Service for success: It’s not all about the food
By Jeff Hookham

Few things get me fired up like bad service. But last month I read an article in a national trade publication that had me fired up more then an empty glass of Dr. Pepper with no server in site.

In this opinion article, an “expert” tried to explain why a restaurant’s success is all about the food, not the service. In the article he goes on to say no one ever goes to a restaurant because of great service, they go there because of great food.

As Dr. Phil would say, “Are you kidding me?”

I’m not saying that having good food isn’t important to the success of a restaurant—of course it is. But, having great food AND excellent service is what all restaurants should strive for.

And if I had to choose one, food or service, that my restaurant was better at, experience has shown me that service wins hands down. Great food can’t overcome bad service.

Seventy-three percent of the reasons someone returns to a restaurant are service.

Maybe the “expert” was right and not very many people start a Friday night by saying, “Let’s go eat at XYZ Restaurant because they have great service,” But on the flip side, they will say, “The service wasn’t very good; let’s not eat there again.”

Here’s a real life scenario (or, as the experts say, a “case study”).

There is a restaurant that last year I visited about once a month. Sadly, my only reason for going there was that I knew I wouldn’t have to wait for a table. The restaurant was struggling and in one year had gone through three ownership changes.

The third owner, John, owned it for three months, worked very hard, and has turned it into a successful restaurant. Now I have to wait for a table.

So what did he change? How did he turn it around?

First, look at what didn’t change:
• Location
• Parking
• Facility
• Food/menu

What did change:
• Service

Seeing the turn-around with my own eyes and after conducting a one-on-one interview with John, I’d like to share the three factors that turned this restaurant into a success story.

1. Built a culture of hospitality and service.
John is highly visible on the floor and has a great attitude. He smiles and says, “Hello,” to everyone who walks into the restaurant, creating wonderful hospitality. He works the floor touching tables and ensuring his guests are having a remarkable experience. He brings children small toys and treats and thanks his guests for their business when they leave.

The energy John brings to the floor spills over to the entire front-of-the-house team. He is leading by example and since service is so important to him, he wants his team to see that. Of course, this also gives him the ability to keep a close eye on the wait staff.

2. Expects a “service attitude” from his employees.
During the previous ownership change, the staff was kept intact. I always felt that was a bad move because some of them weren’t very service oriented. But when John took over he got rid of those who lacked the service attitude he demanded.

It’s always tough to let people go, but if a server isn’t meeting the service standards you desire, then get them out of there. A bad attitude or an indifference to service can poison other employees and cost you money in lost business.

3. Understands the value of training.
New hires don’t touch a customer until they participate in more than five hours of wait staff training. It doesn’t matter if they are new to the profession, or have 10 years of experience—there are no exceptions. The service standards for his restaurant are set during this training.

So there is my real-world proof of how service trumps food. If John focused on making the food better rather than concentrating on the service, do you think he would have had the same success? I’m no expert but...