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It has been our observation that in many segments of the restaurant industry today, performance management skills and discipline has seemingly disappeared. We at Gilkey Restaurant Consulting believe performance management is critical to the success of any food and beverage business. Your people are your greatest asset and investing in their ability to manage results and lead a team is good for their development and your business. We have found implementation of performance management skills ensures high quality and consistency.What is it & why is it important?Simply put, performance management is a process of activities that present the greatest likelihood ... Read More

In addition to providing consulting services to multiple clients, the Gilkey restaurant consultants are pleased to announce that we've opened 5 new restaurant concepts in 2019! Crockett’s Public House in Maple Valley, Washington, is the second Crockett’s the Gilkey Restaurant Consulting Group opened since we began our journey with Crockett’s owner in 2011. While continuing to provide operations support since the first Crockett’s opening and realizing their immense success the team signed a lease for number two. As with the first restaurant, the Gilkey Restaurant Consulting Group assumed the role of project manager leading brand development, design development, menu creation ... Read More

When customers know that green is your theme, most will gladly cooperate with the measures you are taking to create less waste. Here are some of our favorite "green" ideas for restaurants:Grow your own herbs and vegetables. This can be as large as your land and time permits or as small as an herb garden in a window. Customers enjoy seeing the chef's garden, and there is no better way of ensuring they are served fresh food than growing your own. Source foods locally and put that on the menu. Diners appreciate the nutritional value, better taste, and freshness of ... Read More

Your food? Good enough to win Top Chef. Your staff? Top tier. Your décor? Insta worthy. Your restaurant that’s been months, even years in the making is finally coming together in the way you’ve always imagined. On opening night, you wipe the sweat from your brow, give a rousing speech to your team, swing open your doors to see the mobs of hungry patrons, and…It’s just your mom.No dish, no cocktail, no decoration is strong enough to bring people to your restaurant on its own, especially when it comes to your first night. If you truly want your establishment to ... Read More

The key factors in perfecting lighting for your restaurant can be summed up with the acronym “Faces”:• Food• Ambiance• Comfort• Effect• SafetyFood: Having the right kind of quality lighting for your restaurant is undeniably vital to offering your customers the best dining experience, and that starts with the appearance of your food. Improper lighting does not show off your signature dishes in the best possible manner and can even make your most colorful creation appear dull and boring. The right kind of lighting will make your menu pop and enhance the visual appeal of your food.Ambiance: When designing your restaurant ... Read More

As of late, fresh craft cocktails and craft brews are dominating the beverage category. Signature cocktails are a major draw for any restaurant or bar, sometimes becoming an icon of the overall brand. It’s something you may imagine for your own restaurant or bar, though when it comes time to mix up your cocktails, the recipes don’t seem to flow. Maybe you’ve had trepidation about creating cocktails because you fear copying a similar style already out there.When you create a cocktail that reflects your brand, you’ll be able to market it as something uniquely your own. To help with this ... Read More

Music is not just for dancing. Science shows us that people listen to music to "regulate arousal and mood, to achieve self-awareness, and as an expression of social relatedness,” which is fancy talk for “people like music”. A large part of the ambiance of your bar or restaurant is created by the music you choose. One study done in a mid-sized Dallas restaurant showed patrons who ate while slow-tempo music was playing, stayed an average of 11 minutes longer than those who ate while fast-tempo music was playing. Moreover, the slower music encouraged patrons to purchase an average of three ... Read More

With Decades of Industry Insight, Gilkey Restaurant Consulting Helped HIDE Become the Best New Bar in Dallas The Dallas Observer, a prominent national newspaper, recently named a Gilkey Restaurant Consulting Group client to its Best of Dallas 2017 List. The publication recognized HIDE – Deep Ellum Bar as the Best New Bar in Dallas, Texas for 2017. HIDE first opened its doors in January 2017. The industrial-themed bar, located in the city’s Deep Ellum district, quickly became a popular destination for Metroplex residents. The establishment’s easy-going atmosphere is vibrant, relaxed, and mellow. Local musicians play tunes, while guests enjoy a ... Read More

Repeat customers and the friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors they refer are the lifeblood of your restaurant. But in order to become repeat customers, they must become customers in the first place, which means you must devise a way (or several ways) to get those future “referral machines” in the front door, eating your delicious food and enjoying your fabulous beverages so that they keep coming back for more. So how do you both drive customers through your doors for the first time and encourage them to become regulars?According to CNBC, the number one reason restaurants fail comes back to ... Read More