How to Respond to Online Reviews in 10-ish Minutes Per Day
Last week, I went to a fancy restaurant with my husband for a nice dinner. I put on a dress, a little makeup, and (gasp) actually did something with my hair. So this was clearly a special occasion. When we got to the restaurant, we were told that there would be an hour wait, even though we had a reservation. An inauspicious beginning, but these things happen. So we found a place to wait. After an hour and 15 minutes, we were finally sat. And we sat. And sat. And sat. For another 20 minutes before we were approached to place our drink order. Which came out wrong. Then we…
Can Task Batching Work for Hospitality Pros?
It’s a crummy feeling. You started the day with a fire under your butt and pep in your step. You were going to accomplish all the things. But then that early site visit ran long, or a colleague pulled you into an unexpected meeting. You went looking for that one email, and ended up spending an hour bogged down in the inbox. By the end of the day, you’ve been running hard, busy busy busy. But nothing is checked off the list and you don’t feel like you’ve made any progress. This is a universal problem in our highly connected world. Every email, text message, Slack notification, or social media…
How to Prioritize Restaurant Employee Wellness
Once upon a time, I worked at a high-volume shot bar in downtown Boston. The hours were incredibly long, the place had three stories, and the patrons weren’t always very nice. So it could be a tough job. Male customers and bachelorette parties high on sisterhood often offered to buy us shots behind the bar, which we were allowed to take with manager approval. But there was also usually a little secret vodka mixed in with our sodas, which we sipped throughout the night just to make it to 2:00 AM. At this bar, I had a coworker we’ll call Steph. Steph was a lot of the things you’d want…
We can reopen restaurants. Here’s why we should not.
Across the country, states are allowing retail stores, movie theaters, and restaurants to reopen with restrictions in place to prevent the further spread of COVID-19. And while retail may be able to make the necessary adjustments to minimize risks, the nature of restaurants makes reopening a dangerous proposition. On a state level, new cases of the novel coronavirus have not been consistently going down, as this graph from the New York Times shows. And on a national level, more Americans have died from the coronavirus in the past three months than from the entire Vietnam War. So is this really the time to put groups of people into enclosed spaces…
Resources for Restaurant Relief During COVID-19
Times have never been more uncertain for the restaurant, event, hotel, and hospitality industries. With dining rooms closed and people encouraged to stay at home, restaurateurs have found that staying afloat requires a Herculean effort. Unfortunately, from my position on the periphery of the industry, there isn’t much I can do to help. All I can do is share whatever information I have with anyone who will read it. So I’ve put together a list of resources to help independent restaurant owners during this crazy time. Some are grant and relief funds and some are discounts that may be helpful. They may not be huge savings on their own, but…
