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Articles
Service the Engine!
August 1, 2007
Originally published in the Service That Sells! Newsletter
The back-of-house staff (i.e. the engine) plays a critical role in guest service. Inferior product or long cook times lead to unhappy guests and poor tips. Too often, contests and incentives are focused on the servers and bartenders, while the kitchen crew is left out. Here are a few ideas to motivate the kitchen team to help focus on service:
Right, On-Time - every hour there are no mistakes, cook times over the standard or a sloppy plate presentation (the expediter can be the ‘judge'), put $1 (or equivalent prize) into a jar. At the end of the week, the kitchen team divides up the dough based on the percentage of hours worked.
Food Cost Bonus - reward the team with a bonus of 10, 20 or 30 cents per hour based on how much they lower food cost.
Serve Me - one week have the servers serve the kitchen crew a free meal. Next week, reverse the roles. Getting each side to understand the other goes a long way in improving service.
Walk a Mile in My Shoes - team a server with a member of the kitchen crew and have the pair work for awhile in the front and then in the back. Once each person understands the other's challenges, teamwork and morale is improved.
Using this type of approach creates a self-policing system. The good employees manage the bad ones. If someone is working slow or sloppy, the other employees step in versus the manager. The good employees do not want to lose their chance at a prize or money so they step up their performance and keep an eye on others. Now That's Service!