OPINION: What price is ‘great value’?

And I have enjoyed a vast array of eating and drinking experiences, and moments of sheer hospitality delight.

As an ‘industry veteran’, as I was recently described, I guess I am now allowed to speak my mind about the ‘value’ of great occasions whether they be in a pub, a restaurant or indeed a rather salubrious hotel in North Yorkshire.

A lot of people do not understand the term ‘good value’ or indeed ‘value for money’. Automatically people tend to think good value means inexpensive or simply cheap.

This, of course, couldn’t be further from the truth and in any hospitality business today, more than ever, we should all be asking ourselves the ‘big question’ about our own respective businesses: are the occasions we create for our guests and customers consistently good value for money? There… I have said it. The more we ask this question of ourselves and share the question with our teams, the more we will learn where our growth opportunities lie in the future.

Where does the perception of ‘good value’ begin and end – and what is it exactly? It isn’t easy to put into a sentence, is it?

It starts with the welcome​

For me, it is all about how you are made to feel long before you order anything and pay for anything. It all starts with the welcome, the hello at the door, at the reception desk or at the bar. The smile and the appreciation by the respective team member of your arrival in their establishment, like welcoming family to your home with a sense of pride and great happiness. The moment you are welcomed well, you are on your way to what should be a great occasion and at the beginning of the great ‘value for money’ journey.

Of course, efficient service is vital as is the quality of the food and drink, but efficient service with great food and drink can be done anywhere… it satisfies expectation, but does it ‘delight beyond expectation?’ One of the key elements to being regarded as ‘good value’, in my opinion, is that the visit has to go beyond one’s expectation.

Atmosphere plays a massive part in the occasion and while this is helped by soft lighting, candles, the right background music, mirrors in the right places, lots of relevant pictures on walls and the buzz of other customers, the only way it works perfectly is if the team come together as the true ‘atmosphere creators’. Their personalities and caring natures have to stand out… there is service and there is true hospitality… there’s a big difference between the two. Being naturally hospitable is a far cry from simply serving a guest food and drink efficiently.

So we have been welcomed brilliantly, we have been treated well and there’s a great buzz about the place we are in. There is an atmosphere that ‘hugs’ us positively. We choose our food and drink with friendly recommendations here and there… we are checked back on with an opened ended question of ‘how is everything for you?’ It is all going well – so well we are struggling to find a fault with anything.

The bill arrives when requested and it might be quite a bit more than one had hoped for but it was worth every penny, simply because, as guests, we were made to feel special, appreciated and respected. The team were so thankful for our custom as we leave and then the big question… would I go back there? Yes, of course, we would because we were made to feel special and, as a consequence, it was ‘great value for money’.

Deliver beyond expectation​

If we keep our businesses simple and look after the guest with consistently great hospitality, we will be in the minority because, sadly, there are so many out there who think cheap is the value bit and 30% off main courses will cover up the cracks in the establishment’s approach to hospitality.

It is time to create great guest memories and deliver hospitality beyond expectation. You will have the lion’s share of the business if you do.

So what frustrates me most? Paying through the nose for average service where the team thinks because the food is good and the drinks are good that they do not have to work hard at anything other than serving said food and drink.

The other thing that upsets me is when I order a £90 bottle of Amarone from an impressive wine list and 12.5% service is added for opening it. So £11.25 for opening my special wine… really? Wine on bills should be exempt from any service charge. Service should be used to pay the hard-working chefs, kitchen porters and the team that serves the food and specially made drinks. We should be paying for the experience – maybe the name should be changed to the ‘great experience charge’ or the ‘beyond my high expectation charge’.

It's interesting how, in cities I have visited recently, there was no service charge at all on anything when eating out… Barcelona, Paris, Palma and Berlin… not a thing. Hospitable service has to be amazing and not rewarded like it is a given. Everything I have experienced recently took me beyond expectation and that is a really pleasurable and satisfying place to be and great value too.