The Importance of First Approach - RESTAURANT STRATEGY

Summary5 min read

Podcast Summary: Restaurant Strategy – "The Importance of First Approach"

Episode Details:

Title: The Importance of First Approach
Host: Chip Klose
Release Date: November 25, 2024

Introduction

In the episode titled "The Importance of First Approach," Chip Klose delves into the critical role that the initial interaction between restaurant staff and guests plays in shaping the dining experience and, ultimately, the restaurant's profitability. Drawing from his vast 25-year experience in the industry, Chip offers actionable strategies to refine the first approach, ensuring it sets a positive tone for the entire meal.

Defining First Approach

First approach refers to the moment a server or bartender engages with new guests—whether approaching a table or welcoming patrons at the bar. This initial interaction is pivotal in making a lasting first impression, which can influence guest satisfaction and return rates.

Chip emphasizes, “[First approach] really is first approach. It's the moment when a server approaches a new table or bartender welcomes a new guest to the restaurant” (00:00).

The Four Keys to a Great First Approach

Chip outlines four essential components that constitute an effective first approach:

Greeting with Confidence and Authority

Establishing authority from the outset ensures guests feel attended to and reassured. Chip shares a script example:

“Hi, welcome to Restaurant xyz. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you tonight... I have to be able to step over and say, hi, welcome everyone. My name is Chip and I'll be taking care of you tonight.” (00:00)

He underscores the importance of servers projecting confidence, stating:

“Confidence goes a long way because you're basically saying, no, no, no, I'm in charge here.” (12:30)
Getting a Drink Order

Securing drink orders early engages guests and begins building rapport. Chip advises servers to:

“I'll be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to start you off with something from the bar.” (15:45)

He introduces the concept of identifying the "thirstiest person" at the table to streamline the drink ordering process:

“There is always somebody at the table who is itching for a drink... ask them first.” (22:10)
Not Worrying About Water Right Away

Instead of immediately offering water, Chip recommends delaying this to create opportunities for upselling bottled water:

“Tell them, did you prefer bottled water or tap water for the table? Right. It's the last thing you do before you leave.” (30:55)

By positioning the water order last, servers can potentially increase revenue through sales of bottled water, which Chip illustrates with a compelling financial example:

“If you wait on four tables... that's 60 bucks over the course of the week.” (33:20)
Telling Guests What Happens Next

Clear communication about the dining process sets expectations and reduces potential confusion. Chip provides a continuation of his initial script:

“I'll be right back with some menus for you... I'm telling them this is going to happen next.” (40:15)

This approach helps in pacing the meal effectively, contributing to better table turn times and higher overall satisfaction.

Practical Examples and Scripts

Chip offers detailed scripts to illustrate the application of these keys in real-life scenarios:

Initial Greeting:

“Hi, welcome everyone. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you tonight. I'll be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to start you off with something from the bar.” (10:05)
Identifying Thirsty Guests:

“Ma'am, it looks like you know what you want. What can I get for you from the bar?” (22:50)
Handling Water Orders:

“Tell me, did you prefer bottled water or tap water for the table?” (35:10)

These scripts are designed to be concise, clear, and authoritative, ensuring that guests feel welcomed and attended to without feeling overwhelmed.

Importance of Training and Coaching

To implement these strategies effectively, Chip emphasizes the necessity of ongoing training and real-time coaching:

Modeling Behavior:

“When at all possible, you step in and you show the behavior and then you coach.” (50:00)

By demonstrating the desired approach, managers can set clear expectations for their staff.
Real-Time Feedback:

“You have to coach in real time every single night. You get good at it.” (52:30)

Immediate feedback helps staff refine their techniques and internalize best practices.

Additional Insights

Beyond the core four keys, Chip touches upon leveraging team dynamics to ensure consistent execution of first approach strategies. He illustrates how team members can support each other in high-demand settings:

“If somebody is stuck at a table... you step in and you say, hi, welcome to Restaurant xyz.” (28:40)

This collaborative approach ensures that every guest receives a warm and efficient welcome, even during peak hours.

Monetary Impact of Effective First Approach

Chip provides a compelling analysis of how mastering the first approach can lead to significant financial gains:

“If a bottle of water is seven or eight bucks... that's 30 bucks... over the course of the week.” (34:20)

By optimizing each table interaction, restaurants can incrementally increase their revenue, which cumulatively results in substantial profit over time.

Additional Resources and Sponsorships

While the primary focus of the episode is on first approach strategies, Chip also briefly mentions other resources and partnerships beneficial to restaurant owners:

Margin Edge Software:

“Margin Edge gives you tools to make decisions in the moment so we can be proactive rather than just reactive.” (05:30)
Honeycomb Credit Partnership:

“Honeycomb Credit is a crowdfunding resource... it's a really, really good avenue.” (55:00)

These segments, though brief, offer listeners additional avenues to enhance their restaurant operations and financial strategies.

Conclusion

In "The Importance of First Approach," Chip Klose effectively underscores the significance of the initial guest interaction in driving restaurant success. By implementing the four key strategies—greeting with confidence, securing drink orders, delaying water orders, and clearly communicating next steps—restaurant owners and staff can enhance guest experiences, increase table turnover, and boost profitability. Through practical scripts, real-life examples, and a focus on training and coaching, Chip provides a comprehensive guide for elevating the first approach in any full-service restaurant environment.

Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

On First Impressions:

“We only have one opportunity to make a first impression.” (00:00)
On Confidence and Authority:

“Confidence goes a long way because you're basically saying, no, no, no, I'm in charge here.” (12:30)
On Identifying Thirsty Guests:

“There is always somebody at the table who is itching for a drink.” (22:10)
On Water Orders:

“Tell me, did you prefer bottled water or tap water for the table?” (35:10)
On Training:

“You have to coach in real time every single night.” (52:30)

Resources Mentioned:

Margin Edge: marginedge.com
Restaurant Strategy Podcast Schedule: restaurantstrategypodcast.com/schedule
Honeycomb Credit: honeycombcredit.com

This comprehensive summary captures the essence of Chip Klose's episode on first approach, providing valuable insights and practical strategies for restaurant owners aiming to enhance their service quality and profitability.

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Transcript1 lines

[00:01]
A
As the saying goes, we only have one opportunity to make a first impression. And in our restaurants, in a full service environment, that really is first approach. First approach, of course, is the moment when a server approaches a new table or bartender welcomes a new guest to the restaurant. And there are things that we should be doing on that first approach. Some of them intuitive, some of them, I think, counterintuitive. And I want to talk about that on this episode. Short, sweet, to the point. I want to talk to you about how to make the most of first Approach. All of that on today's episode of Restaurants Strategy. There's an old saying that goes something like this. You'll only find three kinds of people in the world. Those who see, those who will never see, and those who can see when shown. This is Restaurant Strategy, a podcast with answers for anyone who's looking. Hey, everyone, thanks for tuning in. My name is Chip Close. This is Restaurant Strategy, a podcast dedicated to helping you build a more profitable and therefore a more sustainable business. We do two episodes every week. I leverage my 25 years of experience to help you build that more profitable restaurant. That more sustainable restaurant. I travel all over the world giving talks. I have my book. I have this podcast, two episodes every single day. I host live events that I throw every single year. And I also am the founder of the P3 mastermind. It's a group coaching program geared towards independent owners and operators. People of a busy restaurant, taking care of a lot of people, put out good food. People love what they do, but they're just not seeing enough. Drop to the bottom line. So if you got a busy restaurant, but you struggle with profitability, specifically generating a consistent, predictable 20% profit, then I wanna chat with you. The best way to start that conversation is to grab some time on my calendar. Right? You do that by going to restaurantstrategypodcast.com schedule. Grab some time on the calendar. You'll chat with either me or someone from my team. It's 30 minutes, absolutely free. No pressure, but we'll get to ask some questions about you and your restaurant to find out what's going on. You'll of course, get to ask questions about the program to see if you think that program's going to be a good fit. At the end of that call, we'll talk about what next steps look like. If it makes sense, we'll get you signed up. And if not, hopefully we give you some actionable advice that you can put into practice right away. Again, go to restaurantstrategypodcast.com schedule as always, you'll find that link in the show Notes. Now, we all know managing costs is one of the most important parts of running a profitable restaurant, especially now. But between fluctuating vendor prices, waste labor, and the never ending list of tasks that demand your attention on a daily basis, we know it can be challenging for even the most experienced operator to manage costs. Well, that's where Margin Edge comes in. Margin Edge is a complete restaurant management software that automatically uses data from your POS and invoices to show you your food and labor costs costs in real time. Don't wait until it's too late. Margin Edge gives you tools to make decisions in the moment so we can be proactive rather than just reactive. You've got daily P and L price alerts on key ingredients and real time plate costs, all without ever having to touch a spreadsheet. Take control of those costs, work more efficiently, and ultimately be more profitable. Learn more@marginedge.com chip that link is also in the show notes. Okay, now today's episode, we're talking about the keys to first approach. If you run a full service restaurant, obviously you know that your servers have a first approach. That's the moment when they first go over to the table, they greet the new guests, they deliver the menus or whatever it is that's outlined in your handbook. And there are things that have to happen, but there are things, right, that should be happening, right? So maybe you're sort of hitting all the steps, but you're not hitting the steps in the right way. Some of what I'm going to talk about today will make sense, and I think some of it may sound a little counterintuitive, intuitive. I'm going to use some examples, I'm going to give some case studies and hopefully give you a way that you can just tweak what you're currently doing to just be more effective at what you're doing, right? So when we talk about first approach, again, first approach is that moment when a server greets a new table. It's when a bartender goes over and greets the two new people who just sat at the bar. When it comes to first approach, there are four things. There are four keys to. I think a great first introduction they are, are greeting with confidence and authority. Number two, getting a drink order. Number three, not worrying about water right away, I'll explain what I mean there. And number four, getting really good at telling the guests what happens next. I'm going to break all four of those down in order and I think by the End it'll make a little bit more sense. Maybe you're sitting here listening, going like, yeah, we do all that. I'm going to make sure that you're doing that the right way because it's not necessarily what you're doing. But I think it's a matter in most of the restaurants that I see, it's not what you're doing, but it's how you're doing it. So when we talk about first approach, let's dive right in. Because I promised this would be short, sweet, to the point. It's so crucial to greet the table with confidence and authority. And I know that this is a challenge because a lot of people are new to the industry. You get a lot of young people, right? High school students, college students who do lack confidence in their lives, who lack sort of the authority, you know, they're not necessarily comfortable in their own skin. Your job, though, is to either hire for people who are comfortable in their own skin or get them to be comfortable in their own skin, get them to approach the table with confidence and authority. A server who comes up, right? And so this is what happens, right? A table is sat and they're all talking, they're catching up, they've got conversation. And a server is sort of like meek and they're unsure how to interject. And P.S. i was there at one point, you have to be able to step over and say, hi, welcome, everyone. My name is Chip and I'll be taking care of you tonight, right? Or even in a fine dining setting, if you don't say your name right, you should be able to come over and still project a sense of authority. Because in that moment, the server is the authority on how a meal at this restaurant will go, right? Even if they're talking, you have to interrupt them. Just come over and with confidence, say, excuse me, I'm so sorry to interrupt you. I just wanted to welcome you to the restaurant, introduce myself. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you right now. If you're interrupting them, you've got to. It's even more important to be short, sweet, to the point. But confidence, confidence goes a long way because you're basically saying, no, no, no, I'm in charge here. I'm going to show you how this happens and I'm going to let you have a great time. You're going to plenty of time to catch up, but I'm in charge here. That becomes really crucial. We're going to fortify that with the last key, right? Of what makes a really good first approach. So greeting the table with confidence and authority. Even. Even if you have to interject and interrupt conversation, it's even more crucial then, right? And listen. And I've interrupted billionaires before, and it's not necessarily comfortable, but it's still something that has to happen because we can't sit there and let them linger forever and ever and ever. Also, they're going to be itching for a drink soon, right? Which brings us to the next point. So the first point is you have to greet with confidence and authority. Hi, excuse me. I'm so sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to welcome you, introduce myself. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you. I'll be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to start you off with something from the bar. Would anyone like a cocktail or a glass of champagne or a glass of wine or a beer? You're obviously going to fill in the blank for whatever's appropriate for your restaurant. But in that first beat, it's really important that script, right? You greet the table, say, hi, welcome, everyone. Right? You say, hi, welcome to Restaurant xyz. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you. I'll be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to start you off with something from the bar that's really crucial. This is. So if in your steps of service, you have tables being seated with menus by the host, or if they're being greeted with menus by the server, I'm going to strongly urge you to curb that practice. And if you're going to tell me, oh, table turn times, and people are really itchy to go, I'm going to tell you that it's all in how you do this first approach. That the reason they're itchy for menus is because they're probably left lingering there too long when they're seated. So if you can get your servers all on the table greeting, not within the first two minutes, but within the first 30 seconds or a minute. And P.S. it's possible when you've got teamwork, so that if somebody is stuck at a table and they're just sat, that somebody else has the presence of mind to see, oh, Sarah is at that table, but she was just sat. I will go greet them. And you step in and you say, hi, welcome to Restaurant xyz. My name is Joe. Sarah's going to be taking care of you. She's just stuck at another table. So I just wanted to come over and welcome you. We're going to be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to get you started with something from the bar, right? All of that is crucial. It's basically the same first approach. You're giving them information that they need. I'm not your person. Sarah's your person. You're telling them, I'm going to bring over menus in just a second. But I'd love to get you started off with something from the bar. The key here is there's nothing for them to do except look at you and answer your question, right? So if they're seated, if they're seated with menus, there's something for them to fidget with. They're distracted, they're looking at the stuff. So if you say, hi, welcome, everyone. Glad to have you. You. I wanted to see if I could get you started with somebody from the bar. Their eyes are all down on the menu. They're figuring out what they're going to eat. And they're going to go, I don't know. We're going to figure out what we're eating soon. Can you come back? They are blowing you off, right? So by seating the table in a room, you're letting them get settled, get comfortable. They can look around at the room. They can appreciate the decor, right? Then within 30 seconds or a minute at most, somebody's over there doing the script. I just said, and really crucial, right? It's absolutely imperative that you get a drink order on this first approach. The way you do that is by giving them nothing else to focus on and you simply ask the question. Now, remember, I said, hi, welcome to Restaurant xyz. I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you. I'll be over with menus in just a second. So you're putting them at ease. I got you. I know you want to look at menus, right? I'll be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to start you off with something from the bar and then in the next breath. And this is something I learned from one of the very first people who ever trained me how to wait tables when I moved to New York City. One of the next beat. You look for what we call, quote unquote, the thirstiest person at the table. There is always somebody at the table who is itching for a drink. And you can see it. They're sitting up. They're trying to get your eye contact. They want to order right now. So you Say right. Hi. How's everyone doing? Welcome to Restaurant xyz. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you. I'll be over with menus in just a second, but I'd love to start you off with something from the bar. Ma'am, it looks like you know what you want. What do you want? What can I get for you? Or sir, what can I get you from the bar? Whoever looks thirstiest, you take there. And they're gonna go, oh, my God, yes, I'd love a martini. Perfect. I'll get you a martini. You then find the next thirstiest person. They will also identify themselves. They might blurt out, oh, my God, a martini sounds great. I'll do one. Great. Now you got two drinks, right? They say, great. And you just go around the table. Miss, what can I get for you? A Martin. Miss, what can I get for you? You're gonna do a martini as well. Sometimes merely suggesting makes them right. Peer pressure is a real thing. They go, yeah, sure, I'll do a martini, right? The fourth person's go, yeah, make it four. If they want something else, they'll tell you, right? But opting out becomes very, very difficult, right? And my wife is like this. My wife is like. She's like, I don't know what I want. And if people start ordering drinks, she's like, oh, yeah, okay, maybe just a glass of champagne. Or I'll do what. She's happy, right? It's. It's easy for her to make a quick decision if she needs to. Left to her own devices, she'd probably delay that. She'd probably delay that several minutes. Maybe 10, 15, 20 minutes. But when she succumbs to peer pressure, which is only natural to do, because you don't want to be the only person without a drink when everybody's toasting. So it's a real thing. And ultimately, we're showing them a better time. We're getting them a drink. The drink is well made. It's delicious. It's going to put them at ease. It softens them. It makes them receptive for the conversation and the meal. It's just better that way. And P.S. it's not even. Not even just alcoholic drink, because my son really looks forward to his lemonade. Or on rare occasions when we let him have soda, he's like, yeah, I'll take a Coke, right? So again, first approach, you greet with confidence, with authority. If you have to interject or interrupt, you do it and you apologize. Hi, good evening. I'm so sorry to Interrupt. I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you. I'm going to bring over menus in a second, but I'd love to get you started off with something from the bar. Sir, what can I get for you? That's how that script goes. You get all the drinks and you say, perfect. I'm going to get the bartender working on these. Like I said, I'll be over with menus in just a second. Now it brings us to our third piece, right? The third point here is get the water order last. I know a lot of places have the servers walk over and greet with water. Or as soon as somebody's seated, like a busser comes over and greets with water. And in a certain kind of environment, right, Like a sub shop or a diner or something, that's fine. People aren't getting bottled water, just get them water on the table. But in anywhere, like family restaurant, upscale fine dining, there's the chance of getting a sale for bottled water, right? My family is a key example of this. We almost exclusively will drink sparkling water at dinner. It's just what we prefer. So when people bring us tap, we're like, oh, I'm sorry, can you. Sorry, yeah, we don't like tap. Can we just do bottled sparkling water? We will stop them. It's a waste of energy. What I recommend doing is that script up until now, right? I'm going to take your order. I take the drink order, say, great, I'm going to get the bartender working on these. I'll be right back with some menus for you. Tell me, did you prefer bottled water or tap water for the table? Right. It's the last thing you do before you leave. It's almost an afterthought, like, oh, you're going to have water. What kind of water? And it's one more chance to get a sale. If you just bring over tap water, you're screwing yourself out of, right? If a bottle of water is seven or eight bucks, let's say, right? And they're going to have maybe two bottles of water, that's 15 or 16 bucks that you're cheating yourself out of. Now, is every table going to do it? No, but maybe one out of four tables are going to do it. Fine, you do it, right? So if you wait on four tables, two turns a night, that's eight tables. You're selling two bottles, you know, two tables on bottled water, that's 30 bucks. Times two, that's 60 bucks. And a server makes $12 on that you extrapolate out. You work five shifts a week, 12 bucks times five, right? That's 50, almost 60 bucks over the course of the week. Extrapolate that out over, let's say 50 weeks of the year. That ends up being real money that you're driving for the restaurant and that they end up driving for themselves in tips. So first thing is approaching with confidence and authority. We've been through that. Number two is you have to get that drink order. Do not give them anything else to think about, talk about and nothing to delay what they're, what they have to do next. The third thing is you get the water order last. And the fourth key, right, Is we always tell them what will happen next. And you heard in my script, I'm already doing that, I'm cueing them. That's how we start setting the pace for the rest of the meal. That is established on first approach. I've said over and over that we decrease table turn time, right? We speed up the meal not in the last 15 minutes, but in the first 15 minutes. This is how, how you really do it. So you tell them what will happen next. You hear me say that, right? Hi, I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Chip. I'll be taking care of you. I'll be over with menus in just a second, But I'd love to get you something from the bar. Right? I'm telling them this is going to happen next. Menus happen next. Don't you worry about that. Right? So then, blah, blah, blah, I get the drink order. I said, great, I'm going to get the bartender working on these, right? That's the next thing will happen. I'll be right back with some menus. In the meantime, did you prefer bottled water or tap water? Right, right. So I'm saying bartender is going to work in the drinks again. I'm going to be right back with menus. What kind of water do you want? Right. They say, oh, we'll take bottled sparkling water. Say, perfect, I'll be right back. So you go, you come back with the water and the menus, or you bring the menus and then a second later you come back with the water or you have your busser or your back waiter come do the water and then you bring over the menus. Right? When I bring over the menus. And now this is no longer first approach, this is now the second approach, right? So let's say the buser comes over and pours the water and then we come over with the menu. So here we have the menus. I'll give you a second, give you a chance to look over that. When I come back with the drinks, I want to just talk you through a couple of our signatures. I want to point out a couple of my favorites. We also have a couple additions to the menu. And of course, at that point, I'll be able to answer any questions you have on the menu. So basically, here are the menus. Get ready, get your questions ready. Because when I come back with the drinks in three minutes, that's when we're going to do the next thing. And I'm telling them what's going to happen next. I can't tell you how crucial it is to tell them, hey, this is what happens next. And again, it will put a table at ease. It lets them know, oh, man, this, this person really knows what they're doing. They are on top of it. You are so on top of it, you're telling them. Because there's no surprise, this is what happens next. The very best servers do that really, really well. The four keys to first approach are again, confidence and authority. Getting that drink order, getting the water order last almost as an afterthought, and making sure to tell them what's going to happen next. That will help you increase or decrease table turn times, right? So increase the pace of the meal, which is going to help you get more table sa. It's going to help you increase check average, make you more money, make your servers more money. When you can internalize this, it makes all the difference. Now the way you do this is training for it. You model it. So when at all possible, you step in and you show the behavior and then you coach. When I say coach, I mean you eavesdrop. You overhear these conversations and after they step away, you say, hey, can I just give you a couple of quick notes? I loved how you did this and this, but. But I would have said this or you could have done that or I think you missed an opportunity for this. You coach in real time every single night. You get good at it. You show your managers how to get good at it. That's how you fortify the ideas. It's not just lecturing at people. It's not just about writing it in the handbook and trusting it will happen. It's not just about talking about it at the pre shift meal. It's modeling it, right? So you stepping in and approaching certain tables and you telling people, hey, watch how I do this, right? So modeling that behavior and then coaching in real time, which is something that really doesn't happen enough in restaurants. We have to give them feedback in real time. It shows them they care and they're getting better on one table to the next to the next. If you can do that. That's that, guys. That's what I wanted to talk about. One final thing I wanted to chat about Honeycomb Credit. Honeycomb Credit is a crowdfunding resource, right? It's a way of raising capital for your restaurant. I've built a partnership with them, really, because I had a lot of my members, a lot of my mastermind members asking me about funding options and non traditional funding options. And I had members that went through the process. I have now put nearly, I don't know, half a dozen members through the process. They've all had an incredible experience. There's tons of great benefits that come from this. Number one, you're not asking for donations, you're asking for an investment. And instead of paying a bank back, you get to pay your people back. And the residual benefit of crowdfunding is that it, it gets people excited again about your restaurant and they end up coming back more frequently and telling their friends more. They're like, this is that restaurant that I invested in. This is that restaurant that we love that I was telling you about. So there's a link in the show notes if you want to go explore Honeycomb Credit again. As always, there's never any pressure to follow through. But go get information if you're looking for capital in your restaurant. I found this is a really, really good avenue. That's it, guys. Hope you get a lot out of this show. I appreciate you being here every single week. I will see you next time. Sa.