Right about now, most business owners are reviewing their financials for 2014 and taking stock of success for last year and opportunities for 2015. But assumptions about what happened last year may be flat out wrong. What really happened? What are the facts behind the numbers that will dictate management activity to truly increase results and the … Continued
April 11, 2014 Matthew Mabel Every day, restaurants have so much competition—from other restaurants, food trucks and even prepared food departments at grocery stores. To stand out in this competition, owners and managers must sure every guest has a positive experience, every day, on every shift. By consistently achieving high standards, a restaurant will be … Continued
Rockwall High School won this year’s Texas ProStart Restaurant Management competition. Here are five reasons why: They used humor and enthusiasm to portray their ideas. They were through, detailed, committed, thoughtful and comprehensive. They solved all aspects of a problem, not just one part. They established a clear protocol for problem solving. They were creative, … Continued
Our server forgot to fire our third course. Which would normally lead to eye rolling, dissatisfaction, exasperation or worse. But the first two courses had been so . . . good, each plate so so well-conceived and unique to Dallas, and we had ordered so much food that we were satiated and almost grateful, ready to … Continued
It is human nature to want to influence government in whatever direction you think would be best for you and the people you care about. What I have noticed is that whatever the government throws at business, sometimes beneficial, sometimes not, companies react and respond with intelligence and creativity to make the best of it. … Continued
The most important position in any restaurant company is the General Manager. Properly educated and deployed, the GM can become a point of strength that allows restaurant companies to reduce the corporate overhead historically associated with supervising GMs — as well as improve results. How? When GMs are educated on developing systems, processes, and procedures, … Continued
Fundamentals may look like the boring stuff of business, but in fact they are the foundation for unique and special concepts that capture imaginations of diners and build wealth for their owners. Some companies do well because they are great at the fundamentals of business. Others prosper through the magic of branding and concepts, or … Continued
Recently I discovered a number of entrepreneurs and business owners who hired managers and threw then into the deep end of their pool. When they started to drown . . . they fired them. That’s a poor strategy for a swimming teacher or a cruise ship line, and it’s not a very good one for … Continued
Nation’s Restaurant News recently published a special report, 2020 Vision, The Future of Foodservice, looking at what restaurant menus, design, consumers, and technology will look like when the next decade begins. NRN Senior Food Editor Bret Thorn asked me and three other industry experts to speculate on The Future of Menus, what restaurant menus will look like … Continued
Businesses start because they’re good at something. The best businesses grow and prosper because they become good at everything. Most business people know where their weak spots are. The best business people do something about them. I’m reflecting on two of the restaurants I visited in Dallas on a recent weekend. One of them is … Continued