Bar and restaurant AV installation, Tacoma and Kent WA
Restaurant and bar AV
your opener can run from one panel.
TV distribution, zoned audio, patio speakers, menu boards and one-tap scene control for restaurants, bars and breweries in Tacoma, Kent and the rest of south King and Pierce counties. Cameras and door access on the same system, installed around your service hours.
Rivas Technology Group installs restaurant and bar AV in Tacoma, Kent and the South Sound. The work covers commercial TVs with any-source-to-any-screen distribution, Klipsch zoned audio with per-zone DSP, weatherproof patio speakers and menu boards. Control4 scenes such as Open, Game Day and Close run it, with cameras and access control on the same system.
- Response
- Call or text back within one business day
- Assessment
- On site within a week, during your off-hours
- Install window
- Before service, dark days or phased visits
- Warranty
- 90 days on installation workmanship, 30 days on service calls
- License
- WA electrical contractor RIVASGL799DR, bonded and insured
- Reviews
- 5.0 from 49 Google reviews; BBB accredited, A+
What does a restaurant AV installation include?
Four scopes written separately and installed as one system: TV distribution, zoned audio, patio audio and menu boards. On top sits a control panel a bartender can run at 6 p.m. on a Friday. Under all of it sits the network and cabling from commercial infrastructure, and beside it the cameras and door access from business security. Every piece is commercial-rated for a 12-hour service day, and the whole thing is programmed so Open, Game Day, Happy Hour and Close are one button each. The commercial hub shows how it fits with the rest of a building.
How does TV distribution put the game on every screen?
An AVPro Edge 4K matrix and multiviewer take every source, including cable boxes, streaming devices, sports packages, signage and cameras. They route any of them to any screen at full quality over structured cabling. Four screens and one cable box is the problem we see most. The fix is a source for every feed you sell and a switch that puts them where you want them.
The screens are Samsung, LG and NEC commercial panels rated for 16 to 18 hours a day, mounted with concealed cabling and no consumer bezel. A feature wall gets a video wall or a single 100-inch display.
How is zoned audio designed?
Every space gets its own zone, its own level and its own EQ: bar, dining room, patio, restrooms and kitchen pass. We install Klipsch commercial speakers because horn-loaded drivers stay clean at the volume a full room needs, and Integra DSP amplifiers so each zone is tuned to its own acoustics. The result is even coverage, no dead corners, and no blasting the bar to reach the back table. Music comes from a streaming source the staff never have to touch, so nobody is playing YouTube from a phone because the app crashed.
What about the patio?
Weatherproof Klipsch outdoor commercial speakers on their own zone, with a schedule so the patio comes on with the lights at dusk and goes off at close. Consumer outdoor speakers last a season or two in Pacific Northwest rain; commercial ones are built for the weather, the volume and the years. The patio zone can join Game Day when it is open and drop out when it is not. A PoE wall pack from commercial PoE lighting can power a camera on the same cable.
What about menu boards and signage?
Commercial displays and a content manager you update from your phone. Menus switch by daypart on a schedule, specials appear at happy hour, and the signage is routable to any screen in the venue through the same matrix as the TVs. Signage displays are rated for 16 to 18 hours of daily operation and run scheduled playlists without staff involvement. The full scope, from menu boards to waiting-room screens, is on the digital signage page.
Why cameras and access first?
Because inventory, cash and equipment leave restaurants, and the AV system runs on the same network as the cameras that prove it. We put AI cameras with person and vehicle detection on the bar, the kitchen line, the till, the back door and the dumpster corral. After-hours Ajax intrusion uses MotionCam detectors that deliver the first photo of an alarm within 9 seconds1. The photo goes to your phone and to Becklar, a UL-listed central station.
Staff enter by fob or code under their own credential, so the audit log answers who opened at 6 a.m. The Close scene arms the alarm automatically. At Clyde's Southern Wood Fired BBQ in Tacoma, Ajax AI bullet cameras recording around the clock ended a run of theft losses and the false alerts of the old system. The security hub covers monitoring in detail.
What does it cost?
As of September 2026, a focused multi-zone audio install for a small bar starts around $5,000 to $10,000 installed. A full build for a mid-size venue runs $20,000 to $75,000 or more as of the same date. The lower range covers Klipsch speakers, an Integra DSP amplifier, two or three zones, a streaming source and a keypad.
The upper range covers commercial displays, AVPro Edge video distribution, Klipsch zones including the patio, DSP amplification, menu boards, Control4 scene automation and the cabling under it. Zone count, screen count, patio size and whether the walls are open drive the number. Every proposal is a fixed price before work begins, and the instant quote gives you a first figure in a few minutes. Cameras and access control are priced per camera and per door on business security.
Can you install without closing the restaurant?
Yes. We walk the venue during your off-hours and map zones and sightlines. Cabling, mounting and commissioning are scheduled before service, on dark days or in phased visits, confirmed in writing before work starts. Every zone is tuned, every scene programmed and the staff trained before we leave.
Our own team designs every venue; on commercial projects we bring in licensed trade partners under our design and supervision. A Kent food and beverage company had us build a culinary event space from a raw shell. The build was Cat6 cabling, pendant-speaker zoned audio, a 2x2 Samsung video wall, two kitchen-line displays and Control4 automation in one wall rack. Its first client event ran without a technical issue.
Where do we work?
From 415 Railroad Ave S, Kent, WA 98032, across south King County and Pierce County. That covers Tacoma, Kent, Renton, Tukwila, Federal Way, Auburn, Covington and Maple Valley, Puyallup, Sumner, Bonney Lake, Tehaleh, University Place and Gig Harbor. The Olympic Peninsula is by appointment. Seattle projects are on the Seattle commercial AV page. Rivas Group, LLC dba Rivas Technology Group holds WA electrical contractor license RIVASGL799DR, active, bonded and insured (L&I lookup). The company is BBB accredited with an A+ rating and is rated 5.0 from 49 Google reviews.
Hotels with a restaurant or bar are on hotel and lodging AV. A private dining room that doubles as a meeting room gets the conference room build. A venue still under construction gets a solar security tower until the cameras go in. A GC planning a build gets the specification from commercial AV consulting. The networks at South Sound Law Group and Washington Pottery Company show the infrastructure work.
Questions restaurant and bar owners ask
How much does restaurant AV installation cost?
As of September 2026, a focused multi-zone audio install for a small bar starts around $5,000 to $10,000 installed. A full build for a mid-size venue, with commercial displays, video distribution, Klipsch speakers, DSP amplification, patio audio and scene control, runs $20,000 to $75,000 or more.
Can every TV show a different game?
Yes. An AVPro Edge matrix and multiviewer route any cable box, streaming device, sports package, signage feed or camera to any screen or combination of screens. The bar sees one game, the dining room another, the patio the highlights, switched from a wall keypad or tablet behind the bar.
What speakers do you use in a loud room?
Klipsch commercial speakers. Horn-loaded drivers deliver high output at low power, so the sound stays clear when the room is full. Integra DSP amplifiers tune each zone separately, so the patio does not sound like the bar and the dining room does not have to shout.
What is a scene in a restaurant AV system?
One button that changes audio, video, lighting and security together. Open starts background music at 30 percent, turns on the TVs and disarms the alarm. Game Day puts sports on every screen and lifts the bar zone. Close turns everything off, dims the lights and arms the Ajax system. Staff trigger scenes from a keypad, iPad or the app.
Can you install without closing?
Yes. Cabling, mounting and commissioning are scheduled before service, on dark days or in phased visits, and the schedule is confirmed in writing before work starts. Most venues never close a shift.
Do you handle cameras and door access too?
Yes, and we recommend starting there. That covers AI cameras on the bar, kitchen line, till and back door, after-hours intrusion with photo alerts, and staff entry by fob. All of it runs on the same network and the same Close scene. Details on business security.
Are consumer TVs and speakers good enough?
Not for a 12-hour service day. Consumer TVs are rated for four to six hours a day; the Samsung, LG and NEC commercial panels we install are rated for 16 to 18. Consumer patio speakers last a season or two in Pacific Northwest weather; commercial outdoor Klipsch speakers are built for it.
Who supports the system after opening?
The team that built it. Every install carries a 90-day workmanship warranty, manufacturer warranties pass through, and the CURATOR remote care plan adds monitoring, remote support during business hours and priority on-site scheduling.
Book a site assessment.
Tell us about the room: how many screens, which zones, whether the patio can hear anything, and what the opener has to remember every shift. We walk the venue during your off-hours and send a fixed proposal. We call or text back within one business day.