BES Xtras Plus

Courtesy of Marty Gouveia, QubicaAMF Max Training Specialist

Click on the arrow below to have a listen as Marty shares his expertise and insight.

Hello, my name is Marty Gouveia, MAX Training Specialist with QubicaAMF. Today, we are going to discuss how each employee, having complete knowledge of the menu, can make a huge impact in your business in many respects.

I know in my travels, I’ve seen many bowling centers, large and small, and also visited many restaurants. One of the most important questions I ask is “What would you recommend?”, or “What exactly comes on a particular menu item”, to provoke a response from my server. Those two questions alone can tell you A LOT about an establishment, and how they value their food and beverage business.

In the passage of time, menu changes become necessary.  Bowling and food packages are on the rise for greater perceived value, as well as what could be the next new hit as far as trending appetizers, or new signature drinks. Here are a few easy steps in order to make a huge impact on your business hopefully going forward.

1.)     Hold monthly staff meetings with printed material explaining your menus. Make sure you describe in detail the ingredients used to prepare the menu item and how it is prepared involved so that your staff can explain it to your guests. Make the printed material matter available to take home, so that they can also study the material. Most importantly, quiz them regularly to validate their knowledge of the product. Now you notice, I did not single out a particular job description such as a waitress or cook. It is important that ALL of the staff is knowledgeable, because even though “I don’t know” seems innocent enough, it can be viewed as bad guest service to not be able to answer a guest’s question. This goes the same for new bowling packages, knowing each of the components (ingredients), is paramount for all staff.

2.)    LET THEM TASTE THE FOOD!!!  During these monthly meetings, taste is also an important element for employees in terms of memory of ingredients. It is also a huge factor in relating taste to a guest in terms of spiciness of dishes, answering possible allergy questions, etc.  You might want to add that many times your foodservice provider will sample you out items you want to showcase in your meetings which make it great because there are no out of pocket expenses.

3.)    LET THEM MAKE THE FOOD!!  Another great idea, is to have the hourly associates, shift supervisors, etc. MAKE THE FOOD, with the supervision of the cooking staff, so that the employee can first hand see how the food is prepared. This will also reinforce guest talking points in describing how the food is prepared, to hopefully entice your guests into making that food purchase.

4.)    LET THEM BOWL THE NEW PROGRAM!!  From start to finish, it is never a bad idea to role play new programs to see how they are going to work in a live setting. Whether it is a new birthday party model, hourly fun package, have the entire staff during a meeting role play the entire process, from bowling, food and beverage consumption, to ring up. The additional practice will certainly be beneficial.

5.)    EXPLAIN TO THEM WHAT POSSIBLITIES TO LOOK FOR. Will this be an on lane ordering item? Will there be new modifiers on the POS system? What category will these new items be placed in? Always discuss the logistics from conqueror’s perspective on how the sales are properly rung in, added to reservations, etc. As a manager, operator, always use the POS layout feature as well to create a level in consistency in button placement if possible, to make ringing the sales that much more efficient.

6.)    UTILIZE THE WHAT’S HOT/WHAT’S NOT STATISTICAL REPORT – This report will hands down over a period that you designate, count or amount, or by specific department, tell you what is your fastest to slowest movers. This is invaluable information to make product changes when needed, and to avoid having products sit on your shelves to collect dust, or to avoid spoilage.

With that said, we are going to wrap up.

In closing, this is just one of many ways QubicaAMF, Virtual Marketing Manager, and Conqueror can be used to set you up for success, maximize guest experience, and have guests rave, and come back again to your establishment for future fun. Until next time, this is Marty Gouveia, MAX Training Specialist with QubicaAMF, saying best of luck, and see you next time.