"Michael Julian has written an excellent book. Practical, detailed, and a potential life saver if you find yourself in the midst of a targeted attack."
Active Shooter Training for Restaurants and Bars: A 2026 Preparedness Guide for Owners and Managers
Active shooter training for restaurants and bars teaches owners, managers, and front-line staff to make fast survival decisions in a crowded, open space that cannot be quickly locked down, so a violent event becomes survivable rather than chaotic. Hospitality venues are uniquely exposed: doors stay open by design, dining rooms fill with strangers, sightlines are broken by booths and bars, and a single host stand often stands between the street and a full room of guests.
That openness is the whole point of a restaurant, and it is also the reason a generic "lock the door and wait" plan does not fit. A bar at capacity on a Friday night, a patio packed for Sunday brunch, or a banquet room mid-service all demand a different kind of readiness. The goal is not to turn a dining room into a fortress. It is to give the people working the floor the ability to recognize danger early and act decisively.
Why are restaurants and bars hard to protect?
Restaurants combine three risk factors that rarely appear together. They are public, so anyone can walk in. They are dense, so a small space holds many people. And they are loud and busy, so the early seconds of an incident are easily missed or mistaken for something else.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation designated 24 shootings as active shooter incidents in 2024, a 50 percent decrease from the 48 incidents in 2023, and commerce locations such as places of business accounted for four of them, with roughly half of all incidents occurring in open spaces (FBI, 2025). Restaurants and bars live at the intersection of commerce and open space, which is part of why hospitality leaders increasingly treat preparedness as a basic operating responsibility rather than an afterthought.
There is also a workplace-safety dimension. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's General Duty Clause requires employers to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause serious harm, and workplace violence is a recognized hazard (OSHA, 2024). For a restaurant group, that means staff safety is not only a moral priority but a documented expectation.
What does active shooter survival training cover for hospitality staff?
In our 30 years developing and delivering A.L.I.V.E. Active Shooter Survival Training, we have learned that effective training for restaurants is built around real decisions in real spaces, not slides. It typically covers four things.
First, awareness. Hosts, servers, and bartenders are positioned to see who comes through the door before anyone else, which makes them the early-warning layer of the whole operation. Teaching staff the early warning signs front-line staff can spot turns ordinary attentiveness into a genuine safety asset.
Second, decision-making under stress. The core A.L.I.V.E. framework gives people a clear, memorable structure for choosing among escape, denial of access, and, as a last resort, confronting an attacker, rather than freezing. Crowded venues often have more than one exit, including kitchen and service doors most guests never notice, and trained staff can guide people toward them.
Third, space-specific planning. Where are the back-of-house exits? Which interior doors lock? Where would guests shelter if leaving is not possible? A walkthrough turns abstract advice into a plan that fits the actual floor.
Fourth, recovery and communication. Knowing how to call in a clear location, account for staff, and assist arriving officers shortens the most dangerous window.
How is this different from a standard safety briefing?
Many restaurants already run safety meetings on slips, burns, and fire exits. Those matter, but they are compliance habits, not survival skills. Understanding how survival training differs from a basic safety briefing helps managers see why a fifteen-minute talk is not enough: survival capability comes from practiced decisions and muscle memory, the kind that holds up when adrenaline spikes and the room is loud.
Training also builds confidence rather than fear. Staff who have walked their own building and rehearsed their options tend to feel steadier, not more anxious, because uncertainty is what makes violence feel paralyzing.
Practical steps a restaurant or bar can take now
• Walk your floor and identify every exit, including service and kitchen doors, and confirm which interior doors lock from inside.
• Designate who calls 911 and what they will say, including the venue address and nearest cross street.
• Brief new hires during onboarding, since hospitality turnover is high and a plan only works if current staff know it.
• Schedule professional, scenario-based training and refresh it at least annually or after a remodel that changes the layout.
Frequently asked questions
Is active shooter training appropriate for a small neighborhood restaurant? Yes. Smaller venues often have fewer staff and fewer exits, which makes each person's decisions more important, not less. Training scales to any size and is built around the actual people and space involved.
Will training upset our guests or hurt the atmosphere? Training is conducted with staff, not during service, and it is designed to build quiet confidence rather than visible alarm. Guests never need to know it happened, and well-prepared staff create a calmer, safer environment.
How long does training take and how often should we repeat it? Most foundational sessions can be completed in a few hours. Because skills fade without practice, most operators benefit from annual refreshers, plus additional sessions after major staffing changes or renovations.
Should bartenders and kitchen staff be included, or just managers? Everyone who works the building should be included. Kitchen staff control back exits, bartenders often have the clearest view of the entrance, and an incident does not wait for a manager to be on shift.
Can training help with our insurance or liability position? Many insurers and risk advisors look favorably on documented violence-prevention and safety programs. Beyond any premium consideration, trained staff are far better positioned to protect lives, which is the real return.
Prepare your team before it matters
The best time to build survival capability is during an ordinary week of service, not in the aftermath of a tragedy. A.L.I.V.E. delivers active shooter survival training designed for real environments and real people, including the open, fast-moving, public-facing settings that define restaurants and bars. Contact our team to schedule training tailored to your venue.
About the author
Michael D. Julian is the creator of A.L.I.V.E. Active Shooter Survival Training and brings more than 30 years of security and safety experience to the field. He served as President of the California Association of Licensed Investigators (CALI) from 2005 to 2015 and has spent his career helping organizations prepare for and survive violent events. Connect with Michael on LinkedIn.
LEARN HOW TO SURVIVE AN ACTIVE SHOOTER!
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Hear From An A.L.I.V.E. Student Survivor Of The Las Vegas Massacre
"As a retired 32 year law enforcement veteran, with several years of SWAT and tactical experience, I learned some different unique perspectives as it pertains to civilians dealing with active threat situations. Very good class for civilians who may have never experienced reacting to a life and death stressful situation."
- Christopher C.
A.L.I.V.E. STANDS FOR:
Assess
Assess the situation quickly
Leave
Leave the area if you can
Impede
Impede the shooter
Violence
Violence may be necessary
Expose
Expose your position carefully for safety
INDUSTRIES WE SERVE
Corporations
Government
Healthcare
Places of worship
Schools & Universities
Venues
MICHAEL JULIAN
Creator of A.L.I.V.E.
A.L.I.V.E., which stands for Assess, Leave, Impede, Violence, and Expose, was created in 2014 when Michael began teaching his Active Shooter Survival philosophy throughout the United States. His book on the subject, 10 Minutes to Live: Surviving an Active Shooter Using A.L.I.V.E. was published in 2017 and the online version of the A.L.I.V.E. Training Program was launched in 2019 and is now part of the corporate security training program for companies throughout the world.
Why A.L.I.V.E. Active Shooter
Survival Training Program?
The A.L.I.V.E. Active Shooter Survival Training Program is a comprehensive training program designed to provide individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge to survive an active shooter incident. Its emphasis on situational awareness and decision-making makes it a practical and effective approach to active shooter situations. By empowering individuals to take proactive measures to protect themselves and others, the program can help prevent tragedies and save lives.