Restaurant Consulting NYC | Can You Hear Me Now? Ensuring your Brand Message is Heard | 4Q Consulting, LLC

Can You Hear Me Now?

Ensuring your Brand Message is Heard

Often when we review a new client’s existing marketing and branding, we find an unclear and confused message.  In order for any marketing to be successful, it must find continuity and fluidity across all platforms; the message must be Clear, Concise, Consistent and Communicable.  If customers can easily understand who you are, it clears one obstacle in improving your top line sales. Remember, a customer’s experience with your restaurant starts long before they walk in the door. 

Here are four basics to consider in ensuring customers hear your brand message: 

Know who you are.  The reality of your restaurant has to meet the expectations you are putting out in your marketing.  As we discussed in Restaurants Know Thyself, you can't be all things to all people.  Know who you are, embrace it, and include it in all of your marketing. If you run a Mediterranean restaurant in name, design and decor, you should not have an Irish Pub menu.  Remember, marketing your brand is not just about paid advertising, it also includes items such as menus, signage, uniforms, and scripted server approaches at the table.

Be Consistent. 4Q preaches consistency a lot, in all aspects of restaurant operations. You’d be surprised how many times we see inconsistencies in basic information – such as hours of operation and menus – in different places where a restaurant promotes itself.  Are the hours of operation on your door the same as on the printed take out menu?  Are they the same on your website, Facebook Page, Google listing, online ordering portals, etc.? Additionally, does all of your media reflect a consistent message and communicate who you are (see above)?  If customers don’t get consistent information and messaging about your restaurant, they will become confused, get frustrated and turn elsewhere to restaurants that care to get it right. 

Get your message online and keep it in line. Restaurants don’t always embrace their digital strategy in this day and age of 24/7 connectedness.  Before the Internet, restaurant marketing was static: it consisted mainly of newspaper, magazine, radio, TV and the yellow pages ads.   Today, marketing a brand message has become dynamic.  There is so much noise out there in the digital/social media world with paid ads, social media pages, customer reviews, etc. that  vie for customers’ attention. You have to actively manage your image with a consistent message by:  producing and posting relevant content that draws new customers and keeps existing customers engaged; responding properly to complaints in a public setting; answering questions; and utilizing “Calls-to-Action”.   Keeping a clear, focused message in all your online interactions, can help you stand out in all this digital noise.

Teach the message.  Employees are your walking, living, breathing billboards inside and outside of your restaurant; but are they putting out “The Message”?   You must inject a clear, concise, and consistent message into your employees, and hold them accountable to communicating it.  If your message is that you are a farm-to-table restaurant, your employees must be able to explain that to any and all customers and potential customers. Additionally, as we discussed in Employees are Your First Customers, “In social situations, often the first question asked is ‘What do you do?’ or ‘Where do you work?’”  Each time your employee answers that question, is an opportunity to communicate your message.

Small or large, independent or chain, no restaurant can ignore how their marketing message is heard. Certain advertising campaigns still resonate in our culture, and are long remembered because they are clear, concise, consistent and communicable – you can still sing that 30 year old jingle.  All of the pieces noted in this blog must work together in concert:  like a choir everyone must be singing the same song, in the same key, or the audience will leave!

Don’t know where to begin?  Do you know how to put policies and procedures in place to be as successful as possible?  www.4qconsult.com can develop customized operational guidelines to meet your needs. 

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2015-2016. 

Noelle E. Ifshin, 
President, 4Q Consulting, LLC 
noelle@4qconsult.com  
www.4qconsult.com 
244 5th Avenue, Suite 1430, NY, NY 10001  
(212) 340-1137

Restaurant Consulting NYC | Restaurant Industry Changes to Face in 2016 | 4Q Consulting, LLC

Restaurant Industry Changes to Face in 2016

As we ring in 2016, there are some big changes facing the restaurant industry.
Restaurants must prepare to face these changes in the year ahead to mitigate disruption to business operations, reduce costs and maximize customer satisfaction. 

There is good news on the horizon, as industry analysts point to a strong outlook for restaurants relative to the US economy for 2016.  The bad news is the restaurant business isn’t getting any easier.  Restaurants, which already operate on razor-thin margins, now face rising wages and commodity costs, increasing government regulations, and additional security and safety concerns.  

Operators should focus on the following four items to move their business forward in 2016:

The Pressure of Rising Wages, High Employee Turnover and the Reduction in the Labor Force will require operators to think strategically about their HR in relation to their overall operation.   The economic shift from the customer to the employer to cover a living wage – increasing minimum wages and a move away from a tipping model – compels operators to reduce employee turnover and hold on to their best employees.  We have discussed the cost of turnover before, but now more than ever restaurants cannot be a revolving door of hourly staff.  The cost to onboard a new employee is too high and constant turnover can make it hard to maintain your desired level of product and service quality.  Additionally, as the economy continues to recover, there are, and will continue to be, fewer qualified, skilled candidates to fill critical positions.

Technology can and should be leveraged in all aspects of your restaurant from enhancing the customer experience, to managing products and staff, and even monitoring food and beverage storage and usage.  The right investment in technology can help you be more flexible and nimble, which in turn allows you to manage what impacts your bottom line in a timely fashion.  The right technology can enable you to change menus sooner to combat rising costs, launch and track promotions, and ensure that your reservation interface is in-line with what your customers want.  Operationally, new technologies can improve scheduling to reduce labor costs, and increase table turnover to increase sales. Administratively, new technologies can help small businesses with their bookkeeping, payroll and sales tax processing.  Lastly, you must stay compliant in all Federal, State and local technology regulations that keep your customers’ personal and payment information safe from data breeches – which can be a costly mistake.

Caring For and Knowing Your Customer is crucial for your restaurant’s survival. According to a recent report by Morgan Stanley, Millennial’s’ dining habits are drastically different their parents’. Millennial’s eat out more often, view “Healthy” foods differently (they don’t count calories as previous generations), demand food from ethical sources, do not want traditional “Fast Food” and prefer Fast Casual Concepts. Millennial spending habits are expected to peak in the next 3-5 years to become one of the largest growing restaurant demographics in the United States.  You must know who your customer is to be able to provide them what they want, to reach them in your marketing and keep them engaged.

In light of what we discussed above - the challenges in the changing labor market, maintaining razor thin margins, trying to keep up with technology – Consistency must become your central goal.  As we discussed in Consistency Is King, “Customers should not have to spin the roulette wheel each time they visit your restaurant; they should experience the same quality of food and service every time.” When things go wrong, the first instinct is to completely change your operation.  However, as discussed in Restaurants Know Thyself, staying the course and perfecting your operations will dampen down the volatility of the challenges faced.

Modification and flexibility are critical for restaurants to survive in this day and age. However, adapting to the times does not necessarily mean an overhaul of your entire concept.  An overreaction to big changes can often be an over correction! 

Don’t know where to begin?  Do you know how to adapt to industry changes in a timely manner so you can be as profitable as possible?  www.4qconsult.com can develop customized operational guidelines to meet your needs. 

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2015-2016.

Noelle E. Ifshin, President, 4Q Consulting, LLC 

Restaurant Consulting NYC | Why Cross Training and Creating Redundancy in your Restaurant Staff is Crucial to Success | 4Q Consulting, LLC

Why Cross Training and Creating Redundancy in your Restaurant Staff 

is Crucial to Success

As we discussed in A Well Trained Staff is Your Secret Weapon: “People run your business and your business is only as good as your people.  An effective training program is an owner’s key tool to ensure consistency in product and customer service, which is a basic tenet of running a restaurant.”  

The restaurant business is a team sport which has specialists in certain positions – i.e. bartenders, servers, line cooks, etc.  Each person on the team should know their role, be trained for their specific job and know how it fits into the team as a whole.  However, what happens when the only manager who knows how to close calls out sick or you are under staffed and no one is cross trained? It becomes increasingly difficult to run a successful restaurant when you have no redundancy.

Here are four reasons why redundancy and cross-training in your restaurant staff is crucial to your business:

Better Productivity – Cost and insufficient time are often cited as reasons why restaurants do not take the time to set up cross-training programs.  Though it may increase your overall training costs, to train multiple people to do multiple jobs, you reap the benefit when pressed into action.  Employees and managers who are properly cross-trained can increase your restaurant’s productivity because it allows you to make changes without disrupting service. We tell our clients that it is more costly, in the long run, to not cross-train your staff.  The cost comes in many forms, but mostly in a work force that is not as productive as possible, resulting in having to use more staff per shift, expensive mistakes being made by untrained stand-ins and the possibility of a poor customer service experience for your guests.

Better Product Quality through Consistency – As we examined in Consistency is King, “Customers should not have to spin the roulette wheel each time they visit your restaurant; they should experience the same quality of food and service every time.  It should not matter which chef or server is working on any given day, the customer experience should never be a surprise.”  We have all been to a restaurant that was great one day and then only so-so the next time around.  Whether the staff line-up has changed due to growing the business or people calling out sick, you must have bench strength in your ranks, this way no one can tell that the Sous Chef is cooking instead of your Executive Chef on any given night.  Consistency is the key to establishing regular clientele, and regular clients are the most important customers to have.    Maintaining regular clientele is a critical factor in establishing a solid reputation that will attract newcomers.

Better Employee Retention – There are many reasons why employees leave jobs; high on the list is becoming frustrated or bored in a job.  Assuming you've done everything correctly during the on-boarding process, yet you are still having large amounts of turnover, it is time to look at what type of advancement and cross-training opportunities you provide your employees.  Cross-training also helps to engage the long-time employee who feels that they are no longer learning anything and feels that the restaurant doesn't invest in furthering their knowledge.  At a basic level, human beings like to feel that they are continually learning new skills and will acknowledge management’s investment in them by staying with the company.

Better Financial Results– Improved productivity, product quality and employee retention should all lead to organic cost savings.  These savings, in the long run, will offset the initial costs to cross-train all of your staff.  By being able to achieve the first three “betterments” stated above, you will be able to: reduce production steps and/or mistakes; run your business leaner; make time-effective market-driven changes; focus on cultivating on-going, repeat business; and lower your recruiting and hiring costs.

You must start by setting training expectations with your management team. Often chefs and managers do not want to train their staff to do their job, for fear that they will be replaced, so they leave out crucial steps or ingredients that are key to a great product or service.  They must understand that they are only as successful as those they train underneath them, and they can only grow in their careers if there is someone “on the bench” ready to go!  Take your best people and encourage them to share their most developed skills: Make teaching a badge of honor for employees who achieve an elite level of competence.

By focusing on cross-training your staff and building in redundancy, you can create a place where teamwork can thrive, your employees are invested and are continually learning.  

Don’t know where to begin?  4Q Consulting can develop customized business and operational guidelines to help you start and run your business.  Email us today for a free business consultation at www.4qconsult.com.

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2014-2015.
Noelle E. Ifshin, President, 4Q Consulting, LLC 
244 5th Avenue, Suite 1430, NY, NY 10001
www.4qconsult.com

Restaurant, Hospitality & Real Estate Consulting NYC | We’re Having a Heat Wave, A Tropical Heat Wave… | 4Q Consulting, LLC

We’re Having a Heat Wave, A Tropical Heat Wave…

Just as Irving Berlin wrote: 

“We're having a heat wave, A tropical heat wave, The temperature's rising, It isn't surprising, She certainly can can-can."

With a mini heat wave in the NYC forecast for this week restaurant owners should be prepared to take some proactive steps to keep both their guests and employees safe when the mercury rises.

Here are 4 areas to focus on to keep guests and employees safe in a heat wave:

Keep People Safe – 

• Keep guests and workers cool, comfortable and hydrated – make sure everyone is drinking plenty of water.  
• Either provide both shade and air circulation or close outside seating during the hottest part of the day – to ensure the safety of both your guests and employees.
• Provide water and food for your staff – Hydration is vital, but so is maintaining blood sugar levels.  
• Monitor staff and guests for signs of distress or heat stroke.
• Lighten the uniforms of the dining room staff – think about a summer weight uniform, with light colors and short sleeves.   
• Monitor patron’s alcohol consumption as over consumption in extreme heat can be accurately dangerous.

Maintain Your Equipment –  

• Service all refrigeration and HVAC units prior to summer so they don’t breakdown in a heat wave.
• Instruct your staff to keep the air conditioning at a consistent level.  Turning the AC or refrigeration units down too far will overload and freeze up your cooling system, rendering them useless. 
• Ensure kitchens are properly ventilated and have fans. 
• If your ice machine is air cooled and struggling to keep up, consider purchasing cubed ice for drinking; similarly, if your refrigerators and walk-ins are struggling, consider purchasing dry ice.

Monitor Food Safety –  

• Monitor refrigerator and product temperatures closely and take corrective action immediately. Remember, all foods must be stored at or below 41°F.  If your walk-in is above 41°F, your food is not properly stored and can be a health hazard.
• To keep cold food cold – 
• Keep walk in and fridge doors closed as much as possible.
• Install Air Curtains to minimize refrigeration loss when doors to walk-in refrigerators and freezers are opened
• Do not overload refrigerators – if the fan unit in the fridge is blocked, this will cause poor air flow and will inhibit the unit’s cooling ability.
• Do not block refrigerator’s external condensing unit with debris and storage items; which would inhibit the units cooling ability.
• Prepare food in small batches to reduce the amount of time food is out of refrigeration and in a very hot kitchen.
• Use proper thawing and cooling techniques: do not leave food out on counters to thaw; thaw all food under running cool water (water should be below 70°F).

Modify Menu Offerings – 

• Offer lighter menu items for the summer – heavy sauces, stews and roasts are can be unappealing when the mercury rises.  These could include cold options such as salads, sandwiches and cold soups.
• Add more small plate and appetizer options as people not only eat lighter food, but they tend to eat smaller portions when it is very hot outside.
• Add frozen non-alcoholic drinks, chillers and fruit flavored waters to menus.

As Cole Porter said in song: “It’s too Darn Hot!”  A few proactive easy fixes can help you get through these periodic heat waves while keeping your guests and employees safe. Also, keep these changes in mind for next year’s planning.

Don’t know where to begin?  Ask yourself, do you have the proper written procedures and operational guidelines in place to help you be as successful as possible?  4Q Consulting can develop customized operational guidelines and training programs to meet your needs. Email us today for a free business consultation at www.4qconsult.com.

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2014-2015.

Restaurant Consulting, NYC | Why the Right Restaurant Culture is Crucial to your Success | 4Q Consulting, LLC

Why the Right Restaurant Culture is Crucial to your Success

Wherever people live or work together, a culture develops. This is defined as “the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that [a group of people] accept, generally without thinking about them, and that are passed along by communication and imitation.”1   Restaurants, like any other business, engender “Organizational Culture” – a culture specific to that group, which describes everything from its approach to customer service to the shorthand jargon that develops among members.

Your organizational culture is crucial for delivering the right impression to your customers, and your customers get a taste of what your business is all about every time they interact with your staff (see: Employees are Your First Customers – Happy Employees Part 1).  It is important to carefully seed and nurture a culture that defines the restaurant’s priorities, but also allows for some traits to develop organically from your staff.   

In our blog 4 Reasons Why Your Restaurant Needs an Employee Handbook, we discussed the handbook as a central document to your business. It is where you should define and codify the values that make up your restaurant’s culture, which are imparted to employees during on-boarding, as well as the ongoing training sessions.

Here are four reasons why you need to create and promote the right culture in your restaurant:

Culture Encourages Professionalism – By communicating expected behaviors, actions and values to all employees, you define what your culture is and how they participate within it while in the workplace; By encouraging those behaviors, actions and values to meet your standards (whatever they may be), you create a “Culture of Professionalism”. Managers and supervisors must reinforce the culture and lead by example, not by the philosophy of “Do as I say, not as I do", as we discussed in Follow the Leader. They must live and breathe your mission and values and tend this culture of professionalism in your restaurant - complimenting positive behaviors and correcting negative ones.   

Restaurants, large and small, that promote a culture of professionalism, without being stodgy, have employees with high levels of loyalty toward the company.  This type of business culture increases productivity, work quality and employee retention.

Culture Reduces Employee Turnover – The restaurant industry is known for its high turnover rates. Generally speaking, many food and beverage industry employees aren't looking to make a career out of tending bar, waiting tables or seating restaurant patrons. However, employees with high job satisfaction tend to remain with their employers longer, thus reducing turnover. Studies have shown that a well-defined and actively maintained company culture is associated with high job satisfaction.  Businesses can lower turnover rates by fostering a culture that values open communication, provides adequate training, and rewards employees for a job well done. By retaining employees, companies save resources recruiting and training a constant flow of employees; they build a higher caliber workforce that positively affects product quality, lowers operating costs and increases the bottom line.

Culture Increases Consistency – By lowering your turnover rate of employees, your increasingly experienced staff becomes a well-oiled machine that improves consistency within your operation. In Consistency is King, we discussed that daily vigilance to the standards you set are crucial in order to ward off possible problems that can impact costs or revenues: poor communication, order errors, kitchen errors, bad customer experiences, etc. Creating a culture of “Being the Best” consistently also leads to and reinforces your “Culture of Professionalism”.

Culture Improves Your P&L – As we examined in Restaurants Know Thyself, when your culture is defined, your restaurant has a distinct identity.   A well-defined culture increases both your top-line sales and your bottom line profits. When you have less employee turnover, you have a professional, experienced staff that works well together that creates a more consistent product and less waste – which improves your operating costs.  You build a repeat clientele that comes back time and again to visit their favorite server and to eat their favorite dish.  A successful restaurant has return customers at the core of it business, because repeat customers will attract new business and word-of-mouth advertising is the most efficient way to grow top line sales. 

Creating and nurturing the right culture in your restaurant allows you to take care of your employees who will in turn take care of your guests.  As a business owner, it is your job to be sure that your team has the tools it needs: Strive to be the best boss to your staff; hire only the best employees (with the right attitude) and enable them to be awesome through excellent training, to give the best customer service; have the highest possible sanitation standards; buy only the freshest ingredients; offer the best food and the best service. Be mindful of being consistent in all these things so that customers have the same good experience time and time again.

As seen in Employees are your First Customers, happy employees are engaged, exceed expectations and become brand ambassadors for your restaurant.  Your restaurant will become a business people want to work for, vendors will want to do business with and the place where many want to eat – again and again.

Don’t know where to begin?  Ask yourself, do you have the proper written procedures and operational guidelines in place to be as successful as possible?  4Q Consulting can develop customized branding and marketing plans, and operational guidelines to meet your needs. Email us today for a free business consultation at www.4qconsult.com

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2014-2015. 

1. https://www.tamu.edu/faculty/choudhury/culture.html

Restaurant Consulting NYC | Restaurants: Know Thyself | 4Q Consulting, LLC

Restaurants: Know Thyself

We have all heard the expression: “Jack of all trades, master of none” as it applies to individual people.  The same expression can be applied to your restaurant.  Your guests should not have to guess what you are trying to master or what your brand represents.  Restaurants need to decide, well in advance of product delivery, what they stand for, what their product is and what their message will be to the public. This becomes their brand’s value proposition.

Knowing what your value proposition is early on, and making that the base on which you build, is a key to presenting a unified message of who you are. It is essential not to dilute that value proposition trying to be everything to everyone: You would not offer barbeque, no matter how good, at a fine seafood restaurant; this is why well-known restaurateurs may own several restaurants, each representing a different concept or value proposition that they wanted to create.  A cohesive, singular message, as we talked about in Consistency is King, allows your guests to understand your restaurant.  If your brand message is confusing, your guests will be confused, might not return and move on to another restaurant.

Here are four brand values to help guide restaurants in finding out what their message and value proposition is:

Product Innovation – A restaurant that values being a leader in product innovation tends to be on the culinary cutting edge.  Your restaurant is continually seeking to push the envelope and the boundaries of food, beverage and service.  Whether it is exploring molecular gastronomy, sous vide cooking, rare hybrid ingredients or a new delivery system, you and your management team are never satisfied with the status quo. 

This value proposition attracts the type of customers who want to take this wild ride with you. This type of customer looks forward to your ever-changing menus and new ingredients, and likes to learn about new foods.  They come to expect this constant flux, and are disappointed if this level of innovation and product exploration stops.

Operational Excellence – When you think of large, fast casual chains and franchises like Chipotle and McDonald’s, you envision a restaurant that is a well-oiled machine.  Being consistent at what you do, from product quality and service to cleanliness, is the core value of this type of establishment. In restaurants where operational excellence is the main value, change is deliberate, well thought out and measured.  

Customers who value operational excellence expect a certain level of product and service every time, whether it is a taco at a taco stand or foie gras in a fining dining restaurant. These types of customers do not like surprises; in this type of restaurant, customers know what they’re going to get. 

Customer Intimacy – Customer intimacy is often found in smaller neighborhood restaurants, “joints”, diners, or coffee shops, where the staff comes to know the customers well.  In valuing customer intimacy, the restaurant can cater to customer needs and desires in a way that makes them feel special. A server who remembers your usual order and is able to anticipate your dining needs, creates an intimacy that attracts a loyal following in customers who value this – not all customers do.

These customers anticipate food at fair prices, knowing that it may not be the best (it still needs to be good!). The draw to this type of restaurant is that it is full of familiar faces, and has accommodating service. These customers seek a comfortable experience where “everybody knows your name”.

The Sweet Spot – It is a rarefied place when all of the above branding values intersect, creating “The Sweet Spot”. These are restaurants that have harnessed their creativity, worked out the kinks in their operation and fostered an atmosphere that is inviting.  It is important that you as an owner/operator understand your own strengths and weaknesses in relation to being able to hit this mark, as poorly implementing a core value can negatively impact the one(s) you are able to do well. Many successful restaurants achieve only one or two of these brand values - this is what they become known for and what their guests love about them.  

Product innovation, operational excellence, customer intimacy, and even “The Sweet Spot”, can be achieved at any level, from fine dining to fast food.   

When you have determined your value proposition, it should become the central tenet of your restaurant and be the basis on which you build your company culture. When everything you do is focused on your value proposition, your branding message will be clearly communicated to your customers. If your guests have to work to understand what your value proposition is, they will choose to go to another restaurant that has already figured it out.

Don’t know where to begin?  Ask yourself, do you have the proper branding values in place to help you be as profitable as possible?  4Q Consulting can develop customized branding and marketing plans, and operational guidelines to meet your needs.  Email us today for a free business consultation at www.4qconsult.com

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2014-2015. 

  

Restaurant Consulting NYC | The Value of An A on Your Next Health Inspection | 4Q Consulting, LLC

The Value of an A on Your Next Health Inspection

Many operators view the health inspection process as a burden, however it is a big part of owning and running a restaurant.  Inspections tend to be broad, intrusive and include many aspects of your business. Inspections review your physical plant (i.e. plumbing, equipment and flooring); licenses, permits and paperwork; food handling including delivery, storing, cooking, holding, serving and discarding; and finally, cleanliness.  

Successful operators have always spent time and money to incorporate food safety and sanitation programs into their daily operations to avoid the monetary fines, legal fees and bad public relations that can result from critical violations.

Additionally, we now live in the age of the educated consumer who has more information at their fingertips than ever before.  Often in major cities there are websites and mobile apps that allow consumers to look up health inspection results before making their dining choices; not having an A grade can dissuade potential customers from visiting your restaurant.

Here are 4 basic steps to institute a food safety and sanitation program in your restaurant:

Know the Code – The food safety and sanitation code is set at the federal level by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is usually updated every three years. The FDA codes are then interpreted and regulations are set at the state and municipal level.  These local regulations are often more strict than the federal guidelines and can change frequently.  Also, local health departments tend to focus on hot-button issues such as recent Trans fat bans, ice as food and consumer allergy notifications.  It is your obligation as a restaurant owner to know the most current regulations in your county or town, and remain in compliance.  

Work with your Local Health Department – Ignoring your local health department won’t make them go away or make your life any easier.  Quite the opposite – fighting with the health department can make your life miserable.  Actively work with your local health department to ensure you are in compliance from the start, which can save time and money during construction or renovation.  If your local health department provides training and audit programs, take advantage of these offerings. 

During your inspections, do not be adversarial or belligerent with the inspector – they are just doing their job and following objective standards.  If they cite you for a violation, fix it immediately, in front of them if possible. If you do not understand why something is a violation, ask.  The inspectors should be able to give a full explanation to you and your staff as to why a certain action has the potential to make a guest sick.

Train, Train and Retrain Your Staff – As we have discussed many times before, proper staff training is the key to any restaurant’s success; food safety and sanitation training is no different.  While some critical violations can come from your physical plant, the vast majority of violations result from employees’ improper actions.  Though it is not necessary for everyone on your staff to hold a food handler’s license, your entire team from dishwasher to bartender is responsible for food safety and sanitation in your restaurant.

A strong food safety and sanitation module during employee on-boarding is crucial to reduce behaviors that result in critical violations. Additionally, restaurants should be incorporating daily food safety and sanitation reminders into regular meetings, pre-service meetings and debriefings after every shift. 

Hold Your Staff Accountable - Create a culture of accountability in relation to food safety and sanitation in your restaurant. Daily checks and walk-through’s by managers keep this important issue top of mind for everyone.  As unsexy as food safety and sanitation is, repetition is the only way to make changes in behavior stick.  Repeatedly explaining to employees why an action or inaction can make a guest sick will eventually change their behavior and allow them to know when to take self-corrective action.  Incorporating food safety and sanitation into opening and closing duties, job responsibilities and performance reviews holds everyone accountable.

Passing your health inspection with flying colors takes hard work and dedication. The return on your investment is worth every minute and penny, as we see a direct correlation between great health inspection scores and an increase in restaurant sales.  Don’t let something that you can directly control be the downfall of your restaurant.   The bad public relations of a health department violation or shut down, often highlighted in your local newspaper, are nearly impossible to recover from.

If you are doing all of these steps, but still struggling with food safety and sanitation, consider hiring an outside consultant.  A consultant can often see through the emotional drama of your business to find the root cause of your problem.  Consultants can also perform regular sanitation evaluations or walk-through’s to get you ready so your inspections aren't a surprise.

Don’t know where to begin?  4Q Consulting can develop customized business and operational guidelines to help you start and run your business.  Email us today for a free business consultation at www.4qconsult.com.

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2014-2015. 

Noelle E. Ifshin, President, 4Q Consulting, LLC        244 5th Avenue, Suite 1430, NY, NY 10001   

Restaurant Consulting NYC | Consistency is King | 4Q Consulting, LLC

Consistency is King 

Customers should not have to spin the roulette wheel each time they visit your restaurant; they should experience the same quality of food and service every time.  It should not matter which chef or server is working on any given day, the customer experience should never be a surprise.  It is one of the reasons McDonald’s is the number one restaurant in the world – you know what you’re going to get whether in New York, Los Angeles or Chicago.

Consistency is the key to establishing regular clientele, and regular clients are the most important customers to have.    Maintaining regular clientele is a critical factor in establishing a solid reputation that will attract newcomers.  

Assuming you have hired the right employees and trained them properly, here are 4 points to focus on to ensure consistency:

Consistent Messaging - Your food isn't the only thing you provide your guests; you also give them an experience.  A lack of consistent messaging can turn customers off and stop them from coming back. Your brand’s message has to extend to every single aspect of your restaurant, from the persona of your servers, uniforms, type of music playing in the dining room to the logo on your napkins.  Also, all of your advertising, marketing and social media campaigns must be aligned to accurately depict what your restaurant is.  Customers trust you to deliver on your promise and they want to know what to expect.

Consistent Food – Beyond reducing waste, as referenced in Measure by Measure, consistency produces the same appetizer, entrée and cocktail every time.  For this reason, written recipes and standardized kitchen and bar procedures are essential.   You want your signature Salmon entrée to taste the same on Monday night as it does on Friday night.  Additionally, establishing correct production levels ensures menu items are available when your guests want them.

Consistent Service - Whether you are fine dining, casual table service, or a neighborhood dive bar, guests have certain expectations as to the service they want to receive. How guests are greeted at the door and at the table, when and how their orders are taken, how they are served and treated, are all essential “Steps of Service”.  By having these service steps codified, and adhered to, in conjunction with your brand image, ensures a uniform delivery of your product. Great service is achieved by knowing the basic steps of service that guests expect and being able to repeat them time and time again.

Consistent Vigilance – You and your manager’s daily vigilance to the standards you set are crucial in order to ward off possible problems. This can be done by getting ahead of any potential issues through proper planning, training, and constant communication. All employees must know their roles, how to execute them and what to do should they run into problems.  As discussed in our previous Blog, Are Your Pre-Service Meetings a Waste of Time?, pre service meetings are the appropriate time to reinforce your expectations and standards with your staff. 

As an owner, you should know what’s really going on in your restaurant from the guests’ point of view.  Consider using trained mystery shoppers from firms specializing in this service, or recruit your own shopper from your pool of friends, acquaintances and even regular customers. 

Monitor and engage in on line review and social media sites, such as Yelp, Trip Advisor and Facebook to see what your guests are saying about you.  These observations can serve as a way to identify where improvements need to be made and can be used to retrain, tweak and change as needed.

Great dining experiences can be easily cancelled out by one bad experience and one bad experience will cause a customer serious hesitation when deciding whether or not to return to an establishment. You have thoughtfully created a product and image for your restaurant.  It is imperative that you preserve that identity.   Consistently providing the same quality product can determine the success or failure of your restaurant. This does not mean that your product must be high end or gourmet; it just has to be the same product day in and day out.

Don’t know where to begin?  4Q Consulting can develop customized business and operational guidelines to help you start and run your business.  Email us today for a free business consultation at www.4qconsult.com.

All original content copyright Noelle E. Ifshin, 2013-2014.