How many questions do your guests have to answer during their meal? This may sound like a silly question, but in a conversation with "Coach" Don Smith, he relayed a story about one restaurant where the count was close to twenty!

It starts with "Smoking or Non-Smoking?" continues through choices of salad dressings, starch, etc. and ends up with coffee and dessert questions.

An enjoyable and effortless dining experience creates the good time your guests want. Logic seems to suggest that the more choices you give a guest, the more likely they are to be get exactly what they want. This could be true, but the process of making all the choices can be cruel and unusual punishment!

Giving people unlimited choices does not necessarily enhance their dining experience. In fact, it may only allow them to eat what they would eat at home and restaurants ought to be more special than that. There is a lot to recommend a unique house dressing, signature soups and distinctive side dishes. It is easier on the kitchen, faster for the service staff and more interesting for the guest.

Surviving The Downturn

Most areas of the country are feeling the pinch of the down economy and many restaurants are seeing a major reduction in their usual sales volume. One response is to cut costs -- and you should certainly stop any bleeding -- but there is no way to save your way to prosperity.

Necessity is the mother of invention and tough times will surely bring necessity to the fore. This month we want to collect the approaches that operators are using to hold their own ... and hopefully steal market share from less creative competitors.

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.

• Doing The Work - what I caught legendary New Orleans restaurateur Ralph Brennan doing on Monday night ... and what it says about his continued success
  
• Shooting Yourself In The Foot - the personal quirk at the root of restaurant failure and staff discontent
  
• What Did You Learn From Your Staff Today? - how one restaurateur learned to get more from her staff ... the easy way
  
• Special Offers on Management Resources - while I am still in that business

Solve the problem of what to talk about in your next staff meeting. Upgrade to the EHC Special Edition and get it all!