| It was about 20 years ago that the casual dining | | | | of Technomic, a Chicago-based food-industry |
| boom got going in the United States. It was a golden, | | | | consulting and investigation firm. Shaving 10 to 15 |
| batter-dipped age: We were lured in by the novelty | | | | minutes off a visit can mean the difference between |
| of mozzarella sticks and artichoke dip, marveled at | | | | drawing a lunch crowd or sitting idle for the |
| the cluttered walls and uniform flair and gulped down | | | | afternoon. |
| two-liter mango margaritas like every night was | | | | 3. Push the bottle |
| Friday. | | | | Booze is usually a high-margin item for informal |
| But the bloom is off the bloomin' onion when it | | | | restaurants, but more importantly it's a gateway to |
| comes to casual dining. The current recession has | | | | gaining customers for dinner. According to |
| clients trading down to fast food and also the | | | | Technomic's research, only 14 % of clients find |
| growing "fast-casual" segment of takeout specialists | | | | occasion to drink in the afternoon, which is why |
| (think Chipotle, Noodles or Panera). Over the last | | | | national chains have started out placing a new |
| couple decades, while drive-thru burger joints have | | | | emphasis on earlier happy hours. |
| kept their costs flat, the typical bill at informal dining | | | | 4. Push the plate |
| chains has multiplied three or four times. And the | | | | Besides offering an extended pleased hour on booze, |
| caliber of the foods has remained pretty much the | | | | create a pleased hour on menu items, suggests |
| exact same while fast foods has become better and | | | | Tristano, who points out that Steak ‘n Shake's |
| more diverse. Add to that grumbles about | | | | afternoon half-price milkshake promotion can easily |
| predictable, high-fat menus and stale décor and it is | | | | lead to an order of burger and fries, and Braxton |
| understandable why in 2010 the category was down | | | | Seafood Grill's happy hour, when it sells lobsters at |
| 5 percent to 8 % with a 3 percent to 5 percent drop | | | | cost, frequently gets orders for three beers and all |
| forecast for 2011. | | | | the fixings. |
| There are several steps draw in a down market, and | | | | 5. Pinpoint the quality |
| it is critical to remember that even individual | | | | "If you are at a Mexican restaurant, people are likely |
| franchisees are not powerless. We spoke with a few | | | | to notice if you're scraping broken tortilla chips from |
| of the leading thinkers in the casual dining field to | | | | the bottom of the barrel and not filling their glasses |
| learn what you can do to put a little flair back into | | | | to the top," Tristano says. Numerous chains also |
| your business. | | | | make the mistake of charging for soft drink refills or |
| 1. Think locally | | | | reducing the amount of servers to save money. |
| Casual dining chains are some of the most aggressive | | | | 6. Do not chase Subway |
| national advertisers out there. The issue is, lots of | | | | One of the large temptations in informal dining is to |
| franchisees think that's sufficient, particularly after a | | | | simply slash prices until hordes of $5 deal-seekers |
| splashy grand opening with large media buys. Casual | | | | start filling the tables. But Sinclair says that's exactly |
| dining mom-and-pops haven't been hurt as much by | | | | the wrong tactic. "All that does is draw in deal |
| the recession, mainly because individuals feel a strong | | | | hunters, and when the promotion is more than, they |
| connection to the businesses. Becoming a local leader | | | | won't return," he says. |
| and integral part of the community, versus a faceless | | | | 7. Give them something special |
| chain, can greatly assist to developing client loyalty. | | | | It might seem obvious: People visit a particular |
| 2. Speed up lunch | | | | restaurant to obtain foods they can't get anywhere |
| Lunch is when the fast-food joints and informal | | | | else. But that idea has become murky in informal |
| restaurants go head to head--and wherever casual | | | | dining, where fried appetizers and flatiron steaks |
| dining loses out. "Business users wish to get in and | | | | have all melded into culinary clichés in their |
| out rapidly, and most do not have a full hour for | | | | businesses will succeed. |
| lunch," says Darren Tristano, executive vice president | | | | |