My chef and I have a theory. Keep in mind I wouldn't be posting this if it hadn't proven itself time and time again in the state that we live in. When you see a restaurant add pizza (especially pizza delivery) and ice cream to their menu, beware they will fold in 6 months. Yes, there are restaurants that do specifically sell pizza and have right from the beginning, the same goes for ice cream. However, if it's a fine dining restaurant that has added both in the same week along with a wooden ice cream cone outside, that is not a good sign.
This looks like they are trying to make money, and fast! How can a failing restaurant try to increase revenue without putting a very loud (we're desparate) ice cream sign outside their swanky establishment? I think this is where the think outside of the box mentality comes into play. If there are certain items on your menu that sell well, then offer them for purchase in heat up at home pans. I've seen a few sandwich shops do this and they do it well. Chances are if you're failing at that point, then you have staff standing around who can definitely be making these items. Compile these (dinner at home) meals on a sort of take out menu that is given to a customer at the end of their meal with their change. Yes servers out there... don't ask if they want change, JUST DO IT!!! A customer will be much more flattered if you don't bat an eye and just give people their change. Let them figure out the tip, they are the customer after all.
You say, but them I'm scaring people away from coming back. Well look buddy... at this point they're not enough people are coming in anyway. If they have the option of taking their favorites home to heat up on a busy night, good for you and for them. In a tourism focused state, what a great idea for people to order these meals from your restaurant, take them home and heat them up for their condo of 12 friends that they have come to ski with.
This outside of the box mentality will truly help you and prevent you from the screaming ice cream sign (We're desparate!!).
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Thursday, July 3, 2014
So You Want to Sell Your What?!
Chef has been baking biscotti since December. I call him the non-baker baker. Through trial and error he has taught himself how to bake. Using a family recipe, he has perfected a very forgiving recipe. Flavor experiments have come home some, maple walnut have been a huge hit. However other flavors, like watermelon weren't so good.
Our boys who are now 4 and 7 love when daddy bakes biscotti at work because it means they get the "butts" of the biscotti loaves. My husband has decided that he wants to start selling his biscotti as a means to save money for a deposit for his first restaurant. Pretty ingenious I think. Being a librarian I tend to help with the research part of it. Librarian's are resourceful with research, borderline OCD/stalkers. If we can't find what we needs we think of a millions ways around it to get our answer.
Last night was the initial "Oh Boy, this is really going to become a reality." My thought was "You'd better find a way to sell the butts or I am going to gain a lot of unwanted weight!!!" It's carb heaven or hell whichever way you choose to look at it. The problem is his biscotti is damn good!!! I favor the dunk it in your coffee and eat it approach.
What is in a name? Unfortunately, chef wanted to involved the children's names. OK well that gives us Sebriel, Gebastian. Let's try intials well it'll either be SCS (sucks) or GSS (gas). Let's think of nicknames we use, Little E, E, Chef, Narcisus, Ego.... maybe not. In the end we did actually come up with a name based on another one of my husband's nicknames and a way to involve the kids in designing a logo. Hopefully the logo will be more appropriate than the picture that was sent home from school with a lady (anatomically correct) with a baby at her feet. Keep in mind we have two women in our family who are pregnant and I had just come home from a baby shower. (Try explaining that to a teacher!)
Next premises okay well we're mulling that one over and looking at our options. Not too thrilled about chef's suggestion that our kitchen needs to be cleaner if that's the direction we go in. Cleaner?! Maybe if he stopped collecting kitchen parephenalia I'd be able to put it all away! I did glance nearby to see how nearby the cast iron pan was to my hand.
Here's to entering unchartered water!!
Our boys who are now 4 and 7 love when daddy bakes biscotti at work because it means they get the "butts" of the biscotti loaves. My husband has decided that he wants to start selling his biscotti as a means to save money for a deposit for his first restaurant. Pretty ingenious I think. Being a librarian I tend to help with the research part of it. Librarian's are resourceful with research, borderline OCD/stalkers. If we can't find what we needs we think of a millions ways around it to get our answer.
Last night was the initial "Oh Boy, this is really going to become a reality." My thought was "You'd better find a way to sell the butts or I am going to gain a lot of unwanted weight!!!" It's carb heaven or hell whichever way you choose to look at it. The problem is his biscotti is damn good!!! I favor the dunk it in your coffee and eat it approach.
What is in a name? Unfortunately, chef wanted to involved the children's names. OK well that gives us Sebriel, Gebastian. Let's try intials well it'll either be SCS (sucks) or GSS (gas). Let's think of nicknames we use, Little E, E, Chef, Narcisus, Ego.... maybe not. In the end we did actually come up with a name based on another one of my husband's nicknames and a way to involve the kids in designing a logo. Hopefully the logo will be more appropriate than the picture that was sent home from school with a lady (anatomically correct) with a baby at her feet. Keep in mind we have two women in our family who are pregnant and I had just come home from a baby shower. (Try explaining that to a teacher!)
Next premises okay well we're mulling that one over and looking at our options. Not too thrilled about chef's suggestion that our kitchen needs to be cleaner if that's the direction we go in. Cleaner?! Maybe if he stopped collecting kitchen parephenalia I'd be able to put it all away! I did glance nearby to see how nearby the cast iron pan was to my hand.
Here's to entering unchartered water!!
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