Fireworks, barbeque and beer –– these are the essentials of the most American of American holidays. 
    Whether located on the beach or the parade route, some venues have it made for the Fourth of July, while less sunny, land-locked locales may have to simulate a fun-in-the-sun atmosphere in order to generate appeal for the holiday. Whatever your location, there are ways to create an Independence Day party that will convince patrons to forego the backyard barbeque and spend the Fourth at your establishment.

Adapting The Menu
    Dianne Crowley is co-owner of Wild Wings Café, a restaurant and bar with over 20 locations in three states across the Southeast. Many of the Wild Wing locations get heavy Independence Day traffic.
    “A lot of our restaurants are in vacation destinations, so our numbers are always good,” Crowley says. To boost food sales for the holiday, the company creates specials with American themed names. They sell an “All American Burger” with American cheese, as well as “No Sweat Barbeque.” Crowley says that the idea behind these specials is to create, “a backyard barbeque where you don’t have to clean the grill.”
    For any venue that sells food, creating a special Fourth of July menu is simple –– the recipes may remain virtually the same while the names can be adapted to the holiday’s theme. If burgers and potato salad are not on your regular menu, it might be worthwhile to cater a buffet for those patrons who are missing that vacation at the beach or don’t want to go through the hassle of grilling out. Cuisine Americana can be a serious draw to spend the Fourth of July at your establishment.  

Summertime Thirst
    If your venue doesn’t serve food, then specialty drinks are a fun and easy way to create an atmosphere of patriotic revelry. “We do red, white and blue Jell-o shots; we have a drink that we put sparklers in,” Crowley says.
    Gelatin shots are an inexpensive crowd favorite. With the right shade of food coloring, they can be circulated through your Fourth of July crowd as quick-sell party favors.
    And don’t forget the classic appeal of beer. Because of its founding father mascot, the Samuel Adams brand is wide-open to Independence Day promotions. And, with American flag color combinations and catchy names, you can of course add the theme to your liquor drinks as well.

Promotional Devotion
    Contests and giveaways are great ways to promote a Fourth of July celebration.
    Alan Franks is an owner of Seabrook Beach Club located on Clear Lake outside of Houston. Clear Lake is one of the most popular ports for pleasure cruises in the country, and Franks says, “the big attraction for the Fourth is coming down to the lake.” However, the Seabrook Beach Club has been known to spark additional interest in their Fourth of July party by holding some pretty crazy Independence Day contests.
    “We do mud wrestling, pudding wrestling and $1,000 bikini contests,” Franks says. Seabrook also has held arm wrestling competitions inside the bar and sponsored jet-ski races in the lake outside.
    While these contests work well for larger venues with ample outdoor area, places such as the Wild Wing Café may execute more mellow, but equally inventive, contests and giveaways.
    “We do karaoke contests where we only let people sing songs with the word ‘America’ in them,” Crowley says. Wild Wing also has given away large American flag cakes, and even trips to Boston, Mass. and Philadelphia, Pa.

Getting The Word Out
    It seems that all of the big vacation venues agree on two important aspects of generating good numbers for a Fourth of July party –– advertising and music.
    “We buy a lot of radio,” Crowley says. She and Franks agree that radio is the way to go in order to reach the largest number of people during the summer. For smaller venues, it’s important to reach out to regular customers through advertisements in and around your establishment to remind them to plan on a night out for the Fourth. 
    Franks says that the Seabrook Beach Club has two bands during the day and a different band for nighttime partying.  Live music is a great way to add to that beach-party feel, even if the band has to play indoors. NCB