The WORST episodes of Bar Rescue
Every episode of Bar Rescue ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Bar Rescue!
Bars mean money, but they also mean stress if they aren't properly run. Jon Taffer is a bar and nightclub owner who has started, flipped, or owned over 600 bars and clubs in his career and currently owns one of the most highly respected consulting firms in the bar and nightclub industry. Jon will travel around the country and employ his expertise to return struggling bars to the cash cows they once were. Everything from the science of the perfect pour, to the height of the bar stools is a key factor in making a bar the hottest place in town.
#1 - When Dreams Hit the Sidewalk
Season 10 - Episode 3 - Aired 3/1/2026
In Orlando, Florida, Jon Taffer is on a mission to save a struggling bar. Despite the owner's genuine passion and dedication, the establishment is failing due to a fundamentally flawed and misguided concept that was doomed from its very inception
#2 - Bar Over Troubled Water
Season 5 - Episode 17 - Aired 3/26/2017
Big Mike's Sports Bar & Grill - Denham Springs, LA Taffer rescues a successful bar, and the beacon of a community, that was destroyed by flooding in Louisiana.
#3 - One Man Brand
Season 10 - Episode 2 - Aired 2/22/2026
Jon Taffer travels to Marietta, Georgia, to confront a dire situation. He must rescue a failing bar from an owner who stubbornly clings to the misguided belief that his own personal brand alone possesses the power to reverse its fortune.
Watch Now:Apple TV
#4 - Father Knows Best
Season 6 - Episode 11 - Aired 6/17/2018
No Name Saloon - Edgewater, FL A demanding father struggles to hand over the reins to his daughter or control his unruly customers at this failing biker bar in Central Florida.
#5 - Murky Waters at Swamp Tales
Season 9 - Episode 37 - Aired 6/8/2025
In Carlyle, IL a cajun-themed bar needs rescuing due to its out of control food costs and untrained management and staff.
#6 - The Unwanted Saloon
Season 6 - Episode 17 - Aired 8/5/2018
The Wanted Saloon - Dickson, TN Jon heads to middle-of-nowhere Tennessee to rescue The Wanted Saloon, whose remote location is just the first of many challenges.
#7 - Not Cleared for Takeoff
Season 6 - Episode 13 - Aired 7/1/2018
The Airliner - Lincoln Heights, Los Angeles, CA Jon must help reignite a bar owner's passion for his notorious East LA music venue.
#8 - Third Time's the Charm
Season 9 - Episode 39 - Aired 6/22/2025
Jon Taffer sends Dustin Drai to Goodells, MI to help an owner save his struggling business after his previous two bars also closed down from his mismanagement.
#9 - Mother Doesn't Know Best
Season 5 - Episode 21 - Aired 7/23/2017
Jack's Place - Las Vegas, NV Jon Taffer tries to convince the ultimate maternal figure to make her decisions like a business owner to save her struggling Las Vegas dive bar from closing its doors.
#10 - The Unlucky Leprechaun
Season 5 - Episode 25 - Aired 9/10/2017
Lucky Leprechaun Irish Saloon - Davenport, FL Jon Taffer has to convince a foul-mouthed owner to change his ways before the bar he owns with his ex-wife shuts down for good.
#11 - On the 3:10 to Failure
Season 9 - Episode 33 - Aired 5/4/2025
Visiting Smithton, Illinois to help a failing business; dealing with married owners who are at their breaking point because one is working two jobs to support them while the other is mismanaging every aspect of the bar.
#12 - Slotzy's Last Shotzy
Season 9 - Episode 40 - Aired 6/29/2025
Jon Taffer travels to Worden, IL to rescue a bar for an owner who inherited the business from his father but relies on an untrained manager to secure its future success.
#13 - Calendar's Crisis
Season 9 - Episode 32 - Aired 4/27/2025
Danny Trejo travels to Macclenny, Florida to rescue a struggling pizza joint whose owner is reluctant to let her daughter take charge.
#14 - Don't Cry for Me Jon Taffer
Season 6 - Episode 22 - Aired 3/17/2019
RJ'S Replay - Tucson, AZ Jon attempts to save sports bar RJ's Replays, which is full of potential but failing due to poor management, and mend the owner's relationships with his wife and parents.
#15 - Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Fatballs
Season 6 - Episode 16 - Aired 7/29/2018
Fatballs - Jacksonville, FL Jon Taffer tries to rescue a Jacksonville sportsbar with a horrible reputation and an even worse name that leaves the bar without a single customer.
#16 - Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?
Season 9 - Episode 29 - Aired 4/6/2025
A bar in St. Clair, Missouri whose owners are a pair of estranged brothers have let the business collapse amidst their fighting and now need helpsaving it.
#17 - Un-Civil War
Season 6 - Episode 28 - Aired 4/28/2019
Eliphino - Las Vegas, NV A Las Vegas dive bar with an unused kitchen struggles at the hands of an owner who either can't or won't ask for help and who makes more enemies than friends. Jon Taffer could be his greatest friend and rescue his business... or his worst nightmare if the owner doesn't change his ways.
#18 - Alley Cat-astrophe
Season 10 - Episode 4 - Aired 3/8/2026
Jon Taffer travels to Bowling Green, Kentucky, to revitalize a struggling bar plagued by a management crisis, as two bartenders contend for a leadership role after the current manager proves ineffectual in overseeing the bar's operations.
#19 - Sitting Down on the Job
Season 10 - Episode 1 - Aired 2/22/2026
In Ashland City, TN, Jon Taffer confronts a defiant owner who literally sits on a stool while his family's bar crumbles around him. With the business on the brink, Taffer must inspire this idle owner to stand up and fight.
Watch Now:Apple TV
#20 - Honey, I Bought a Bar!
Season 9 - Episode 30 - Aired 4/13/2025
Rescuing a failing business in Houston, Texas after its owner buys a bar as a surprise for her husband,only to realize that he is anything but happy.
#22 - Don't Tell Mom the Bar is Dead
Season 5 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/19/2017
St8 Pub - Englewood, Colorado. An abrasive owner takes advantage of his mom's generosity to take over a craft beer bar from his landlord.
#23 - Ants with Wings, Bro!
Season 4 - Episode 25 - Aired 7/26/2015
Tonic Lounge - Portland, Oregon Motivating the inattentive owner of a failing Portland music venue that has an ant infestation.
#24 - Ripper's Rookie House
Season 4 - Episode 33 - Aired 11/1/2015
Ripper's Rock House - Akron, Ohio Rock legend and former Judas Priest front man turned bar owner calls on Jon Taffer to amp up his struggling live music venue before he's forced to pull the plug on the entire business.
#25 - Till Debt Do Us Part
Season 4 - Episode 29 - Aired 10/4/2015
Caribe Night Club - San Diego, California A womanizing owner and his enraged wife struggle with their run-down Caribbean bar; Taffer tries to turn the bar around before the business hits the rocks and the owner's wife bails.