October 2010 Blog Posts (78)

Halloween is soooo Cool

What I mean is that it seems to have become a pretty cool holiday over the last several years. More and more invitations to small dinner parties, pumpkin carving get-together's, orange lights hanging from where Christmas lights will be in just a few weeks, restaurants opting to decorate, even fine dining restaurant operators are getting into the Spirit!

Brit at Houston's, Irvine. I…

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Added by Michael L. Atkinson on October 29, 2010 at 5:30pm — No Comments

How is your restaurant getting in the Halloween spirit?

Yesterday, a few of us from FohBoh ventured down to Orange County to visit one of our clients. For lunch we went to Houston's, located in Irvine, CA. Upon entry we we're greeted enthusiastically by Britt, one of their bartenders. "Hi there! Did you guys check out my pumpkin yet??" He explained to us that their staff was each given a pumpkin to carve and then guests would vote on which they liked best.

I must say this guy had serious pumpkin carving skills. He made his…

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Added by Emerald Reilly on October 29, 2010 at 2:18pm — 1 Comment

Non-Operator Quarter Three Chain Restaurant Earnings: The Highs and Lows

We’ve had a clump of chain restaurant earnings in September and October, and a few interesting observations seem apparent from our hours of listening:

Restaurant Spending Outpacing the Polls:the dramatic all sub-sector and cross-regional sales and traffic…

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Added by John A. Gordon on October 29, 2010 at 9:04am — No Comments

DM

I am a believer. I have always believed in the fact that people really feel good when they no something nice for other people...guess what in my restaurants...you get paid, appreciated and acknowledge for being nice to people....God love ya...I think you can be a dreamer and still have them come true...we can get the best out of people in or out of our industry...you give me the mom who has managed a family...the chld of a family of 7...or the person who just wants a chance...I will give you… Continue

Added by deb grant on October 29, 2010 at 9:00am — No Comments

Rounding it Up

Two of my passions in life are the industry in which I work and giving back to my community. I'm even more excited when I get to combine the two. Throughout my years at FohBoh I have had some tremendous opportunities to work with some amazing organizations that raise money and give back to their communities and to those less fortunate. The restaurant industry has a unique opportunity to accelerate this effort in a good economy or a bad because lets face it, we all dine…

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Added by Sarah on October 28, 2010 at 6:00pm — 5 Comments

Non-Operator Thoughts Before the Restaurant Finance Conference ... and a Question

As I mentioned in a prior column, the annual Restaurant Finance and Development Conference is coming soon -- November 8-10, in Las Vegas. In case there’s not a link to it visible somewhere on your Fohboh screen, here’s where you can find out more about it (…

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Added by Rod Guinn on October 28, 2010 at 3:30am — 1 Comment

Non-Operator Can We Teach Employees How To Provide Extraordinary Customer Service?

My answer is a resounding YES! During my years in business I have heard varying opinions on this topic. Many believe that people either have it or they don’t. Some actually believe it’s genetic. Does it help if you were raised in an environment where service was important? You bet it does. Is a “glass half full attitude” helpful in the process?…

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Added by Bill Campion on October 27, 2010 at 7:56pm — 8 Comments

Non-Operator Will Your Restaurant Innovate In 2011???

First off, what is an innovation? According to the Wikipedia, Innovation is a change in the thought process for doing something, or the useful application of new inventions or discoveries. It may refer to an incremental emergent or radical and revolutionary changes in thinking, products, processes, or organizations. And that's just the question: are you going to be radical next… Continue

Added by Walker Thompson on October 27, 2010 at 10:19am — No Comments

Top 7 Reasons to Consider a Mobile Website

1. Follow the Stats

Mobile phones are ubiquitous. 5 billion of the world's 6.7 billion people are mobile users. A record 77 million smartphones… Continue

Added by Matthew G on October 27, 2010 at 8:00am — 1 Comment

Operator Customer Service So Good It Was Scary!

“Wonder Woman!”

“I thought you said a Tinker Bell fairy?”

“No. Wonder Woman!”

“Ok, you have 4 parties to go to.… Continue

Added by Ty Sullivan on October 26, 2010 at 8:30pm — 4 Comments

Non-Operator Are all the links in the value chain pulling their weight?

As a supplier and distributor I find it frustrating to be working diligently with my clients to help them build a solid marketing platform so they can drive sales. If they sell more food then I move more boxes right? Well recently I have been thinking "maybe I should just skip the marketing training and go straight to the consumer?". This way I can drive demand from the real source.

I find many restaurateurs are just too busy working in their businesses trying to…

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Added by Joel Lazeski on October 26, 2010 at 3:25pm — No Comments

Non-Operator Want to be a FohBohist?

FohBohist…

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Added by FohBoh on October 25, 2010 at 2:25pm — No Comments

Can You Roll Your Own Groupon-type Deal?

Groupon has been wildly successful selling deeply discounted coupons to

deal-hungry consumers, but for most restaurants it is a terrible deal.

For the privilege of selling half price meals, sites like Groupon take

50% of your revenue while degrading the…

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Added by Seth Gardenswartz on October 25, 2010 at 9:47am — No Comments

Non-Operator Is Customer Service Gone?

I went to a fast food chain for dinner with my six year old son this evening, and for legality purposes, the name of the restaurant will be withheld. My son found a table in the dining room next to the TV- unfortunately it was playing some eerie TV show about haunted houses, and because I did not want my son to be exposed to that type of…

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Added by Peter J Malinis on October 23, 2010 at 11:19pm — 1 Comment

November 2010 Alabama ServSafe Food & Alcohol Training Classes presented by HRBAudit

ServSafe®…

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Added by Chef Brad Peters on October 23, 2010 at 9:00am — No Comments

When am I going to meet your friends?

So you just started dating someone new. How long until you introduce them to your friends or your family. Do you do it right away or do you wait just because you are not sure? It could be a number of scenarios, you love your friends and family but you are not sure about how they will be received. Or you are not sure whether your new date would be welcome into the inner circle. A referral program is similar to dating someone new. We all know that a solid referral program pays in both…

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Added by Michael Minichello on October 22, 2010 at 9:49am — No Comments

Rappin Waitress

I am auditioning for America's Got Talent in Chicago,November 6.

My act is the "Rappin Waitress". I write all my restaurant-related rap songs.

My audition tape is at www.youtube.com/sybilpresley

Please help me to go Viral by sharing this with all your internet friends.

I am a waitress comedienne who raps. I have been a waitress for over 40 years.

America's Got Talent is a fun way to draw attention to my Be Kind To Food… Continue

Added by Sybil Presley on October 22, 2010 at 6:22am — No Comments

Non-Operator Calorie Check: Pre-Dinner Freebies

We all know that guests love the pre-meal bread basket or chips and salsa, but today's guest post from FoodCALC's Dining by Numbers Blog, (previously the Dining Detective) gives us a little insight as to how many extra calories those freebies may be adding to our meals.…

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Added by Alyson Mar, RD on October 21, 2010 at 8:07am — No Comments

Non-Operator 10 Amazing Bar Interior Designs

Bar Interior Designs make or break a bar. Long before you have had a chance to order a drink, a first impression has been formed. The artists, architects and designers that have created the amazing designs below have not only created evocative, memorable and visually inspiring decors, they have set the tone and subtly constructed the flow and layout in ways that promote atmosphere and most importantly: help increase sales. Get some inspiration for your… Continue

Added by Barry Chandler on October 21, 2010 at 4:30am — No Comments

Operator Job Hunt 3.0

So here it was; 500 resumes reviewed, 147 panel interviews - down to 17 viable candidates, now just four left. The Company decided that the best way to determine who would fill the

position was to have a 'Top Chef' style cook off, oh my.…

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Added by Adam M Lamb on October 17, 2010 at 10:35am — No Comments