How Review Sites Make You Provide Better Service

Posted by barblog on Mar 31, 2011 in Bar Marketing | 0 comments

People are using review sites, such as Yelp or Foursquare, to help them decide where to go for dinner, drinks, entertainment and so much more. These review sites are a great way for the customers to learn more about a business before they visit.

Since these review sites becoming more social (even Yelp has jumped on the bandwagon) and even more visible, it’s crucial that bars and restaurants stay on their game. Read more..

What a Stupid Question! You can do much better…

Posted by barblog on Oct 16, 2009 in Bar Management, Bar Service | 2 comments

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. Read more..

What makes a good Bartender?

Posted by barblog on Oct 5, 2009 in Bar Management, Bar Service | 2 comments

I came up with this list a few years back when working with a client that couldn’t seem to hire the right staff and always had the worst bartenders!

What is the difference between a Good Bartender or a Bad Bartender? We’ve all been upset at poor service but equally I know when I get good service, I remember it! So what are the things that annoy or impress us?

A good Bartender: Read more..

Why won’t you leave me alone?

Posted by barblog on Oct 5, 2009 in Bar Service | 0 comments

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. Read more..

Are you afraid what your customers think?

Posted by barblog on Sep 9, 2009 in Bar Management, Bar Marketing, Bar Service | 2 comments

This restaurant owner isn’t:

A friend of mine and her husband were recently out for dinner at a high end new restaurant to celebrate an anniversary. Expectations were high as the establishment had received good reviews and friends of theirs reported a great dining experience on their visits.

The meal was a hit, the atmosphere was great, the food was great and the service impeccable. If there was a criticism, it was simply that the venison ordered was a little too rare for their liking. Hardly a real complaint and more of a preference thing than anything, but they were genuinely happy about their night out.

About a week later, they received a telephone call from the owner of the restaurant asking them how their meal was and following up with them to ensure everything was to their satisfaction. They shared how great the evening was and how they would definitely be back. When asked how each course was, she mentioned how she would have preferred the venison to have been a Read more..