How Important Is That Large Party?

When you know your restaurant or event venue is going to have a large group of people why aren't you and your team prepared?

It would seem that an owner and/or manager of a restaurant and/or venue would know the importance of giving a quality customer experience to a large party. Imagine how many of these people will return if they have a great experience. I can't tell you how many times I have seen one server trying to serve a party of 8 or more. When I was a server years ago the rule was there had to be two servers on all large parties. Same thing when you work on an event. If you are giving a large party to one server or to your most inexperienced server you are killing your business. This hurts upselling, and food timing and causes delays in the kitchen, and bar.

Many times this interrupts the food timing sequence in the kitchen. This means some of your party will get their food while others are still waiting for their meal. This gives your customer a bad impression.

Let me give you some ideas on this topic:

• Managers should review reservations at the beginning of the shift before they assign server sections
• The kitchen and bar should be staffed and know when the large party is going to arrive
• All servers should be knowledgeable about the menu and if there is a special menu being offered
• If this is a large banquet the food served should be discussed with the staff
• Never put a trainee on a large event or table without an experienced server
• Have a separate server/busser/manager to refill drinks as needed
• Plates should be removed as needed (people don't like to talk over dirty plates)
• Payment should be discussed before the party arrives or with the one who made the reservation
• Business people don't like to wait to pay if each one is paying for their own, have a system set up ahead of time

These are just a few ideas on how to make everyone happier and business running smoother.

Remember these people are your word-of-mouth advertising for your restaurant or venue and if they have a bad experience you can guarantee you will see it on Social Media. Plus look at the revenue you can make if everyone works together!

We at The Hart Experience can educate you and your team on how to improve customer experience and increase revenue. Call us for your complimentary restaurant evaluation at 602.717.3271, [email protected]