We’ve all been out for great meals and bad meals, whether it is a romantic dining experience with our partner, a family occasion or just a celebration with friends.
Now the quality of the food is important, of course. But we also attach equal importance to the way the staff have treated us.
A smile from a waitress, a bit of extra information about the menu from a waiter and prompt service after we’ve ordered goes a hell of a long way to making the lunchtime or the evening enjoyable.
So what goes into giving perfect customer service? The proof is in the pudding (excuse the pun) so over to our colleague Claire Spencer, who has just had a memorable experience at Brunswicks restaurant at Newcastle-under-Lyme.
“For my partner’s birthday I decided to take him for a meal. I wanted a restaurant feel and not a pub but, with limited funds, my search was difficult.
A friend recommended Brunswicks so I looked at their website and discovered they did a set menu for £16.95 pp for three courses, Tuesdays to Fridays, and the menu looked fab. I called that evening and left a message for them to call me back. Sure enough within the hour they did. I whispered the booking down the phone and made the payment.
On arrival they knew exactly who we were and sat us on a perfect table where we were met with our pre-ordered wine. We were pleased to see there was a ‘specials’ board to accompany the set menu.
The meals arrived very quickly and they were presented beautifully on warm plates. A pleasant pause was given between each course and at the end of the meal there was no rush from the staff for us to leave the building so we could sit back and enjoy the evening at our leisure.
On leaving, the utmost discretion was given to the fact that the bill had been already settled when it was booked and we were given complimentary chocolates to round everything off nicely.
A pleasant evening which ticked all the boxes and which didn’t break the purse either!”
The vibe which comes across here is that staff at the restaurant treated Claire and her partner as though they were their most important customers. And yet, presumably, everyone else who dined there that night had the same experience.
Prompt and courteous service and attention to small details meant a lot in this instance and the quality of the food helped too, of course.
Let us know what your tips are for giving great customer service, whether you are a restaurant owner, hospitality staff or just someone who enjoys eating out. Please feel free to comment here. If you want to improve your skills take at our customer service training courses.
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