GUESTS: How to Get Local Groups to Become Your Regulars
Guest regulars are the Holy Grail for restaurants, but they're not always easy to come by. Restaurant operators & marketers could win more regulars by being proactive and hunting down local social groups in their areas. Here’s some tips to churn some guest gold.
DID YOU KNOWS…
Coffee & Weed
Drinking coffee affects the same parts of the brain as smoking weed, a new study finds. Specifically, it affects the metabolism of neurotransmitters linked to weed. But it has an opposite effect. While smoking weed gives you the munchies, drinking coffee suppresses those neurotransmitters. You need to down four to eight cups of coffee in a day to see those results, however.
Burger King Sauna?
Want a Whopper of a good time? Maybe eat some BK while in a steamy sauna. *gags* It’s actually a thing… in Scandinavia. Finland also has a beer spa where you can soak in a hot tub and drink brews, which sounds 100x more fun. Check it all out here.
Aluminum Foil Kitchen Knife
In a real bind? Like… a real, honesttogod, awful bind? Here’s how you can turn a pack of kitchen foil into a ready-to-use kitchen knife. We suggest just making sure your knives are routinely sharpened. :D
Flexible Easter
Easter is one of the Christian religious holidays without a fixed worldly calendar date. It is celebrated on the first Sunday after the ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or soonest after March 21. In 500 years (from 1600 to 2099 A.D.) Easter was and will be most often celebrated on either March 31 or on April 16 (22 times each). Here are other “popular” Easter dates.
NO NEED FOR YOUR JOHN HANCOCK
Why it matters to you: Guests who use a card to pay may no longer need to sign their receipts.
Have you ever been out to eat, had a massive meal and then the receipt arrives and it is just such a burden to summon the energy to sign your receipt before you leave? No? Oh, well that’s probably because nobody has ever felt that way, but that isn’t why we are here…
Thanks to EMV chip technology in most credit and debit cards, a signature will not be necessary when the tab arrives. Any restaurant that has a machine which supports EMV technology (the chip in your card) may no longer need your signature; sure you may still ask for it but it will not be needed to prove the transaction isn’t fraudulent. Let’s be honest: it isn’t difficult to forge a signature either, so it wasn’t exactly a foolproof method to begin with.
EMV technology has been the standard in many parts of Europe for some time now. The US, however, did not adopt this technology until about 2015. We were late to the party, and probably paid for it. It will be interesting to see how this all aligns with full-service dining though, considering culturally we must add a tip prior to signing. However, if the whole no-tipping model becomes standardized here in the states, not signing would make a whole lot more sense.
VEGANS VS NOSE-TO-TAIL
Why it matters to you: A Toronto chef is being harassed by vegans due to a joke that offended them.
Have you ever made a joke that didn’t land or maybe wasn’t in the best taste? We’re pretty sure we all have at one time or another. Recently, Toronto chef Michael Hunter, of Antler Kitchen & Bar, wrote “Venison is the new kale” on his restaurant chalkboard. This joke was a gentle dig at a vegan restaurant a few shops over that they are friendly with. This joke, however, did not sit well with vegan activist and neighborhood dog-walker Marni Ugar. She and six other people began protesting in front of Antler Kitchen & Bar, yelling “Murderer!” every time the door opened to his place.
As the winter dragged on and the protests continued, chef Michael tried to placate the crowd by putting some vegan dishes on the chalkboard out front. It did nothing to deter the protesters. Pushed to his limits, Hunter broke down a full deer leg in front of the protesters. It is utterly ridiculous and irresponsible that people should expect others to close their businesses because they have a different diet than you. Everyone is responsible for themselves. Everyone has the right to enjoy whatever food or lifestyle they like.
This whole ordeal seems very trying, especially with how competitive the restaurant industry climate is currently. Looks like Antler Kitchen & Bar is a must stop for us next time we are in Toronto.
