NEWH - September 2004 - (Page 26)

powerful tools of the trade… tabletop pieces grabbing more attention by: Nancy Bohnett International Woodwork Corporation How do restaurants become a huge hit, while others fizzle? Many operators and owners have all the right ingredients, yet customers pass them by. In the more recent years, food establishments have become more diverse in their offerings, and less driven with themes and overwhelming décor packages. Is this creating better product and experience for the diner? In reviewing the many components of restaurant success, a strong collaborative design process with the team is a common and recurring element. The sophisticated diner of today is captured by tasteful, comfortable and stylish interiors providing the operators with a competitive edge. The sophisticated diner of today is captured by tasteful, comfortable and stylish interiors providing the operators with a competitive edge. Imagine walking by a restaurant window and the visceral design of the tabletop setting reminds you of a fine jewelry store: the light, color, design and proportion all have you smiling. You are immediately captured and drawn in, volunteering to challenge the senses, and end the mystery. One immediately focuses on the menu, making the culinary choices that offer a reflection of space and personal taste. The guest is offered to sip from a glass and involve him or herself with the table setting as the first course is served. The combination of a satisfied palette and a total emotional experience, qualifies the approval of the guest. The shared attention to detail, style and cuisine is most often supplemented by the table setting, environment and food all working together. The comfort value attracts and maintains the customer, much of which is provided within the first few minutes of a visit. An inviting design statement, the lighting and the aromas of the dining experience to come, combined together with service justify success. The team which develops this experience combines different objectives all being addressed together not independently. The designer reviews tabletop design as an extension to the décor, while a chef is displaying their art of cuisine, and those providing service reflect the durable and practical approach to the style of dining. Clark Wolf, a food, restaurant and hospitality consultant, is paving the way for designers and restaurant owners to better understand the importance and effectiveness of tabletop décor. Clark begins with a tableware program 26 that gathers information and documents the overall philosophy and direction of the team. The program becomes a foundation for the restaurant while equally providing a checklist for the overall success and outcome. This tool, which involves everyone, provides the interactive research from conception to the opening of the restaurant and beyond. Clark’s program is applied to every project, allowing all facets of the space to work congenially and cohesively. The tabletop pieces are well thought out to compliment and encourage the restaurant’s goals. Clark’s many years of success shares with the industry a necessary look at one detail of dining that many times is overlooked. The incorporation of the tabletop items will bring all elements of the dining together, providing a total experience and emotional connection for the guest. The expectations, sophistication and mixed cultural influences that drive the ongoing need to reinvent products and design, has provided a strong direction in the restaurant business. Many restaurant chains and brands have upgraded their interiors to accommodate the correct dining experience for the cuisine as well as the customer. The reinventing of the restaurant and product are most commonly adjusted with altering food, theme, seating layout, color or lighting. These changes often incur great expense; not realizing the beginning of the dining experience is felt with the hands and conveyed to the mind. First impressions are long and most often ever lasting, thus the importance in details, function and tablesetting. Many of the restaurants in recent years have used table settings that are of incorrect proportion, encompassing the guest with an uncomfortable dining experience, if not messy. Most often we are lead to believe a romantic setting includes tabletop décor with centerpieces or small voiles. Often the flowers were not well maintained, and the small candlelight is not kind to ones personal appearance. These elements effectively compliment an interior when placement occurs on perimeter walls or in entries, providing more shared impact and satisfaction to a guest. Many tabletops can be inexpensively altered, changed, or rearranged accommodating a new and fresh feeling to a diner.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NEWH - September 2004

NEWH - September 2004
President’s Letter
Calendar of Events
Contents
From the Editor
Hospitality News
On the Road Again... HD Expo 2004
Cruise Ship of Elegance…Aboard the Queen Mary Ii
Cruise Lines Expand Options
Your Hotel Restaurant
Powerful Tools of the Trade
Education in Culinary Arts
The New Direction for Restaurants in Canada
Jamie Oliver Story
Lindsay Sharman Trainee Extraordinaire
Oh Canada, Oh Canada…The Fairmont Royal York
From Across the Pond

NEWH - September 2004