What's the word on guest relations?

Guest Relations

Whether handling special requests or responding to complaints, good guest relations are critical. Some approaches:“The point of reference for a guest is the employee they encounter – on the floor, on the phone. Anticipate guest needs and requests, put systems in place, and empower all employees. The quicker employees respond, the longer that customer will stay with you.”

–Jeffrey Summers, Head Coach, Game On! Restaurant Coaching Solutions“

I work lunch and dinner shifts at our six locations, which gives me the opportunity to personally interact with as many guests as possible. My name tag says ‘owner,’ which not only helps makes a personal connection but attaches responsibility. Our comment cards also invite guests to contact me; I answer all, about 50 per month.”–Beverly Mascari, co-owner/dir. of guest relations, Anthony’s Seafood Restaurants, San Diego, CA

“If you put guest relations on just one person, you’ll never win. Everyone, especially phone and door staff, need to be trained and empowered to take care of everything they can for guests and communicate with those who need to know. It’s having people who innately want to care for others along with the right systems.” –Tracey Spillane, gm, Spago, Beverly Hills, CA

Law to ban lawsuits blaming obesity on restaurants

Houston Chronicle

Fears that overweight Americans will develop an appetite for litigation drove the House to pass a bill that would bar lawsuits by restaurant customers claiming burgers and French fries made them fat. "Trial lawyers have said they'd target restaurants the way they've targeted the tobacco industry," National Restaurant Association President Steven Anderson said.

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Cities embrace restaurant grading

Daily Press

Many restaurant owners and managers have become fans of the grading program because they realize an "A" is good for business. They also have come to realize that correcting deficiencies and requesting a re-inspection can improve lower grades.

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1 in 10 Americans opts for a Thanksgiving feast in a restaurant

NRA Press Release

One in 10 Americans opts for a Thanksgiving feast without the work by celebrating Thanksgiving Day dining out, according to National Restaurant Association research. Those seeking an escape from cooking without sacrificing tradition also have the option to complement their at-home meals with restaurant-prepared turkeys and side dishes for takeout. In fact, more than half of all Americans supplement their meals with ready-to-eat takeout items. And restaurants help more than weary cooks during the holiday season, giving back to their communities by donating food and offering meals to the less fortunate.

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Kid's Running Amok?_MSN Video

http://video.msn.com/v/us/v.htm?g=64d4fbc1-c6b3-4d9b-9d34-6b5ae38e969a&f=email

Kid's Running Amok?

Written by John Kass, November 13, 2005
Chicago Tribune

I can't say if Dan McCauley, a North Side restaurant owner, is America's new Mr. Belvedere, though clearly there is a Belvederian yearning in our culture these days. And McCauley may be the man for the job.McCauley, owner of A Taste of Heaven restaurant, was fed up with shrieking, bratty kids climbing on his fixtures or flopping on the floor blocking waitresses carrying pots of hot coffee, while the parents remained relaxed and infuriatingly indifferent.So he put up a subversive sign: "Children of all ages have to behave and use their indoor voices when coming to A Taste of Heaven."I support him in this, and so should anyone who gives a fig for decency. When I was a kid and dared misbehave in a restaurant, my mom didn't give me a taste of heaven. She'd give me a taste of something else. But now we are fixed in the age of the bureaucrat, and pleas for common courtesy must first be written down and properly displayed.Some moms were terribly insulted by the sign and called a boycott. And four things happened.1) The Chicago Tribune published a story on the restaurant-angry mommy debate in September.2) The New York Times ran a similar story in November, but much longer.3) Talk radio hosts put angry boycotting moms on the air to tell how they're sick and tired of "those people" without kids being increasingly intolerant of little children who make noise when they're hungry. Other moms called in to severely chastise the boycotting moms, saying if they can't control their little monsters, then just keep them chained in the basement where they belong. Dads, as usual, wisely kept their mouths shut.4) And the restaurant owner's business tripled."It's true," said McCauley, whose establishment is in Chicago's upscale Andersonville neighborhood."Our business has gone up. It's unbelievable. It's tripled. A lot of people are frustrated about this, and so here we are. Some people don't realize they have to live by the rules of the rest of the community. I was only asking for some common courtesy."The boycott hasn't ruined you?"No," he said. "As a matter of fact, there must be 12 to 15 kids in here now. Listen, we're getting calls from Amsterdam and New Zealand. They're all applauding this."All we're asking for is courtesy," McCauley said. "I really care about the breakdown in the culture. For me, it's almost a cause. And I don't like people using their cell phones, either."He's right about the cell phones and the culture, and the decline of the West is one of my favorite topics. So if you're reading this at brunch on Sunday in a restaurant in an upscale urban neighborhood, with kids rampant, the decline of the West is best illustrated this way:By the pain in your kidneys coming from other people's children kicking the back of your booth, and that wan "What's your problem?" look their parents offer you as their kids bounce another ice cube off your forehead.Better not take offense. Their parents are probably lawyers. The kids will grow up to push people out of the way for everything, including Communion on Sunday. When they attain power, they'll probably turn every adult now over 30 into salty, digestible crackers, when the crude oil runs out and they're tired of subsidizing our Social Security.Or, what's most likely, they'll grow up to be just like the rest of us.McCauley sounds almost like the new Mr. Belvedere, to me. And every so often, America creates a new Mr. Belvedere.Years ago, in one of the humor magazines, they created a Belvederian comic strip called "Politeness Man." He demanded proper manners from everyone, and he backed it up with an iron handkerchief that he flicked against the noggins of youthful offenders, without killing them.But like I said, the parents of these kids are probably lawyers.Mr. Belvedere was popularized in an ancient movie by the late actor Clifton Webb. Webb's Belvedere played a strict nanny to a pack of spoiled, rich brats. Through an inhuman force of will, he trained the little monsters to eat properly at the table, piercing them with withering looks if they dared slide silverware across their teeth. In no time, the children had their left hands in their laps, engaging in polite dinner conversation about literature and foreign policy and the decline of the West.The newly nice kids loved Mr. Belvedere for teaching them right from wrong. Parents loved him too.Naturally, he was a fictional character. If he were real, he'd be ridiculed, sued into the poorhouse for imposing his rigid ways on the rest of us. As a dad, I can't tell people how to raise their kids. We have massive bureaucracies in the federal, state and local governments spending billions of dollars a year doing just that, and nobody listens to them either.But they just might listen to a Mr. Belvedere.

Peter Drucker dies.

By Simon London in San Francisco
Published: November 11 2005 20:56

Peter Drucker, the most influential management writer of the modern era, has died age 95. A spokesman for the Claremont Graduate University in California, where Prof Drucker worked since the 1971, said he died peacefully on Friday morning after a short illness.
Prof Drucker remained active until the end of his life. Earlier this year he was honoured with the McKinsey Award for the best article published in the Harvard Business Review during 2004. He had just finished collaborating with colleagues on a reworking of the ideas contained in The Effective Executive, first published in 1966.
Peter Ferdinand Drucker was born in Vienna in 1909. He took a doctorate in public and international law while working as a newspaper reporter in Frankfurt, Germany, and then worked as an economist for an international bank in London. He moved to the US in 1937 and began his teaching career at Bennington College, Vermont. For more than twenty years he was professor of management at the graduate business school of New York University.

Prof Drucker’s first books considered what could be done to prevent a return of the economic and social conditions that led to the rise of Fascism. This led him to conclude that effective management of organizations – in both public and private sectors – was essential for social stability.
The Concept of the Corporation, a study of the management practices of General Motors, the first modern, multidivisional company, was published in 1946. This and later works helped establish management as a topic worthy of serious study. However, Prof Drucker always sought to combine academic erudition with a concern for the day to day problems faced by practising managers. Of his 35 books, including two novels, 15 were concerned with management, including The Practice of Management, Managing in Turbulent Times and Management Challenges for the 21st Century, published in 1999.

Zagat Releases 2006 America's Top Restaurants Survey

Covering 1,352 Eateries in 41 Cities as Americans Dine Out and Spend More; East Coast Diners are the Best Tippers, Despite Myriad Complaints About Service; Japanese Net Highest Food Ratings in Nearly All Cities, While Chinese Tread Water

Zagat Survey released its 2006 America's Top Restaurants guide. The book covers 1,352 eateries in 41 cities nationwide, surveyed by over 115,000 avid restaurant-goers. In addition to rating and reviewing the most significant eateries in each city, the Survey includes a great variety of comparative data regarding meal costs, tipping, favorite cuisines, customer complaints, frequency of dining out and much more. It also points to a variety of national dining trends and issues.

"Its an eater's market out there," Tim Zagat, CEO of Zagat Survey said in announcing the guide's results. "The number of really good restaurants in every city has soared over the last few years while meal prices have remained relatively consistent.

"Facts and Figures: When comparing various U.S. cities, there are some surprising findings this year. For example when it comes to average Food Ratings, San Francisco (21.50 on Zagat Survey's trademark 30 point scale), Las Vegas (21.10) and Miami (21.01) lead the pack. And there is nation-wide good news too: food ratings are at their highest point ever, after inching up in city after city for the past ten years.

Food vs. Service: Unfortunately, Service Ratings lag behind food ratings everywhere by almost two points on the Zagat scale. When asked what irritates them the most about eating out, there was a great deal of consistency in diners' responses -- "poor service" led the way in every city. Nationally, 72% of complaints focused on service. The remaining 28% of complaints were about Noise/Crowds (11%), Food (5%), Prices (4%), Traffic/Parking (4%), and Other (4%). "Year after year, our surveys show that service is the weak link in the restaurant industry," added Mr. Zagat.

Dollars and Cents: On the whole, meals this year are 3% more expensive than they were a year ago. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that New York is the most costly restaurant city in the nation. With an average meal tab of $37.61, New York restaurants cost at least 50% more than those in Atlanta ($24.72) or Seattle ($25.56). In fact, New York exceeds the national average ($32.60) by 15%. However, when compared to foreign cities such as Tokyo ($70.64), London ($67.69) and Paris ($62.97), New York's restaurants are a bargain.

Tipping: On the question of tipping, the results present a clear contrast between residents of the East and West Coasts. Restaurant-goers in Philadelphia (19.2%), Atlanta (19.1%) and Boston (18.9%) are the nation's most generous tippers, while diners in Seattle (18%), Los Angeles and San Francisco (both at 18.3) turn out to be the worst. Nationwide, the average tip has been going up over the last several years from 18% in 2000 to 18.7% today.

Dining Out: By comparison, the frequency with which surveyors dine out or take out does not reflect competition between the two coasts, but rather a clear distinction between the two coasts and the center of the country. So, whereas residents of New York and Los Angeles are among the national leaders (with 60% and 55% of meals coming from outside the home, respectively), Phoenix (50%) and St. Louis (47%) trail well behind. The national average has reached 53% and is continuing to grow.

Changing Palates: Another trend signaled by the guide is the continuing movement of the American palate away from rich, elaborate preparations toward the simple natural flavors of fresh local produce. As a result, the mark of an acclaimed chef today is no longer the formal French recipe (note the recent closings of such formal French bastions as Maison Robert in Boston, Maisonette in Cincinnati and Le Cirque, La Cote Basque and Lutece in New York), but rather the ability to incorporate the freshest possible produce, meats and seafood from the best local suppliers -- like Union Square Cafe in New York, the French Laundry in Napa Valley, Mistral in Seattle, L'Espalier in Boston, Green Zebra in Chicago, and Chef Allen's in Miami.

Dressing Down and Up: While informality has become the mode when it comes to customer attire (hardly any top restaurants require a jacket and tie anymore), restaurants themselves are becoming more and more stylish everyday. High-profile chefs are requiring high-style settings and designers like Frank Gehry, Richard Meier (New York's 66), Todd Oldham (Miami's Wish) and David Rockwell (New York's Nobu) are creating more and more memorable restaurant spaces. With hoteliers, real estate moguls and casino operators subsidizing million dollar restaurant build-outs, it's no surprise that chefs are dressing up their dining rooms.

Japanese vs. Chinese: Among the key trends this year is the rise of Japanese food, which clearly isn't just for Californians anymore. In fact, sushi restaurants lead the Top Food and/or Most Popular lists in Boston (Oishii), Charlotte (Niko), Chicago (Mirai Sushi), Dallas (Tepo), Denver (Sushi Den), Las Vegas (Nobu), Long Island (Kotobuki), Los Angeles (Matsuhisa and Katsu-ya), Miami (Matsuri), New York (Sushi Yasuda), Portland (Saburo's), San Diego (Sushi Ota), San Francisco (Sushi Ran), Seattle (Nishino) and Washington D.C. (Makoto), among others. On the other hand, fine Chinese dining, once the leading Asian cuisine in the U.S., seems to have stalled, with not even one Chinese restaurant reaching the Top Food Rankings.

New Orleans: Zagat surveyors hold a special place in their hearts for New Orleans. The new guide addresses the city's future hopes head on, saying "Our hearts and minds have also been with New Orleans, which at press time is just starting to recover from Hurricane Katrina. Nevertheless, we have included the Crescent City section here, in the hope and faith that one of America's richest restaurant capitals will rise again.

"The Book: The 2006 America's Top Restaurants guide ($14.95) was edited by Troy Segal and is available at bookstores, via http://www.zagat.com/ or by calling 888/371-5440.

Businesses face perfect storm over talent, skills and older workers

Productivity. Recruitment. Retention.

Impending baby boomer retirements, a widening skills gap and outdated approaches to hiring and retaining talented workers are combining to produce a "perfect storm" that threatens long-term business performance, a study has suggested.
The global survey of 1,396 HR professionals by the Irish arm of consultancy Deloitte found nearly seven out of 10 felt attracting new talent was the greatest threat to their competitiveness.
This was followed by the inability to retain key talent (66 per cent) and incoming workers having inadequate skills (34 per cent).
"Deloitte's new research points to an inescapable conclusion: the widening skills gap is a global phenomenon, particularly among the categories of key workers who disproportionately drive an organisation's performance," said Deloitte partner Cormac Hughes.
"This trend will leave behind companies that do not begin to rethink their approach to talent management," he added.
Ireland's economy is currently operating close to full employment, meaning that talent shortages are not only a concern for the HR departments in Irish businesses but are also a top priority for senior management as a whole, said Hughes.
Organisations were offering money, perks and new challenges in order to attract and retain staff.
But such knee-jerk measures were often ineffective because there was inadequate medium and long term resource planning, he added.
"Rather than fight a futile 'war for talent', business leaders should 'build talent' by looking within their organisations for the critical skills, knowledge and attributes required to execute their company's most important roles, while continuing to seek to attract the best people," said Hughes.
"Irish companies can avoid sustaining a direct hit from the looming talent crisis by rethinking and reinventing their talent management processes into a well-designed talent strategy that drives productivity and differentiates a company from its competitors," he added.
More than 70 per cent of those surveyed confirmed they were experiencing or expected to experience a shortage of white-collar workers.
Worryingly, just 13 per cent identified approaching baby boomer retirement as a concern, despite overwhelming evidence indicating a large exodus of experienced staff from the labour market in the next three-five years.
"Retirement legislation is under review in some countries but the current situation sees skilled workers continuing to leave their profession or trade around late middle age and too few people are joining the workforce to fill their place," said Hughes.
"Governments are able to partially alleviate the depth of talent pools through policies on immigration, taxation and education but their impact is likely to be superficial in the face of global working population forecasts," he added.
The survey found the level of significance accorded to recruitment and retention of able staff was consistent across every region surveyed, irrespective of the size of the organisation.
Almost half stated demographic changes and the impending skills shortage had been discussed at board level and most identified a clear link between talent management and business performance.
A total of 54 per cent believed talent management issues would have an impact on their overall organisational productivity and 40 per cent felt it affected the firm's ability to innovate.
Three out of 10 acknowledged it would limit their ability to meet production requirements and fulfil customer demand.
"It is encouraging to see that so many organisations have discussed the impending skills shortage at board level," concluded Hughes.
"Given the potential impact on business performance, it is essential that board-level commitment is gained to help drive rapid change to talent management strategies," he added.
Author: Nic Paton

Documentary Defends Fast-Food

2005-10-24

If fast food consumers were left feeling disturbed after seeing the documentary Super Size Me, then seeing the recently released Portion Size Me will might bring a sigh of relief .

On Oct. 22, 2005 at the Downtown Cantina in St. Louis James Painter previewed his Portion Size Me documentary to members of the media. The Eastern Illinois University (EIU) professor and chair of EIU's School of Family and Consumer Sciences’s film demonstrates that even cheeseburgers and fries can be included in a healthy diet. The film follows two EIU students who eat nothing but fast food for a month and lose weight in the process.

Portion Size Me is showing at an EIU alumni gathering being held during the American Dietetic Association Food and Nutrition Conference in St. Louis, October 22–25.

The documentary was filmed and produced by Pete Grant and Antoine Thomas from EIU's Center for Academic Technology Support. The data on the subjects was analyzed by Karla Kennedy Hagan, assistant professor of nutrition in the EIU School of Family and Consumer Sciences.