Sometimes your job is to stay out of the way
Please remember that guests come to relax and enjoy themselves. They come for good food and drink, and likely to enjoy their dining companions. As we navigate thru the space, we need to remember that. This counts in the restaurants as well as the doughnut counters.
Staff voices should be kept low so as not to disturb our guests.
On too many occasions, I have walked in on a full volume conversation among staff while guests are not only in the restaurant, but sometimes only a short distance away. Diners should never hear us unless we are speaking to them. Conversations between staff members should be kept to a minimum. OUR conversations with staff should be at a hushed tone and away from tables and guests.
The next time you’re out to dinner on your own precious time, spending your hard-earned money, notice if the staff around you are a disturbance. Are they? How does it affect your meal?
As the leaders, you are not only to set this example but to enforce it. Please prime your staff to understand talking in their normal voice, about their personal lives, in front of guests is not acceptable. They should keep their speak professional and about the business at hand. They can talk about their personal issues before and after the restaurant is open for business. If you encounter staff having these types of conversations, they should be disbanded and you should make sure they understand they aren’t appropriate.
This is a daily chore. The more consistently we drive this point home, the better result we will get.
