Restaurant Management – Five Key Tips For Managing a Restaurant

It takes a special person to manage a restaurant and interact with restaurant customers and restaurant staff. Not everyone is cut out to be a restaurant manager.

Managers need to be on their feet for long periods of time-anywhere from 8 to 12 hours a day. Managers also need to be trained to be aware of labor and food costs, customer service and how to manage people. They need to be trained in every aspect of the restaurant business.

Five key aspects for every manager are:

1. Keeping an open mind

2. Being able to accept criticism

3. Retaining large amounts information

4. Having excellent customer service skills

5. Knowing how to understand both sides of the story

Sometimes it takes years to fully train someone in this business. There are two ways people usually become a manager, either earning a college degree or moving up in the ranks.

I have been in the restaurant business for over 25 years, and I have worked with both kinds of management. There are advantages and disadvantages to both paths. From either path, it’s important that you provide managers with training to understand their role in the restaurant.

Most managers straight out of college had very little hands-on training in a restaurant. Maybe they have some experience working in fast food, or as a cook or server in an independently owned restaurant or chain restaurant. Maybe they have no restaurant experience at all. The experience they have in life will be part of what they bring to the management role. A college graduate may have the head knowledge without a clear understanding of the restaurant industry. He or she may not realize the complexity of the job. Even with a degree, it’s important to train the new manager in your restaurant. Everyone will benefit from training.

People who have worked their way up through the ranks may have a greater understanding based on the path they took. However, the person will need some additional training to understand the manager’s role. It is not always easy for someone to move into management from other positions. Training is important for the person moving into manager’s role. That person will need to be prepared to look at the restaurant from a different perspective.

Some people think becoming a restaurant manager is easy, but it is not. Managers have a lot of responsibilities. Managers are exposed to stressful situations throughout the day, they must keep their composure and react to any situation in a calm manner. Every manager deals with situations differently.

It is like an automobile shifting its gears; before you shift into a certain decision you must think about the outcome. Think before you shift. Don’t automatically shift on impulse thoughts. In-fact, most managers make mistakes in their career. The key is to learn from those mistakes.

You will make new mistakes, although hopefully you will not make the same mistakes over and over.

I am going to give you some insight and tips on how to be the manager people will respect.

1. Be open-minded to change and embrace it. Changes happen every day, especially in the restaurant business. Procedures and policies are revamped constantly. As a manager, you must adjust to these changes. You may not like them or agree with these changes, but it is the manager’s responsibility to adhere to these changes and help implement them to the staff members. If you disagree with a change, don’t just go to complain and don’t complain to other staff members. Go to your supervisor with possible reasons and alternatives. Have the attitude that you want to follow their policy, but would like to suggest some reasons that this may not be the only path. Don’t say they are wrong, but say that you have other ideas on how to handle the situation. Open communication with your supervisor is vital to maintaining your credibility and upholding respect for your supervisor.

2. Managers must be able to take criticism from others. Taking criticism from others, simply means, that other employees may tell you that they do not agree with your decision on a certain topic. As a wise manager, you will use this towards your advantage and correct yourself. Listening to other people may offer other ways to get the same job done. Your way is not always the right way. Sometimes there is no “right way,” but just different options that may return better results.

3. Managers must be able to retain a large amount of information. Managers must have a thorough knowledge of all aspects of the restaurant. You must know the menu and restaurant style, and have knowledge of the operations of each area. You need to know how to cook, serve, greet, prep, and wash dishes, along with the manager’s responsibilities. This includes watching labor, knowing if there are too many people working or more people are needed. You need to be aware of food costs, realizing if food is being wasted or even stolen. You also need to know how to handle money and count cash. The toughest part is that you also need to be able to juggle all this knowledge every minute of the shift.

4. Managers need excellent customer service skills. Managers are constantly dealing with the public and staff members. The way you speak to people must be in a professional manner. Always think before you speak. Some people react to their first thought, but this may not always be the best way to handle the situation. If employees are not getting along, you will need to know how to help them work together, without a negative attitude. You also need to know how to handle difficult customers, as well as the pleasant customers. Knowing how to take a compliment is as important as knowing how to take a complaint in a positive professional manner.

5. There are always two sides to a story. This is especially true when staff members disagree. The manager needs to listen to both sides and see the perspective of each staff member. People often choose, or fall into a specific role at the restaurant because of their skills and abilities. Cooks may or may not have terrific people skills. Servers may or may not have any idea how to cook. Keep the personality of each staff member in mind as you approach them. A cook may be offended by a customer complaint about a dish that the cook feels proud of. The server may see the customer’s side. As a manager, you will have to deal with the customer’s complaint and see their side. You also have to know how to communicate the customer concerns to the cook without offending him or her. Think before you speak on both sides. You learn a lot more by listening and asking open-ended questions, not just yes or no questions. Don’t make assumptions that you know their answer before someone responds to your questions. Take the time to listen and fully understand.

Keep these five key aspects in mind if you are the manager or if you are the person who is hiring managers. All managers should keep an open mind, be able to handle criticism, retain large amounts of information, have excellent customer service skills and know how to understand both sides of the story. If every restaurant was managed by people who have those key aspects as part of their skill set and knowledge, then the issues would decrease, and profit would increase in those restaurants. Training your managers is one way to make that happen.

5 Tips On How To Choose Article Writing Services

With the advent of the Internet, content writing has become one of the most important tools for promoting your website. Writing articles about your products or services is one of the best ways to popularize your website. While you may write articles about your website, you may not find enough time to do everything yourself, especially when your website starts to get ranked in the search engines. In such a case it always good to find an article writing service that provides top quality content within your budget. Here are a few tips to help you find the right content writing service…

  1. You should look for established article writing services that have marked their presence on the World Wide Web. To do so, you must look for companies who have been in this industry for a long time – their services are backed up by years of experience.
  2. Take a look at their team of writers. Writers are the backbone of any article writing company. If the writers have great online presence and their samples match your criteria, you should choose that company. Sometimes when you visit a website, you may not be able to find their writers or their samples. This is not a good indication, as you don’t know what you will get.
  3. When ordering your articles, always look for that “Custom Order” link. It is not necessary to opt for their packages. Your requirements may be different from their ready-made packages and for that you should contact them by going to that link. Many things get clarified in this way and then you do get what you want.
  4. Take a look at their services carefully. Check that they are capable of providing what you want and that it matches your criteria. For example, you are looking for SEO article writing or creating eBooks, but your search takes you to a website that offers academic writing. In a case like this try searching for other keywords such as SEO writing, eBook writing, creative article writing etc. These searches will bring you your desired results.
  5. Last but not least, look for companies which have testimonials. Testimonials from clients are one way to gauge a company’s reputation on the market.

The main thing is that you will probably need lots of articles. Depending on the budget you have and the types of services offered by content writing services, you need to choose the most reliable and quality article writing service provider.

Adventure Trekking in Nepal – Thrills of Wondering in Himalayan Mountains

Nepal is a beautiful landlocked country in South Asia, between India and China. It is a vast outdoor adventure playground with some of the best trekking trails on the earth. It is home to eight out of the fourteen highest mountain peaks in the world including Mount Everest, the highest mountain peak in the world. Located in the great Himalayas, it offers amazing adventure tourism and outdoor activities to enjoy. It offers adventure activities like trekking, hiking, mountaineering, rock climbing, peak climbing, kayaking, white water rafting, mountain biking, paragliding, wildlife safari, etc. Apart from adventure tourism, Nepal also offers ample opportunities for cultural & heritage tourism. There are numerous cultural and heritage attractions in this country.

Among various adventure activities available, adventure trekking in Nepal is most popular. There some of the finest trekking & hiking trails in this country appealing attentions of trekkers and adventure enthusiasts from all over the world. In short, it is trekkers’ paradise. A well-organized trekking tour in this country provides tourists ample opportunities for mountain tourism and also provides opportunity to explore natural and cultural wealth of this country. On trekking tour in this country you will have a wonderful opportunity to enjoy stunning scenery, eye-catching landscapes, snowy mountain passes, spectacular glaciers, glorious mountain landscapes and remote hamlets & villages.

Nepal has numerous trekking trails. With some of the best trekking trails the country has been recognized as the most popular adventure trekking destination in the world. Everest region, Annapurna region and Langtang region are among some of popular trekking regions in Nepal. The Everest region is the most exciting and adventurous regions in Nepal where you will enjoy amazing trekking and hiking experience. Annapurna region is the most visited and explore region in Nepal. This region offers ample opportunities for adventure tourism and trekking and hiking tours. Langtang region is one another popular trekking region of this country. Trekking in this region is easily accessible from Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal.

Some of popular trekking trails and routes in Nepal include Everest Base Camp Trek, Annapurna Circuit Trek, Annapurna Sanctuary Trek, Ghorepani Trek, Jomsom – Muktinath Trek, Gokyo Trek, Arun Valley – Makalu Base Camp Trek, Dolpo Region Trek, Mustang Region Trek, Dhaulagiri Region Trek, etc. These popular treks attract trekkers from all over the world on exciting Nepal trekking tours.

Well, if you truly want to enjoy the excitement of adventure trekking Nepal would be the best destination for you. You shall never forget the charm of trekking in Annapurna, Everest and Langtang regions of Nepal.