letstalkfood:

So I was sitting here this morning, an hour earlier than I wanted to(damn daylight savings) drinking my iced coffee and a thought came to mind. What does it take for a restaurant to become a “repeat performer”? I thought about it for like 30min and I have compiled a short list of things that are a MUST in order for me to ever think about going back to an establishment.

1. A friendly Host/Hostess - Was I greeted in a warm and pleasant manner? Chances are that if the Host/Hostess is rude, I won’t even make it to the table. The front of house is supposed to set the mood for any experience. They are the first person you come in contact with, therefor they set the first impression.

2. A friendly and knowledgeable Waiter/Waitress - Did the Waiter/Waitress make you feel welcome to the restaurant? After the Host/Hostess the Waiter/Waitress must continue the customer service. Are they on point with questions about Menu items or other general knowledge questions about the restaurant? If they don’t know what they are selling, how can they feel good about selling it to you?

3. Speed of Service - The wait staff usually has no control over the kitchen staff so they have no control over this. Remember this fact because a lot of the time we tend to take out our long wait frustrations on the wait staff. If I do not receive my meal in a timely manner then I usually ask to speak to a manager. Most of the time they are very accommodating and you will usually get part of your meal free. If the speed of service is lousy, I will not return!

4. Last, but certainly not least is cleanliness. This really is number one in my book, but a lot of times restaurants keep the front of the house immaculate, keeping you from seeing what the real deal is until you get further into the depths of their establishment. Most of the time it is too late by that point. If I go into the restroom and it is not sparkling, I will usually get my family together and get the hell out of there. If they can’t do something as simple as keeping the bathrooms clean, then what are their standards when it comes to the areas that no customer really sees? I don’t myself the chance to think about that.

All of these things MUST be spot on for me to ever go back to a restaurant. If they are even lacking in one of these areas I will not step foot back into that establishment. Restaurant chains do get the benefit of the doubt, just because one particular branch may have shitty management, doesn’t mean they all do.

I am interested to hear what some of other people’s standards are when it comes to making an establishment a “Repeat Performer”, so please feel free to drop a line and let me know.