Ken Burgin

Restaurant Productivity

Productivity & Cost Control

Restaurant Sustainability

Restaurant Sustainability is About Success, Not Just Recycling.

June 8, 2022 No Comments

Sustainability is about survival and prosperity – can we put that upfront? Now more than ever, with soaring supply prices, staff shortages and crazy weather, sustainability makes sense across all business areas – it’s much more than recycled packaging and local vegetables. So let’s look at how it can make your business stronger. I rethought my approach when I hosted a panel on the topic at the National Restaurant Conference in Melbourne. Melissa Goffin from

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Reducing Food Waste

Podcast 18: Reducing Food Waste – New Strategies and Solutions

June 6, 2022 No Comments

Dianne McGrath has been doing some remarkable work on sustainability in the hospitality industry. While everyone believes in reducing food waste and improved sustainability, she has done detailed research on how the problem shows up in restaurants and foodservice, and how to make practical improvements. Ken Burgin interviewed Dianne to find out what he’s learned from her research, and how that can be used by operators and the wider food production industry – the production

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Building Teamwork

Podcast 17: Building Teamwork in Restaurants and Cafes

May 22, 2022 No Comments

Wherever there are people working together, there will be team dynamics, negotiation and the sharing of tasks and responsibilities. A good leader guides this process to get the best from their people – and chef Glenn Flood has many years of experience making this work. It was great to talk with him about Building Teamwork in Restaurants and Cafes – in the kitchen and front of house, and improving relations between the two sections. In

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Kitchen Front of House

Reducing Tension Between Kitchen & Front of House

May 17, 2022 No Comments

Friction between floor staff and kitchen is wasteful and unnecessary, but it won’t go away by itself. It usually needs intervention by senior management to bring all parties to their senses – here are the key issues that need to be understood and resolved: Make sure everyone understands the word ‘teamwork’. Think in sporting terms – a successful team has agreed rules, a variety of skills, they chase a good score, they have good leaders,

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Reduce Waste

Podcast 15: 8 Ways to Reduce Waste and Inefficiency in Restaurants and Foodservice

April 20, 2022 No Comments

In this podcast, Ken Burgin looks at Toyota’s classification of 8 different types of waste, and how you can use this in hospitality to cut costs, increase efficiency and improve the bottom line. Toyota built its world-class success by watching and controlling every step of the manufacturing process, especially waste. It’s very useful to apply the discipline of manufacturing to hospitality – we produce things too! This classification of 8 Types of Waste is based

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chef training

Podcast 13: Teaching Chefs About Kitchen Management and Menu Design

March 28, 2022 No Comments

We expect a lot from chefs – not only to manage production and service, but keep to a budget, organise a team of people and handle safety issues, changing food trends, menu design & engineering, plus social media and a bit of marketing. It’s a big ask, especially when they may not have had training beyond hands-on experience with another chef. In this podcast, Ken Burgin talks with Liz Perkins, a chef, former hospitality business

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How to Sell a Cafe

Podcast 12: Buying and Selling Cafes and Restaurants

March 14, 2022 No Comments

In this podcast, Ken Burgin talks with Paul Leach from GSE Business Consultants about Buying and Selling Cafes and Restaurants. Paul is an experienced business consultant and broker: he originally trained as a chef and has many years of experience as a cafe and bakery owner. There are some great hospitality businesses for sale, and many that will be disappointing – it’s essential to understand the factors that make the difference between a good purchase

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Food Delivery Truck

How to Get a Better Deal from Food & Beverage Suppliers

February 16, 2022 No Comments

The relationship between hospitality venues and their suppliers is a complicated one. Sometimes, vendors act like a business partner, tipping you off to new products and trends. Other times, you feel as though they are competition, squeezing out every last cent. The best way to manage this paradox is to have some supplier tips and tools up your sleeve – here are some suggestions. Many small hospitality businesses run their price negotiation on a weekly

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Restaurant Efficiency

How to Get Better Results on the Busy Days

February 8, 2022 No Comments

Being busy is great, but chaos is not – it leaves customers frustrated, staff upset and a real loss of potential profits. Here’s a quick checklist to prepare front and back of house so you maximise results, contain costs and avoid drama. Be well organised Anticipate the Busy Days. Based on the other factors, like weather, day of the week, TV and sporting events. Over time these have predictable results on customer numbers – check

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Restaurant Payments

10 Ways to Make it Easier for Customers to Spend Money – Remove the Friction in your Cafe or Restaurant

February 8, 2022 No Comments

Nothing should interrupt a customer who’s keen to give you money! The sales term is ‘grease the slide’ – removing any friction that stops a customer completing a sale. Check for any bumps or roadblocks you may have created – here are some solutions: Take more Credit Cards: Do you accept the whole range? Amex fees are a bit higher, but ‘no Amex’ rules get people offside, especially if they want the points. Are you

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