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The holiday season is a huge calendar event in the restaurant industry, with bookings booming as guests look to let their hair down and enjoy a festive feast. Over the Christmas season, 63 percent of adults plan to eat out so your restaurant needs to be prepared for the increase in demand.
With 59 percent of customers hanging up after calling in and waiting for a minute or less, according to Linga, restaurants are missing out on a lot of business. menu, hours, etc.), menu, hours, etc.), The most common asks are to make a reservation, ask a Frequently-Asked-Question (e.g., or place an order (for take out).
The seasonal surge in foot traffic can drive significant business, but without proper preparation and training, teams can quickly become overwhelmed. For restaurants to thrive during busy season, it’s crucial to focus on the below three critical areas.
Just like a well-crafted mission statement will help guide your business decisions, identifying and understanding your target customers and competitors through restaurant market research will give your business a competitive edge. Do you want to find out which food items your customers love the most?
Just as a chef elevates a signature dish with bold, unique flavors that please the senses, the right glassware can enhance the presentation of drinks and food, creating a visually engaging experience for customers. Seasonal and specialty cocktail glasses that make signature drinks stand out.
Tableside caviar service A prosciutto cart An authentic kaiseki tasting experience and members-only Japanese whiskey lounge Tableside s’mores These are just a few examples of ways restaurants across the country are hoping to attract guest by elevating the dining experience and creating a vibe highlighted by superior food and presentation.
Now, make sure that the vegetables on the sandwich are at their peak and reflective of the season: dont serve raw tomatoes outside of July and August. Out of season do something interesting with tomatoes (oven roasted, marinated, sun-dried tomato paste, etc.) Leave your customers speechless and your employees beaming with pride.
Photo: Shutterstock Delivery and a take-home meal deal drove a lot more customers to Olive Garden this spring. The offer allowed customers to buy an in-store meal starting at $14.99 It plans to keep prices down while also adding more lower-priced items to the menu. “If By Joe Guszkowski on Jun.
Nowadays, running a successful restaurant takes more than great food and good service. From improving your Google listing to leveraging customer reviews, these tips will show you how to boost your visibility and drive more traffic to your restaurant. To do so, you must have an optimized website and engaging social media profiles.
Too often, what customers found was a clunky experience marked by poor scanning results, slow click-throughs and the need to download third-party apps just to engage with the expected content. Customer feedback. Restauranteurs can also utilize QR codes as a channel to link customers directly to their business calendar.
Scalable solutions like self-service kiosks and predictive analytics are transforming the way small businesses operate. Technology doesn’t just level the playing field; it allows mom-and-pop shops to improve efficiency, reduce wait times, and enhance the customer experience in ways that were once out of reach. The result?
Understanding the Fractional CFO Role A fractional CFO is a seasoned financial expert who partners with businesses on a part-time or contract basis. Strategic Cash Flow Management Restaurants often grapple with cash flow challenges due to seasonality, fluctuating customer demand, and variable/fixed costs.
Understanding your target market is the foundation of making smart decisions for your menu, pricing, and overall guest experience. Without a well-defined target market, restaurants risk wasting resources on strategies that dont connect and menu offerings that dont selltrying to appeal to everyone, but standing out to no one.
The holiday season brings bustling crowds, higher sales, and festive celebrations, making it a prime time for restaurants and bars. Implementing a proactive holiday security plan ensures the safety of your staff, customers, and business. Their visible presence also reassures customers and employees alike.
If you were to ask people who enjoy the finer things in life about the hallmarks of a luxury hotel, you would likely get responses that include quality, consistency, and service. But what if your menu was telling your guests something about luxury? ” Perhaps the menu speaks for itself in ways in which we never quite imagined.
Foot traffic or heat mapping, menu item engagement, or consumer demographics by time of day. – Misty Chalk, vice president, Americas at BrightSign AI Continues to Revolutionize Restaurant Operations and Guest Services: The restaurant sector is poised for a seismic shift as AI integration takes center stage.
Restaurants collect a ton of customer data. Think about it: What if you could automatically send a special offer to a customer who hasnt ordered in a while? When used strategically, customer data can help you personalize marketing, streamline operations, and create a better dining experience for your guests.
From salted egg yolks and chili crunch fusions to mushroom-infused teas and freeze-dried fruit powder garnishes, Kimpton’s in-house experts share the standout ingredients, menu items and techniques that will come to the table in 2025.
Does the energy feel flat, and the customers look bored. Get some fresh customers through the door and start the neighborhood talking about whats happening in your restaurant again. You need ideas that will wow new customers and get the regulars excited to come back in.
Your waiters and waitresses are the face of your establishment, shaping the customer experience and directly impacting revenue. What does excellent customerservice mean to you? Tell us about a time you dealt with a difficult customer. How do you handle a situation where a customer complains about the wait time?
While your restaurant may feature a diverse menu, delicious food, a great ambiance, and excellent customerservice, you will still struggle to build a customer base without promoting it. The fact is that running a successful restaurant is more than just offering good food and good service.
Fast-casual Condado Tacos—which prefers calling itself “next-gen casual”—has long had a bar program with a selection of conventional margaritas and beers to go with its Mexican-style menu and vibe. But those same margaritas had been on the menu since 2014 when the bar, so to speak, was set a bit lower. By Patricia Cobe on Jul.
Have you ever walked into a restaurant, excited for a great meal, but the server can’t answer your questions about the menu? There was a time when 70% of F&B employees didn’t receive training for customerservice. A well-structured restaurant training program will let you turn this around.
This "Super" special edition of Modern Restaurant Management (MRM) magazine's Research Roundup has a Super Bowl theme. MVP Menu Performances More than 200 million people tuned in to the Super Bowl last year—many with a plate of wings in front of them. “Customers still associate the experience with your brand.
Are you doing all the right thingsserving amazing food, delivering top-notch service, crafting perfectly balanced drinksbut the tables still arent filling up like they should? Youre delivering a great dining experience, yet foot traffic remains inconsistent, online engagement is low, and new customers arent coming in as often as youd like.
It’s been said that customers eat with their eyes. With digital signage, restaurants can transform static, lifeless imagery into compelling experiences tailored to each customer. Unfortunately, a given reality in the food service industry is that waiting is sometimes a necessary reality in daily operations.
Winter can be a tough season for restaurant and bar owners. Here are a few ideas for restaurant and bar owners to consider in an effort to continue to serve up good eats and top-tier service during the winter season. Keep Customers Informed on Social Media. Consider Offering Curbside Service and Delivery.
Fortunately, the latest advances in AI technology may keep the lights on for restaurants facing staffing shortages, while also helping these businesses run more efficiently and obtain more customers. Personalized Marketing AI enables restaurants to create personalized marketing campaigns based on customer data.
After all, it’s not just the quality of your food that can keep customers coming back — 73% of diners base their satisfaction on the quality of service they receive. How do you prepare your team for special events or holiday rushes? How do you manage customer expectations when wait times are longer than usual?
Start by tracking all the income your bar generates, including sales from drinks, food, and any additional services. Reevaluating the prices of your drinks and knowing the types of drinks you sell can help you earn more for each bottle, as well as implementing portion control and even redesigning your menu. Did you know that just 1 oz.
Predicting Customer Demand Accurately One of the leading causes of food waste in restaurants is overproduction. To battle this issue, AI systems forecast customer demand by analyzing historical sales data and seasonal trends. This enables restaurants to adjust orders, create specials, and repurpose ingredients before they spoil.
However, for many states and cities in climates that experience a full four seasons of weather, cooler weather is fast approaching and with it, another chance to make operational changes. So, what are some additional ways restaurant operators can swing with the seasons and make additional revenue? Then, work to fill those gaps.
The real wins come from small, smart shifts; things like improving your online ordering system, highlighting your most profitable dishes, and giving existing customers more reasons to come back. Create Limited-Time Offers That Drive Action Limited-time offers (LTOs) give potential customers a reason to order now, not later.
Whether through supporting local charities or participating in food drives, local restaurants can become go-to places for customers who want to support their community. It helps allocate resources directly to those who are most likely to become loyal, repeat customers.
It’s the first impression most customers will have of your restaurant. Restaurant operators who neglect their Google Business Profile are missing out on the 62% of customers who turn to Google when looking for a place to eat. This is ChowNow customer, Maple Block Barbecue’s Google Business Profile.
Instead of constantly playing defence with menu updates, imagine a centralized system that allows you to make menu changes instantly across every delivery app and direct ordering platform. What is Menu Management Software? Think of menu management software as the control center for all your restaurants menus.
Third-party delivery apps start out as a convenient way to reach new customers, but they always take a significant chunk of your profits. While these platforms do bring in orders, they also come with the price of high commission fees, loss of customer data, and a weaker connection between you and your guests.
Restaurant operators are now looking for solutions to retain customers as colder weather and economic conditions threaten their bottom line. Customers now expect more than a simple rewards program or general mailing list. Customers now expect more than a simple rewards program or general mailing list.
These metrics give you a clear picture of your delivery performancefrom order volume and customer retention to delivery speed and profitability. This might seem like a small detail, but it plays a big role in the overall delivery experience and significantly impacts customer experience.
Even your most reliable menu items can lose their shine over time. Dining habits change, food costs fluctuate, and customer preferences can shift depending on what’s trending. All of these things are ok, so long as you’re menu is evolving with the changes. But together they add up. A shift in dining trends.
The next youre racing to keep inventory stocked while customers wait for tables. Whether youre a seasoned owner or just starting out, this advice will help you boost efficiency, keep your team motivated, and turn customers into regulars. Free meals after long shifts or a staff pick on the menu build camaraderie.
Thanks to restaurant technologies, it’s possible to not only deliver a superior customer experience — the crux of hospitality — but also take things to the next level. Yes, the importance of a good customer experience has always been key. In reality, hospitality isn't as simple as just service.
Regular staff training ensures your employees are equipped to handle a fast-paced restaurant environment and the challenges that come with it, deliver exceptional service, and adapt to evolving industry trends to stay competitive. Menu knowledge : Learn the entire menu and how to upsell and cross-sell items on that menu.
This doesnt mean cutting corners and sacrificing the customer experience; its about knowing where your money is going, spotting leaks early, and fine-tuning whats already working. A good labor cost percentage to shoot for is between 20%-30% , depending on your service style and local wage laws. Are you overstaffed on slow days?
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