Restaurant management – Family and friends are those closest to our hearts. So whenever you could assist them even in the slightest possible way you would do it. Now the problem with this is when you are a partner of a restaurant serving super delicious food, you are expected to grant them favors. Those family and friends who probably had no contact with you for some time would suddenly pop up at your restaurant with massive smiles and hugs. They won’t say it at first but most often they come with the expectation of getting free food on your account or even a fat discount. That’s when you get a dilemma because you don’t feel right to refuse them nor make them too comfortable, so that they may take it as a cue to make it a regular practice.
Free meal policies for partners, family, and friends exist but it is also in the process of getting out of hand. Surprisingly this is a huge problem frequently faced by those engaged in the food business and restaurant management. As a result, certain restaurants may prohibit or even severely restrict the number of free meals available for partners, family, and friends. For example, when one restaurant may offer a 50% discount, another restaurant may only allow free meals for special occasions or the festive season.
When you are in a partnership with another restaurant, agreeing on some ground rules with regard to the free food policy may complicate things less. Of course, business means that your focus is on profits. It is obviously not a charity that you give away food for free. Therefore rigid rules on this matter made in mutual agreement with your partner are always the best thing to do. Here are some ways you could escape from such a tricky situation with your family and friends.
Putting the blame on your partner is completely alright if the job is done. You could say that your partner even charges from his or her own parents when they were the ones who first invested to build the restaurant. Your friends need to be told that when you are part of a business, relying on them for free things is not right to do. After all, if you own a gas station you won’t have a line of friends waiting to get free gas! Restaurant consultants in Dubai will give you some good advice on restaurant management and how to further deal with such a situation.
Be firm with your policies and use friendly banter and humor to say no when you have to.