
Counter-intuitively, the highest-risk item in many bars is not the food but the ice machine. Ice is classified as food under UK law, and poorly maintained ice machines can harbour Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which causes illness and has a distinct sweet, musty odour. An EHO will inspect your ice machine and ice storage — and can issue a hygiene improvement notice if it is not clean.
Implementing this checklist in your bar's daily routine
Print two copies per shift — one for the opening bartender and one for closing. Opening tasks include checking fridge temperatures, verifying date labels on all food items, cleaning and sanitising glass washers, checking the ice machine for cleanliness, and confirming hand wash basins are stocked. Closing tasks cover disposing of unsold food past its shelf life, cleaning all surfaces and equipment, emptying and cleaning the ice well, and securing the cellar.
Digital SFBB converts this paper checklist into a digital workflow: staff complete each task on their phone, timestamps and photos capture proof of completion, and managers receive alerts for any failed checks. Your EHO sees a verifiable daily record rather than a clipboard with ticks.
Prevra · Early access
Prevra is building a digital SFBB app.
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