Have you also complained about low margins, cooks quitting at short notice and large parties wanting to pay individually? We know what you mean! Here’s a list of 5 things that can go wrong in a restaurant. Do you recognize yourself?
1. Staff taking sick leave at the last minute
Is there anything worse than gathering the staff for a session and being told that Kalle has just taken sick leave? Almost not. Add to that the fact that the extra staff doesn’t answer when you call (this time either) and that the restaurant is slowly but surely filling up with football fans going to see Sweden play in the World Cup qualifiers. You can’t afford to be one man short! It doesn’t get any better when Sweden makes it 1-0 in the first half and celebrates with extra rounds. Maybe you’ll even end up getting into the bar yourself and fiddling with the till? Tough night anyway! And Kalle (who was really just at home with a hangover) is met with sour looks the next day.
2. Large groups who don’t pre-book – and hassle with the order!
Have you also felt the panic when the restaurant is stormed by an unexpectedly large group of guests? Maybe it’s a hungry team of kids, a company out for a spontaneous lunch or a birthday celebration that failed to pre-book. Isn’t it also typical how this type of company likes to complicate the order a little extra? By throwing in a vegetarian dish that is not on the menu, ask for the mashed potatoes to be lactose-free or the salad without croutons. But you know what they say – guests first!
3. A party of 20 where everyone wants to pay separately
This thing about large groups insisting on paying individually. Even though we know they have Swish and the difference is no more than 10 SEK. What do you do when you have accidentally entered two beers too few and you can’t change the part-paid bill? Or when guests forget who drank what and how much? In some cases, it would be so much easier if everyone just split straight away – or swish.
What do you do if the cash register crashes and you can’t get paid at all? Our top tips can be found here!
4. The chef (who took so long to find) resigns
You searched long and hard for that chef, who arrives on time, is cool and cooks damn good food. We know that getting good staff – and keeping them – can be a burden. Especially if you have several restaurants to staff. Imagine yourself starting a new place, standing there ready to open and not being able to find someone to cook. There’s a reason they call staff the greatest asset of the business. This is especially true in our industry – for what is a restaurant without its chef?
5. Margins are too small to make a profit
Guests want to “have it all”. They want good food made from good ingredients, at a cheap price. A price that is rarely enough for you to both meet their needs and make a profit. Too low margins are a constant scourge and making the best of what you have is not always easy. A compromise is needed – and it’s either the food or your business that takes the brunt of it. How can you make that choice anyway?
Here we reveal all about how to create better profitability in your restaurant!