OBJECTIVES OF A RESTAURANT: GENERAL AND SPECIFIC - DUDAS - 2025

The objectives of a restaurant are defined as the goals that its managers must establish in order to grow the business and achieve its strategic vision. Like many other businesses, the restaurant industry exists in order to make a profit.

Its business model is based on producing and serving food; However, very important factors such as the service they offer to their customers also play a role. For this reason, and before embarking on the adventure of opening an establishment, it is convenient to consider the objectives that are sought with it.

General objectives of a restaurant

The general objectives are those for which the company exists. Every restaurant should focus on having several overarching goals in relation to four important factors: food, service, profit, and longevity.

Food

Depending on the type of food, the restaurant must aim that the customer's expectations are satisfied and that, therefore, they are willing to return.

While some restaurants seek exquisite quality and service, addressing a more demanding public, others only seek to provide fast and efficient service, such as fast food establishments.

Keep in mind that the costs of producing the food must be low enough to generate a profit, while maintaining the quality expected by customers.

Food is, along with service, the two decisive keys to customer satisfaction. Therefore, food should always be served in optimal conditions. Another important factor is that the menu is varied for all types of diets.

Example: the objective with respect to the food of a restaurant in Mexico City could be "to serve fresh, quality Mexican food with a good appearance."

Service

People don't just go to restaurants to eat. They also do it as leisure, to relax and enjoy the complete experience: from the decoration to the music that is played in the premises. The quality of service makes the difference between a satisfied customer and a disappointed one and should be a primary goal.

Therefore, waiters must be polite and always available to customers, without being too insistent. Knowing how to differentiate this line differentiates a good waiter from a mediocre one.

In addition, depending on the target audience and the type of restaurant, the music has to be of one type or another. It is advisable to set it to a medium-low volume, so that diners can speak without having to raise their voices.

And let's never forget that the client is always (or almost always, since not everything goes) is right. Therefore, if you have a problem of any kind, try to satisfy him as much as possible, so that you get a good impression of the place and recommend it to your circles of friends.

Example: the objective of a restaurant in Mexico City regarding service could be "to provide a service so that the customer is comfortable, at home and at the same time happy."

Cost effectiveness

Every restaurant exists in order to generate a profit; Therefore, another of the general objectives of a restaurant is to always take into account the profit margin. The biggest costs incurred by an establishment are labor and food.

The workers are all the staff, from the chef to the waiter; and those of food include all the provision of the foods that later will be served.

In addition to these, the restaurants have other expenses, such as the rent of the premises, repairs, advertising, among others. That is why, for the business to be profitable, you have to invoice enough to cover all these costs and generate a subsequent profit.

Longevity

The best restaurants are maintained by the great reputation they build among their customers, which encourages word-of-mouth and makes it increasingly profitable.

If the establishment owns the premises and is profitable, it is very likely that it can be sustained indefinitely, which should be a general objective of the restaurant.

Example: A Buenos Aires restaurant's longevity goal could be "to be the best-known restaurant to Buenos Aires families from generation to generation."

Specific objectives

Specific objectives are those that seek a concrete and measurable result to achieve success. If we take profitability as a general objective, some specific objectives to achieve it could be to increase customer traffic, increase the average ticket per customer, increase the profit margin or improve infrastructure.

Increase traffic

To be successful, a restaurant has to get people into the premises and give them reasons to stay.

To do this, it is highly recommended to carry out a marketing plan, through social networks, written press, and radio and television advertisements, depending on the type of restaurant and the target audience. The department in charge of this objective is the marketing department.

A successful marketing plan includes systems to evaluate the impact of these actions and expenses, and has to define the objectives giving concrete objective figures; for example, the number of new customers expected.

In this sense, the tasks to achieve this goal could be, for example, investing a certain weekly amount in Facebook Ads, Twitter Ads or ads on web pages. Weekly posts, hashtags and interaction with users on social media should also be established.

Increase the average ticket

Once the customer is seated at the table, the establishment's earnings generally depend on the number of dishes that it orders.

For this there are different techniques, among which are suggestion by the waiter, product tests or upselling.

Increasing the menu can also help. To achieve this objective, a strategic objective can be an average amount per customer to be achieved. The department in charge is the sales department.

Increase profit margin

The restaurant owner must also establish a series of strategic objectives to achieve a higher profit margin without reducing quality.

For this, greater efficiency and less waste on food and labor costs must be sought, which are the two largest expenses in this sector. Here the departments in charge could be purchasing, human resources and operational.

Infrastructure improvement

Changes in structure involve a large investment, so they must be carefully planned and studied. Remodeling the premises, expanding to new areas or expanding the restaurant are some of these objectives, which must include budgets and times. The department in charge would be the expansion department.

However, if we were to take the overall goal of food as a reference, some specific goals could be to achieve better quality stuff, hire better chefs or increase the menu on offer.

References

1. David, F. (2008). «Concepts of Strategic Administration» Eleventh Edition. Editorial Pearson Education, Mexico.
2. Thompson, A. and Strickland, A. (2003). «Strategic Planning - Theory and cases». McGraw-Hill Publishing House.
3. Sudhir Andrews (2007). «1. Origins of the Food Service Industry. Food & Beverage Management ». McGraw Hill.
4. Brown, Monique R. (2000). "Host your own chef's table." Black Enterprise