ELECTRONIC HOUSE CALL - November 18, 2005

Next week we officially disappear into the holiday vortex. Take a deep breath and hold on -- days will slide into days and the next thing you know it will be January! I hope you have your holiday plan solidly in place.

Somewhere in all the madness, you will also have to allow enough time to handle your own responsibilities to your friends and family ... and yourself. When the leader gets fried, the whole place loses it, so be sure to build in time for the care and feeding of the goose that lays the golden eggs.

That said, have fun! There should be lots of money flowing through your doors in the next six weeks!

THE POGO AWARD
You may know that one of my frequent quotes is from my favorite swamp philosopher, Pogo, who surveyed the trash and pollution that spoiled his habitat and commented with sadness, "We have met the enemy and he is us." In that spirit, I am instituting a recurring award called the POGO, awarded to restaurant operators whose actions, in my opinion, set our industry back to the dark ages.

My second POGO goes to the restaurateur whose poor judgement prompted this e-mail from Sharon Paulo:

The food is awesome at (name withheld) in Dedham, MA 99% of time, especially the Filet Mignon which is cooked to the utter satisfaction of the customer. We have probably been there 15+ times and we were satisfied every time with the cooking. The EXCEPTION: last week's meal.

We are consistent with our order: filet mignon, fried rice, no peas, an extra soup and salad and a drink. This particular evening, the filet mignon had a bad odor to it and did not taste right. Upon complaining to the waitress, a new piece was cooked for us. Much to our dismay, this piece, too, tasted much the same - really bad! The manager was sent over and he told us “Everything is fine; there is nothing wrong with our food.” He went on to accuse us of, " ... never being satisfied with our food." Not true ... why would we keep returning to a restaurant IF the food was consistently bad????

Only with our insistence, was the cost of the filet removed from the bill. As we left, we chalked it up to a bad batch of meat and a bad day for the manager. We were somewhat hesitant to return because of the poor response from management. But, because of the 14+ previous positive experiences, we decided to give it another whirl last evening, a week later.

When we entered the restaurant, the employees began talking and whispering in Japanese amongst themselves. Prior to being seated, we were informed we could "no longer order special items from the menu." We explained that the only request we had was to have the peas removed from the Fried Rice due to a SEVERE food allergy. We were told that they had no peas. Not true - they ordinarily serve peas in their fried rice which is cooked in front of us. Every other time, they graciously removed the peas, sometimes replacing them with green beans, carrots or corn.

We were then informed we could "only order white rice – no fried rice" if we wanted rice. This is a poor way of handling a food allergy, especially for frequent customers and a poor way of handling a consumer complaint. Retaliation is not a sign of good consumer relations! Their attitudes caused us to feel uncomfortable, distressed and abused. We had no choice but to leave.

Of note, upon entering the restaurant for the first time, a patron is customarily informed that if they have known food allergies, everything will be done to ensure their safety and health by accommodating their needs. Why then would they not let us order fried rice without peas, particularly since their procedure is to bring out all the fresh ingredients separately and cook them in front of the customer.

My question: I would like to report this establishment to someone but I do not know whom I should contact. Any suggestions? Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

My response: The good news: I think you are right and the restaurant is clearly wrong. The bad news: Operators have the right to screw their businesses up any way they want to. As to putting them on report ... you can't force someone to "get it," particularly in light of the bad news above.

My question in this case is whether you were dealing with the manager or the owner. If it was the owner, there isn't much you can do. If it was a manager, I am sure the owner would want to know of your experience. (I certainly would if it were my place!)

In the end, you only give your business to the people who earn it. While this place may have great food, you also go out for a good time and it doesn't sound like they are providing that any more. Now that you have broken the habit, I suspect there are restaurants in and around Dedham who would love to have you discover how awesome their cuisine can be.

Life is too short to waste any of it feeling resentful, particularly about situations you cannot change. I wish you well on your search for a new favorite place.

WATCH THE DETAILS
You don't need me to tell you that ours is a business of details. When you let the details slip, your credibility slips along with it.

Case in point: a Las Vegas restaurant where we had lunch this week. In the lobby was a poster promoting the availability of private rooms for holiday parties. On the tables were table tents promoting their sizzling summer drink specials. Anybody got a calendar?

50 TIPS FOR CHRISTMAS
Many of you are familiar with my little book for servers called 50 Tips to Improve Your Tips. I have sold over 10,000 copies of this little gem at prices of up to $5.95

Long-time readers will know that in order to front-end the cash needed for another reprint, I am offering a pre-publication deal of 20 copies for $50 -- $2.50 a copy -- a price even lower than my regular full case discount.

A number of you have told me that you are picking up a pile of these as Christmas presents for your service staff -- truly an excellent idea. The price is right, it is business-related and it will help them make more money and produce happier guests. What's not to like?

PS #1: If you have servers who are not worth a $2.50 investment, fire them! If they ARE any good and you are not willing to invest $2.50 in them, they should quit!

PS #2: In case you are not familiar with the idea of the book, here is Tip #29 - Speak in Complete Sentences:

We have a tendency to use shorthand when talking to guests. ("Smoking or non?" "More rolls?" Coffee?") While it is understandable, such shortcuts do not help your guests feel exceptionally well cared-for.

Just adding a few words to turn the phrase into a sentence can help create a higher level of service for your guests. ("Do you have a seating preference?" "Can I bring you more rolls?” “ Would you like hot coffee?")

Speaking in complete sentences forces you to think before you open your mouth. This helps you drop distracting thoughts and helps create the personal connection that will ultimately determine your tip. Complete sentences don't take any more time ... and you can pick up points for your extra effort.

Click here to learn more about the book and take the deal.

BASH IN A BOX
The Birthday Bash was an amazing experience -- an in-depth, hands-on sales-building clinic quite unlike anything that either Joel or I had ever done outside of private consulting clients.

So the bad news is that you missed it. The good news is that we are had the entire two-and-a-half days professionally recorded, so you can get the "Bash in a Box" on audio CD, just as it happened, including copies of all the auxiliary material.

I will have more information on this product once we actually get the finished package together. In the meantime, you can save $100 by pre-ordering the set now.

PS: My 100% You-Gotta-Love-It guarantee applies to the Bash in a Box, so you can order without risk. Order an advance copy of the Bash in a Box at http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=18437&ProductID=2588493

THE NOVEMBER SURVEY
This month we are looking at the good, the bad and the ugly about price increases.

Restaurateurs are perpetually engaged in the struggle to manage prices. (This generally means figuring out how and when to raise them!) From my own experience, I believe that operators are more reluctant to raise prices than their guests are to accept the higher numbers.

Still, there is trauma involved ... particularly when the price hikes are not done properly.

As usual, I will provide a compilation of all the responses to everyone who contributes to this project. Click here to add your thoughts to the November survey.

THE PERPETUAL QUESTION
What did you learn from your staff today?

I learned that you can learn not only from your own staff but from others outside of your industry. I am in supermarkets and most of your ideas can be cross related. -- Tim Shannon, Foodland Supermarket, Adelaide, Australia

Listening is a skill that you can learn and develop. I ask what you learned from your staff today, but Tim is correct that the learning doesn't stop at your front door. Insights are where you find them ... and life is happening all around you.

In the same way that you want to be looking for marketing ideas in more industries than just foodservice, you can also learn something from everyone you meet. (It is interesting that as you become a better listener you will gain a reputation as a great conversationalist!)

Learning to listen respectfully to everyone you meet - - and being intensely interested in what you hear -- will deepen respect. Perhaps the question I should be asking should more properly be "What did you learn from your LIFE today?"

Never doubt that the most critical management skill you can develop is your ability to truly listen.

I will continue to collect your answers to this important question ... and you can add comments as often as you want. Just click on the link below and contribute your insights for the common good (and your own as well!)

What did YOU learn from YOUR staff today?

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