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Recently I had a pleasure to attend a seminar on Future of Food Media at Westin at St. Francis Hotel. As a hospitality industry insider and a social media enthusiast I was very excited about the topic. Discussion was rather entertaining than educating, although it touched upon such important themes as a responsibility of traditional PR firm in the age of social media, transparency, role of bloggers and restaurant critics, influence of Yelp, importance of incoming and outgoing message and its relevancy. Below are my highlights of the show:
Benefits of Social Media
- Treating fans and followers as focus groups, receiving feedback from them, collecting data, identifying trends and habits on Facebook, Twitter & Yelp (Anna Wienberg)
- Low upfront cost to deliver targeted message to your most loyal customers via social networks. This includes promotions, news and events (Brian Galdino)
Role of Traditional PR firms
- Managing the brand and developing the restaurant concepts (Andrew Freeman)
- Filtering through the clutter of information, building the right message and choosing the method of its delivery. No need to use all the social media tools that are available – the challenge is to find the right ones and to maximize it efficiency (Brian Galdino)
- Identifying the right voice for the brand making sure it is consistent. Always be aware of who has access to your social networks (Andrew Freeman)
Twittering and Blogging
- Passion is the key to success. Highlighting new recopies in chefs blogs. Asking questions and collecting information within the industry (Robbie Lewis)
- Talking to colleges, making new connections, responding to comments (Robbie Lewis)
How to use Yelp for business
- Claim you business page and communicate with customers directly. Address misinformation (Ruggy Joesten)
- Capitalize on positives and highlight them through out you other social networks. (Ruggy Joesten)
Contrary to popular believe that only one of the ten happy guests will speak out and almost every unhappy will, Ruggy Joesten states that 85% of all Yelp reviews are positive
- Responding to negative comments briefly and straight to the point. Apologize, never argue, be angry or engage into long discussions. If somebody complains on the chicken and you don’t serve chicken make sure to mention it (Andrew Freeman)
- Yelp filtering algorithm is designed to prevent dishonest restaurant owners to scam the system (Ruggy Joesten – couldn’t explain how it works)
Future of Food Media
- Michael Bauer’s write-ups will remain more influential that Yelp reviews (Ann Weinberg)
- Restaurant owners and marketers should embrace social media with caution. Sometimes it is better NOT to use it than use it badly (Andrew Freeman)
- All new social media start-ups should have a clear idea on how they will make money. Foursquare will become irrelevant if it doesn’t monetize itself soon (Brian Galdino)
- Future of social media is in mobile marketing, however it will take some time before consumers will grow accustomed to that change. Therefore it is a bit too early to talk about individual applications for the restaurants (All panel agreed)
Fore more detailed coverage of the event, please, read Stephanie Rosenbaum article on Bay Area Bites
Annoying people make rules for everything, so it becomes boring to live and work. Even to work in the restaurant where everything moves and screams: sounds of broken plates mix up with salsa music in the kitchen, a crazy 8-year old yelling and running around the dining room on the mission to knock the waiter off his feet. EXCUSE ME. All I am trying to do is to deliver this oven-hot mac-n-cheese without dropping it on somebody’s face…
A waiter newbie might have proudly learned to follow a six o’clock rule* while serving a New York Steak from the right. It is all good. Tons of useful information could be found on sites offering waiter training tips and manuals. However, you will never become a pro if you don’t break the rules depending on situation. Sometimes there’s no rules – only experience and your sense of urgency are the best weapons. So imagine yourself in a waiter’s shoes… What would you do?
1. You have a psychotic couple that keeps fighting throughout the dinner. A husband wants another drink and his wife promises to chop my head off if I bring him one… This is an easy one, actually. If the guy is not wasted, I will make my judgement based on who was more respectful towards me. But c’mon, people… Do you really hate each other so much that you fight even in the restaurants!? By the way, the worst way to break up is to take your ex-soul mate to expensive restaurant and to get him or her crying… It happens so often.
2. One person orders a dessert and implies that he wants to eat it on his/her own. Sometimes a guest would even say: “I am not sharing!” Do you bring extra spoons and forks for the others in the group who didn’t order anything? This is a tough one. Common sense tells me to ALWAYS bring extra utensils, however, there’s a chance of you becoming a public enemy in the eyes of the person who ordered dessert. It is even worse if that particular guest is paying the bill. Yes, humans are greedy.
3. Ever had people ready to kill each other for over who’s paying the bill? I have 3 solutions for this … 1) If guests are polite and sincerely want to take care of each other I offer them to split it on two cards 2) If they keep arguing loudly and not paying attention to me, I just take the first card I can get my hands on and CHARGE it 
3) To pull this off you need a well-established rapport with your guests. It works better on younger crowds. You should interrupt them with a smile and say: “Let’s gamble a bit! Give me your credit cards and I will randomly choose one of them and charge the whole thing on it.” It makes it a game, it makes it fun! When you announce a “lucky winner” and present him or her with a credit card authorization you’re almost guaranteed to get a better tip.
I am curious to hear your reactions whether you’re in the restaurant business or not.
The purpose of this post is not to piss you off, but to bring up situations that don’t happen too often and require critical decision making. Every single restaurant has its own silly rules. My advice is to know when it is ok to break them. It doesn’t mean that you need to be a rebel and fight with your floor manager every time. It is impossible to make everyone happy and sometimes all we can do is our best; still we should always look for opportunity to better ourselves even in critical situations. Respect your guests and co-workers and be likable. If you master combination of this important skills your job won’t be stressful anymore! More on that in my next post.
* According to this rule proteins should be always served facing the guest.
Image - Book Cover by Charles Memminger. Courtesy of publisher.
Today I would like to share with you my compilation of short true stories that took place at the Restaurant X on the course of the last year. None of them deserves enough attention to stand out and shine on its own, but hopefully at least one of them will make you smile or even laugh…
Complainers
1) I waited on ridiculously annoying old people the other day. First they complained that steaming coffee wasn’t hot enough for them. One of them followed me to the bar on his crotches to make sure that bartender poured enough bourbon in his Manhattan. The highlight of their dining experience was to send back a screwdriver (vodka/oj). Why? Because the color of orange juice was not orange…it was yellow!!!
2) My food runner tried to serve Spaghetti Bolognese to a wrong table, but quickly recovered. The plate didn’t even touch the table. Unfortunately a guest who ordered spaghetti at the nearby table observed the whole process with pure hatred on his red face. He was staring at his plate all the time trying to hypnotize it, but he never made a contact with it. Every single time I checked on him he said everything was “ok”. In the end of the meal he was looking so miserably like his relative has died, but when I asked one more time if anything was wrong, he jerked : “NOTHING!” I offered to take away the plate and pack it to go – he refused the offer. A few minutes later he asked for a check in a surprisingly calm voice, but his face read willingness to see me on the death raw. I guess a BIG FAT zero tip was hardly a punishment to compensate for his ruined day. Credit to the food runner.
Tippers
1) My friend, Jack, the bartender was laughing telling me this. Although he got stiffed on $80 check. A couple of Italians were ecstatic about “De-li-ci-o-oo-us Mojitoes” – each of them had three rounds. Mojitoes usually make the list of the most “pain-in-the-ass” drinks to make. When finally Jeff said “Arivederci!” to the happy tourists, instead of a tip he discovered a bus transfer next to check presenter. The transfer was expired…
2) Ghetto kids had a lunch celebration at our place. One of them just turned 21; he ordered a round of beers first happily flashing his ID in my face. A few minutes after birthday boy asked for champagne telling his buddy:”Yo Bro, we gonna put it on Facebook… Popping champagne and shit…”When I brought them a set up to crack Alaskan King Crab Legs, which they obviously never had before, kids thought that crab cracking tools and a steak knife are there for them to act the episode from SAW 3. I had to calm them down as guests at the neighboring table began to complain. I couldn’t help myself laughing when I saw one of them trying to get through the spiky crab shell with his teeth. My professional demonstration on how to use cracking tools definitely saved his gums from bleeding for which I was rewarded with a $5 tip. Should I mention that the check was $180?
Sometimes it feels like a war, them against us. Imagine - Saturday night and a waitlist; horde of angry customers demanding food and satisfaction. It is one of those days when half of the staff called in sick , plus you have the worst busser who “doesn’t get it” after a month of training.
How to save precious time at the table? How to spread out your attention equally, so nobody gets left out besides assholes who deserve it? I found the following script or “canned presentation” extremely useful when you physically and mentally cannot spend sufficient amount of time at the table.
1. If you cannot get to table right away, simply pass by, smile – eye contact- and say “I will be right with you”.
2. Approach the table. Smile, but look determined.
Me (M) - How are you today?
Guest (G) – Good. (They will most likely : “how are you?”)
M – Wonderful. Can I start you off with a cocktail or glass of wine? We have a full bar.
(This line is great, because you are pushing alcohol and giving them information of the bet. It prevents stupid questions like “What do you have?” They order or tell you that they need more time to look over the wine list. If they do so, it means they are not in such a rush. If they order drinks right away – offer two signature appetizers to choose from)
3. Come back with drinks and ask them if they have any questions about the menu. You want to have control over the time when you can answer questions, you definitely don’t want to be stopped in the middle of rush to explain the special or elaborate on vegetarian options. If somebody snaps at you or raises a hand to get your attention, NEVER stop at this table before you are done with your previous task. Otherwise, your will loose your focus and the mistakes will follow.
4. Always have two dishes to recommend and make sure that the way you describe them sells. E.g.
Bad: Mahi Mahi is really good today. It is served with rice and vegetables.
Good: Our pan seared Mahi Mahi is SOO delicious. It is topped with a homemade orange buerre blanc and served on the bed of wild rice pilaf and fresh garden mixed vegetables. (pause) Will be perfect with your glass of Chardannay.
5. If a customer is indecisive and stares at the menu for more than 20 sec without saying a word, don’t be afraid to tell in a friendly manner : “Let me give you a couple of more minutes to make your choice”, then move on to another table
6. Learn to say NO. Some special requests are easy, some difficult and some impossible. Know exactly what kitchen can and what it cannot do, especially when it is slammed.
7. Use your floor manager to help present and open wine or entertain guests while you’re in the weeds. That’s what he’s getting paid for, not for standing around.. lazy ass
8. Offer desserts, but have you check ready. People rarely order dessert during a rush hour. The best way to ruin a perfect dining experience is to drop off dessert menu and forget about the table for 15 minutes, when all they want is a check. This often results in at least 5% lower tip from my experience.
Finally, remember, no matter what you do always keep your cool. If you dropped a plate in the middle of dining area or spilled a glass of red wine close to the most scandalous person in the restaurant, apologize first, but then make it clear that it is not a big deal. Shit happens. If you start kissing your customer feet saying how sorry you are, they will take full advantage of this situation and will ask to comp their dinner. Avoid this trap!
Sometimes you just simply cannot handle it and its nobody’s fault. If it comes to this point, you just do your best, but hopefully this little secrets will help decrease crazy moments at work. Waiter doesn’t have to make a list of the most stressful jobs. It is lots of FUN…Really!
Once me and my buddy stopped by for a quickie dinner @ Reno local casino café – everything else was closed and this nasty place still had a line. Place smelled of disgust and unholliness and a middle-aged hostess kept smiling at us frequently. I clearly remember that because she was missing a middle tooth. We were finally seated at the dirty table and a busboy with greasy hair didn’t bother to clean our table for another ten minutes. We debated for while on what is safe to eat in the place like that and settled down on seafood linguine, burger, and spinach-chicken dip for appetizer. Bad choice…
Our waitress moved chaotically from table to table dripping sweat. How did we know that she was ours before she even approached our table? Just because she was the only waitress in the dining room full of desperate and hungry people. We pushed menus aside and silently watched her nervously jumping from table to table like a yo-yo. Finally, she came close to us and her first words were not: “How are you?”, not even “Good evening!” She gave us a hateful look and spited: “So, what do you want?” We ordered.
The best part of our dinner was a flask of cognac we brought with us not that I am picky or expect a lot from cafeteria. Terrible food, however, was easy to forget; shocking service still haunts my dreams. She never ever checked on us, she forgot everything she could forget, including our check. When we were finally able to flag a busboy and ask him to call our waitress, she came over and asked if anything was wrong. We looked at our half-empty dirty plates, which we thoughtfully stacked on the table and said that everything was excellent. We just wanted our check and to get the f…. out of this trashy place. She was patiently waiting and looking over my shoulder while I was scribbling a 15% tip. The only time she smiled was when she saw the tip. Apparently, 15% tip was a rare accomplishment for her. She was so grateful that she even came back to the table and said: “I will check back on you later.” Both of us simultaneously thought: “Please, don’t”.
It was one of the worst and funniest dining experiences in my life. Was I mad at our waitress? Not at all. Although I am thousand miles far from being the best waiter in the world, she made me feel better about my skills
Some of my friends after listening to this story argued that I shouldn’t have left her a tip at all. What do you think?
Recently I’ve read one of Google’s most highly ranked hospitality article by Bruce Buschel, “100 Things Restaurant Staffers Should Never Do” . The author occasionally blogs in NY Times section dedicated to small business. Excellent writer, I give him that, but some of the points made, uncover his ignorance detachment from the service industry. Let me comment on some of his faulty “rules” which I placed under the following categories: “common sense”, “optional” and simply “wrong”.
1. Common Sense – It shouldn’t be written about, because it is well-known and being followed by every restaurant employee, who is not a complete idiot.
Rule #16. If someone requests more sauce or gravy or cheese, bring a side dish of same. No pouring. Let them help themselves.
Like anybody does!? If you’re pouring an extra sauce on somebody’s food you shouldn’t be working in a restaurant. You must be locked in a mental institution and shouldn’t be anywhere close to the food. It’s just a common sense.
2. Optional – it really depends on situation and behavior of the guest. Sometimes stepping away from the rule is inappropriate, sometimes it is highly encouraged.
Rule #7. Do not announce your name. No jokes, no flirting, no cuteness.
Although I usually don’t introduce myself, at least not during our first interaction, I like to leave that privilege for myself to decide. Depending on the guest I might throw a joke or two – it’s not a crime.
Rule #41. Saying, “No problem” is a problem. It has a tone of insincerity or sarcasm. “My pleasure” or “You’re welcome” will do.
It also goes the other way. I somebody asks: “Can I have some extra dressing for my salad?” “My pleasure” – would suck.
3.Wrong – My experience tells me that this rules should never be followed. Under no circumstances.
Rule # 32. Never touch a customer. No excuses. Do not do it. Do not brush them, move them, wipe them or dust them.
Absolutely missed here. Friendly tap on the shoulder works amazingly great. I read it in my first waiter’s manual from Susie Ross and thanks to this invaluable advice my ROI from guests went to the roof. Nobody complained ever.
The list goes on and on… So, check out the link and find this boring bunch of useless amendments, which might help a rookie restaurateur or server to make his first steps. They only useful tip that I found for myself is rule #23 If someone likes a wine, steam the label off the bottle and give it to the guest with the bill. It has the year, the vintner, the importer, etc. This, actually, might work.
Bruce anticipates criticism of his rules by making a point that “if 100 different actors play Hamlet, hitting all the same marks, reciting all the same lines, cannot each one bring something unique to that role?” Yes, of course. However, often used comparison of waiting on a table and playing a role on stage is only appropriate when the play is unscripted. There’s a huge difference between dialog and monolog and there is more interaction between a waiter and a customer, than between an actor and a spectator. Why not offering the lobsters to somebody you feel might enjoy them? Why not joke or flirt a bit when a guest in a mood to talk? Why not to compliment a customer choice?
I would do all of the above depending rapport established between me and guests. When you’re in the business for many years, THERE IS NO RULES. There is only professionalism, common sense and a customer who most of the times deserves to have an enjoyable dinner.
Racist brain via Inspiration Room
It is often discouraging to work at the tourist place or tourist trap mostly because it doesn’t attract regular customers. Sometimes it is fortunate to work at the tourist place or trap for the same reason. From my experience half of the regulars are lunatics; once in a while you will come across of particular nutcase that will be remembered for the rest of your life if won’t be a part of your worst nightmares.
Let’s call him Asian dude. He looks about sixty five, but I won’t be surprised to find out that he’s eighty. You know how Japanese people exploit rice and seafood to their rejuvenating advantage. How do I know he’s Japanese? Well, that’s what he confessed to one of my co-workers, Dan, a German looking gay-bear-type waiter. “Are you from the South?” – he asked Dan. The reason why he asked that question instead of inquiring on the restaurant specialties remained a mystery until he requested that EVERYTHING BLACK will be removed from the table including black pepper shaker, black straw for his sprite and black basket for the bread. He also put a white sheet of paper under his butt so he won’t be sitting on blackish leather chair. Oh, did I mentioned that he was dressed in all white from his socks to his dyed freaky hair. He would order Chicken Alfredo or Ceacer salad with chicken. NO PEPPER. He would complain on our black aprons and , of course, if he would sense dark-skinned mexican busboys within five feet from his table, the tip he normally leaves decreases from 10% to 1%.
He got banned from all of the neighborhood eateries with the exception of restaurant X. Once, however, he showed up in particularly cheerful mood and asked for all the waiters to line-up like in massage parlor… The host politely asked him to get the fuck out and we missed him for about year. I owe the inspiration for this blog entry to his latest visit a few days ago; he told me about black construction workers drilling a hole right next to his apartment. It must be a conspiracy.
If still alive Winston Churchill would be ashamed of his fellow countrymen tipping 10%.
Those of you fortunate to work in so-called tourist traps feel my pain. Their grim faces ring the first bell, but what really scares the shit out of me and my co-workers is : “Lovely!!!” That’s is what they are usually reply on : “How are you doing today?” British, Scotish, Irish, Australian and Kiwis – most of the time you’ll be lucky to get 10% from these lovely people.
Do not get me wrong, I am originally from Europe myself, and I don’t have anything against them. They’re always prompt, polite and classy they will order good wine. The biggest challenge is to unobtrusively remind them that gratuity is not included. The key is not to offend them, but rather draw sympathy. There three are proven strategies on how you can make them tip, but there’s always a warm-up stage or ground work that needs to be executed prior to the close-up.
First of all ask : “Where are they from?” And if it is their first time visiting this “lovely” city. It’s highly encouraged to use their lexicon without trying to imitate their accent. If they tell you that they’ve been to New York / LA/ San Francisco many times, there’s a big chance they’re accustomed to leaving a tip. If they say it’s their first time don’t panic right away. There’s a huge opportunity to befriend them by exposing the local sightseeings and discounted shopping places that normally only locals would know. You can also pretend to be a Manchester United fan and tell them you had the best Fish and Chips back in Glasgow. However, the most important part comes in the end when you have to present a check. If you’re 100% sure that your customer are visiting from Australia or Europe, don’t hesitate to present them a tip card in the end of the meal.
Reads and Tells – You’re from Europe/Australia/New Zeeland if you :
- Ask for a bill or sometimes receipt instead of check
- Paranoid of credit card fraud and want to go with you to a POS (computer where you process the payment)
- Order Shandee – ½ soda ½ Beer
- “Cheers,mate!” is your favorite expression, besides “Lovely!” of course.
- Have complete meal 3 course meal and afterdinner drink
- Order Grappa for afterdinner drink
It is so easy to make your waiter fall in love with you, but many prefer otherwise. This guide, although incomplete, will partially transform ignorant guests to somewhat nice ones.
- When your waiter comes over and greets you, smile at him/her and say: “Hi”. Simple as that. Do not overdo with friendliness, no crazy smiles. You will be surprised to find out how many guests just ignore you or give you a brainless look. Some of them are so scared to dine in the restaurant, so they prefer not to look at the waiter at all.
- Do not ask stupid questions such as: “What do you have?” “Do you have steak?” etc., or questions that make you look cheap: “How much is the beer?” “Do you serve free bread?” “Does it come with soup and salad?” Not only these questions diminish your value as a respectable customer and human being, but they also take time to answer. Remember, for the restaurant business workers time is everything. This leads us to
- Try to save time for your server. Besides unnecessary questions, this rule applies to indecisive guests, who take more than 15 minutes to order. If you’re one of those, please, let you server know that you would like to take your time and preferable enjoy a cocktail rather than a glass of tap water.
- Do not create your own menu. You might like you baked potato sprinkled with bacon and cheddar , but if that’s not an option in the menu, please, avoid modifying. Of course, some substitutions could be easy and if it is not a rush hour, you waiter will be more than happy to switch some side dishes or add mushrooms on your filet mignon. But keep in mind that it takes additional time and requires an extra effort.
- Keep your table neat and don’t eat like a pig. The worst customers are those who ask for bread before they order and shake over breadcrumbs all over the menus. The best are the ones who move aside dirty plates and silverware to make it easier for a waiter or busser to remove them.
- Try not to get too personal with your waiter -this one, of course, goes both ways. If you can’t suppress you urge to ask for your waiter’s name and where is he from, do it in a friendly manner, but never to yell his name every time he’s passing by.
“WE KNOW THE ASSHOLE WHEN WE SEE ONE” 
As a bonus here’s one of my favorite videos from You Tube’s waiter celebrity YourDailyTip.
Many establishments foolishly assume that providing the lowest prices will inevitably attract the regulars and make them stay. However, besides premium tequila there are several more components of the perfect margarita. Small details will come into play and will ultimately decide which place will be more populated on Tuesday night. When I go out I take notice of the staff demeanor, ambiance and finally quality of the drinks or food. Does it mean that the price is not important? Of course, not. However, given our everlasting recession, I suggest that sooner than later prices will become less of differentiator as EVERY SINGLE hospitality business, from burger joint to the most spectacular fine-dining venue, will have to start charging less to compete for scarce customers. This is especially true in regards to non-traditional hours and slow seasons. So, let’s spend some time on the secondary ingredients which will satisfy or disgust your potential customers.
Today we will focus on staff demeanor and more importantly on the dynamics of interaction between a service industry employee and a customer.
It doesn’t matter where you work, how good your food or drinks are, if you have a shitty bartender or server with attitude you will lose. Many business owners are confused in prioritizing professional qualities of their staff. They believe that besides service knowledge, all you need is a friendly attitude. From my experience, the one most important quality of any hospitality industry employee is ability to read a customer. It’s almost like poker. When you see a couple having a romantic dinner or wine at the bar, you don’t want to bother them with your jokes and tricks. How do you know if they need some attention? Believe me, they will tell you or will give you a sign. On the other hand, a single guy who comes to a bar and orders vodka on the rocks most likely needs some attention. The key to the game is never to be rude and annoying and to enjoy people’s company.
A few days ago, me and my buddy decided to discuss our new project over a few beers at the first bar we could find. It was happy hour, of course, and drafts were around $3.50. It was busy; we couldn’t get a table, so we had to seat by the bar and a middle-aged hippy bartender assumed that entertaining us was his duty. Unfortunately, his jokes were disaster and he never bothered to take notice that we were trying to have a private conversation. You might say that we shouldn’t go to the bar for a business meeting, especially, during the happy hour, and you’re right – I won’t, probably do it again. But my point is that the simple skill of reading a customer and anticipating his needs is extremely underrated and should be paid more attention while training your staff.
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