WOWing your restaurant's guests

Episode Summary

Marvin Alballi—award-winning F&B executive, best-selling author of Restaurant Excellence, and former leader across Burger King corporate, Brinker (Chili’s) and IHG (745 outlets/212 hotels)—argues that restaurants win on disciplined systems, human-first hiring, and “wow” experiences built on taste, not theatrics. Upselling should create loyalty (recommend the most loved, not the most expensive), service is art and science, and leaders must obsess over details while building culture that “eats strategy for breakfast.” Consistency comes from schematics, zoning and training—not just tenure. Build a brand (mission, vision, repeat), use inventory software to control your biggest controllable cost, and don’t franchise until you can replicate the experience and support partners. Bottom line: craveability > Instagramability, genuine table visits > fly-bys, and surprise-and-delight moments compound revenue far more than paid hype.

Learnings From The Episode

Why he wrote Restaurant Excellence

Marvin couldn’t find a single resource covering the whole business (service, training, cost control, marketing, strategy). He wrote one—to help operators (especially first-timers and immigrants) avoid avoidable failures and compress years of lessons into a usable playbook.

Upselling, redefined: loyalty over check average

Most training pushes the priciest dish. Marvin flips it:

• Recommend the most popular/tastiest item to win a repeat guest.
• Upsell to improve the dish (cheese/bacon on a burger; sautéed mushrooms on a steak), not to inflate the bill.
  Long-term revenue beats short-term check lift.

Service = art + science

• Art: read the table, anticipate needs, deliver seamless flow (no waving for attention).
• Science: know ingredients, pairings, and menu cold.
  And ditch the fly-by (“How’s everything?” while walking). Do a real table visit: introduce yourself, ask specific questions, and listen.

Details are the strategy in restaurants

From grooming and uniforms to warm bread/soft butter and ticket times—thousands of details make the experience. Great leaders model this: top executives on kitchen walks checking line setup, freshness, and specs signal that everything matters.

Hire for attitude; train the skill

Interview for personality (cheerful, extroverted, team-first, guest-obsessed). Skills are teachable; attitude isn’t.

Consistency is engineered

Retention helps, but systems win:

• Zoning, labeling, kitchen schematics
• Clear prep standards and line checks
• Training that makes the right way the easy way

Culture eats strategy (and how to build it)

Be a role model. Set high standards without being hard on people. Create an open-door environment, invest in growth, and make quality non-negotiable. Policies and manuals die without culture.

Leadership vs management

Management = tasks (schedules, briefings).
Leadership = inspiring belief in the mission, giving room to learn, and keeping a positive, can-do attitude that spreads.

Craveable > Instagrammable (and beware “influencers”)

Presentation matters, but taste brings people back. Don’t chase viral smoke and glitter over flavor. Be skeptical of paid praise; value honest critique and real guest sentiment.

What’s missing in many restaurants

Training. Too many multi-million build-outs hinge on an untrained server. Fix it with:

• Daily coaching and pre-shift briefs
• Structured feedback loops (table visits, focus groups)
• A reality check: if you’re not on a waitlist on weekends, something’s off—find it.

Strategy on one page

Center it on guest experience, consistency, procurement, training & succession. If you plan to grow, define how many outlets, over how many years, with what support. And remember: you’re building a brand, not “running a restaurant.” Mission and vision should be lived daily.

The “wow” formula and shock tactics

Average experience → average sales.
Good → good.
Wow → wow.
Empower surprise-and-delight: a comped loyalist meal without warning; a sincere birthday call with no promo attached. Create emotional connection on purpose.

Franchising 101

Company-owned expansion ≠ franchising. Franchising scales your brand with partner capital—but only if you provide:

• Design manual, recipes/SOPs, training programs
• Menu R&D pipeline, marketing calendars, audits/visits
• Procurement strategy and supply feasibility per market
  Do your due diligence (both sides). You’re ready to franchise only when you can replicate the experience exactly and support franchisees continuously.

Why inventory software is non-negotiable

Food and labor are your largest controllable costs. Excel won’t cut it. Inventory management ensures stock freshness, accurate COGS, and profitability across outlets.

Rapid-fire principles

• Tips: server keeps but shares with kitchen.
• Orders: write them down; accuracy beats theatrics.
• Chef table visits: yes when the kitchen runs flawlessly; otherwise, fix the pass first.
• Bread & butter: mostly cultural—get it right for your market.

Marvinisms (a few favorites)

• Guest, not customer.
• Frequent repositioning is a mistake.
• Consistency builds (or breaks) trust.
• You are an experience maker, not an order taker.

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