Sternberg Hospitality

Sternberg Hospitality Sternberg Hospitality is an independent organization specializing in restaurant management and consu

All true. Somms are an essential part of the fine dining experience but they need to bring the whole package - wine know...
05/11/2021
What’s the Future of the Floor Sommelier Role? | SevenFifty Daily

All true. Somms are an essential part of the fine dining experience but they need to bring the whole package - wine knowledge, business savvy, customer skills and an inherent sense of hospitality.

Opportunity abounds in today’s current hiring frenzy, but restaurant operators are looking for wine pros with new skills who can take on hybrid responsibilities…

As an experienced consultant, it upsets me when non-restaurateurs write articles that claim to provide helpful advice fo...
01/29/2021
Here’s how restaurants can survive the next three months of COVID-related shutdowns

As an experienced consultant, it upsets me when non-restaurateurs write articles that claim to provide helpful advice for restaurateurs but only offer obvious, rote solutions that fall far short of the title's stated goal.

Restrictions may be lifting slowly, but times are still tough. These resources will help operators make it through the first quarter

Exactly what I've been telling my clients since April. However, restaurants still need to be able to get through the nex...
01/24/2021
Why the post-pandemic era could be ‘the Roaring ’20s’ for restaurants

Exactly what I've been telling my clients since April. However, restaurants still need to be able to get through the next 6-9 months and they need government assistance to do so.

After a tough pandemic, the industry could face a strong decade as consumers return and companies build new locations.

Beautiful and sad photo essay on the state of restaurants. Features restaurants in NYC and LA but the story is the same ...
12/16/2020
Photo essay: New rules push restaurants to the brink, with no end in sight | The Counter

Beautiful and sad photo essay on the state of restaurants. Features restaurants in NYC and LA but the story is the same throughout the country.
Saw Joe Manchin on the news this morning promising a relief package by Friday. Sure hope it includes lots of help for the hospitality industry.

This story is written by Karen Stabiner with additional reporting by Jesse Hirsch, plus photography and additional reporting from Samanta Helou Hernandez and Talia Moore. The pivots come so fast they’ve blurred into one extended, manic pirouette, as Los Angeles restaurants that just invested in o...

This is TRUTH! We just need to help restaurants get to the other side of this thing. Congress needs to act!
10/05/2020
Five reasons to be bullish on restaurants’ future

This is TRUTH! We just need to help restaurants get to the other side of this thing. Congress needs to act!

Despite closures, bankruptcies and uncertainty, the industry has proven to be more resilient than expected, says RB’s The Bottom Line.

I am very proud to share that I have been accepted as a Mentor in the Gleam Network, a non-profit, volunteer network who...
08/03/2020
GLEAM Network

I am very proud to share that I have been accepted as a Mentor in the Gleam Network, a non-profit, volunteer network whose purpose is to enhance the leadership of and provide mentorship to the underserved community in the restaurant and foodservice industry. Thanks to Sanjiv Razdan for founding the organization.
If you or people you know can contribute as a Mentor or would benefit as a Mentee, please view the information on the link below.

GLEAM Global Leadership Enhancement & Mentorship NetworkWe are a non-profit, volunteer network whose purpose is to enhance the leadership of and provide mentorship to the underserved community in the restaurant and foodservice industry.We believe that everyone willing to learn and grow deserves the....

Thanks to Winston Lord, Chief Evangelist at OpenTable and the rest of OpenTable team, I was privileged to moderate anoth...
07/01/2020
The Covid-19 Pandemic's Impact on Hospitality Talent | Culinary Agents

Thanks to Winston Lord, Chief Evangelist at OpenTable and the rest of OpenTable team, I was privileged to moderate another virtual roundtable last week. This one centered around recruiting and hiring as our restaurant community relaunches their businesses while COVID still dominates how we operate.

We had an all-star cast of top US based operators including several with international operations. We also had the good fortune to be joined by Alice Cheng, founder and CEO of Culinary Agents (https://culinaryagents.com), who brought great information and a broad, national perspective to the conversation. (Take a look at the post on my Sternberg Hospitality page regarding the Culinary Agent survey results https://www.facebook.com/SternbergHospitality/posts/4297985426880084.)

Our goal was to share and identify the best practices that are enabling a positive outlook on coming back to work as well as discuss some of the issues that have come up so that we might offer some ideas on how to solve the problems that the COVID pandemic has created.

Key takeaways –
• Trust and transparency were/are vital. “Over”- communication regarding opening, health precautions, expected work hours and just general checking in, made the difference with the confidence of team members on coming back to work.
o One company held regular “town hall” zoom meetings with their entire team to keep everyone updated and provide team members the opportunity to share concerns
• A few restaurateurs offered a variety of on-line training courses (e.g. wine education, conversations with chefs about products and preparation methods, sanitation procedures) to keep staff engaged during layoff or furlough.
• Participants in the call emphasized that benefits were really important to employees and how that is a departure from previous attitudes.
• While the participants in the roundtable were a Hall of Fame of the best employment practices in the industry, there was significant anecdotal evidence that poor employers were having a harder time with rehiring/recruiting than those that employees had trust in.
• Big issue without resolution – commissioned sales people. Banquet and Private Dining, which was such a strong contributor towards profitability, is an unknown at this point.
• Most of the participants had done their best to keep salaried management and staff employed by assigning new responsibilities, such as working take-out orders and arranging delivery. Most managers jumped in with a “whatever it takes”. A few (one large employer pinned it at 8%) declined to do such work or had health safety concerns and chose to leave their positions.
• Most assigned one manager the new role of “Safety and Sanitation Manager” in each store in addition to other duties.
• Safety protocols and enforcement of same were essential to make team members feel good about coming back to work.
• All were looking at or had already restructured tip pools or tip-out procedures to incorporate a better sense of teamwork and fairness as they brought team members back to work.
o One operator with 30+ high-end restaurants said that since re-opening, his team’s tip average has soared to almost 35% (from around 22% previously.)

In the Culinary Agents survey, the indication was that 92% of the workforce intended to stay in the industry, citing passion as the single most important reason for staying. Interestingly, 21% said that career growth was their compelling reason for staying in the restaurant business.

I need to also stress how much all these operators continue to do to for their communities. A couple were working with World Central Kitchen in preparing and providing meals, some were making box meals for their employees and families, and several were offering food for a variety of community efforts. As always, my fellow restaurateurs amaze me with their “give first” mentality. In the midst of a huge downturn in the own financial prospects, they never stop thinking about the needs of others.

Another great session and some terrific learning.

Since the start of restaurant shutdowns (as a result of Covid-19), there has been a spotlight on the business side of the hospitality industry. In hopes of...

Can’t say I agree but it is an interesting perspective. The need for restaurants to control revenue going forward on the...
06/04/2020
The future of restaurant dining is reservation-only

Can’t say I agree but it is an interesting perspective. The need for restaurants to control revenue going forward on the other hand, is a given. Any tech that helps them do so is a plus in my opinion.

Dreaming of dining out? You're going to need a reservation for that, industry experts say.

US Foods Giving Away Reopening Kits to Independent Restaurants | FSR magazine
06/02/2020
US Foods Giving Away Reopening Kits to Independent Restaurants | FSR magazine

US Foods Giving Away Reopening Kits to Independent Restaurants | FSR magazine

US Foods Holding Corp. announced it is giving away free reopening kits to qualifying independent restaurant owners to help support restaurant reopening efforts in communities across the U.S. The reopening kits provide independent restaurant operators with must-have supplies such as masks and safety....

This is truth!
04/25/2020
IRC

This is truth!

From David Smelson - Quote of the day for “They’re not easy cases,” he said. “[But] the worst thing a restaurant owner...
03/26/2020
Restaurants get no relief from business interruption insurance

From David Smelson - Quote of the day for “They’re not easy cases,” he said. “[But] the worst thing a restaurant owner can do is take the word of their insurance broker that they have no claim. The second worst thing they can do is take the word of the insurance company that they have no claim.”
https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/operations/restaurants-get-no-relief-business-interruption-insurance?fbclid=IwAR1icV-PbWFFZ5hkRuwTsT-gLP5aKSWIzrZOIb-ZxVFSPY2Td7kkPw1Vd9w

Operators report frustration as their claims are denied during the coronavirus crisis.

IMPORTANT UPDATES on Employer Relief and Employee Benefits 3/17 | Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington
03/17/2020
IMPORTANT UPDATES on Employer Relief and Employee Benefits 3/17 | Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington

IMPORTANT UPDATES on Employer Relief and Employee Benefits 3/17 | Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington

Dear Restaurant Community, We have a few important updates to share with you based on what was passed by the DC City Council and recommendations from Virginia Governor Ralph Northam today. We are also sharing what is a work in progress and happening on the Federal level. This is a long email, but in...

07/21/2017

Great butchering video! Very informative.

What do you do when one of your favorite chefs teams up with one of your favorite clients? Congratulate everyone!Best wi...
07/20/2017
Chef Liam LaCivita Closes Bar Civita to Head Up Via Umbria

What do you do when one of your favorite chefs teams up with one of your favorite clients? Congratulate everyone!

Best wishes to Chef Liam LaCivita, Suzy and Bill Menard and all the Via Umbria team!
https://www.washingtonian.com/2017/07/17/chef-liam-lacivita-closes-bar-civita-to-head-up-georgetown-via-umbria/?utm_source=Via+Umbria+Web+Master+List&utm_campaign=a3dfa7dd08-DC+Burger+Week+2017&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_5d385b623a-a3dfa7dd08-347024717

New Italian breakfast sandwiches and pastas for Georgetown.

Great article. What people should understand is that restaurants have a life-cycle. Sixty years ago or so, the largest r...
07/03/2017
Another restaurant closes. That doesn’t mean the industry is headed for a crash.

Great article. What people should understand is that restaurants have a life-cycle. Sixty years ago or so, the largest restaurant company in the world was Howard Johnson's. Now, one restaurant still exists.

Restaurant success is not just about the food, the decor, the service or the pricing but rather all those elements brought together in a cohesive manner. Finally, before everyone lays blame on landlords, my self-invented axiom is "Restaurants don't go broke paying rent. They go broke paying rent in the wrong location."

Competition seems tougher than ever, but don’t call what’s happening a ‘bubble,’ or believe it when you read it.

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