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Jon Taffer from 'Bar Rescue' says worst bar in America is in Iowa

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COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Where is the worst bar in the United States?

According to bar consultant and reality TV host Jon Taffer, it is in the Heartland. In a recent interview on KMTV's The Morning Blend in Nebraska, Taffer said the worst bar rescue he's ever worked on was in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

"Council Bluffs' one was probably one of the worst I've ever had," Taffer recalled, "The only walk out I've ever had on Bar Rescue". 

He had a similar message when a TMZ photographer caught him last month and asked where the worst bar in America was.

That bar briefly lost its liquor license after the airing of the episode. However, a judge later overturned the decision and granted them their license. 

Bar owner Matt Overmyer said the show's producers encouraged his staff to engage in staged fights for the camera, according to The Des Moines Register.

Taffer said he hates to blame the area because it just happened to be that bar in Council Bluffs, named O'Face, was being run poorly.

"It just happened to be there," Taffer said. "This was an owner who was violent with his employees and it is the first time ever in Bar Rescue history that I walked out and never remodeled their bar".

Bar consultant says he has some great memories of places in Omaha

It's not all negative though. Taffer says he has some favorite spots in Omaha, thanks to the unique style.

"What surprised me about Omaha when I was there is that there is a very cool mixology and bar thing happening there," Taffer recalled. "The city has a sophistication and a style to it that I really like".