Suggestions needed

[clones_jer]

Thatlldo sounds like he knows his ****. I couldn't have come up with that - but as a customer that sounds like the type of thing you expect

 

[Cybyassociation]

For the most part the issues that are being brought up are universal among independently run restaurants. Inconsistency in service due to a lack of commitment from mgmnt to train and then uphold standards. The advertising and marketing are great, but you have to be able to handle the volume or it is a net zero. Systems need to be in place.

The GM should spearhead Marketing and oversee and train the Managers.
The Asst GM should be placed in charge of the Kitchen, it's employees scheduling and training. Takes inventory and tracks the food cost.
The Asst Mgrs should split Supplies and Bar. The most senior taking the bar because it is such an important cost center. They also, should be making frequent table visits and upholding the service standards of the restaurant.

To my way of thinking Every table needs to be greeted in less than 2 minutes. At which point a beverage order is taken. (Bev nap on table to Communicate with the rest of the staff)
After Bev Delivery the app or dinner order is taken, make sure they suggest the best items, or most cost effective. Explain specials etc.
After the food is delivered the server needs to check back after 2 minutes to make sure they have the right food, they are satisfied with it, and they get another drink or refill.
After they finish dinner the dessert menu should be brought over, and if they do not order, and want nothing else deliver the check. Don't be aggressive about it, but the most critical times when a guest is in your restaurant are the greeting and getting the check in a timely manner. Waiting to be greeted or for your check is mind numbingly aggravating and decreases table turns unnecessarily.

These are the bare minimum of service standards. The Mgmnt team will have to be on the same page because any new processes will be met with resistance at the least, and probably hostility from the staff. So universal POSITIVE reinforcement of the standards is CRITICAL. And yes I am yelling when it is all caps.

Good luck!

Agree. Pretty textbook.

 

[JP4CY]

Went and watched a Cyclone victory tonight, then wanted to get some dinner and watch the Packers/Falcons game with some friends (6 of us total). Went to West Towne Pub-packed. Drove to Wallabys, the wait was 1 hour 30 minutes, then decided to go to West Cyde.
This is the nightmare and worst dining experience I've ever had in my almost 30 years of life:
Show up, place was only 2/3 full, so we thought it was perfect. Took a while for a waitress to come over, but that's OK. She took our order right before the end of the 1st quarter. One of the ladies we were with looked over and saw the waitress. She then said to us: Uh-oh, hope the order is OK, because the waitress saw our table, then flipped thru her order book, then typed some stuff into the computer.
Well 2 orders of food came out midway thru the second quarter, and she said the kitchen lost the other 4 orders and she was sorry and they'll be out soon. In the meantime the 2nd table of people leave that never got waited on just walked out.
Waitress comes over while its half time with a complimentary round of drinks, which is nice. Well we didn't see her until there was 9 minutes left in the 4th quarter, easily and hour after 2 people got their food, with the other 4 orders. 2 out of the 4 were wrong, one didn't have the correct sauce, the wrap was completely wrong. They were pretty simple orders too-a chicken wrap and a order of chicken strips.
She didn't check up on us, while the 4 were still eating, to make sure the orders were OK. She came back at the end of the meal and asked if we wanted any more drinks, at which point I told her about the messed up orders. One person got hers half off.
When the bills came, they had the wrong drinks of the tickets, but the couples figured it out between them.
In addition to this nightmare there are a few more observations I have: plastic silverware, sticky (like the unclean feeling) pitchers, ketchup bottles that looked like *** (they were all wrinkly, and labels missing) and not even at the tables so we had to get up and go to the bar to get them, the listed tap beer on the napkin holder didn't match up with a couple of the tapped beers - Golden Light was one. The men's bathroom was disgusting-I won't go into the bombed toilet details.
There wasn't any discount except for the one half off chicken wrap. Everyone had deep friend meals, so I don't know how there was an HOUR between people getting their orders at the table. Last time anyone at our table said they'd ever go there.

I gave some pretty good opinions at the beginning of this thread on how to pick up business before I ever went there, and now I see there is no hope. I'm not a BWW guy (I like the Chicken Coop's wings) but it's going to kill WCW wings, and its going to be sad to see a townie place die.

 

[heyguy85]

I'm not going to be as critical as JP, but I'm also not going to be overly nice. I had the Buffalo Garlic sauce on my wings and I thought that was pretty good.
There were 4 of us, 2 ordered wings and 1 person ordered a burger. The other person did not eat. We ordered a pitcher and our food. The food came 45 minutes after we placed the order, and our pitcher was empty. It had been empty for twenty minutes. We gladly would have had 4 pitchers had we been served in a timely manner. As far as suggestions, the only things I suggest is MUCH BETTER service. The people working seemed to not care at all about the customers in the restaurant.

 

[IowaStateClones]

Went and watched a Cyclone victory tonight, then wanted to get some dinner and watch the Packers/Falcons game with some friends (6 of us total). Went to West Towne Pub-packed. Drove to Wallabys, the wait was 1 hour 30 minutes, then decided to go to West Cyde.
This is the nightmare and worst dining experience I've ever had in my almost 30 years of life:
Show up, place was only 2/3 full, so we thought it was perfect. Took a while for a waitress to come over, but that's OK. She took our order right before the end of the 1st quarter. One of the ladies we were with looked over and saw the waitress. She then said to us: Uh-oh, hope the order is OK, because the waitress saw our table, then flipped thru her order book, then typed some stuff into the computer.
Well 2 orders of food came out midway thru the second quarter, and she said the kitchen lost the other 4 orders and she was sorry and they'll be out soon. In the meantime the 2nd table of people leave that never got waited on just walked out.
Waitress comes over while its half time with a complimentary round of drinks, which is nice. Well we didn't see her until there was 9 minutes left in the 4th quarter, easily and hour after 2 people got their food, with the other 4 orders. 2 out of the 4 were wrong, one didn't have the correct sauce, the wrap was completely wrong. They were pretty simple orders too-a chicken wrap and a order of chicken strips.
She didn't check up on us, while the 4 were still eating, to make sure the orders were OK. She came back at the end of the meal and asked if we wanted any more drinks, at which point I told her about the messed up orders. One person got hers half off.
When the bills came, they had the wrong drinks of the tickets, but the couples figured it out between them.
In addition to this nightmare there are a few more observations I have: plastic silverware, sticky (like the unclean feeling) pitchers, ketchup bottles that looked like *** (they were all wrinkly, and labels missing) and not even at the tables so we had to get up and go to the bar to get them, the listed tap beer on the napkin holder didn't match up with a couple of the tapped beers - Golden Light was one. The men's bathroom was disgusting-I won't go into the bombed toilet details.
There wasn't any discount except for the one half off chicken wrap. Everyone had deep friend meals, so I don't know how there was an HOUR between people getting their orders at the table. Last time anyone at our table said they'd ever go there.

I gave some pretty good opinions at the beginning of this thread on how to pick up business before I ever went there, and now I see there is no hope. I'm not a BWW guy (I like the Chicken Coop's wings) but it's going to kill WCW wings, and its going to be sad to see a townie place die.

WOW I had almost the exact same experience that you did last night. I went to WCW with a group of seven people. Like you said, it was about 2/3 full so we got in right away. We waited a little while to get our drinks and menus but that was nothing out of the ordinary. We all put our orders in around 7:25. next thing we know it is 8:15 and a group of four people who arrived well after us was getting there food and the waitress said our order was next in line to come out. SO we sit around for a while and when it hit 8:25 one person got up and talked to the waitress and she said it would be on its way. Our food finally arrived at 8:45 and by this time all of us were pretty much salivating because we were so hungry. Also, we had a night of drinking ahead of us so we were looking to grab some food and get out of there. The long waiting time isn't even the worst part of the experience. When our waitress came out she said she was sorry and that she would discount us 15%. She went back to the computer to print checks then came back 10 minutes later and informs us that she can't split the checks up and then put the 15% discount on so she puts it all on one check and we all have to go up to the bar to pay our portions. THen one person who was with us points out that she added 18% gratuity to the check. It specifically said in the menu that 18% gratuity is added only to parties of 8 or more, we only had 7. By this time we were all fed up and just wanted to leave so after the 20 minutes it took her tofigure out how to run the checks we paid and left. While all of this was happening someone who we believed to be the manager was just standing there and never said a word.

Two of the chicken sandwiches ordered didn't have sauce on them. One order of fries was never brought to us. The ketchup and mustard bottles were sketchy at best with all of the crusty **** on them. We ended up paying the regular price because of the 18% gratuity added after the 15% discount. We all were planning on not tipping the waitress at all.

This was the WORST dining experience I have ever had. I know for a fact that all seven of us will not be returning to WCW again. Because this happened to more than one group it shows that they dont know what the hell they are doing there so I would advise all of you not to go there unless you want to wait an hour and a half + and have only half of what you ordered brought out to you.

 

[Wesley]

Sounds like poor management, inopportune cook planning, and inept waitresses will lead to a poor dining experience. Looks like changes are needed IMMEDIATELY.