Thanks, Robin. Reflecting on your thoughts: Every place is different, and these are challenging times for restaurants, plagued by rising costs. The major squeeze is quality management. Who can afford it? There are more sommeliers and wine trained managers available to the hospitality industry than ever before, yet the cost of having them on staff is prohibitive for all but the most successful restaurants. Which is why food and service comes first. If you excel in those areas and can build a following, then you can retain dedicated wine professionals on your staff. It's a vicious circle, can't have one without the others. As you mention, caring, detailed service is often sacrificed along with intelligent wine program management. That's why the "art" seems like it's lost, although there are just enough top drawer restaurants leading the way to show that it's not entirely impossible to achieve. That's why I continue to post these articles. It's not so much cost as good decision making. It doesn't cost any extra, for instance, for a good chef to execute a successful dish, just like it doesn't cost a manager any extra to train staff to pay attention to detail, or sommelier or wine manager to make a good wine list. It's more a matter of making good, intelligent choices, and being a leader.
Great piece. Such a lost art. We dine out often and it’s unusual to get great service anymore.
Thanks, Robin. Reflecting on your thoughts: Every place is different, and these are challenging times for restaurants, plagued by rising costs. The major squeeze is quality management. Who can afford it? There are more sommeliers and wine trained managers available to the hospitality industry than ever before, yet the cost of having them on staff is prohibitive for all but the most successful restaurants. Which is why food and service comes first. If you excel in those areas and can build a following, then you can retain dedicated wine professionals on your staff. It's a vicious circle, can't have one without the others. As you mention, caring, detailed service is often sacrificed along with intelligent wine program management. That's why the "art" seems like it's lost, although there are just enough top drawer restaurants leading the way to show that it's not entirely impossible to achieve. That's why I continue to post these articles. It's not so much cost as good decision making. It doesn't cost any extra, for instance, for a good chef to execute a successful dish, just like it doesn't cost a manager any extra to train staff to pay attention to detail, or sommelier or wine manager to make a good wine list. It's more a matter of making good, intelligent choices, and being a leader.