The Truth About a “Bar Rescue” Experience

Everyone knows I am a big “Bar Rescue” fan. I watch the show like a maniac and I even planned a tour that took me to bars that were rescued by Jon Taffer. But I am not an idiot. I know the show is scripted worse than professional wrestling. However, I could never get anyone who was on the show to confirm it to me until now.

Recently I came in contact with Maria Bedient, a real life person who was featured prominently on the fifth season of “Bar Rescue.” However, don’t think the word “prominently” translates to accurately or glowingly. Her episode, titled “Emergency Exit,” portrayed Maria as an entitled, spoiled distraction who was sucking the life out of a bar called Murphy’s Law in Reno. The show explained that Maria owned 40% of the bar while her ex-boyfriend also owned 40%. A third partner owned 20%. After an opening scene outside the bar where Taffer is very critical of Maria, he later convinces her ex-boyfriend (Gary) to fire her.

This is Maria Bedient, the woman who was gracious enough to talk to me about her experience on "Bar Rescue."

This is Maria Bedient, the woman who was gracious enough to talk to me about her experience on “Bar Rescue.”

The episode is your typical “Bar Rescue” story line: The bar is initially depicted as a business in complete disarray. The stress test is a disaster. The staff eventually comes together. The re-model is out of this world. The grand opening is a success. The credits explain that after a short period of time, the sales of Money Bar (the new name of Murphy’s Law) went up 20%.

Murphy's Law in Reno is depicted on the fifth season of "Bar Rescue."

Murphy’s Law in Reno is depicted on the fifth season of “Bar Rescue.”

But not so fast. Like I said, it doesn’t take a reality TV guru to know that “Bar Rescue” is produced to attract viewers, not to tell the truth. Maria couldn’t have made this more clear.

How about we just start from the top? The opening of every show exclaims that the featured bar is ready to “pull open the doors, bust out the books, and make a call to ‘Bar Rescue’ for help.” While Murphy’s Law did end up pulling open the doors and busting out the books, it never made a call to the show. Believe it or not, “Bar Rescue” contacted various Reno area bars to gauge interest in appearing in an episode. The show dialed up Murphy’s Law and Maria says it was the worst decision they ever made to accept their offer to “rescue” the bar.

The original call from “Bar Rescue” came in late September of 2014. All filming was complete by March 15, 2015. Once the show converged on Maria’s bar, it didn’t take long to realize that there was an agenda at play.

Maria doesn’t dispute that the bar had issues. But what she does vehemently deny is the type/cause of issues “Bar Rescue” portrayed the bar to have. You just have to watch the first minute of the “Emergency Exit” episode to see the writing on the wall. Maria is immediately labeled as a “puppet master” and all the editing and sound bites of her from that point on paint a portrait of a toxic individual who is set on destroying a business. More on what this portrayal of Maria did to her later.

At the start of the show, there is an epic meltdown by the owner who controlled a minority stake in the bar, Nellie. While the cameras rolled, Nellie decides to walk off his bar shift while hurling expletives and flashing obscene gestures at Gary. The two men and Maria happen to take their disagreement out into the parking lot right at the same time that Jon Taffer exits his recon vehicle. A major confrontation takes place. The whole scene seemed, to put it nicely, less than spontaneous. This would be the theme throughout the entire filming.

A major part in the "Emergency Exit" episode of Bar Rescue is when Jon Taffer and the three owners meet outside Murphy's Law for a frank discussion.

A major part in the “Emergency Exit” episode of Bar Rescue is when Jon Taffer and the three owners meet outside Murphy’s Law for a frank discussion.

Maria explained to me that the main producer talked to all Murphy’s Law employees who appeared on the show separately. Roles were developed and certain behaviors encouraged. As for the smaller things that occur on a reality show to make telling a preconceived story easier, all employees were required to wear the same clothes throughout the filming. Also, just like what Bryden Vukasin told me about “The Bachelorrete,” show producers had the Murphy’s Law staff perform certain tasks/scenes over and over.

Some of the manipulation was more damaging. The couple sent in as part of Taffer’s surveillance operation definitely wasn’t going inside to offer impartiality. Encouraged to showcase Murphy’s Law as an incompetent hellhole, they did just that. Interestingly enough, the couple, Kevin and Brittany, eventually apologized to Gary and Maria for purposely making their business look bad. Of course, how can you blame them? The show told them to do something so how do you say no? Anyway, this individual story ends well as now Kevin and Brittany are regular Murphy’s Law patrons and friends with Gary and Maria.

Another tough part of the “Bar Rescue” experience for Murphy’s Law was that the hands of the owners were tied. In the show there is an infamous part where Maria is sitting at the bar gambling and hanging out. A clock appears on the screen that shows the length of her inactivity. The truth is, she couldn’t do anything else. The show specifically told her to not help out with any bar operations, a tough task for someone who is used to significantly assisting. This is a theme you see throughout all the “Bar Rescue” episodes so maybe now you won’t think that all those owners are actually that lazy.

This is the scene where a clock is put on the screen to show the inactivity of Maria. It showed her sitting there for three hours.

This is the scene where a clock is put on the screen to show the inactivity of Maria. It showed her sitting there for three hours.

Maria credits the “Bar Rescue” personnel for being nice and helpful up front, but it soon became hard to accept it as genuine. As the filming went on and on, the hidden agenda of the producers started to become more visible. This wasn’t the story of Murphy’s Law, it was the story of a generic “Bar Rescue” plot line that used a bar in Reno to help tell it.

But Murphy’s Law did go along with it. The employees played their parts, took their lumps, and put on their smiles after the bar was remodeled and renamed. Although I actually thought the 1930s old school style gambling hall makeover was pretty cool, Maria informed me that the staff, and, probably more importantly, the customers, didn’t.

A look at what Murphy's Law looked like after it was converted to Money Bar.

A look at what Murphy’s Law looked like after it was converted to Money Bar.

Before the episode even premiered, Gary had changed back the name from Money Bar to Murphy’s Law. Everything else wasn’t as easy to reverse, however. Maria tells me business has suffered dramatically since the rescue. She says the place lost thousands of dollars worth of equipment and personal belongings. The 20% increase in business that “Bar Rescue” reported as the credits rolled? Absolute hogwash, claims Maria. Not only is that number inaccurate, but “Bar Rescue” never even followed up in the first place.

Losing business is one thing; losing your sense of self is another. Believe it or not, after the show aired Maria received hate mail from viewers unable to decipher the truth about reality television. She was the subject of social media venom from trolls who would watch the show and then sound off using their keyboards and smart devices. It took a year before Maria could even talk about the experience. She doesn’t hide the fact that it has been a very tough road since the “Bar Rescue” experience started.

With that said, it says a lot about Maria that she can still see the silver lining in this whole saga. After Gary pleaded for Maria to return to the bar, thereby turning his back on the advice Taffer gave him, she has experienced the small positive fruits of the “Bar Rescue” exposure. Fans of the show frequently drop in at Murphy’s Law solely because they saw it on TV. While this group can never replace the scores of regular customers the business has lost, it does provide Maria the chance to meet new people and set the record straight.

I am well aware that people have either enjoyed or suffered through different “Bar Rescue” experiences. I have in fact talked to both sides. In the future, I look to talk to more. However, there is one major theme that is very important to remember. The word “reality” in front of TV is not synonymous with the words “truthful” or “accurate.” We need to keep this in mind when watching our favorite shows and give the benefit of the doubt to any cast members who might come across as disagreeable. Don’t Blink.

34 thoughts on “The Truth About a “Bar Rescue” Experience

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  4. Just saw the most recent episode on 2/26/17. Really disgusted. The bar employees and owner have the same exact outfits on 3 allegedly separate days. The first noticeable flaw is that the bar owner is belligerent and excessively drunk the previous night, but 8am the next morning he is perfectly sober with no sign of a hangover. He’s laughing, he’s alert, almost as if either he never was really drunk, or, it was a scene that was shot before he began drinking. I’ve had my fair share of hangovers and nobody crushes that much liquor at night and is perfectly fine the next morning.

    I gave it the benefit of the doubt initially and assumed maybe the employees never went home and that’s why they had on the same clothes. Well, that notion was quickly dismissed when that same night, for the “stress test,” they still had on the same clothes from the day before, and they still had the same exact clothes on the 3rd day when they received bar training. Taffer had changed jackets 3 times at this point, it was allegedly the 3rd day, and not a single person had changed their clothes. It was very clear that they had shot the entire thing in a single day, were too lazy to have the employees change clothing, and faked that this took place over a 5 days span. That killed the show for me.

    • Did you not read that he made Maria and staff wear the same clothes for 3 days straight? Lmao. So they make 1 bar where the same clothes every day yet at another place, they only film for a single day? Do you realize how illogical that sounds?

  5. I agree Scott. I have seen every episode but this last season seems too staged. The “problem” people are sooo outrageous to then have such a significant turn around in one day, is now not even credible. The same shirt for the wife in the episode you mention is also not credible. That woman would have changes clothes overnight. I understand they may want to do pick shots, but that throws me off.

  6. Why would the owners allow them to portray them that way, if it’s not true? Do they have to pay for any of the work that is being done? Where does the money come from? The owners have to be in it for the money that is used to remodel and update their old bar.

    • Elaine – You answered your own question. Yes, the show pays for the renovation. Participants trade their dignity for the upgrade. However, sometimes the show takes the embarrassment a little too far.

    • This is a literal ‘sell your soul to the devil for nation wide exposure’ , if you owned a business … would you go thru the yelling and humiliation to become a household name ?

  7. Having worked on quite a few shows as an extra, they make us wear the same thing over several days for continuity purposes. It makes editing much easier. They take pictures every few hours to compare how you look.

  8. I know the show is fake, all reality tv is fake. One thing I will never do though, is take the word of someone that was on the show and is now failing. Of course they are going to blame it on someone else. Find someone that was on the show and found success afterwards and ask them all of the questions. “It wasn’t really that nasty, I wasn’t really a lazy bi*ch, I failed after they left and it was all their fault, it was all for show.” If anyone believes that sh*t then they are just as stupid.

  9. LOL You must be related to her and are trying to clean up her mess. Her lies about the place even after a new owner took over (long before you *got the truth* from her) are well documented. Talk about lying for “clicks”. LOL

    • You’re totally correct! I actually know them, she wasn’t just drinking and gambling instead of working she was also sleeping with the cook while her and Gary were dating. She’s a hot mess

  10. “Chef” Brian Duffy is a complete moron. He came into our pub and gave one of our bartenders grief for not pouring a guinnGui correctly because she did not put a shamrock in the head.
    As any real Guinness certified bartender knows, that is definitely NOT the proper way to pour a Guinness!

  11. I kinda thought it was fake and the more i watched it i knew its fake. But this dude didnt have write 2 books just to say nothing.

  12. Yea im sure parts are fake but they get an expensive make over. They also learn how to make drinks. They get new pos machines. They learn how to manage the bar. Also if some parts were not true about marie why did he have to beg for her to come back. She seems like she is a user and does not care about him.

  13. As a 45 year retired TV and Radio production employee, I can tell you first and formost, Have you ever been in a drama filled bar? Probably not. Bar Rescue is a TV show. Things are exaggerated. Has to be or no one would watch it. Same with Storage Wars. Just like our president. He’s a reality TV producer and a half ass actor. Reality TV has to have Comedy, Drama, A Plot, And a let down.

  14. How could anyone thing any reality show is not scripted? Did Gene Simmon’s dog really run off and he just happened to find him on Hollywood Blvd? Do the guys on American Pickers really just drive around and happen to find a old barn filled with treasures? The list goes on and on. Although in this case I think maybe Maria wants to protect her image a bit and is not really being honest about everything.

  15. I have noticed several times that the employees have a transmitter attached to them during the recon scene. If the team is doing this without the staffs knowledge I would think the transmitter would be a tip off.

  16. Except if you look up the facebook of the people involved in Murphy’s law, they claim the owner and some other people did indeed sabotage the success of the relaunch. Also keep in mind most of these places ARE in the financial red,,,the likelihood of success with or without help is unlikely. You can’t fix stupid. If you watch that episode, edited or not, there were some STUPID owner.s

  17. Cracks me up that the episode of the chileens was about two drunk owners.. they abruptly stop drinking (dangerous) and he gets them recovery help… but then the mother and daughter do recon a couple seasons later… and she orders alcohol????

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