Chapter 10 Food and Beverage Hotel Operations Management

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Similarities: Hotel and Restaurant Food Services Planning Issues Financial Concerns Plan by focusing on menu Menu driven by guests’ wants, needs, and/or preferences Menu impacts operational factors: – Layout/equipment – Labor for production, service, and cleanup – F&B products for purchase All food service operations must assess financial status – Operating budget – Income statement / balance sheet / cash flow statement Emphasis on Consumers Cost-Control Procedures Marketing concerns Repeat business important to financial success Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier Necessity for standard operating procedures – Purchasing / receiving / storing / issuing / prepreparation / serving / service © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Steps in Food and Beverage Product Control Step 1: Purchasing Step 2: Receiving Step 3: Storing Step 4: Issuing Step 5: Prepreparation Step 6: Preparation Step 7: Serving Step 8: Service Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Steps in Food and Beverage Product Control (cont. ) Step 1: Purchasing Step 2: Receiving Step 3: Storing Step 4: Issuing Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier Develop purchase specification Supplier selection Purchasing correct quantities No collusion between property and supplier Evaluation of purchasing process Development of receiving procedures Completion of necessary receiving reports (e. g. , addressing financial and security concerns) Effective use of appropriate inventory systems Control of product quality Securing products from theft Location of products within storage areas Product rotation concerns Matching issues (issue and usage) Purchasing as inventory is depleted © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Steps in Food and Beverage Product Control (cont. ) Step 5: Prepreparation Step 6: Preparation Mise-en-place Minimizing food waste/maximizing nutrient retention Use of standardized recipes Use of portion control Requirements for food and employee safety Step 7: Serving Timing of incoming food delivery Portion control Revenue management concerns Step 8: Service Revenue control concerns Serving alcoholic beverage responsibly Sanitation and cleanliness Food and beverage server attentiveness Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Personnel Requirement Similarities Practice of Empowerment Transferring some decision-making responsibility and power to front-line employees Enhancing service to guests and increasing profits for the organization To meet unanticipated guest needs effectively: Staff must be trained in standardized procedures. Managers must provide clear direction to employees. Managers must provide necessary resources. Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Profitability Differences Profitability = Revenue – Expenses Profit amounts generated by restaurant F&B is relatively easy to calculate. The process of allocating revenues and expenses applicable to F&B services in a hotel is more difficult. Costs of F&B sales is generally higher in a restaurant than in a hotel. Hotel’s “bottom line” profit from F&B sales is likely to be lower than a restaurant’s. Payroll costs (or fixed-labor costs) are higher than in a restaurant. Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Overview of Hotel Food and Beverage Operations: Marketing-Related Differences Location within the Community Restaurants: Locations easily accessible to potential guests Hotels: Locations most accessible to guests desiring lodging accommodations Location within a Hotel Restaurants: Locations easily accessible to potential guests Hotels: Locations most accessible to guests desiring lodging accommodations Menu Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier For hotels, food and beverage service is viewed as an amenity or secondary objective (sale of guest rooms is primary objective) © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Room Service Operations: Profitability Concerns Why does it lose money? Why offered? How to offset losses? Relatively few properties generate profits from room service Very high labor costs High expenses incurred for capital costs – Delivery carts/warming devices Service to guests – Some guests select hotels based on room service availability Impacts hotel rating High expenses incurred for capital costs - Delivery carts / warming devices Offer hospitality suite business Provide hosted events Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Room Service Operations: Menu Planning Factors Quality Concerns Cross. Selling Menu Language Less likely to oversee room service food quality Must offer products that maintain quality during holding and transportation to guest room (e. g. , problems with omelets and french fries) Advertising availability of other hotel services – Dinner menu providing information about Sunday brunch Language barriers for international guests – Use of pictures and multilingual menu descriptions Clearly state ordering requirements – Minimum order charges/mandatory tipping policies Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Room Service Operations: Operating Issues An inaccurate room service order cannot be corrected quickly. A minor problem in room service may impact guests’ perceptions about the entire lodging experience. Communication Guest placing order / order taker / room service productionservice staff / room service staff Abbreviations should be clearly understood by order taker and food production staff Technology Improving the accuracy of room service orders – Electronic cash register (ECR) / point-of-sale terminal / remote printer Upselling Technique Opportunities for upselling are overlooked. Upselling increases guest check average. Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Room Service Operations: Within Guest Room Service Training Issues for Room Service Attendants Explaining procedures for retrieval of room service items Asking guests where room service meal should be set up Presenting the guest check and securing payment Opening wine bottles (if applicable) Providing an attitude of genuine hospitality Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Banquet Operations: Profit Opportunities Well-planned banquets can be profitable! Banquet menu has higher contribution margin. – Banquets frequently celebrate special events. Forecasting and planning production, service, and labor are relatively easy. – Formal guarantee is made – Less likelihood of overproduction of food with subsequent waste Beverage sales from hosted or cash bars increase profit. – Capable of increasing alcoholic beverage sales Increasing market share of the community’s banquet business Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier Increasing property’s profitability © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Banquet Operations: Menu Planning Factors/concerns for planning banquet menus: Guest preferences Ability to consistently produce items of the desired quality Availability of ingredients required to produce the menu Production/service staff with appropriate skills Equipment, layout, and facility design issues Nutritional issues Sanitation concerns Peak volume production and operating concerns Ability to generate required profit levels Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Banquet Operations: Service Styles Butler Service Appetizers and prepoured champagne can be served by service staff at a reception while guests stand. Buffet Service Quantities of food are prearranged on a self-service line; guests pass along the line and help themselves. Family Style (English Style) Platters and bowls of food are filled in the kitchen and brought to guests’ tables. French Service Meals are prepared or finished at tableside by service staff (e. g. , tossing Caesar salad/flambéing entrée) Platter Service Production staff plate food in the kitchen; service staff bring it to the table and place individual portions on guests’ plates. Plated Service (American Service) Production staff preportion food on plates in kitchen; service staff serve to guests. Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Banquet Operations: Beverage Functions Various Ways to Charge for Beverages Individual Drink Price Bottle Charge Collecting cash or a ticket when each drink is sold Charging on a by-bottle basis for each bottle consumed and/or opened Per-Person Charge Charging a specific price for beverages based on attendance at the event Hourly Charge Charging the host a specific price for each hour of beverage service Specific Per-Event Charge Using hours of beverage service; charging number of drinks per hour times number of guests Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Banquet Operations: Banquet Room Set-Up Size Timing Determined by: Becomes critical when: The same room to be used same day for different functions Number of expected guests Local fire safety codes/ ordinances Types and sizes of tables, chairs, and other equipment Number of seats per table Required space for aisles, dance floors, band stands, other entertainment, and head tables. Two Critical Concerns Large evening event precedes following day’s large breakfast event in same room Reception/buffet tables Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Banquet Operations: Banquet Contracts and Billing Policies Topics in banquet contract: Last date that banquet space will be held without signed contract Time that a guarantee of attendance must be received Cancellation policies Guarantee reduction policy Billing: Amount and schedule for guest payment Information about service of alcoholic beverages Other information applicable to a specific event Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Alcoholic Beverage Service in Hotels Good training protects guests, the public, and the hotel from tragedies and lawsuits. Responsible service and consumption of alcoholic beverage is an integral part of the responsibility of all F&B managers in all types of operations. Train all staff in the hotel (including non-F&B positions, e. g. , front desk, housekeeping, maintenance, and/or security staff) to recognize and respond to visible signs of guests’ (and nonguests’) intoxication. Develop and implement ongoing training for responsible service of alcoholic beverages. Hotel Operations Management, 2 nd ed. Hayes/Ninemeier © 2007 Pearson Education Pearson Prentice Hall Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458