How to Give Customers That Unique Restaurant Experience

With a boost in non-price competition, business owners are faced with the tough challenge of upping their game when in comes to that unique restaurant experience. From packaging, quality and portability to even the brand name, a lot of planning and intricate details are considered while designing, producing and placing the product on the shelf. Consumers pick the product that provides the most utility; it's what ensures customer loyalty. 

Restaurants, too, are a product. But, what you're selling here is not just the food, but the overall experience customers will take home to their friends and families. Make sure it's an amazing one that checks all the boxes and keeps the customer coming back again and again. 

Here are 5 ways on how to create that unique restaurant experience for your customers and leave no room for complaints. 

Stand in the customers' shoes and critically examine your restaurant dine-in as well as take-away experience. Be your own best critic and be open to improvement always!

A Guide To Training New Restaurant Staff

1. Restaurants Are Not Just a Place to Eat At – They're Where People Make Memories

Remember the time you took your crush out for a first date? Did the food take a long time to arrive and make you more anxious and nervous than you already were? You're probably not going to go back there ever again. That's because of the horrible memory you made there. The memories a unique restaurant experience gives a new customer will make or break a business.
Customers often don't realise this consciously, but restaurants play an important role in how they make memories and remember them. You definitely want your restaurant to give your customers the happiest and cheerful memories. Be it a birthday, a proposal or even an anniversary dinner – make sure to give the customer not just the best food on their plates but the great memories as well. Go that extra mile to set up a pretty table and give that free slice of cheesecake – customers love that! Be friendly and welcoming – something as simple as a smile can make a customer's horrible day better.

2. Make It Aesthetically Pleasing

The colour palette – be it on the walls or the choice of furniture plays an important role in whether a customer chooses to walk in and sit at a table or walk straight out the door. So don't go overboard.

Keep it simple and make it feel like home. Try not to be cliché and similar to what others are doing, be a little different and unique.

The background music matters too, so keep it soft enough to make your customer feel relaxed. Table choices matter too. For instance, intimate and personalised experiences are best suited in private seating; make sure to have those. For a group of friends make it big and have community tables where people can interact freely and not be bogged down by the person sitting immediately beside them. Mix it up but make sure it's not messy – remember to keep it simple, well-spaced out.

3. The Location Matters

Finding the ideal location can be tough, especially if you're just starting out. Adding this aspect to your restaurant experience may seem unnecessary, but it's not. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Thrive In A Specific Location

4. Take Customer Feedback Seriously

There's nothing worse than an upset customer. It gets your motivation down for the day and yelling at your staff after every few minutes. But, instead of crying over split milk, take that as constructive criticism. Ponder over the feedback and make a list of ways to handle the issue if it comes up again. Remember the permutations and combinations you learnt in school? Apply it here.

Think of all the ways something can go wrong and all the possible solutions - say, for instance, a rat who decides to casually run past the main door on a day where you're brimming with customers. Well, for starters, don't let a brown rat have that opportunity. Get your precautions in place and keep a regular check on all the corners and hard-to-reach places. However, if the annoying rat does show up, have a backup plan ready.

5. Cater to All Age Groups

Be it teens, adults or even an old couple on their 50th anniversary; be adaptable and flexible enough to cater to them all. By being inclusive, you'll attract a larger customer audience and probably even retain them. That's exactly what all restaurant owners want – the more the hustle-bustle, the more the money. So, don't limit your customer base by only catering to a specific age group – be accommodating for everyone, even that single parent who needs a break and a bowl of spaghetti for their child after a long busy day.

Pro tip: Be creative – come up with a different menu. If your restaurant is flexible in this regard, that is, then try to mix it up every week to give customers something new to try. Bring in different flavours from around the world to spice things up a bit. Check this article here. 

To learn more about setting up or managing your restaurant efficiently, visit our website. You'll be sure to find a number of tips on how to become a leading restaurant expert in no time. From services, video trainings to blogs, we have it all.