MEMES: Not Overreacting, Bald Zeus, Cleaning the Kitchen Again, and More!
Get ready for another round of Meme Monday, full of silly life & restaurant memes that are perfect for sharing with your staff in commiseration or your guests for the lolz. Which is your fav?
DID YOU KNOWS…
Dropping the Drinking Age
A new Louisiana bill would allow 19- and 20-year-olds to purchase and consume alcohol – with an earned certificate. Sen. Eric LaFleur, the bills sponsor, also would like to see 18-year-olds added to that list. He says people that age already are getting older friends to buy alcohol for them, and he’d rather they drink in a public setting where they would “consume more responsibly” than in private.
Outback vs. Texas Meme Battle
Outback Steakhouse and Texas Roadhouse are in a bit of a meme war. It started when Texas Roadhouse retweeted an anti-Outback Steakhouse meme. Outback noticed and retaliated. Thus, the meme war to end all meme wars begun. It got savage.
Reputation King
According to a new survey, Chick-fil-A has one of the best brand reputations among businesses. In fact, it was the only restaurant chain to crack the Top 50. Chick-fil-A scored in the top 10 in all six attributes Harris Poll uses to measure a company's reputation
SAFE RESTAURANT CULTURE STARTS WITH YOU, NOT HR
Why it matters to you: Gone is the excuse that you need an HR department to avoid sexual harassment in the restaurant.
Amidst the sexual harassment claims emerging over the last few years, some restaurant groups have used the lack of HR department as an excuse for why so many restaurants struggle with the issue. We think this is BS and accountability is key to moving forward from this epidemic level issue in the industry.
The first line of defense is always you. You, the shift managers, managers, owners, part-owners, and anyone else with the power to provoke change and handle the problem rather than sweeping accusations under the rug. Sure, some larger restaurant groups and corporations can benefit from and need HR departments, but nobody has any real excuse here. Your employees whom are being harassed aren’t working alone which means someone around them isn’t doing their job if these claims get “shushed.”
So, what can we do? Speak up. If other employees see something that seems inappropriate they need to say something about it. Honesty and openness lead to a much healthier workplace and a healthier workplace is a happier and higher functioning one. This isn’t a foolproof plan, of course. Nothing is, but it is a step in the right direction. Tell your staff that you’re approaching to fix this toxic issue, that you’ll take their thoughts, criticisms and stories in earnest, and do what you can to make life better at your restaurant. After all, if things are gonna get better, it’s gotta start with you.
CUTTING BACK PROMOTIONS TO ABSORB RISING LABOR COSTS
Why it matters to you: Recently, Olive Garden and a few other brands cut the number of promotions they run back.
Rising labor costs are no joke for restaurants to deal with. With wages steadily climbing and unemployment at near record lows, restaurants are struggling to compensate for the changes in their bottom line. Olive Garden decided they had one potential solution: cut back on the promotions that they run. They are cutting back from nine total promotions this fiscal year to six. So while their promotional deals aren’t disappearing altogether, they’re decreasing it enough to hopefully aid in them staying afloat longer and boost profits.
Although they are a massive chain, this is not a bad example for the indie restaurants. The rising labor costs can be a killer and, for some restaurants, running promotions every night of the week could be selling themselves short of slightly higher profits. Operators should be looking at all aspects of their business and analyze results regularly, including their promotions. If your promotions are turning a profit, keep it. But if it’s acting more like deadweight, cut it loose. Good luck out there.
