GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — With the Fourth of July falling on a weekend, Peppinos in downtown Grand Rapids is potentially preparing for larger-than-usual crowds — and its staff is taking steps to make sure customers drink safely and responsibly.
Bar manager Maximilian Craun-Selka said the bar has seen significant increases in foot traffic in recent months.
"Especially the summer. The past years, it's been a little bit of a doldrums, but because of World Cup and with the new amphitheater opening up, we'll get waves of flow," Craun-Selka said.
He said those waves can bring hundreds of people through the door in a short period of time.
"We'll maybe have around 200 to 300 people, and when you're doing that for two hours, you get a consistency of like, wow, it gets busy, fast-paced, fast-moving," Craun-Selka said.
With that volume of guests expected over the holiday weekend, Craun-Selka said his bartenders are trained to watch for signs of intoxication before a customer ever thinks about getting behind the wheel.
"We make sure that everyone is capable of understanding when somebody's inebriated," Craun-Selka said.
He said staff communicate across the bar and dining areas when a guest shows signs of having had too much.
"If you're inebriated, we will communicate with every server or bartender, whichever area you're at, to show that you can come here and dine effectively, not with a drink of alcohol, and you can just enjoy our service for what it is," Craun-Selka said.
The intervention starts early, he said — sometimes before a customer even orders a drink.
"If you just arrived and we see that you're either slurring, you're doing the little like droopiness, we're gonna give you a water first after offering you an appetizer that comes out real quick, fills you up," Craun-Selka said.
The stakes are high. According to the National Higway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 2,719 total traffic fatalities during the Fourth of July holiday period from 2020 to 2024. Of those deaths, 1,724 were drivers.
Craun-Selka said those numbers reinforce why he takes his responsibility seriously.
"I treat this place as like my home," Craun-Selka said.
That sense of ownership extends to how he handles guests who may have had too much.
"I'd be like, 'You got water. I'm gonna make you a snack. Are you Ubering?'" Craun-Selka said.
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