Bill Marvin
The Restaurant Doctor

Those who have followed the EHC for awhile know that I occasionally go on a rant about the energy drop I get when I am served non-food ingredients. I don't mean that these items are not actually food, only that they have no flavor, no texture, no visual interest and do absolutely nothing to enhance the meal experience.

I feel this way about pre-grated Parmesan-like cheese from a can. (It has all the interest and taste of sawdust!) To this, please add processed turkey logs. iceberg lettuce, underripe tomatoes and packaged croutons.

To my mind, taking shortcuts like this with your guests is criminal.

It doesn't take much more effort or cost that much more to use real turkey as opposed to the processed product. OK, it probably does cost more and take more effort ... but the quality of the sandwich you produce will be light years ahead. To my mind, it is worth a little extra effort to stand out from your competitors, most of whom are trying to make it easy for themselves rather than making it memorable for their guests!

Repeat as necessary: this restaurant is run for the enjoyment and pleasure of our guests, not for the convenience of the staff or the owners. DO THE WORK!

The Rising Cost of Food

You don't need me to tell you that the cost of food is increasing at a rate never before seen in our industry. This places increased pressure on operators to raise prices ... at a time when diners are being squeezed by layoffs, rising gas prices, a falling housing market and general economic uncertainly.

The increases are past the point where most operators can afford to absorb the additional costs but raising prices seems to be a recipe for disaster as well. What to do?

Independent operators are nothing if not creative, so this month we look what they are doing to stay afloat in the midst of a perfect storm.

As usual, I will send copies of the survey results to everyone who participates. In the meantime, you can download copies of all past EHC surveys -- including the massive WOW Ideas collections.

Click here to add your thoughts to this month's survey.

• Shooting Yourself In the Foot - the worst possible way to make a menu change ... even a needed one
  
• What Did You Learn From Your Staff Today? - an insight into how the most important lessons you learn from your staff ... are usually about yourself!
  
• Special Offer for an out-of-print book on restaurant newsletters that I just discovered in my warehouse
  

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