Kyle-Scott Services - Hospitality

Last week, we took some friends out to a new restaurant, and noticed that the waiter who took our order carried a spoon in his shirt pocket. It seemed a little strange.

When the waiter brought our water and cutlery, I noticed he also had a spoon in his shirt pocket. Then I looked around and saw that all the staff had spoons in their pockets.

When the waiter came back to serve our soup I asked, "Why the spoon?" "Well, "he explained, "the restaurant’s owners hired Andersen Consulting to revamp all our processes. After several months of analysis, they concluded that the spoon was the most frequently dropped piece of cutlery. It represents a drop frequency of approximately 3 spoons per table per hour. If our staff are better prepared, we can reduce the number of trips back to the kitchen and save 15 man-hours per shift."

As luck would have it, I dropped my spoon and he was able to replace it with his spare. "I’ll get another spoon next time I go to the kitchen instead of making an extra trip to get it right now." I was impressed.

I also noticed that there was a string hanging out of the waiter’s zip on his trousers. Looking around, I noticed that all the waiters had the same string hanging from their flies. So before he walked off, I asked the waiter, "Excuse me, but can you tell me why you have that string right there?"

"Oh, certainly!" Then he lowered his voice. "Not everyone is so observant. That consulting firm I mentioned also found out that we can save time in the rest-room. By tying this string to the tip of you know what, we can pull it out without touching it and eliminate the need to wash our hands, shortening the time spent in the rest-room by 76.39 per cent."

I asked "After you get it out, how do you put it back?"

"Well," he whispered, "I don’t know about the others, but I use the spoon."

Credit To Artist

Busy day in the kitchen today rescuing fruit, making jam, supporting youth and community initiatives. Caramelised Banana Jam and Manderin Marmalade. Kairos Community College Deception Bay

...actually that isn't really coffee either....

Get your portion control right for your customer demographic. 😁

We all need to do better at this.

This weekend I went to a wedding at a friend's house. As we chatted with fellow guests, my partner and I stood in line at the bar.

"What can I get you?" the bartender smiled. "We have everything!"

"Great!" I cheered. I was thirsty. "Something non-alcoholic please."

The bartender's cheery demeanor immediately turned to one of perplexity. He wasn't expecting this, apparently. Befuddled by my request, he told me there was juice and water bottles in the cooler around the corner. So... the kids cooler.

Yea, I know the drill. I've been sober almost two years and I know all about the kids cooler. And yet I go into every social gathering, every wedding, every restaurant with almost a Pollyanna hope. Maybe the sober curious movement is making a ripple in the food and beverage industry. Maybe this time they'll have the non-alcoholic (NA) beer they said was out of stock last time. Maybe they've finally updated their menu to have NA options that are fun and flirty and celebratory.

But we still have a long ways to go, don't we? And at every social gathering, I still ask for my drink in a wine glass or a tumbler. And I ask for a lime wedge because, yes... it's more fun. And yes... it makes it look less like a kid's juice box and more like a grown up drink.

And yes, I don't drink but that doesn't mean my taste buds died. I still like festive drinks in fun glasses with pretty colors.

Yet more often then not, I wind up digging through the ice of a kids cooler, looking for something NA besides apple juice and Capri Sun.

You stand out if you're not drinking. You get questioned if you're not drinking ("are you pregnant?") You look and feel out of place, especially if you're new in your sobriety. Sometimes... you even get ridiculed or pressured to have one.

Being sober in a world that idolizes booze feels like a target on our back. A target I never asked to be there. A target I never expected.

Quitting drinking was hard. But navigating in this boozy culture as the only non-drinker at almost every event, networking party, every wedding? That's harder.

A little inclusivity would go a long way. Offering NA options at your party. Throwing out non-alcoholic suggestions when you offer to buy someone a drink? It's an easy, inclusive concept that might make a big difference for someone newly sober and struggling.

Time to change the narrative. Someone's reason for not drinking is none of our business. Let's offer more NA options and less sideways glances. It would go a long way.

***
Follow Celeste on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theultimatemomchallenge.

As the weather starts to warm up...time to bring out the long cool drinks.

Classical Screwdriver – with variations A screwdriver is a popular alcoholic highball drink made with Orange Juice and Vodka or Orange Soft-drink and Vodka making it a good introduction to built cocktails or long drinks. An early writte…