Gearing Up for the Holidays: Restaurant Owners and Operators

The holidays are just right around the corner. It won’t be long before Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanza, and other holidays are upon us. During this festive time of year, it means spending time with loved ones, shopping, and celebrating. However, in the restaurant industry, it can mean a very stressful and busy time of year.

As a restaurant owner or operator, you probably remember last holiday season and all the challenges it brought. To avoid those same issues, and any other problems, now is the time to gear up for the holidays with these seven great tips and suggestions!

Waiter Takes Order From a Group of Friends
  1. Start renting work uniforms from a reliable service. The last thing your employees want to do, after working 8+ hour shifts, is to go home and have to launder their restaurant uniforms. By using a reliable service, your employees have one less thing to worry about. Plus, they will look great in clean and pressed uniforms every day they come to work—not just during the holidays.
  2. Hire extra holiday staff to help fill gaps in scheduling. Your regular employees will want to take time off, which could leave you short-staffed. Now is the best time to start interviewing and hiring seasonal staff so you will have extra employees available all holiday season long.
  3. Meet with your employees to go over holiday schedules. It is a good idea to have a meeting where you can go over your holiday expectations, work schedules, requesting time off, and other such things. This is also a good time for employees to ask questions and ensure everyone is on the same page.
  4. Change up your menu to reflect the holidays. You may want to offer holiday classics as part of your daily specials, roll out several pumpkin-spiced menu options, and so on. When adding and changing the menu, remember to take some things off to help keep things easier on your staff. You could even come up with a limited menu if you will be open on certain holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
Holiday Dinner at Work Event
  1. Plan a holiday party for your employees. You don’t want to exclude your employees from the holidays. The easiest way to show how much you appreciate them is with their own holiday party. Since it can be hard for everyone to attend at the same time, consider either closing up early or having the party hours run across shifts so everyone can make it.
  2. Review last year’s sales to determine your scheduling needs. Take a look back at the previous holiday season to get an idea of staffing requirements. For instance, Christmas Day could have been rather busy, while things may not have picked up until after noon on New Year’s Day. It is also a good idea to schedule extra employees “on-call” on days you are not entirely sure how busy it will be.
  3. Create special holiday incentives for your employees. One way to keep your employees delivering great customer service is by offering them special incentives. For example, the employee that sells the most pumpkin-spice products gets an entire weekend off with pay after the holidays.

By using these tips and suggestions, you and your employees will be prepared for the upcoming holiday season. For further information about restaurant uniform and supply rentals, please feel free to contact Prudential Overall Supply at (800) 767-5536 today!