The 10 Keys to Great Hospitality Service
Your establishment, whether it is a restaurant, bar or a hotel, is made of bricks and mortar and this gives the customer an initial impression of what your establishment is like. But it happens too often that staff are rude, pretentious or simply not up to the task at hand. Needless to say; you won’t return!
The biggest reason for customers not returning to an establishment is due to a staff member’s attitude or indifference.
There are several guidelines to be adhered to when working in the hospitality industry. It requires talented individuals who need to be:
· Efficient
· Patient
· Thoughtful
· Responsible
· Reliable
· Customer focused
Here a few pointers which you can share with your staff so they know what is expected from them, whether they are working in a cafe, a bar, a Michelin starred restaurant or the local greasy spoon.
1. Always give a warm greeting with a smile
2. Listen to the customer request. If you do not hear them correctly then don’t be afraid to ask them to repeat their order so as you get it correct.
3. Anticipate the guests needs by offering before being asked, “would you like another drink”, “would you like some extra sauce”, “would you like water with your meal”
4. If a customer says “Thank you”, respond and say “you’re welcome”
5. Any staff member who receives a complaint “owns” that complaint. They are then responsible for ensuring customer satisfaction. Gone are the days of saying “this is not my section” or “yeah, I’ll be with you in a minute”.
6. Communicate guest’s problems with your fellow employees and management.
7. Always remember the importance of teamwork.
8. Take responsibility for your own behaviour.
9. When things go wrong, look on the positive side. Do not be afraid to make a mistake as long as your efforts are sincerely intended to do your job a better way.
10. A pleasant farewell and saying “Thank you, see you soon” is just as important as the initial welcome.
Repeat, Repeat, Repeat!
Dont Beat Your Service Into Me!
Readers to this blog will know how much I value and seek good service in our ever-expanding hospitality industry, but it seems to be getting harder and harder to find…then just when you think you have found it, just when you think this is great service, he’s done everything right, I have the correct (and hot) meal in front of me, he’s ensured my drink is topped up and then….just when I’m about to plan how to report such exemplary service and even name the establishment in this Blog, the waiter decides that his level of service has not gone far enough and as he’s about to turn and leave, he looks straight at me, bids me Bon Apetite and then slaps me on the back!!! Yes, you read correctly, this was not a tap, a touch, or a brush, this was a thumping great slap as if to beat me into assuring him that I would indeed enjoy my meal!
Now, I value the personal attentiveness of good staff, but is this taking service a little too far? I am sure that back slapping is acceptable as a goodwill gesture in certain cultures…Not mine though!
I’m very conscious of my personal space and who gets into it, so the next time you are about to thump your customers into having a good meal, maybe think twice!!! You lost an honorary mention for good service in this blog because of your over-zealousness!
I Am Your Guest. Don’t Forget That
This Guest Charter is worth reading and remembering. As business owners and managers we need to remember the reason for being in business: The Guest
You often accuse me of carrying a chip on my shoulder, but I suspect this is because you do not entirely understand me. Isn’t it normal to expect satisfaction for one’s money spent? Ignore my wants and I will no longer appear in your restaurant. Satisfy those wants and I will become increasingly loyal. Add a little extra personal attention and a friendly touch and I will become a walking advertisement for you.
When I criticize your food and service to anyone who will listen, which I may do whenever I am displeased, take heed. I am not dreaming up displeasure. It lies in something I perceive you have failed to do to make my eating experience as enjoyable as I have anticipated. Eliminate that perception or you will lose my friends and me as well. I insist on the right to dine leisurely or eat in haste according to my mood.
I refuse to be rushed as much as I abhor waiting. This is an important privilege that my money buys. If I am not spending big money this particular time, just remember, if you treat me right I will return with a larger appetite, more money and probably with my friends.
I am much more sophisticated these days than I was just a few years ago. I’ve grown accustomed to better things and my needs are more complex. I’m perfectly willing to spend, but I insist on quality to match prices. I am above all, a human being. I am especially sensitive when I am spending money. I can’t stand to be snubbed, ignored or looked down upon.
Whatever my personal habits may be, you can be sure that I’m a real nut on cleanliness in restaurants. Where food is concerned I demand the strictest sanitation measures. I want my meals handled and served by the neatest of people and in sparkling clean dishes. If I see dirty fingernails, cracked dishes or soiled table clothes you won’t see me again.
You must prove to me again and again that I have made a wise choice in selecting your restaurant above others. You must convince me repeatedly that being a restaurant guest is a desirable thing in the first place. I can, after all, eat at home. So, you must provide something extra in food and service. Something so superior it will beckon me from my own table to yours. Do we understand each other?”
Get Off The Floor….Your Business Is In Trouble
I had lunch in a newly opened restaurant this week. Actually, correction, I attempted to have lunch. I actually ended up leaving because 12 staff and a manager on duty were too busy to bother with as small a detail as actually serving customers.
Picture the scene. Huge sums of money invested in beautiful furniture, attractive staff uniforms, fine paintings on the wall while chaos was the order of the day on the floor.
How many more times will “shrewd” investors and developers build the finest buildings money can buy yet not understand the basics of running a succesful restaurant or even how to hire the right manager.
While I waited for twenty minutes to be acknowledged I could see staff running around from table to table from one end of a restaurant to another, obviously not assigned to any one set of tables; I saw bar staff venture on to the floor momentarily only to retreat behind the safety of a bar counter when customers started (heaven forbid…) to request things.
All this while customers queued for tables and the headless chicken of a manager busied himself with making coffees and clearing tables.
If you haven’t figured out what the problem is yet, you better read on, because this might have been your business.
Good service could have been provided at the tables and behind the bar in a comfortable, relaxed style by 8 staff had the manager understood how to delegate, manage and most importantly to work ON the business and not IN the business.
If a manager is busy clearing tables and washing dishes, then who is managing the business? Show your managers how to organise the staff, how to delegate duties and how to be able to measure how well business is going with a few indicators like customer feedback (ask customers…simple), speed of service, revenue at the end of the day, repeat business (a sure sign you’re doing something right).
But most importantly, GET OFF the floor…. your business could be in trouble.
When is it okay to NOT over-deliver for your customers?
Sometimes over-delivering for your customers can cost you money without any upside for your business. How do you know when to over-deliver and when not to? My quick little video will let you know!
Dear “know-it-all” bartender, you’re wrong
An open letter to the bartender who “served” me last night.
Dear Bartender, ( I use this term loosely),
I would like to draw your attention to the incident last night when polite company and manners prevented me from dressing you down publicly as would have befitted the occasion.
When I ordered a Mojito from you, I had a basic level of expectation as to what I was going to get. After all a Mojito is not a vague guideline, but a specific recipe.
I was not expecting a tall hurricane glass with three large ice cubes floating around the top, a withered piece of mint drowning in a solution of 90% cane rum, topped up with a splash of still water…
However, everyone can make a mistake and it’s not about the mistake, but how you handle it that will cement my impression of you. Alas, this opportunity was wasted on you when I asked for a replacement.
Telling me that you have done this for years and know how to make a Mojito did nothing to improve the flavor of the poor excuse for a cocktail I was trying to return to you and will certainly not endear yourself to me. Asking two other customers at the bar if their Mojitos were the yummiest they had ever tasted in a clear attempt at embarrassing me in front of my friends and your customers for returning your “masterpiece” makes you look foolish and even more incompetent.
While wisdom normally comes with age, clearly the years that have contributed to your greying hair were years spent avoiding education and skill. Here’s hoping the years between grey hair and white hair will be more educational.
Unfortunately I won’t be back to sample your skills whatever your hair color, because you had your chance and blew it. Big time.
Sincerely,
4 customers who are going elsewhere tomorrow
What a Stupid Question! You can do much better…
Ireland used to be known as the land of 1000 welcomes. Something happened to change that though. MONEY! Back in the late 1970s and early 1980s when Ireland was on it’s financial knees, the government flew top level executives from US companies to Ireland, brought them out to a green field and told them that this was going to be the headquarters of their European Operations.
Many laughed, but the smart companies took notice and moved to Ireland in their droves to take advantage of an educated workforce, subsidised tax rates and a gateway to Europe. As the 80s turned to the 90s and then past the millennium, emigration was something our parents spoke about but we never had to experience. We were the children of the Celtic Tiger – an economic bubble (always destined to burst) where we had credit cards, jobs and for once were not at the bottom of the heap. [...]
Why won’t you leave me alone?
Before I put down roots and stopped living out of a suitcase, I spent four years working on four different cruise ships around the world. It was an amazing time and allowed me to see more than 80 different countries while being paid to wake up in a new city every morning.
For the first two years I worked as a waiter in an 800 seater restaurant that provided 5 Star service to every guest. This included tableside fish filleting, flambe desserts and meat carving. It was service done the classic way and I learned methods of service that were completely alien to a young know-it-all from Cork.
One thing that was drilled into us again and again until we got it right was that the art of service is all about the guest not knowing it’s even taking place.
In other words, a guest never asks for their water glass to be refilled, never has to request a condiment with their meal, never has to ask for assistance and never is left under any impression other than that they are being taken care of royally.
And how does this happen? It happens when the waiter observes and doesn’t question, approaches when he is needed and always anticipates what the guest might need next. [...]
What’s the Difference between Service & Civility?
Whether your staff know it or not, there is a difference between Service & Civilty and the difference is significant.
The more I eat out and the more I try out new bars, the more I realise that staff need to be trained in the differences.
Civility is defined as a polite act or expression. It’s when staff say hello, or smile and bid you farewell on your way out the door. I expect this civility and I always make sure that I reciprocate out of “civility”. This is an expected part of life. It’s not unique to the service industry and should be something we all do every day. This is not service and I don’t pay for it.
Service is what I pay for. Service is the additional tasks unique to the establishment and industry. It’s the taking of my order and delivering what I asked for and doing it pleasantly and without bitterness or resentment.
Service is what I experienced last night when I asked a server in a Restaurant who was on her to the kitchen to point me in the direction of the restrooms. A civil response would have been to point them out and continue on her way. Instead, she put down the plates she was carrying, asked me to follow her while she led me to the restroom door. She then asked if I would be able to find my way back okay or if I would like her to wait for me. That, ladies and genetlemen, is service.
So before you pat yourself on the back because you think your business gives great service, ask yourself whether your staff are providing Service or maybe just Civility.
There is a difference and it shows.
I'm Barry Chandler and I'm The Bar Blogger. I've been involved in the bar and hospitality industry for 16 years. From Bartender to Bar Manager and from Food & Beverage Controller to Small Business Owner, I have worked with more than 500 bars in the last five years to help them streamline their costs and run a more profitable business and more than 800 bars and clubs use my Management Toolkit which can be accessed at ManageYourBar.com.
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