2009 is here and it is time to walk around your restaurant again. The new year brings fresh perspectives. The first thing a restaurateur needs to do physically walk around the outside of the restaurant. This is actually something you and your staff should do every day. If there is litter, pick it up. If there is litter on the city street in front of your restaurant, pick it up. The customer walking by will not say, “Oh my, the city is doing a poor job cleaning the street”, they will say “this restaurant does not care.” Keep walking around, are there any physical plant issues that have gone on to long? The customer will only notice the imperfections in your building, not the ten thousand other things you do right. Have you really looked at your building with a critical eye? Ok, time to come in.
Forget that you built and manage the place, walk into your restaurant with fresh eyes. Try to experience what a first time visitor would experience. Smell the smells, hear the sounds, touch the furniture, see the place for the first time and finally taste the tastes.
Heck it is a new year, time for a fresh perspective.
