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Newsletter Archives
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E-Mail Newsletter
**** Issue #173 **** May 2, 2005 In This Issue
* Live Teleseminar: Service with Ian Maksik
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To enter send your friends, co-workers, or colleagues an e-mail (or forward this e-mail) with the below link to the special newsletter sign-up page... ****You can appear in the next issue of the newsletter. Write in with comments/questions. Submit an article. Place an ad. Email us...****
TELESEMINAR: Last Chance to Register! How To Get On The Same Service Page: The "Lefts & Rights" of Service 
On Tuesday, May 3rd from 3:30PM - 4:30PM EST (2:30 CST, 1:30 MST 12:30 PST), Restaurant Report will host a teleseminar with Ian Maksik, "Professor of Service" and "America's Service Guru". Ian will get you all on the Same Service Page!
Note: If you can not attend the live call, you can pre-order the training CD and it will be shipped directly to you once production is completed. The Professor of Service Says..."You're all doing it wrong and you're driving your staff crazy by not standardizing service procedures. First give your staff self-confidence in their physical techniques and watch their attitudes change and sales increase...Don't give up on your staff...train them properly and they'll stay for the long haul and really excel." Ian will Enter-Train you, amuse you and challenge you to finally serve only one way -- "The Right Way". If you practice what he preaches he guarantees that your sales will soar, morale will build resulting in an increase in both associate retention and repeat business. This 60-minute seminar will seem like ten-minutes. Mr. Maksik has kept 1700 hospitality executives spellbound from the stage of the Rio in Vegas. He's appeared as a Lecturer, Trainer and Keynoter at every major hospitality industry conference. Here is just some of the what you will learn...
Don't Miss This Seminar! Whether you are an owner/manger seeking training tips for your staff or a professional server looking to increase your tips, you will not want to miss this broadcast. Every restaurant professional in the business will benefit. Plus, Ian promises to make it a most memorable experience! Register to join us! Registration: $39.95 Registration includes a copy of the CD from the seminar shipped to you after the event. To Register for the teleseminar, click here to go to the teleseminar registration page. If you are unable to attend the live call you can still register now -- a copy of the CD from the call will be sent to you once the CD is produced -- @ 10 days after the call.
P.S. Remember, 73% of your guests return due to service while only 12% return due to food!
RANT & RUMBLE EDITORIAL
How many times must a man look up and pretend that he just doesn't see... Last week I wrote a piece about the issue of obesity as it relates to the restaurant industry. I believe the obesity issue is a very real problem. If you don’t believe it, just look around It’s a tragic problem that keeps getting worse. Having said that, it’s not our problem that people eat too much. The restaurants (for the most part) don’t pretend that the food they serve is actually good for you. Again, most people come to restaurants to eat and enjoy themselves. It’s not like running five miles at Bally’s. Trust me when I tell you that the 24-ounce filet mignon smothered with Béarnaise sauce could be a problem, and those killer desserts are not exactly what Weight Watcher’s had in mind. You don’t need a weatherman to tell which way the wind is blowing, and it’s ridiculous to blame the restaurants for causing you to be obese. Now we have a different problem. An organization called The Center for Consumer Freedom in Washington, D.C. has just launched a $600,000 advertising campaign apparently paid for by a group of casual dining chains. The reason behind the campaign is to question the hype concerning obese Americans. Evidently, the government data is suggesting that our obesity problem is worse than it really is. I don’t blame the restaurant industry for obesity in America, but for members of our industry to suggest that this issue is over-hyped just to protect the unhealthy food they serve is an insult to every restaurant in America. I’m here to tell you that obesity is causing incredible health problems and even our children are now affected. People are suffering from premature death, and anyone who can see understands that we have a gigantic nightmare on our hands. The restaurants paying for this campaign should spend another $600,000 apologizing for their ignorance. My question should be answered because we deserve to know – Who are the restaurants involved in this moronic advertising campaign? Here’s all you have to know...Darden Restaurants (the Olive Garden & Red Lobster) and Applebee’s International, when asked, could not say that they were contributors to this effort. What do you mean you couldn't say? Maybe there’s someone in marketing who could answer this question. *****
***** Bob Bradley’s report last week makes for an entirely pessimistic point of view and is far too dismissive of the problem. Obesity is also a serious problem here in UK. I believe that those who are considered clinically obese here are at about 20% of the population whereas in the US, I understand that it’s more than double that! A recent television program hosted by "celebrity" chef Jamie Oliver highlighted the problem of giving kids at school junk food for lunch. Their diets primarily consisted of pizza, chips (French fries), burgers and something called "turkey twizzlers" (don’t ask!). And therein lies the solution. Here in the UK, state schools have a budget of about 40p (about 80 US cents) per child for lunch. A can of dog food costs more than that! So kids tend to duck lunches which offer very little nutrition or fresh fruit or vegetables and go to the local Chinese take-out or fish & chip shop for chips and a Coke. By spending a little more on school meals, and educating both children AND parents, the next generation might stand a chance of not eating themselves into early graves and clogging up the medical system and thereby saving it money in admissions (and their own arteries). And please let’s not forget regular exercise too! A generation that knows more about the names of drugs than it does vegetables is in serious trouble indeed! Michael Fishberg
*****
READER FEEDBACK: SERVER TIPPING In response to Kim's post last week regarding tips please note the following;
1 ) Employers pay employment taxes on every cent of the tips you claim -- can you say the same? 2 ) Most servers in fairly busy restaurants will average $ 15 per hour or more for a part time shift. 3 ) Would you do the same work under a wage system for say $ 9 an hour? Probably not. Don't get me wrong, I also believe that the tip system is arcane and probably should be eliminated but the reality is its an ingrained American institution, provides many people with a significant wage that would not be duplicated if it were abolished and is the best way for a guest to tell you if they believe your service is not meeting their expectation. JMHO, Robert F ** Next Post ** I wish we had the same tipping system here in Germany as you do in the US. I'm the owner of a café bar in the southwest of Germany. We pay about $8/hr + healthcare + insurance + social security + tips = around $10/hr As you can imagine, I would be more than happy if I would only have to pay a minimum wage of $3-4/hr. Greetings from Germany
Steffen Knauss
*****
MY NEW FAVORITE CRITIC - by Bob Bradley "There are many of us who cannot but feel dismal about the future of various cultures. Often it is hard not to agree that we are becoming culinary nitwits, dependent upon fast foods and mass kitchens and megavitamins for our basically rotten nourishment." -- M.F.K. Fisher I have never been a fan of our major restaurant critic in Philadelphia. Craig LaBan writes for the Philadelphia Inquirer and his power is second to none when it comes to praising and killing (often at the same time). I awoke this morning and became a fan of Mr. LaBan. I would call his column in the Sunday edition “justifiable homicide.” I have included the introduction because I‘ve been waiting for years for someone in his position to actually say it. I have also included a link to the entire column should you choose to read it… "After dinner at Bonefish Grill the other night, I lay awake deep into the morning, pondering the unstoppable force of the American chain restaurant. What is it, I wondered, that compels the public to stand in ridiculously long lines at an Outback, a Bahama Breeze, or an Applebee's? There is the unspoken thrill of watching your beeper, and waiting with bated breath for that ecstatic Christmas- light flash to suddenly erupt, blinking the tidings of an open table. But there has to be more than that. The allure, no doubt, is the ingenious spell of marketing that promises substance with affordability - a spoonful of homespun goodness, a brush with jungle fun, or even a taste of the exotic - all in the safety of your local strip mall. But I am inevitably disappointed. That is not the edict of a cranky, elitist critic. OK, maybe cranky. But definitely not elitist. I've happily tried all the chains, from the high-end to the low, only to have my hopes wilt like a Bloomin' Onion? past its prime. In my experience, you don't just get what you pay for at big-name chains; usually you get less. Every steak I've ever eaten at Outback tasted like liver. Dinner at the Old Country Buffet sat in my stomach like a feast of mattress stuffing. The ribs at Applebee's in Hershey had a lingering aroma of fish. Such Asian-themed concepts as the Bamboo Club and P.F. Chang's are appealingly sleek, but so removed from authentic; they can't even properly cook rice. Bahama Breeze is basically Red Lobster with a Caribbean theme. Maggiano's Little Italy is a slightly lesser chain evil, yet I always leave longing for the genuine gravy of South Philly."
WEB SIGHTING We got word this week of a website of interest...
It is the association website for Executive Chefs and Food & Beverage Managers in Clubs and Country Clubs. The website was created by a few Executive Chefs in the industry who understand and appreciate the challenges facing the various types of club operations.
BULLETIN BOARD **Next Post - Re: Culinary Schools I have already spent two years working in a kitchen and eight years before that tending and managing bars in Chicago. I have fell in love with the kitchen and wonder if I should pursue a culinary degree or not. As confident as I am on the line I feel I'm not totally up to speed. Any advice as to how I should proceed with my career?
Thanks,
**Next Post - Re: How Can I Keep My Restaurant Clean OK here is the thing, I have a poster with cleaning duties on them. I just started the job a couple of months ago, The employess are telling me that they never had to clean before and they don't feel as if they have to clean. The poster has their names on it and what they are suppose to clean for the day. How should I approach this because am in charge of keeping the restaurant clean. Can anyone think of anything?
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