In the Bar Rescue episode “Close, But No Cigar,” Jon Taffer travels to Memphis, Tennessee to meet R0bb Hunter. He’s the owner of Havana Mix Cigar Emporium, a bar with a cigar lounge — a large cedar walk-in humidor with more than 50,000 cigars available for purchase. Havana Mix, the first cigar bar featured on Bar Rescue, has a lot going for it including its location: it’s right between the Historic Peabody Hotel and World Famous Beale Street, home to the annual Beale Street Cigar Festival. But one of the first things Taffer sees as a obstacle to its success is Hunter’s millennial son Robb Hunter, Jr.
Taffer has Robb Sr. watch his son in action at Havana Mix. He spends 10 minutes talking to one customer in the humidor and sells one $11 cigar. Taffer is irate. He asks Robb Sr, “Right now, at this moment, is Robb screwing you as an owner?” Robb Sr., who admits that his son talks a lot, says yes. When Robb Jr. walks out of the cigar lounge, Taffer scolds him in front of all the thirsty patrons sitting at the bar. Taffer estimates $120 worth of drinks could have been delivered while Robb Jr. was “hiding” in the humidor. Jr. claims he wasn’t hiding. Taffer sticks around to transform the Havana Mix Cigar Emporium into Robusto by Havana Mix. New episodes of Bar Rescue air Sundays at 10pm on Paramount Network.
