It never ceases to amaze me how restaurant owners have enough about them to put their hard earned cash into their own business and fail at some of the most obvious and free things they can do to make their business’ a success. Some of the things that are so often overlooked and so very annoying for the customer when they are not done include:
- Stand outside your own establishment and look at it as if you were a customer, is it clean and tidy?
- Think about what your staff are to do and get a training package put together that ensures your customers will receive a consistent professional experience every time
- Put together an induction training package so new staff understand what you expect
- Ensure that your waiters are wearing clean clothes / uniforms
- Menus need to be clean and not tatty
- Ensure your condiments are clean and full
- Get a member of staff to visit the toilets to check on cleanliness
- Glasses need to be polished not taken straight out of the dishwasher
- Cutlery should be checked before it is laid on the table
- Avoid staff huddles in public areas as this creates a them and us
- When food is delivered to the table get the staff to ask if anything else is required before leaving the guests to enjoy their meal
- Get your staff to stand confident introduce themselves and not to mumble
- If you have specials on offer don’t rely upon the waiting staff to communicate this to your guests as you are expecting your guests to concentrate and remember things, write them on a menu
- Make the bill easy to read
- If you have a manager ensure they manage and they do not just become another waiter
- Ensure your staff have something to do all the time – you are employing them so make them earn for you
- Have spare clothing available for staff so if they get food on their clothes then they can change
- Don’t get guests to add gratuity onto a credit card mahine. Many guests have poor eyesight and after a good meal they don’t to be concentrating on technology
- Once guests have finished and then leave their table get the table cleared, quickly and quietly.
- Never get your guests to sit at a dirty table and then clear the table around them
- Preparing a table after guests leave ensure that the floor and chairs are clean
- Make sure the staff understand what is on the menu and how it is prepared and presented
- If you have a car park make sure there is no litter in it
- Outside kitchen bins should hidden from view
- Think about staff uniforms. This does not have to be expensive, options include getting the staff to wear white shirt and black trouser, or give them an apron, or get them shirts with your logo on it
- Waiting staff hands and nails are to be clean
- Make a jug of water available with ice and lemon on the table without guests having to ask for it
- Train staff not to walk past tables that need clearing when they are on their way back to the kitchen.
- If you have an open fire then make sure its lit during the autumn and winter
- If you have candles on the table then always, always, always light them. Candles are lit for a very good reason and that is to give a dead table life.
- When wiping down tables, use a clean cloth, do all the table and don’t push the debris onto the floor
