Too much food for thought

Posted January 4, 2008

In 4. Jenny Brooks, Operations, Public Relations, The Numbers

By Jenny Brooks

One of the blogs I’m reading these days is Independent Thinking by Mark Brandau of Nation’s Restaurant News. He focuses on independent restaurants and has some great content on his site (including an interview with David Scott Peters, your favorite restaurant expert).

I thought this post on Independent Thinking was a good one for you to check out and reminds me of one of David’s SMART Systems tips for controlling food costs: audit your garbage can to see what’s getting left behind, to see what your customers don’t even want, what they can’t eat. It might be an easy way to address portion control without shorting your customers.

Since I’m the communications expert on this blog, I want to remind you that communication with your customers is a good thing.

If you cut portions because it’s just getting wasted, let your customers know about the change and why it’s a good thing for everyone (waistlines, less waste on this planet). You might be surprised by the positive response.

Jenny Brooks is a public relations professional providing expert and strategic tactics for businesses trying to increase awareness about themselves and their products. She is also the editor of SMART Systems Insider, a monthly newsletter from Restaurant Expert David Scott Peters. Questions about PR and how she can help your restaurant? Email her.

David Scott Peters, independent restaurant owners, Jenny Brooks, restaurant expert, restaurant service, SMART Systems

Fred Langley

Fred Langley is the Owner/CEO of RestaurantSystemsPro.net. He leads the company's consulting services, systems coaching, conducting seminars and overseeing the training and technical support team for the company's management software,RestaurantSystemsPro.