There is a common rule about restaurants: Most struggle to survive beyond the first five years especially if they haven’t designed a clear business plan. This implies that your restaurant should naturally come with a concept of its own – something that your customers can identify with, so keep it consistent –, sufficient funding, the appropriate location – easy to reach for busy diners –, the right equipment – which you can rent until you can buy–, and qualified staff to handle your customers. As simple as it sounds, most restaurants that fail were missing at least one of these elements. But if you reverse the problem, and think about your customers, there are further factors that can turn your startup restaurant into a booming success. What do diners love in a restaurant, besides from the quality of the food?
#1. Clear labels
For a start, people love a restaurant that provides clear and understandable labels about what is what. While this means that your menu needs to be clear and understandable, the policy of clear labeling has to be applied to the entire restaurant. For instance, you need to look for a team uniform in the front house, preferably from a professional supplier such as www.chefworks.com, so that your guests can easily identify the staff. Additionally, customers don’t like asking where the toilets are, so make sure that you are using clear and visible signs to help them find the way.
#2. Menu Friendly For All Diets
Most eaters would need specific dietary requirements. Some are vegetarian, or even vegan, others struggle with food intolerance or food allergies. Naturally, your menu should indicate whether dishes contain ingredients that may not be suitable for people suffering from allergies, such as peanuts, dairy, eggs, soy, and shellfish for example. But you also need to provide alternatives so that most guests can find a dish to order. This means that there should be a free-from dish, as well as at least a vegan dish too. Guests are more likely to come back to restaurants that offer them a choice of food that matches their needs.
#3. Well-Designed Layout
More and more restaurant customers struggle with a poorly designed layout. The most common complaint relates to the size of the table as mentioned by the www.washingtonpost.com. When two guests order standard dishes from your menu but can’t get the plates, glasses, and cutlery to fit on the table, then it is time to consider upgrading your sitting area. Additionally, while it may be tempting to pack the room full of tables, remember that guests do enjoy a little privacy. Nobody likes to sit elbow to elbow with the next table. Finally, avoid letting tables in the draft, this is the best way to receive a terrible review.
#4. Quality Of Your Service
There is a big dilemma about what matters more: The quality of service or the quality of the food. In truth, both do. Diners often order with a mind full of expectations, so it is essential that the food you serve meets their standards. Otherwise, they will not come back. Additionally, if the guests receive a poor service – which could be as benign as struggling to get the attention of the waiter on a busy night –, you can expect that they will be looking at ways to vent about it. In short, a poor service means a poor review and a personal attack against the reputation of your restaurant.
