How to open a bar or brewery

A bar needs a state liquor license and a federal dealer registration; a brewery also needs TTB's approval and a bond before it brews a single batch for sale. The federal steps turn out to be the quick ones, with the Brewer's Notice free and approved in a median of 34 to 43 days in summer 2026, while the state license, and in quota states the price of buying one, usually decides when and whether you open.

By Niomi AscotUpdated October 3, 202616 min read

Federal: TTB dealer registration for every bar; a Brewer's Notice and bond before brewing
Small brewer excise: $3.50 a barrel on the first 60,000 barrels a year
Texas taproom: 5,000 barrels a year to consumers; 288 ounces to go per person per day
California: A Type 23 brewery is open to apply for; a Type 48 bar is a quota license
Florida liquor: One quota license per 7,500 county residents; beer and wine uncapped
Server training: Required in California within 60 days; a liability safe harbor in Texas

Bar, taproom, brewpub or production brewery

The license you need follows from one question: do you make the beer, or only pour it? The Brewers Association’s market segments draw the lines this way:

A bar buys beer, wine and spirits through wholesalers and holds a retail license only. Under tied-house rules it never holds a manufacturing license.
A taproom brewery is a professional brewery that sells 25% or more of its beer on site without significant food service. Food often comes from trucks.
A brewpub is a restaurant-brewery selling 25% or more of its beer on site with significant food service, brewing mainly for its own bar.
A microbrewery makes under 15,000 barrels a year and sells 75% or more off site, through distributors or its own trucks.

Then come the smaller choices: beer and wine only or a full bar, which in quota states can be the difference between a routine application and buying a license on the open market; food or no food, which can change the license and, in Florida, the health agency; and selling through a wholesaler or self-distributing where the state allows it.

Bars are small businesses. The 2023 County Business Patterns file counts 40,835 drinking places with paid staff and 432,542 employees; 38.7% had fewer than five employees and 86.3% fewer than 20. Another 28,799 drinking places ran with no employees in the 2023 nonemployer file. The same Census file lists 5,218 brewery establishments with 98,647 employees, though Census sorts by primary activity, so many brewpubs are probably counted as restaurants.

The outlook

This is a contracting market, and openings have slowed to match. The Brewers Association counted 9,724 US breweries in 2025, down 2.9%, including 3,784 taprooms and 3,525 brewpubs. Its 2025 year-end release reported 300 new brewery openings against 481 closures, with openings down from 518 the year before, and credited the shift toward taprooms and brewpubs to their higher unit price. On the demand side, Gallup found in August 2026 that 54% of Americans say they drink, a record low for the second year running.

A new bar or brewery grows by taking share and owning occasions, and a real nonalcoholic list belongs in the plan.

For staffing, O*NET’s bartender data, drawn from BLS, shows a 2025 median of $16.51 an hour, 756,700 employed in 2024 and 129,600 projected openings through 2034, growing faster than average. O*NET also reports that 40% of bartenders deal with unpleasant, angry or discourteous people every day. Brewers have no O*NET occupation of their own, and we found no federal outlook for them.

Federal permits

A bar registers with TTB even though TTB issues no license

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau does not license retail alcohol sales; that is your state’s and city’s job. But no one may sell beer, wine or spirits without first registering the business with TTB on Form 5630.5d, the Alcohol Dealer Registration, before opening and for every location, whether the drinks are poured on site or sold to go. Bars, taverns and restaurants are on TTB’s list. A registered retailer must keep records of every delivery of spirits, wine and beer, showing quantities, the supplier and the date, and TTB presumes a retailer is a wholesaler once it sells 20 wine gallons or more to one buyer.

A brewery needs a Brewer’s Notice and a bond before the first batch

Anyone making beer for other than family or personal use needs TTB’s approval first. The beer FAQs say you apply through Permits Online, there is no fee, approval must come before you brew, and TTB may inspect the site. You also need bond coverage before brewing: the minimum penal sum is $1,000, and the maximum is $150,000 if you prepay the tax or $500,000 if you defer it. The approved notice registers the brewery as a dealer at that location, so a taproom does not file a separate 5630.5d.

TTB’s goal is to process 85% of applications within 75 days. Its processing statistics put the median for brewery applications at 43 days in June 2026, 35 in July and 34 in August. A brew-on-premises shop, where customers make their own beer, can run without TTB qualification under strict limits, but staff may not ferment, carbonate, filter or bottle for customers.

Federal excise tax

A domestic brewer making 2,000,000 barrels or less a year pays $3.50 a barrel on the first 60,000 barrels and $16.00 a barrel above that, against a general rate of $18.00. A barrel is 31 gallons. Breweries under common control may have to share the reduced rate, so put any second location or related company in front of an accountant first.

Labels, growlers and FDA

Packaged beer follows TTB’s malt beverage labeling rules and the health warning statement, with label approval applied for on TTB Form 5100.31. A growler filled at the tap when the customer asks is treated as a large glass sold at retail and needs no federal label; one filled ahead of time is a bottle and does. The health warning applies to kegs and serving tanks even where the public cannot see them. Whether beer sold only inside your state needs a federal label approval was not confirmed for this guide; ask TTB.

Breweries register with FDA as food facilities, but the preventive controls rules do not apply to alcoholic beverages at a facility that holds TTB approval, nor to prepackaged food that is no more than 5% of sales. Spent grain given or sold to farmers as feed escapes the animal food rules as long as the brewery follows good manufacturing practice and does not process the grain further (21 CFR 507.12). Whether a brewpub selling mostly at retail counts instead as an exempt retail food establishment was not confirmed; ask FDA.

State licenses in Texas, California and Florida

The SBA lists alcohol manufacturing and retail sales under both TTB and your local alcohol control board. The state systems differ more than any other part of this guide:

State	Agency	License	Key requirements as the agency states them
Texas	Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission	Brewer’s License (BW); Brewpub License (BP); Retail Mixed Beverage Permit (MB)	A brewpub license is for holders of a mixed beverage permit, wine and malt beverage retailer’s permit or retail dealer’s on-premise license; certifications from the city, county, Secretary of State and Comptroller; about 30 to 35 days from a complete application; licenses last two years
California	Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control	Type 23 Small Beer Manufacturer; Type 75 Brewpub-Restaurant; Type 42 or 48 for bars	Type 23 covers breweries under 60,000 barrels a year; Type 75 is an on-sale retail license for a bona fide eating place with limited brewing; Type 48 bars and nightclubs need no food; servers and managers certified in responsible beverage service
Florida	Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco	Beer and wine licenses; quota liquor licenses; brewpub vendor license	No limit on beer and wine licenses; liquor licenses capped by county population and obtained by buying one or entering the quota drawing; annual retail license fees between $28 and $1,820

Texas: taproom or brewpub

A Texas brewery taproom works under the brewer’s license. A brewer producing no more than 225,000 barrels a year may sell beer made on its premises directly to consumers, with to-go sales capped at 288 fluid ounces per person per day and on-site consumer sales capped at 5,000 barrels a year per premises (Alcoholic Beverage Code 62.122).

A Texas brewpub is a retail business with brewing privileges. It must sit in a wet area, must also hold a retail permit, may brew, can and label beer for sale on or off its premises, may not hold an interest in a brewer’s or distributor’s license, and is capped at 10,000 barrels a year per brewpub (chapter 74). The choice comes down to where you want to grow: the taproom can distribute widely but caps what it sells over its own bar, while the brewpub keeps its bar uncapped but caps total production.

Applying takes longer than the 30 to 35 days suggest. The TABC license FAQs say a location not licensed for on-premise sales in the prior two years may need a sign posted for 60 days. The fee schedule effective September 1, 2021, the most recent one we could read, lists two-year state fees of $3,000 for a brewer’s license, $5,300 for an original mixed beverage permit, $1,100 for a brewpub license and $1,100 for a late hours certificate. Local fees are extra; confirm current amounts with TABC.

California: the license number decides the model

The 2026 fee schedule sorts licenses into two groups. General licenses, including Type 48 bars, Type 47 restaurants and the Type 75 brewpub-restaurant, cost $19,840 and are available new only to priority drawing winners, or by transfer from a current holder for $1,565. Non-general licenses, including the Type 23 brewery and Type 42 beer and wine bar, cost $1,135. So in California a taproom under Type 23 can be started on a normal application, while a brewpub with a full bar runs into the same scarcity as any cocktail bar. The priority drawing FAQ explains the once-a-year window.

ABC is explicit that a Type 75 differs from a true beer manufacturer’s license in significant ways, and a Type 75 or 47 must keep suitable kitchen facilities. Type 40 beer bars must have sandwiches or snacks available and may admit minors; Types 42 and 48 bar minors from entering and remaining.

Florida: quota liquor and the restaurant exception

Florida caps liquor licenses at one per 7,500 residents in each county (Fla. Stat. 561.20). The exception for restaurants requires at least 2,000 square feet of service area, at least 120 physical seats and 51% or more of gross food and beverage revenue from food. A bar that wants spirits without meeting that test buys a quota license from a current holder or enters the drawing.

For brewing, the license types list offers a $500 manufacturer-in-vendor-premises license, tied to an on-premises retail license and capped at 10,000 kegs a year for consumption on site, and a full manufacturer license at $3,000 per plant that sells at wholesale to licensed distributors. Growlers come in 32, 64 or 128 ounces and need labels and a seal.

Florida also splits bars between health agencies: DBPR licenses bars that serve food, and the Department of Health licenses bars that do not. Adding a hot dog roller can move you from one to the other.

Tied-house rules: who may own what

Texas states a general policy against the tied house, defined as any overlapping ownership or prohibited relationship between manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers (chapter 102). Suppliers may not give retailers money, services or things of value, or furnish equipment and supplies used to sell or dispense alcohol. California’s ABC says the same in its tied-house advisory: Business and Professions Code sections 25500 and 25502 bar suppliers from giving retail licensees things of value, joint advertising and sponsorships included.

For a founder, this means three things. A brewery owner cannot simply also own the bar down the street; the structure has to fit a statutory exception, such as the brewpub license. A distributor will not buy your draft system or tap handles, so budget to own them. And if you bring in an investor who already holds an alcohol license at another tier, have an attorney review it before you file.

Dram shop law and liquor liability insurance

Liability for what an intoxicated customer does next differs sharply by state:

Texas. A claim requires proof that the customer was obviously intoxicated to the point of being a clear danger to themselves and others, and that the intoxication was a proximate cause of the damage (Alcoholic Beverage Code 2.02). An employee’s actions are not attributed to the employer if the employer requires commission-approved seller training, the employee attended it and the employer did not encourage the violation (section 106.14).
Florida. A seller is not liable for an intoxicated customer’s harm except when it willfully and unlawfully serves someone under the drinking age, or knowingly serves someone habitually addicted to alcohol (Fla. Stat. 768.125).
Minnesota. People injured by an intoxicated person may sue whoever caused the intoxication by selling alcohol illegally (340A.801), and a retail license cannot be issued, kept or renewed without proof of financial responsibility, $50,000 per person for bodily injury among the minimums (340A.409).

Other states, California among them, have their own rules that this guide does not cover; ask an attorney in your state. Liquor liability cover is worth pricing before you sign a lease, because in practice landlords and lenders ask for it even where the state does not.

Setting up the business

Entity, EIN and ownership. Form the entity with your secretary of state, then get the free EIN. Liquor agencies investigate every owner: Texas applications include a personal history sheet, so settle who owns what before you file.

Bonds. Beyond the TTB brewery bond, Texas applications reference a conduct surety bond for mixed beverage permits and a fee interest bond for brewers, per the TABC license types page.

Tips and service charges. Cash tips are reported to you monthly unless they total less than $20 (IRS). A mandatory charge on a large party is not a tip; it becomes part of your gross receipts, and how you pass it to staff is a payroll question.

Workers’ compensation. California requires it from the first employee; most private employers in Texas may decline it.

Music. The federal exemption for drinking places covers radio and TV broadcasts in spaces under 3,750 gross square feet, or within limits on speakers and screen size, with no charge to listen (17 U.S.C. 110(5)). A band, a DJ or a streaming playlist sits outside it, so budget for performing rights licenses.

Equipment and space

A bar usually starts with a draft system and walk-in cooler, an ice machine, a glass washer or three-compartment sink, a bar die with a handwashing sink, and a point of sale that scans IDs. A brewery adds the brewhouse, fermenters and brite tanks, a glycol chiller, a keg washer, CO2 supply, floor drains and a forklift or pallet jack. Brewery wastewater is strong, and many sewer authorities charge extra for it; ask yours before you sign, because it can change the math on a site.

Space rules come from the license. A Texas brewpub must be in a wet area; a California Type 47 or 75 needs suitable kitchen facilities; Florida’s restaurant exception needs 2,000 square feet of service area and 120 seats.

Pricing and money

Drinks are priced from pour cost against a target percentage, beer by the pint or flight. Toast’s Menu Price Monitor put the median beer on its restaurant menus at $6.62 in August 2026. A taproom keeps the margin a wholesaler and retailer would otherwise take, which is why the on-site model carries a higher unit price.

State law limits promotions. In Texas, happy hour prices must end at 11 p.m., two-for-one sales on premises are illegal, and coupons for alcohol are not allowed.

The license can be the largest line in the budget. Where licenses are capped, as with California general licenses and Florida quota licenses, buying one is a private deal at a market price, and no published price data was available. Any total startup figure printed here would be a guess, since no estimate we found states its method.

Hiring and safety

Server training. California has required responsible beverage service certification for on-premises servers and their managers since July 1, 2022; staff must be certified within 60 days of hire, pass ABC’s exam within 30 days of training, and recertify every three years. Texas makes seller training voluntary under state law, but the TABC certification FAQs tie the safe harbor to staff and managers certified within 30 days of hire and written policies, and note that it can lower liability insurance costs. A Texas server who sells to an intoxicated person faces a fine of $100 to $500 and up to a year in jail.

Confined spaces and CO2. OSHA lists tanks and vessels among confined spaces, and a permit-required space is one that has or may have a hazardous atmosphere. Fermenters make carbon dioxide, and OSHA’s exposure limit is 5,000 parts per million. Put CO2 monitors in the cellar and cold room, and keep a rule that nobody enters a tank without a written entry procedure.

Injury logs. Drinking places are on OSHA’s partially exempt list for routine injury logs. Breweries are manufacturers and do not appear on it, so a brewery should plan to keep the logs.

Finding your first customers

Google Business Profile. Set an opening date up to a year out; a verified profile shows 90 days before and carries a “Recently opened” tag for 90 days after. Google’s contribution policy bars profile content with offers or calls to action for alcohol, with exceptions for menu images and photos where drinks are not the main focus. Post trivia nights, release days and game schedules instead of drink prices. Our Google Business Profile service handles setup.

No Local Services Ads category. Google offers no bar, pub or brewery category, so search ads, the profile and social do the work.

Ads with age limits. Google allows alcohol ads in the US with restrictions: they do not show to people with SafeSearch on, and some formats exclude alcohol. Paid social runs under Meta’s alcohol policy and your state’s rules; see how we approach paid social.

Reviews. The same Google policy bans free goods for reviews and pressure on the premises. In Texas a free drink handed out by coupon breaks a separate state rule.

Openings that fill the room usually pair a release party or soft opening with a mug club or email list started on night one, a food truck schedule for a taproom, and a sports calendar. The bar and brewery marketing page covers the alcohol ad rules in detail.

What trips up new owners

Buying the brewhouse before the Brewer’s Notice and state license. TTB approval is quick; the state license and the lease are not.
Signing a lease before checking wet or dry status, or a Texas brewpub site outside a wet area.
Assuming a brewpub with a full bar is easy in California. A Type 75 is a general license, available new only through the drawing.
Accepting free draft equipment from a distributor. Tied-house rules forbid it.
Skipping server training in Texas and losing the safe harbor.
Sending someone into a fermenter without a procedure.

Frequently asked questions

What licenses do I need to open a bar?

A state liquor license, plus a city or county license where required, a TTB dealer registration, a health permit if you serve food and a sales tax registration. In Florida a bar without food is licensed by the Department of Health.

What licenses does a brewery need?

A TTB Brewer’s Notice with a bond, a state manufacturer license, FDA food facility registration and label approval for packaged beer. A taproom also follows the state’s limits on direct sales.

How long does it take to get a brewery license?

TTB approved brewery applications in a median of 34 to 43 days in summer 2026. TABC estimates 30 to 35 days after a complete application, plus a 60-day posted sign for some sites, and California general licenses are issued new only once a year.

Should I open a taproom or a brewpub?

A taproom if you want to distribute and can live with caps on direct sales, such as Texas’s 5,000 barrels a year. A brewpub if the bar and kitchen are the business, accepting limits such as Texas’s 10,000-barrel production cap or California’s requirement to run a bona fide eating place.

Can a brewery own a bar?

Generally no, because tied-house laws bar overlapping ownership between manufacturers and retailers. The brewpub license is the main exception, and it comes with its own limits.

Am I liable if a customer drives drunk after leaving my bar?

It depends on the state. Texas allows claims when staff served someone obviously intoxicated, Florida limits liability to minors and known habitual drinkers, and Minnesota allows claims for illegal sales and requires insurance.

Do my bartenders need certification?

In California, yes, within 60 days of hire. In Texas it is voluntary under state law but required for the employer’s safe harbor.

Can I advertise drink specials on Google?

Not on your Business Profile, where Google bars alcohol offers. Events, the room and the food menu are allowed, and search ads for alcohol run with age and SafeSearch limits.

Sources

Checked on October 3, 2026. Rules and fees change, and many are set state by state or city by city: confirm the current requirements with the agency that issues them before you apply.

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