Whether you’re a chef or a passionate foodie who owns or manages a restaurant, you’re driven by one thing and one thing only – giving your patrons the best possible experience.
Turning your restaurant into a fine dining experience may sound like a pipe dream, but hear us out. Regardless of whether you own a tapas bar, steak house or family pizzeria, your aim is to wow your patrons with not just your food, but the entire experience. While we’re not saying that an Eat Out award is what you should be judging your success by, we are saying that there’s always room for improvement.
Taking your restaurant from good to great can be as simple as following the following steps:
1. Sieve out the menu items that might be hard to swallow
Most restaurants have items on their menu that very rarely – if ever – get ordered. If you want to up the ante and elevate your menu into the poster boy for fine dining, simplify your offerings. After honing your menu down into the dishes that continuously work, spend time perfecting them.
2. Identify the one thing about your restaurant that whets your patrons’ appetites
Is it the cosy atmosphere that keeps them coming back? Your more-ish freshly-baked ciabbatas? Artisan coffee? An exotic range of hard-to-find tequila? By pin-pointing your restaurant’s unique selling point, you’ll be able to adjust your apron strings and shift your goals in line with what you do best.
3. Go back to the cutting board
All restaurants have their shortcomings. If, for example, yo u know that your head waitron is great at making your customers feel welcome but tends to spend more time chatting than serving customers, you might want to make him the host. Or, if your décor is looking dated, invest in a fresh coat of paint.
After identifying the areas that could be improved, draw up a detailed plan (with due dates) that will ensure your restaurant is continuously bettering itself, instead of coasting along on the things that are working.
4. Don’t ignore the other four senses
Your menu plays only a small part in forming a fine dining environment. One aspect that many restaurateurs miss is – scarily enough – health and safety. If you have any visible preparation areas, these need to be kept spotless at all times - including an area often overlooked - dirty ceilings above food preparation areas.What’s more, kitchen staff need to be regularly schooled on best practice when it comes to prepping food in front of patrons.
Besides ensuring that your kitchen (visible or not) is spotless, make sure that your fire exits aren’t blocked, that your kitchen canopies have been cleaned (the leading cause of fires in restaurants), and that you’re not unwittingly housing any pests like flies or cockroaches.
It’s useless pouring your time and energy into perfecting your signature dish, only to have patrons complain after a run in with a roach.
Make sure you’re using a professional pest control company to service your entire facility regularly. To find out more about how The Specialists can assist you with your establishment’s health and safety practices, professional ceiling cleaning and canopy cleaning services,
please contact us directly.
Image Credit:
Casavini Restorante 
