How To Sell More Features

This works for me when I bring up any features we have.

After my initial greeting and then telling me how they are I then say something like this.

Now I know you just sat down and have not looked at the menu yet but I just wanted to let you know that right now we have our feature menu right here ( I open the menu to that page so they can see where it is located ) and mention that if you like ex. dungeness crab this is a great opportunity to treat yourself , pointing out a couple of entrees that are on the menu. Then I finish off by adding that this is the only time of year this is available and this feature menu is on for just a limited time only. In fact , I think there is only a couple of weeks left to go. So just wanted to let you know so you can have a look at the feature menu.

What I have done here is point out where it is in the menu , given them a couple of choices and given the sense of urgency that if they do not order it tonight they will miss out as it will soon be over.

If there is no menu insert and we have to mention the feature verbally I will say something like the chef has some tempura shrimp which is a feature we do not have that often and it is served with sweet and spicy chili sauce or whatever.......Then as well we also have the rack of caribou served with a lingonberry sauce which is only available during this time of the year ( Fall in this case ).

Here is my point when we mention the features no matter how many times they may appear as the feature you have to create a fear of loss with the guest so at least they will think about it harder. Then when you say it always let your voice trail off so it is a soft sell but just loud enough so they will hear you. Not everyone may order it but if you leave them with one liners like the following it may help you sell more and your chef will love you. Just change them up as you like.

1. In fact , I think there is only a week left.........or

2. In fact , I think this is the last night we will be featuring this entree...........or

3. In fact , quite a few people have commented on how delicious the feature menu is..........

The last one everyone likes to know what the reviews have been like by other people. No one wants to miss out on a good thing. You create the fear of loss.

4. In fact , a lot of people have been ordering the caribou tonight...........

Then after I slip one of these in I leave them taking the pressure off by adding , well anyway have a look ( if it is a menu insert ) or verbally I will say something like I just wanted to let you know. I will be back in a couple of minutes to take your order and walk away or take the drink order right there.

If you want to be friends with the chef sell the blazes out of those features.

On another note depending on how your selling ability is , I have noticed very few ever ask what the price is. It is all about we gotta order this now or we will miss out.

Sizing Up The Customer

I am reading this book called "Blink" and what it is about basically is how we within seconds make a decision about something. Then the more we think after that just confuses us until most of the time we realize our initial first impression was correct all along.

For example , at the end of a bartending course like tonight I give a 40 question multiple choice on things I have taught from drink recipes , bar set-up , bar brands , and a few other questions that pertain to the world of mixology. Everyone passes because it is a very easy exam because the real test is when you are making drinks in front of customers in a real life situation.

But what I did notice marking the exams is that the ones who finished first generally got the highest results. The ones who took the longest didn't get so great a score.

You see the questions were very easy and straightforward but if you thought about the answer too long then a whole bunch of other things would pop into your head about what else it could be other than the one correct answer that you thought of first.

Generally in life our first thoughts are always pretty close to correct most of the time. For those of us who are married we didn't have to think long and hard about whether our partner was the right one. We instinctively knew that. We felt the emotion. Same for our profession , I do not find doing anything else as easy as what I am doing now. It seems natural for me to do as I am sure what you do is natural for you. It doesn't mean we cannot do anything else but when we chose what we do for a living it was because we felt good about it. Right away we knew it was for us and we could do well in it. If we had to think about it for a while then maybe right now we would be doing something else.

But sometimes our first thoughts can steer us wrong especially when it comes to meeting a person or people for the very first time because of the programming our minds have been subjected to beforehand. For instance , if a customer walks in and is unshaven and wearing not the best clothes it is easy for myself to think that this customer will not be spending too much money or leaving me such a big tip.

On the other hand this person could leave the best tip of the night. So this is where as a waiter I have to throw my first impressions of anyone right out the window and serve everyone the same way. It would be the same as a car salesman avoiding someone walking into a showroom wearing jeans with holes in them. He would be making a judgement without information.

So as a waiter I try to treat everyone like a VIP , even the 5 year old who is having the kid's meal. It just makes it easier for me to serve. I may joke about a meagre tip sarcastically but who knows that person may not normally leave that much to begin with and I don't follow these people around as they go eating everywhere else to see if they tip differently in other places.

In concluding , I think decisions made in a blink of an eye are useful if you have the information before you and you have some idea of what you are facing. But the person who sits down for the first time in a restaurant , I do not know whether they will be a good or bad table. That is why I do not want to get in the habit of prejudging anyone on a first impression or I am doomed to be miserable and happy at twenty different points during an evening affecting my service overall. I have to be consistent to everyone and every situation in my mind.

If not , that would cheat all the guests of my best attention and myself of the best gratuity possible.

A Delicate Situation

So yesterday's post was what I do when I clear the table and there is still quite a bit of food left on a person's plate. You will have to check it out for that full story but last night's service brought on a variation of the quality check the waiter always does once the guests start devouring their meal.

I get this deuce right off the bat and the guy upon greeting the table looking like he is having a bad day. Not that he was rude or anything but he just seemed pretty quiet and a smile was hard to show on his face. She orders the steak and crab and he gets the steak and lobster. She wants her steak done medium rare and his medium well.

The meal comes out and I go over shortly after once they have taken a bite or two and ask if everything is meeting their expectations. She looks up and says it's great but I don't get any response from the guy. He doesn't even look up at me so I ask him if everything is good and he replies with just an ok.

I answer back with an " only ok" and then he shows me the steak and it is well done and not medium well so at this point I want to take it back and get him a new one but he says no it is fine and he will eat it. After a tussle back and forth , with me wanting to take the plate away and him saying it is fine and that he will enjoy it I leave the plate with him to continue eating.

Now I know he is forcefully eating a steak he really doesn't like and my inability to yank the plate away to get him another failed miserably. Listen I did try but I am not going to get into a scrap with someone who will eat what is in front of him anyway.

But you know at the end of the meal , the it's okay during the quality check will soon be a complaint at the end of the meal and I didn't want to take that chance. You never know and the guy did not come in the most jovial mood judging by the lukewarm reception I got when saying hello.

So I get the supervisor and explain what happened and ask him if he will go over just to talk to him. As it turned out he continued eating the steak and the supervisor bought the drinks for the table.

I do not even think the supervisor even had to buy the drinks they were having at the table but the fact is rather than let it go and not get the supervisor to go over to the table would have been a big mistake. He might not have even complained after but he would not have been happy either.

Upon paying he thanked me and I felt the situation was resolved and he got the attention he deserved for eating a steak that was too overcooked for his liking. Sometimes a customer can be too nice and eat something they do not really like. What will happen afterwards we have to watch out for. The complaint or never coming back. Either one is usually the result.

What Do You Do When There Is Food Left On The Plate?

A fellow waiter last night brought up something that I thought would make for an interesting post and which your thoughts on what you would do in this situation would be fun to hear back on.

You see the previous night he had a few cook ups on a couple of steaks at his table but it was how they came about that was different. When the food was delivered and after a few bites he went over to do a table check and everyone at the table mentioned that the meal was delightful. Throughout the meal he passed by the table several times and each time noticed that everyone seemed to be enjoying their meal.

Then when it came time to clear the plates he noticed some bits of meat still left on the plate. Then he made the comment , "was everything alright?" Then they started to complain about the meat had some grizzle , not cooked enough bla bla bla. So now they are complaining after the meal is over but while they were eating everything was fine. A dessert was bought for them and then they complained that the cost of a dessert did not do enough to soothe their feelings toward the meal. In other words a bigger discount than that of a dessert should have been offered.

When I heard this I offered that I never , once I have done the table check and everything is fine , ever ask them again how everything is or was upon clearing. Unless they are unhappy at the time of table check do I ever take the plate back to the kitchen to get it fixed up.

The reason I choose not to is because if you ask them a second time then they think that maybe you might be covering up something or in the case above they will find something to complain about and expect something free afterwards.

When I do the one table check I make sure of two things. One , they have tasted enough to make a decision on whether they are satisfied. In other words let them eat a bit and do not table check too early. Second is I make sure I always make eye contact with the guest when asking if everything is to their satisfaction. That is everyone at the table of course. This ensures everyone has heard me.

When I clear and there is still food on the plate I will never ask something that could produce a negative. I assume , because they told me it was fine , that it was.

Now when someone does mention something negative about the meal I will actually respond with , " oh geez you should have told me when I asked you if everything was to your satisfaction and I would have got it fixed , now I feel bad you didn't tell me." "If you don't tell me how would I know." Then I clear the plates and forget about it. Their fault , I am sorry. If I do not tablecheck then it is mine. But I always do.

I do two things though when there is food left on the plate and that is ask if they want to take the rest home with them or just pat my stomach , smile , and say wow are you full?

Always clear the plates on a positive note and of course if their plates are empty I say wow did you enjoy that or what? I think we should send the dishwasher home early tonight or something stupid to illicit a laugh.

Any thoughts from the industry professionals out there or suggestions? I am sure this has happened to all of us at one point.