Empty seats create that hollow feeling in your stomach. It’s a cross between fear of failure, disappointment in your marketing, wonder over what’s missing, and dread as you look at your weekly profit and loss statement. Your mind races between thoughts of menu change and where you will cut costs immediately. What’s the most logical approach? Do you cut employee hours, lay off a few staff members knowing that might never return if business picks up, change portion sizes, look for less expensive vendors and ingredients, or even close a few days each week until things get better?

The challenge is that things won’t get better on their own, changing menus without knowing if that’s the problem, and cutting labor (and subsequent service quality) rarely addresses the underlying causes of the problem. The top line DOES drive the bottom line, and your business must focus on filling restaurant seats! That’s it! This is the solution but also the real challenge. Why aren’t those seats full? Is it your advertising, your product, your location, your hours of operation, the quality of food, the quality of service, or your pricing strategy? The answer is likely YES to everything. But even behind that are hundreds of details that culminate in empty seats and a lack of return guests. SWEAT THE DETAILS – IT’S ALL DETAILS!

Your job as the owner/operator, manager, or even chef is to keep your thumb on the details, train everyone to see them and pay attention to them. The details must become ingrained and happen without even thinking about them. If you must point out the details to your staff, then you haven’t created the environment of excellence that the great restaurants understand. It might not be your location, but rather how you take advantage of your location. Your menu might be fine, but you fail to execute it properly. Your service staff might care deeply about the guest but if they aren’t trained in how to execute their role, they will fail. And your pricing might be in line with the competition but if you don’t focus on the value of the experience as it connects with price, then your operation will be labeled as “not worth it.”

So, how do you stand out in a crowded market? Well, here’s the interesting part – a significant percent of restaurants fail in the details, so you are in the company of many. Now, take a breath and understand that it won’t take that much to turn things around and fill those seats. Here is a list of a “MEANS TO AN END”.

• CLEANLINESS- Everything, everywhere, any time – live the cleanliness rule. NEVER cut corners with cleanliness from the parking lot and building exterior, windows to tabletop, uniforms to bathrooms, and glassware to flatware – be meticulous and live it, so that your employees see it as simply “the way we do things here.”
• PURCHASING STANDARDS-NEVER, ever give up on buying the freshest, highest quality ingredients for your concept and price point. Establish standards and communicate them with your vendors – make this the primary reason you buy from them. You can negotiate price later but never negotiate quality. When they understand what you expect, most will rise to the occasion.
• FOOD QUALITY STANDARDS-How you handle and store those ingredients, the methods you use to prepare them, the way they are assembled and seasoned, and how the plate looks leaving the kitchen must reflect your signature. Don’t sign the plate until it is right whether scrambled eggs and bacon or a Wagyu filet – make it right – ALWAYS!
• FLAVOR – The presentation may wow them, but the flavor fulfills them and brings them back. The palates of your cooks are as important as anything else in your operation.
• CONSISTENCY – People want to trust you but will be unforgiving if you violate that trust even one time. Portion, presentation, flavor, aroma, temperature, and texture must be spot on EVERY TIME to earn that trust.
• NOISE – This is an area that always confuses me. So many restaurants fail to do their research and hire the expertise to create a sound environment that is exciting yet accommodating for conversation. There are plenty of very good restaurants who scare away their guests with terrible acoustics.
• POSITIVE SMELLS – There are far more olfactory senses than taste buds. Invest in understanding, creating, and managing great, positive smells of food, herbs, and neutral cleanliness. Fresh baked bread, onions, steaks grilling, roasted garlic, and citrus are enticing – use them.
• INSTAGRAM QUALITY – Don’t fret about guests pulling out their phones to take pictures of your food. Give them something beautiful to snap a picture of. If you handle it correctly this is an excellent source of positive, free advertising.
• SMILE – Never underestimate the value of a sincere smile from your host, bartender, server, valet, manager, or cook passing through the dining room. A smile says: “I’m glad you’re here.”
• CONTROL THE CHAOS – Hey, during service, restaurants can seem chaotic – sometimes they are. But…your staff cannot look like they are about to jump off the cliff. Acting with grace, the flow of the dining room, and the conscious calm that your service staff creates, will put your guest at ease. If you are anxious, they will be as well.
• KNOW WHERE THE EXPERIENCE BEGINS – The experience begins with the reservation process – whether talking with a reservationist or host, or clicking through an on-line reservation app, make sure that the process is user-friendly and comfortable. This sets the stage for the experience through positive anticipation.
• BUILD RELATIONSHIPS – As important as that first time guest may be, those who return, return often, and bring friends are even more important. This doesn’t happen organically – you must build return relationships by learning guest names, keeping their profiles accessible, learning to say YES and then asking what the question might be. Sending a follow up note thanking them for their business, calling them or sending an email about their favorite special coming up soon or a bottle of wine that they enjoyed on a previous visit will knock their socks off because very few operators will take the time to do this. Be the exception.
• THE HANDSHAKE OF THE HOST – Without delay, welcoming guests to your operation, extending a hand, smiling, taking an interest, following up during their dinner and thanking them for coming will set the stage for a long-term relationship.
• MAKE IT RIGHT – We all make mistakes and there will be times when it impacts a guest experience. Pay attention, admit your error, apologize, and make it right – no matter what. NEVER allow a guest to leave unhappy.

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

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