Darren Blackburn is a Director of Base Hospitality Consultancy which focuses on the below core areas of hospitality including operational efficiencies and procurement. In his past life he was Head of Beverage Operations at G1, and has worked for BrewDog, Drygate and Sample Room. Here he offers some positivity and advice on opening post Covid-19.
“Only a crisis – actual or perceived – produces real change. When that crisis occurs, the actions that are taken depend on the ideas lying around” Milton Friedman – American Economist
That crisis has occurred. That Monday evening when Boris told the public not to go to pubs and restaurants will go down as a seminal moment in all our hospitality careers. I think it is vital for our recovery from this crisis that we as operators or hospitality professionals admit that real change is afoot. This can be hard to admit, especially when everything feels out of our control. We need to accept that wider political, economic and societal forces are at play here and changes in this wider spectrum will have lasting effects on our industry.
If Friedman is indeed correct, then the answers we seek and the resulting actions are “lying around”. Put another way, we need to draw on our experiences, our knowledge, and our expertise – all that we have gained in our careers so far.
First and foremost, we need to get our businesses open. To do this we must treat this opening with the precision, dedication and love that we did for our first business. Three words have never rung truer to me: attention to detail. We have lived by this mantra before and now – more than ever – we need to do it again.
To give you an idea of the detail required, let us consider one small area of our trade. One of the prevailing assumptions for hospitality is that, operationally, we will need to fully commit to table service. This is a requirement to respond to the enforcement of social distancing measures (whatever that distance may be). But this relatively small issue, within the current climate, could have massive repercussions if not thought through properly. Let us just consider one small element of operating 100% table service: the booking system. This alone prompts many questions that will impact our ability to deliver, such as:
- Do we have the correct booking system in place to maximise revenue?
- Do we need to change the table durations?
- What will our maximum party size look like?
- Do we need to take a deposit for all bookings?
- What percentage of bookings do we allocate to just drinkers?
- Do we need to alter our food & beverage offer to shorten or lengthen turn times?
Suddenly, one seemingly small element of what we do opens up a huge can of worms. To approach this, and the numerous other questions, in anything other than a methodical way could be catastrophic. I would urge you to treat every venue and every brand like a new opening. Your first, to be precise.
While attention to detail in re-opening is vital; equally important is timing. I cannot help but think the next phase – when re-opening is allowed – will resemble a hospitality poker table. At this table sits an assortment of playing types – all waiting for the ‘government flop’. Who is going to check, fold, raise or call?
There will be winners and losers in this scenario, like there are in any card game. The best course of action is to recognise and build on your strengths. Mise en place – have everything in its place; be ready for the service of your life. How best to do that? Make sure you have those sensible conversations with landlords and lenders alike. Make sure you have regular dialogue with your workforce – keep them up to speed so they can be at full pace when the cards “flop”.
Hospitality, like no other business I know, requires teamwork. Teamwork between kitchen, bar and floor teams is vital to deliver exceptional customer experience. A crisis in service happens when communication breaks down and the teams stop working together. Now more than ever we need to work together. All facets of the industry from hotels to fine dining establishments and pubs to restaurants need to work in unison in order to influence those wider political, economic and societal forces outwith our control – in order to regain control.
Since the crisis began, different groups representing different viewpoints have all raised their voices. I truly admire the effort and the bravery of these voices. Yet I know that amongst a kitchen in full swing when the brigade all say “Oui Chef” together, they are not only heard through the clatter of service and the insanity that surrounds them but the message is also consistent, clear and concise and, ultimately, noticed by those in charge.