Okay, by now you have some idea of what a freak I am. Of how critical of service I can be. And how difficult it is for me to keep my trap shut. My wife gets mad at me Well, sometimes. Usually when we go out to eat. Or drink. She accuses me of getting…
Tag: Hospitality
Figure it Out
Most people don’t know what they are doing when they go out to eat. It doesn’t matter if it is a fine dining restaurant or a neighborhood joint, they just don’t know. But, that’s ok. It’s not their job to. That’s what we are there for. Fine Dining Ahh, the sophisticated fine diner. They eat…
Single Diners
I have mentioned on many occasions that you never want to assume anything about a customer. https://tabletalkpdx.com/2013/09/06 In that particular post (if you didn’t feel like clicking on it to read it), I talk briefly about the single diner and how you never know who is going to be a potential long term, repeat client….
No
“No, we can’t do that.” “No, we don’t seat incomplete parties.” “No, you can’t switch out the fries for a baked potato.” “No, we don’t allow any substitutions.” “No, I can’t take an order until your party is complete.” Heard these precious gems before? Don’t be the restaurant of ‘NO‘ I think worse than being…
Remember Me?
When customers go out to eat, they want to feel welcome. Pampered. Entertained. Special. It is our duty to make them feel that way. We are in the hospitality business, after all. Create a culture As I have said on many occasions–it starts with you! You have the ability to create this culture. Go in…
Northwest Hospitality
I do love living in the Pacific Northwest. Especially Portland. Nothing against Seattle, but people here are quite nice (except, of course, at a few select restaurants). They have nothing on us… I recently had the chance to visit Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia. I had a wonderful time, and everyone in those places…
Get Off Your Phone!
I ride up on my bike the other day to the farmer’s market to stop for a little lunch on my way to work. I stop at one of the prepared food stalls to get a sausage sandwich only to find both of the guys working–one of them the owner–fingering their phones. Seriously? Put that…
Being Nice Counts
My friend sent me a pic and a text message about a place he was eating at the other night. Basically, in a nutshell, it was a list of all of the restaurant’s ‘rules’ (?!), and ended with this final message: “Don’t like our policy? Why are you here?” Wow. A big WOW. I don’t get…
What’s in a Name?
I went to a food cart in my neighborhood this past weekend with my darling (but a little spoiled in the food department), daughter. There is a new ‘pod’ in our part of town with about 20 or so various options. I had been to this particular cart before, when it was previously parked in…
It’s Not Their Fault
It’s not their fault, so don’t hold it against them. It is not the customer’s responsibility to pay attention. Sure, we all wish they would, but we just can’t count on it. And we still have to deal with it. It is not their responsibility to know when to order. It’s not their responsibility to…
That One Guy–the Cancer
Every restaurant has at least one. In fact, all businesses seem to. The thing that I have never understood is why restaurants keep them. We are in the hospitality business, and we should always be 100% about hospitality, so I could never figure out why those employees who do nothing but spread ill-will throughout the staff,…
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