Barracks Row Main Street’s Restaurant Conference:
Feb 17th, 10 am to 2 pm 2026
How Restaurants Attract, Engage, and Retain Guests
Hosted by Raising The Bar DC
Tuesday, February 17 | 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Location: 700 Pennsylvania Ave SE, 7th Floor Conference Room
Note: There will be light refreshments and food
Overview
Barracks Row is not just a collection of restaurants — it’s a neighborhood experience.
Engaging Barracks Row is a half-day, operator-focused session designed to help restaurant owners strengthen what’s already working, close hidden gaps, and build systems that create repeat business, a stronger community connection, and more predictable revenue.
This event is built around three core pillars that shape successful hospitality businesses today:
Cocktails. Branding. Business.
Each session is practical, grounded, and designed to meet owners where they are — without theory, fluff, or expensive overhauls.
Session 1 — Branding
Community Engagement & Social Media Activation
Led by "Black", Founder of Black Sips
Black Sips is a cultural engagement and digital storytelling platform built to activate hospitality businesses through intentional in-person experiences and high-performing social media content.
Rooted in community, culture, and care, Black Sips bridges the gap between industry and consumer by centering people, place, and story.
This session explores:
Turning everyday hospitality into moments people remember and share
Human-centered storytelling featuring staff, mixologists, and space
Short-form video and photo content that feels authentic, not promotional
Brand-aligned captions and cross-promotion that build real visibility
Community-forward activation that strengthens neighborhood identity
This is not influencer marketing.
It is relationship-based amplification.
Outcome:
Owners gain clarity on how to engage their existing community more intentionally — both in person and online — in a way that feels aligned, human, and sustainable.
Session 2 — Cocktails
The Beverage Program as a Business Engine
Led by Tassia Lacerda, Founder of Forbidden Cocktail Club
Most restaurants think of their beverage program as a menu.
In reality, a well-designed beverage program is a revenue system, a marketing tool, and a guest-retention driver.
This session reframes cocktails away from “what drinks do we serve?” and toward how the beverage program supports the entire business.
Topics include:
Using drink menus to naturally guide guest choices and increase average check
Aligning cocktails with the vibe, identity, and audience of the establishment
Why beverage programs quietly lose money when they’re treated as “set it and forget it”
How distributor relationships, activations, and events can drive organic traffic
The role of consistency, costing, and data in long-term beverage profitability
Outcome:
Owners leave with a clearer understanding of how to evaluate their beverage program not just creatively, but strategically — as something that should sell naturally, support the brand, and contribute directly to repeat business.
Session 3 — Business
The Regular Engine: Turning Visits Into Return
Led by Jonas Mitchell, Co-Founder of Raising The Bar DC
Most restaurants are good at running a great night.
Very few are designed to get people to come back.
This session introduces The Regular Engine — a business system built to help restaurants convert visits into repeat customers on purpose, not by luck.
Topics include:
Why great service alone doesn’t reliably create regulars
The difference between running a night and building a return
How most restaurants accidentally end relationships too cleanly
Why repeat business is a design problem, not a staff problem
How small shifts during the visit can change long-term outcomes
Outcome:
Owners walk away with a new way of seeing the guest experience — one focused on continuity, community, and compounding return instead of constant acquisition.
Session 4 — Panel & Open Discussion
Real Questions. Real Conversations.
The final session brings all speakers together for:
Live Q&A
Cross-discipline discussion
Owner-specific challenges and opportunities
This open forum connects cocktails, branding, and business into a cohesive conversation and gives owners space to ask the questions that matter most to them.
Why This Matters
This event is not about doing more.
It’s about:
Strengthening what already exists
Engaging the community that’s already showing up
Designing systems that reduce pressure and increase return
Steps of Service run tonight.
The Regular Engine builds tomorrow.
Contact Information:
To learn more or reserve spots for your team, please contact:
Logosou Kudayah: logosou@barracksrow.org
Brian Ready: brian@barracksrow.org
202-544-3188
Act fast! Space is limited, and registration is first-come, first-served.