Whether you own the finest dining in town or the cafe on the corner, what’s happened to hospitality in the restaurant industry?
True hospitality in a lot of cases is simply a lost art. Not so long ago you would have been greeted at the door of anyplace, the gas station attendant would wash your windshield and the host would happily take your coat upon arrival for dinner.
For every owner, front of house host and server, we know what you see when dining out the good, bad and ugly of hospitality. So if it’s been seen, what’s the hold up to putting it in play on the job?
Perhaps the answer lies in the basics of hiring and what we do with new staff once we’ve hired them. Restaurants are very much transient employers. People come and go and, unfortunately, service is negatively affected by turnover. Unless you have figured out that regular and consistent training is the absolute foundation of your restaurant and your first priority, your guest experience will be inconsistent at best.
The key in hiring is to look for approach, attitude and true desire to serve over prior experience. If these core values are present and you take the time to develop and train your fledgling staff, your customers will notice and reward your restaurant with their business. Once you believe in and practice effective consistent training and recognize and reward your standouts, your restaurant will have a lasting powerful advantage over your competitors. This is a simple concept, yet too often overlooked with all the other important details in running restaurants.
Don’t let hospitality be a lost art in your restaurant. Develop a new game plan that begins with your staff understanding and practicing the nuances of what service really means and what your guest seeks. Train consistently, over deliver on each guest’s expectations and take pride in sustaining the magic.
