Every Table Had A Bottle

I went to two restaurants recently. Same city. Same caliber. Completely different rooms.

Each of the restaurants are known for their hospitality, service, food, wine lists and cocktail programs.

The first restaurant had a bottle on almost every table and I saw many order a second one, and this was on a weeknight. The second had only a few bottles on tables; mostly cocktails and wine by the glass. The owners face the same challenges of rising rents, utilities, labor, and food costs as everyone else. They simply made different choices.

 The first restaurant prices at cost plus fifty percent. A bottle that costs the house $40 goes on the list at $60, not $160, not $120, but $60. The sommelier was not explaining value. He was moving bottles. They also priced their specialty cocktail list from $11 for a wonderful spritz to their Manhattan and Last Word at $16. They use superjuice and Lazzarone maraschino instead of fresh lime and Luxardo. Smart decisions that let the price work for the guest.

 The second runs the standard four-times markup. The guests ran their own numbers and ordered around it.

 Years ago, I was consulting for a small restaurant on the lower east side that I went to quite a bit. I told the operator I wanted to cut the price of a well-known Champagne dramatically and use it as a loss leader. He thought I had lost my mind. I told him I was confident enough to make it personal. Double the bottle sales in one quarter or I would cover the shortfall myself.

 He tripled sales of that yellow bottle, and overall Champagne sales went up fifteen percent including an impressive selection of grower Champagne at standard markups.

 When I consult with operators, they are always surprised when I ask about their marketing and PR objectives. I tell them that all the choices they make from selection to pricing and training affects the overall guest experience. The restaurant owner who prices portions of their beverage program below standard mark-ups is telling the public that they will sacrifice short term gains for a full room, and will actively fight for their hard earned dollars.

 Sam Walton said it plainly in Made in America. "I found that by pricing it at $1.00, I could sell three times more of it than by pricing it at $1.20. I might make only half the profit per item, but because I was selling three times as many, the overall profit was much greater. Simple enough."

 The first restaurant owner read that memo.