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Quick Service Restaurant Doesn't Mean Hit It And Quit It

With anything I do, say or write, I am not looking for people to agree with me. If anything, I'm looking for people who challenge my ideas. It kicks me into a higher gear of thinking; ideas are born. I get excited that I got them thinking and I get more to write about. This article is born from that.

What's Wrong With "Can I Help You?"

When the hostess finally looked at us, she asked the worst question any service professional can ask. "Can I help you?” She followed it up with a raised eyebrow. My cynical side wanted to come out say, “Well, I don’t know, can you?”

I Am In The Miracle Business

I had no idea I would be in the restaurant business. After arriving in NYC with no contacts, only $40 to my name and absolutely no English skills, my first job in the restaurant business was as a bartender in one of Brooklyn’s busiest restaurants in 2002.

So, you want to open a restaurant?

Even with all the winning elements in place, 50% of restaurants go out of business within 3 years of their opening date. There are many opinions as to why this happens, hence the common “tough business, low margins, low profits” comments. The truth is, those restaurants don't make it because they lack HEART.

How Good Service Kills Your Restaurant

If you think service is why people return to your restaurant, It's a safe bet that you won't stay in business. "What?!” Let me help you out. You don't think people come to your restaurant thinking: I hope the staff is rude to me, my food tastes lousy, I wait for my drinks for an eternity, can't find my server when I need them, and hopefully they say "duces" on my way out, do you?

3 Ways To Keep Best People In Your Restaurant/Business

Ask any restaurant owner/manager what their biggest challenge is, I guarantee, hiring and keeping the best staff will make the top three on their list. Restaurants have high turnover, averaging over 66% annually, and with the payroll standard of 30-35% of total sales, let’s face it, there isn’t any room for hiring and training the ones that will bring your business down.

Is Your Restaurant Job “Real”?

I asked for my first gig way before I knew what the heck I was doing. I had done a half of a Bartending Course at Riddlers Lounge in The Bronx NY with an entire 15-minute internship under my belt. I got hired on the spot, but "easy" ended there.