Monday, August 14, 2017
Today's Specials:
BUSINESS: Do You Have One of These Top 10 Most Common Bad Boss Traits?
No one's perfect, but it's important to be a fair restaurant manager to your restaurant's staff. Do you possess these common bad boss traits?
DID YOU KNOWS…
Dunkin' Blues
A new lawsuit against Dunkin Donuts claims that its blueberry products don’t actually contain any blueberries. A customer is alleging the chain has misrepresented their ingredients and overcharged for its Blueberry Butternut Cake, Blueberry Cake Donut, and Blueberry Crumb Cake donuts; none of which contain blueberries. Is anyone surprised?
Which Hangover Cure Works Best?
We all know the struggle of a hangover, some of us more than others. Luckily, a Munchies article follows a heavy drinker through the New Orleans Tales of the Cocktail festival. In the article, the designated drinker spends the five-day festival heavily drinking to see which hangover cure works the best. And no, the gym is probably not the best idea hungover.
Cheetos Pop-Up in NYC
Celebrity chef Anne Burrell is opening up a fancy Cheetos pop-up restaurant in NYC for three days. The Spotted Cheetah will be located in Tribeca and will feature all dishes made from Cheetos. Expect the menu to have Cheeto-meatballs, Cheeto-chicken tacos, and Cheetos Sweetos apple crepes. And yes, all dishes will probably turn your fingers florescent orange.
ARE RUDE CUSTOMERS LUCRATIVE?
Why it matters to you: Are rude customers actually good for servers?
Working in restaurants we’ve encountered countless customers that are just plain rude. What’s even worse, is that the majority of the time, we need to keep our composure and treat them how we treat all other guests. There is something to keep in mind when dealing with rude guests; other people are watching, and notice what you say. In a new study from the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary in Canada found that when customers witness fellow customers mistreat servers – mainly “behaviors such as sarcasm and looking at smart phones during transactions—it elicits empathy for servers and anger towards the rude customers.” In turn, these emotional reactions can cause witnesses to leave higher tips and more positive customer service evaluations.
One noteworthy aspect of the study included the concept that people are actually willing to financially compensate for the poor behavior of fellow customers, to make up for the poor interaction they witnessed. Servers are constantly told to follow the motto that “the customer is always right” which can be extremely difficult when they are faced with rude and demanding customers. This study from UC is one of the first of its kind, and largely suggests that servers have to brave the mistreatment from rude customers in order to gain the benefits. Many times management is often instrumental in these situations, helping to back up employees when they are mistreated. However, you may want to rethink how difficult guests are handled in the future to reap the possible benefits that come afterward.
REFUSING ICE
Why it matters to you: You won’t always be able to protect your staff from ICE agents.
Undocumented workers have been controversial in the restaurant industry especially within the past year. We’ve discussed incidents where ICE officials (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) have walked into restaurants and detained most of a restaurants staff. The most recent incident involving ICE comes out of Ann Arbor Michigan, where a restaurant owner turned away two immigration agents from entering the kitchen during a routine check. The agents reportedly asked about an employee when the owner refused them access to the kitchen and asked them to leave. She noted that both officers were armed and found that her customers “didn’t like the intimidation factor when they came in with guns.”
With the dramatic rise of immigration raids, ICE agents look for undocumented workers, and many establishments have been taking bold moves to protect their employees. Michigan, in particular, has seen an uptick in raids across the state which has led to multiple detainments and community protests. As of now, there is little we can do as restaurant operators except to ensure that our employees have the proper documentation for their employment. This story is noteworthy because it encompasses a restaurant owner rallying behind her staff and protecting them from possible problems. Although this story seemed to work out for those involved, however, that may not always be the case, so it’s best to stay prepared for “unexpected routine checks.”
