It's usually the time of the year when most companies do their yearend review and planning for the next year. Whether you have a big or small operation, you should do the same too.
This would be the time to look at the year's financial statements, guest feedback summaries, business activities done from operations to marketing and try to plan for the year ahead.
It would be graet if your operations are automated to give you a annual report in a jiffy. But if you are not, it's still very possible to do your annual reviews with a little difficulty and work, of course.
What do you need to be looking at?
1. Your annual sales figures with monthly reports.
2. Your average guest check
3. Your food cost
4. Turnovers (dining room, employees, stocks)
5. Number of functions, if any, and percentage of functions' contribution to your income,
6. Success rate of marketing and promotions activities
The next year would probably pose to be a difficult year for business in general. But don't worry too much yet. In the first place, people may stop shopping, but they may not stop eating. That they will still eat in restaurants will be the problem. Get your restaurant ready for the hard times. Make your plan. Anticipate your hurdles and know exactly what to do now while you are still thinking clearly.
New years are refreshing in a way in my opinion. So here's hoping you could get the refreshing you need as well. Happy planning!
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Setting the Holiday Mood
It's about 30 days before Christmas and if you haven't put up christmas decorations in the restaurant, you should do it now! A lot of restaurants seem at a loss as to how to set the mood for the holidays. Take note, setting the mood does not only mean putting up christmas decorations but making guests feel, taste and smell Christmas when they enter your restaurant.
Aside from decorations, your menu should have the Christmas "feel". Nope, you don't have to redo your menu or replace it temporarily with a Christmas-inspired menu. This is one of those times that the adage, the simpler, the better, really makes sense. The key is putting in a little effort yet seemingly simple to do.
One of my favorite simple Christmas treats for dining guests is giving them free Christmas cookies. Guests would love it! Serve the cookies, about one to two pieces per guest, once the guests are seated and voila!, you are setting the mood. Just make sure that the cookies have Christmas'y taste or look to them and that the waitstaff explains that they are special free Christmas cookeis for guests. Don't have Christmas cookie recipes? Don't worry. The world wide web makes it easier now to search for recipes. Just give it a little twise and make it your own version.
Another would be music. How simple could it get! Choose Christmas songs that are suited to the theme or ambience of your restaurant. Note that not just any song will do. If you have a fine dining restaurant, go for instrumentals or piano Christmas classic. If the place is upbeat, go for pop versions.
Insert one or two special dishes exclusively for the Holidays. You may have a main dish and a dessert or two main dishes or two desserts. Sometimes, just playing around with colors of food does the trick. Of course, keep in mind healthy cooking for the Holidays.
Christmas is around the corner. Surely other restaurants are cooking up their gimmicks. So should you!
Aside from decorations, your menu should have the Christmas "feel". Nope, you don't have to redo your menu or replace it temporarily with a Christmas-inspired menu. This is one of those times that the adage, the simpler, the better, really makes sense. The key is putting in a little effort yet seemingly simple to do.
One of my favorite simple Christmas treats for dining guests is giving them free Christmas cookies. Guests would love it! Serve the cookies, about one to two pieces per guest, once the guests are seated and voila!, you are setting the mood. Just make sure that the cookies have Christmas'y taste or look to them and that the waitstaff explains that they are special free Christmas cookeis for guests. Don't have Christmas cookie recipes? Don't worry. The world wide web makes it easier now to search for recipes. Just give it a little twise and make it your own version.
Another would be music. How simple could it get! Choose Christmas songs that are suited to the theme or ambience of your restaurant. Note that not just any song will do. If you have a fine dining restaurant, go for instrumentals or piano Christmas classic. If the place is upbeat, go for pop versions.
Insert one or two special dishes exclusively for the Holidays. You may have a main dish and a dessert or two main dishes or two desserts. Sometimes, just playing around with colors of food does the trick. Of course, keep in mind healthy cooking for the Holidays.
Christmas is around the corner. Surely other restaurants are cooking up their gimmicks. So should you!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Basics your waitstaff should review
Sometimes, in a restaurant's desire to advance things or upgrade service, the basics are the ones mostoverlooked or forgotten. Most successful restaurants have great waiter tableside manners aside from great food.
I personally believe that while it is good to up the level of service in your restaurant, the basics should be adhered by all means.
UTMOST COURTESY. I love restaurants whose waitstaff make you feel special. There are restaurants wherein you feel like you owe them for coming to dine. Waiters should be courteous, friendly and sincere. THey should know how, when and what to communicate to guests. They should be on-hand to wait on guests but not to near as to suffocate guests.
EXCELLENT KNOWLEDGE. ABOUT MENU AND RESTAURANT. Every waiter, whether regularly employed or on-call, should be adept with everything there is to know about the restaurant and the menu. No waiter should be let out into the dining room without great knowledge of how the food tastes, ingredients, house specialties and management. At the same time that they should know what to answer guests, they should also know what NOT to tell guests and how to dodge the question. (There are things that guests cannot know.)
BAISC TABLE SERVICE. Your waiter should know the kind of table service used in your restaurant,whether it be french, russian, buffet, etc. But train waiters as well in the different types of table service even if they are not used regularly in your restaurant. Teach waiters what to do on certain occasions and circumstances they might encounter during service.
Waiters are your major frontliners. What they say and do are representative of your restaurant even those they do unintentionally. Therefore, all measures have to be taken to ensure that they represent you well.
Need restaurant checklishts? Click here.
I personally believe that while it is good to up the level of service in your restaurant, the basics should be adhered by all means.
UTMOST COURTESY. I love restaurants whose waitstaff make you feel special. There are restaurants wherein you feel like you owe them for coming to dine. Waiters should be courteous, friendly and sincere. THey should know how, when and what to communicate to guests. They should be on-hand to wait on guests but not to near as to suffocate guests.
EXCELLENT KNOWLEDGE. ABOUT MENU AND RESTAURANT. Every waiter, whether regularly employed or on-call, should be adept with everything there is to know about the restaurant and the menu. No waiter should be let out into the dining room without great knowledge of how the food tastes, ingredients, house specialties and management. At the same time that they should know what to answer guests, they should also know what NOT to tell guests and how to dodge the question. (There are things that guests cannot know.)
BAISC TABLE SERVICE. Your waiter should know the kind of table service used in your restaurant,whether it be french, russian, buffet, etc. But train waiters as well in the different types of table service even if they are not used regularly in your restaurant. Teach waiters what to do on certain occasions and circumstances they might encounter during service.
Waiters are your major frontliners. What they say and do are representative of your restaurant even those they do unintentionally. Therefore, all measures have to be taken to ensure that they represent you well.
Need restaurant checklishts? Click here.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Enhancing Family Style Dining
One of my faorite type of restaurant services is family dining. I guess because of my personal attachment to my family and because of the easy of how to set one up.
Family-style dining is a great idea for restaurants located near neighborhoods or villages and in malls. It's a good way to showcase your food since the quantity of the food gives your food a look of abundance and height if presented beautifully. It is also a good way to save on ingredients and other operating expenses. Why? Because the quantity of the food, which is around 3 to 5 persons per order, brings savings and uses ingredients more economically compared to single person servings. It brings the restaurant savings on fuel, labor, water, electricity and effort. There are also savings on ingredients that are packaged in bulk compared to single servings like what is needed for single person savings.
If you are planning or is currently running a family-style restaurant, here are some tips for you:
Think of the entire family when you plan your menu. Your guests range from very small children to senior citizen. The tendency is thinking only of food for chldren and adults. But most of the time, we forget menu or service suited for older people who might be on certain diet restrictions or motion difficulty. Put together a versatile menu but not one that tries to hit all. You may stick to your theme but vary the nutritional content and the ingredients.
Be consistent. If it's a family restaurant, make sure that the utensils, tables and chairs and the service match.
Maintain a family homey atmosphere. If you want to invite families to your restaurant, have an ambience akin to dining at home, that is, warm, homey, cozy and comfortable. Train your staff about dealing with fussy children, senior citizen and everything in between. Keep in mind that there are certain antiquities about eating at home and your staff should understand those.
Need some help with your restaurant? Click here!
Family-style dining is a great idea for restaurants located near neighborhoods or villages and in malls. It's a good way to showcase your food since the quantity of the food gives your food a look of abundance and height if presented beautifully. It is also a good way to save on ingredients and other operating expenses. Why? Because the quantity of the food, which is around 3 to 5 persons per order, brings savings and uses ingredients more economically compared to single person servings. It brings the restaurant savings on fuel, labor, water, electricity and effort. There are also savings on ingredients that are packaged in bulk compared to single servings like what is needed for single person savings.
If you are planning or is currently running a family-style restaurant, here are some tips for you:
Think of the entire family when you plan your menu. Your guests range from very small children to senior citizen. The tendency is thinking only of food for chldren and adults. But most of the time, we forget menu or service suited for older people who might be on certain diet restrictions or motion difficulty. Put together a versatile menu but not one that tries to hit all. You may stick to your theme but vary the nutritional content and the ingredients.
Be consistent. If it's a family restaurant, make sure that the utensils, tables and chairs and the service match.
Maintain a family homey atmosphere. If you want to invite families to your restaurant, have an ambience akin to dining at home, that is, warm, homey, cozy and comfortable. Train your staff about dealing with fussy children, senior citizen and everything in between. Keep in mind that there are certain antiquities about eating at home and your staff should understand those.
Need some help with your restaurant? Click here!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Have you planned for Christmas?
Christmas is probably one of the busiest, if not hte busiest, time of the year for restaurants. People have more extra money for eating out, Christmas parties, reunions, weddings and more parties abound. Have you planned as to what to do this Christmas?
Technically, you should have planned for it last year or at the start of this year. But if you haven't or would like to add to what you have laid out previously, October is the latest time to do it.
There are a lot of things you could do for the Holiday Season. One of the best things to do is have a Christmas menu. Something that is symbolic of the season like christmas-colored cakes and pies, roasted meats, desserts that make you think of Christmas or just anything that you do only during Christmas.
Be careful though about making promotions or discounts available. This is the time when people feel most generous so you don't have to entice them with any discounts. Take advantage of the time to increase your average guest check. Emphasize on your waitstaff how important it is to push your specials or just to suggest sell smartly.
One other thing you should do is make available a Christmas party menu or function package. Since people are into a lot of partying, it would be great to give them an easy way to organize their parties by delivering food packs or having a function area available in your restaurant.
Christmas food baskets, gift certificates or wines will also be a great profit center this Christmas. Give people fabulous gift ideas and they will be loyal to you for a long time.
As I said, October would be the latest month you could lay out these promotions.
Technically, you should have planned for it last year or at the start of this year. But if you haven't or would like to add to what you have laid out previously, October is the latest time to do it.
There are a lot of things you could do for the Holiday Season. One of the best things to do is have a Christmas menu. Something that is symbolic of the season like christmas-colored cakes and pies, roasted meats, desserts that make you think of Christmas or just anything that you do only during Christmas.
Be careful though about making promotions or discounts available. This is the time when people feel most generous so you don't have to entice them with any discounts. Take advantage of the time to increase your average guest check. Emphasize on your waitstaff how important it is to push your specials or just to suggest sell smartly.
One other thing you should do is make available a Christmas party menu or function package. Since people are into a lot of partying, it would be great to give them an easy way to organize their parties by delivering food packs or having a function area available in your restaurant.
Christmas food baskets, gift certificates or wines will also be a great profit center this Christmas. Give people fabulous gift ideas and they will be loyal to you for a long time.
As I said, October would be the latest month you could lay out these promotions.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Portion Size: the big and small of it
I have eaten in a lot of restaurants that seem to be confused about how big their portion size will be. Sometimes, aside from being too much for one person, the portions are inconsistent, meaning the size is not the same as the next time you order it.
Portion size is simply how much will be enough for one person. To some extent, how big or small the portion size will be is a a subjective decision. One size might not be enough for one and might be too much for another. The objective should be finding the average or the nearest size that will satisfy most customers.
First of all, it will be unwise to make your portions extra large. One, it will be charging your customers for something they cannot consume in one seating. Second, it might "teach" your customers to share one order the next time they visit, thus, lowering your average guest check. It will be also a disaster to make a portion too small for the average consumption. Guests might think they have been fooled and might not come back another time.
Most restaurants have set yields and portions they can make out of a kilo or a batch of a certain dish. For example, a pan of a certain size of cake or pudding would make a certain number of servings. Or a kilo of pork chops would make ten to twelve individual servings. Experienced restaurateurs or cooks would already know the yield. But beginners would need to test and find out the portion sizes from scratch.
Your portion size would be what you perceive to be a just serving for one person. Understandably, some restaurants have family style servings which would mean more than one serving in one order.
If you see guest's plates not empyting out their plates or always asking for a doggy bag, it might be a sign that the portion is too big or the food is not good. Take note of guests' comments about portions.
Finding it out your correct portion size is not hard but finding it out will be good for your business.
Portion size is simply how much will be enough for one person. To some extent, how big or small the portion size will be is a a subjective decision. One size might not be enough for one and might be too much for another. The objective should be finding the average or the nearest size that will satisfy most customers.
First of all, it will be unwise to make your portions extra large. One, it will be charging your customers for something they cannot consume in one seating. Second, it might "teach" your customers to share one order the next time they visit, thus, lowering your average guest check. It will be also a disaster to make a portion too small for the average consumption. Guests might think they have been fooled and might not come back another time.
Most restaurants have set yields and portions they can make out of a kilo or a batch of a certain dish. For example, a pan of a certain size of cake or pudding would make a certain number of servings. Or a kilo of pork chops would make ten to twelve individual servings. Experienced restaurateurs or cooks would already know the yield. But beginners would need to test and find out the portion sizes from scratch.
Your portion size would be what you perceive to be a just serving for one person. Understandably, some restaurants have family style servings which would mean more than one serving in one order.
If you see guest's plates not empyting out their plates or always asking for a doggy bag, it might be a sign that the portion is too big or the food is not good. Take note of guests' comments about portions.
Finding it out your correct portion size is not hard but finding it out will be good for your business.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Forecasting: How hard it can be
Forecasting is not entirely rocket science but it could be complicated for some restaurants. Why is that? Because some areas where restaurants are located do not allow sane forecasting.
There are places where the flow of guests can be predictable. Low on weekdays, high on weekends, busy at lunch, slow on sundays and the like. Some restaurants get satisfied by subjective data, meaning no official figures to base their forecasts on. This can be very hard for restaurateurs if there will be any attempt to forecast.
Forecasting, if done properly, can save you and your staff a lot of effort, money and other resources.
A simple way to start collecting data for forecasting is to write down the number of guests who come everyday at particular times like lunch service or dinner service or whatever is applicable for your restaurant. Collect at least three months' worth of data to see the trend. Make sure to separate count for functions if you have any function service.
Now, while you are waiting for three months, monitor your number of guests on a daily basis and follow the trend every week taking into consideration holidays and special occasions during which you have to adjust your preparations.
Make also a daily menu tally to know the orders you have to prepare for each menu item on a daily basis. If you have a expansive menu, this will be a big job. A manual tally will do job but things will be faster if you automate it from your orderslip encoding.
Forecasting can save you money and effort in preparations. It also saves you space in your chillers, freezers and pantry as the data you get from forecasting will aid purchasing to order just in time.
Is forecasting hard? Yes and no. Yes, because it can make or break your business. No, because there are manual and technology-aided ways to do it easier.
There are places where the flow of guests can be predictable. Low on weekdays, high on weekends, busy at lunch, slow on sundays and the like. Some restaurants get satisfied by subjective data, meaning no official figures to base their forecasts on. This can be very hard for restaurateurs if there will be any attempt to forecast.
Forecasting, if done properly, can save you and your staff a lot of effort, money and other resources.
A simple way to start collecting data for forecasting is to write down the number of guests who come everyday at particular times like lunch service or dinner service or whatever is applicable for your restaurant. Collect at least three months' worth of data to see the trend. Make sure to separate count for functions if you have any function service.
Now, while you are waiting for three months, monitor your number of guests on a daily basis and follow the trend every week taking into consideration holidays and special occasions during which you have to adjust your preparations.
Make also a daily menu tally to know the orders you have to prepare for each menu item on a daily basis. If you have a expansive menu, this will be a big job. A manual tally will do job but things will be faster if you automate it from your orderslip encoding.
Forecasting can save you money and effort in preparations. It also saves you space in your chillers, freezers and pantry as the data you get from forecasting will aid purchasing to order just in time.
Is forecasting hard? Yes and no. Yes, because it can make or break your business. No, because there are manual and technology-aided ways to do it easier.
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