Hospitality Roundup – January 2020
Welcome to my newest Hospitality article, where I will cover some news and upcoming changes in the hospitality industry.
Funny, sad, inspiring you to name it. I will continue to try new things and evolve as I am trying to bring you the most value possible. Enjoy!
Article of the month
Why aren't waiters given the respect – or salary – they deserve? (Link)
This stigma starts at a young age. The British Hospitality Association says there is “a deeply held antipathy towards the sector from too many parents, careers advisers and teachers”. “At school, the idea of hospitality as a profession is not even thought of,” says George Hersey,
general manager of the Frog Hoxton, in east London. “You are told to get a degree, and in the meantime get a job in a pub or restaurant.” It took Hersey years – and a degree he has never used – to commit to his dream of a hospitality career, and his friends even longer to stop questioning when he would grow out of it. “They were always supportive, but I knew they were really wondering when I’d get a proper job. Then they came here and saw me running my team and they got it, slowly but surely.”
Hospitality News
Is The Kitchen Dead? Research by UBS (Link)
Online food delivery is a mega-trend that looks set to grow tenfold over the next decade. We think it's possible that by 2030 most meals now cooked at home will instead be ordered online and delivered from restaurants or central kitchens. As we look to a future where consumers can tap a button and a drone delivers them a robot-cooked meal, we ask: Is the kitchen dead?
The secrets of ‘food porn' viral videos (Link)
Their clips take the form of visual recipes, usually filmed in a top-down format, focusing entirely on the food itself and cooking utensils. The final shots often show slow-motion close-ups of the resulting dish.
“For me, watching those kind of things the initial reaction is, they're disgusting, they're so gross, they're also incredibly wasteful, they're ludicrously unhealthy,” says Thom Eagle, food writer and freelance chef.
A New Marriott Division Goes Head-to-Head With Airbnb (Link)
The company is betting big on a market where other hotel companies have yet to succeed. The new Homes & Villas by Marriott International will offer 2,000 luxury properties worldwide, ranging from a one-bedroom home for $200 a night to that castle in Ireland for $10,000 a night.
Pizza Robot Capable of Making 300 Pizzas Per Hour Served CES Attendees (Link)
The food service industry currently has a global shortage of labor. There are 800K open food-service jobs today, and it's estimated that it will double over the next decade. This means the Picnic robotic pizza maker won't steal any jobs; rather, it will fill the open headcount that companies can't fill across the world.
A Waiters Life
Ask The Salty Waitress: My drink is hundreds of dollars. Must I tip 20%? (Link)
Hero McDonald's worker hailed for being the ‘Robin Hood of McNuggets' (Link)
A Question your guests might have
“Great companies are built by people who never stop thinking about ways to improve the business.” – J. Willard “Bill” Marriott (founder of Marriott International)
How to spend your break
Book recommendation: Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business by Danny Meyer (Amazon Link)
Seventy-five percent of all new restaurant ventures fail, and of those that do stick around, only a few become icons. Danny Meyer started Union Square Cafe when he was 27, with a good idea and hopeful investors. He is now the co-owner of a restaurant empire. How did he do it? How did he beat the odds in one of the toughest trades around? In this landmark book, Danny shares the lessons he learned developing the dynamic philosophy he calls Enlightened Hospitality. The tenets of that philosophy, which emphasize strong in-house relationships as well as customer satisfaction, are applicable to anyone who works in any business. Whether you are a manager, an executive, or a waiter, Danny’s story and philosophy will help you become more effective and productive, while deepening your understanding and appreciation of a job well done.
More from Lost in Hospitality
What is Hospitality and why a Waiter can be a great YouTuber (Link)
How Social Media is impacting the Hospitality Industry (Link)
Working in Hospitality changed my life (Link)
I hope you enjoyed these articles as I did. I'm also feeling particularly grateful to have you reading. Thank you for sharing some of your precious time with me each week.
Which section above is your favorite? What do you want more or less of? Other suggestions? Let me know!
Always serving,
– Dan Draper
P.S.
… and hey, before you go. If you wanna leave a Tip: Please kindly subscribe to my Social Media Pages, it helps with visibility. But most important share the message with your friends who may benefit from it.
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