Kitchen Nightmares: Amy's Baking Co.

Kitchen Nightmares

Episode:  6.16

Amy's Baking Company & Bistro

a.k.a. ABC Bistro

Scottsdale, AZ

first aired on 05/10/2013

Did you see Friday's episode of Kitchen Nightmares?  Although I frequently cite this show and others as examples of poor restaurant management, I don't usually discuss a single episode at length.  This restaurant is an exception.

Any and all viewers should watch reality shows with some skepticism.  Most shows in this genre up the drama a bit and work to make the host a little more heroic.  There are also cultural differences that might not translate well.  For example, the British culture avoids humiliating or shameful situations at all costs.  Finally, the limits of TV time require quick editing to get as much of the story in as possible.

And so it goes with Chef Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares.  Most of the owners on his show are completely incompetent.  They can't even keep a refrigerator clean or their equipment maintained.  How hard is that?  So the Owner's humiliation begins with a dressing down from Ramsay about the simplest things.

But not so with Amy & Samy (husband and wife), the owners of Amy's Baking Company & Bistro (heretofore:  ABC Bistro).  They keep their restaurant immaculate, have a passion for food, and sincerely desire a well-run restaurant.  Chef Ramsay complemented the pair on the kitchen (a floor cleaner than most kitchen tables) and the cakes in the display case (made fresh from scratch).

Key phrase from Gordon Ramsay:  "If the food here is as good as this cake, then why is there a problem at this restaurant?"

And that's where the fun begins.  Good heavens.  I hope I'm not being snarky.  Let me check the dictionary ... Nope.  I'm not being snarky, yet.  But I am doing my best Gregory House, M.D. impression.

First Red Flag: Amy & Samy met in Las Vegas where, according to both of them, Samy was a real playboy - surrounded by beautiful women every night.  But Amy put a stop to that and said (paraphrasing), "It's either me or the playboy lifestyle.  You can't have both."  And so Samy (btw, I am spelling the name correctly) gave up chasing women and married Amy.  She was all smiles.  What a powerful moment.  She was so good that he gave up several women to be with her.  This is an enormous ego stroke.

Second Red Flag: Samy retired from building custom-made homes when the housing market crashed.  He then spent $1,000,000, $1 million ... One million dollars .... wwwooonnnn mmilllllliiioonnn dollllarrrs) to open ABC Bistro.  Another ego stroke for Amy.

Third Red Flag:  Amy's bakes several desserts well (that's good).  She then develops a passion for cooking other things (that's good).  She believes that this passion makes here a good chef (that's a logical fallacy).  Cake cookers work under a different set of constraints from Restaurant Chefs.  This becomes evident later.

Fourth Red Flag:  Amy & Samy are both very defensive regarding their work.  Specifically, Amy said there was a drop in business when ABC Bistro received a bad review on the internet.  They retaliated against the vicious lies spread about them (their words, not mine).  Since then, they have spent a lot of time fighting the "haters" in the internet.  This is defending the ego.  Or should I say, "She can't stand having her reality challenged."

In Amy's defense, she did say that ABC Bistro had received many positive and glowing reviews.  And you can find those reviews on several web sites.  One good source is www.yelp.com.  BEWARE:  This episode has generated a lot of feedback on yelp.  You'll need to dig to the back to find those positive reviews.

Fifth Red Flag:  Samy keeps the waiter's tips and pays them an hourly wage.  This is contrary to every restaurant in America.  Chef Ramsay understands this.  Samy (being defensive) claims that he'll let the waiters keep their tips when they demonstrate skill at their jobs.

Sixth Red Flag:  Samy won't let the waiters use the Point of Sale System until they can demonstrate skill at their jobs.  This means that the staff has to write down their orders and hand them to Samy so that he can enter the order in the P.O.S. machine.  An unnecessary step in the process.

Seventh Red Flag:  Samy also handles all the sales transactions.  All cash and credit card sales must be brought to Samy to process .... until the waiters can prove they're skilled at their jobs.

If you confront Samy, "It's your job to train them.", you'll get a sharp rebuke.  What do you know about restaurants?  Samy actually owns one.

Eighth Red Flag:  Amy believes that God himself has given her this talent and purpose in life.  That's an incredible leap of faith.  Unfortunately, it's not born out by the way she treats the staff, her customers, or Samy.

Ninth Red Flag:  She & Samy have called upon Chef Ramsay for the wrong reasons.  They have both seen Kitchen Nightmares.  They know he is respected.  Amy quite naively stated, "I wanted you to come here to tell people that our food is really good."  Amy & Samy should know better.  Their restaurant is failing, it is getting poor reviews (despite the good reviews from 2010 and 2011), and other businesses in the area are doing well.  Ramsay's M. O. is to ferret out the problems and correct them.  That usually involves major changes on the part of the owners.

But it keeps getting better (he said sarcastically).

This is the only episode where the first fifteen minutes is nothing but cuts from the day before Chef Ramsay shows up to meet the owners.  They are both shown screaming and yelling at customers and employees.

Amy called the police when someone didn't pay for a pizza that was never served!  Yes, the guest ordered a pizza.  Over an hour later, the pizza had still not been delivered.  The customer said, "We don't have any more time to wait.  Just cancel the pizza.

Samy flew into a rage.  "No, you pay for the pizza you ordered.  Then you can go."  There was a confrontation.  They actually ended up paying for a pizza he didn't eat just to get away from these two people.

Chef Ramsay learned that 50 employees had been fired or left ABC Bistro in the previous year.  Samy corrected him.  There had actually been over 100 employees who quit or were fired the previous year.

I'll have to stop here.  There are several other details.  I highly recommend finding a repeat of this episode somewhere out there.

Two last things though:

One:  This episode enraged so many people that the yelp web page for ABC Bistro has over 500 reviews dated from Friday, May 10th and Saturday, May 11th from people who witnessed these two owners be cruel and unusual to almost everybody.

Two:  Chef Ramsay walked out.  He couldn't help them.

The restaurant is still open and running losses.  It will continue to be open until Samy runs out of money.

What a train wreck.  Really, it should be researched by psychology majors.

Russell

Rules for Coupons

Well, I'm on a roll regarding Food Service.  Coupons have been mentioned many times.  If you're a restaurateur or want to be one, here are a few things to consider IF, AND ONLY IF, you decide to have coupons.

Coupons can bring in more business

Electronic media coupons (including internet coupons) seem to do a better job than the print media coupons (Newspaper ads, door hangers, etc.).  People using the internet are able to quickly target the type of restaurant they want to dine at.  However, keep this deeply in mind ... the interweb people fall into three groups:  1) people looking for porn (55%), 2) people looking for free stuff (44.885%), and 3) people researching topics for their own edification (0.115%).  Guess which group will buy your electronic coupon.

Don't give away the store

You can give away profit, but don't be the one paying the costs of the meal or the restaurant's  overhead.  You have a right to remain in business and are absolutely under no obligation to go broke paying for any portion of a diner's meal.  Here's what I mean.  Let's say your average meal price (a.k.a. PPA) is $12.  For the typical restaurant, 25% of that $12 pays for the food; 25% for Labor, 25% for overhead (e.g. rent, utilities, etc.), and 25% is your profit.  So any coupons you offer should not be worth more than $3 per meal purchased.

How bad can this situation get?  I just saw an episode of Restaurant:  Impossible where the restaurant owners were paying off $10 coupons on $13 meals.  That means they were losing $6.75 off of every meal.  And there was a large stack of coupons.

Here are a few examples.

1. O'Charley's coupons are almost universally "Get $5 off your meal if you spend $20 or more on dinner." The emphasis on 'or more' is mine.  It also emphasizes the 25% profit margin.  Also notice, that the diner must spend at least $20.  It's almost impossible to spend exactly $20; so O'Charley's is almost guaranteed to receive some amount of profit.
2. "Buy one meal, get the next meal half off."  This is very popular.  50% of the equal or lesser valued meal will never be more than your profit margin.
3. "Get an extra side item (usually a vegetable) if you purchase a dinner with a salad."

Don't forget any restrictions.

This is typically forgotten or glossed over.  Don't forget that YOUR COUPON IS A DEFACTO PUBLIC CONTRACT !!!!  Whatever it says and/or doesn't say is enforceable under the law.  So, any expectations you have of the guest must be included on that coupon.

I promise and swear that the diner will work around any coupon or try to maximize the benefits of any coupon.  For example, about a week ago, I detailed a guest who expected to use three coupons to get 9 meals for free.  And I mean she was REALLY hoping for free food.  Here are a few restrictions typical to the industry.

1. ... of equal or lesser value ... :  as in "Buy one meal get the next meal of equal or lesser value for half off."  That's important.  Many (although not all) clients will order a meal for $30 and order a $7 appetizer as a meal, then expect you to comp $15 off the bill for the entrée.  Don't argue with me about the general goodness of mankind ... they will do this.  If you don't have this restriction, you'll be paying for lots of salmon and crab legs.
2. Only one coupon per visit / alternately Not valid with any other offer:  Back to the lady with three coupons.  Our coupon clearly said "One coupon per visit."  This had to be pointed out to her over the phone.  Please note that, despite the plain English, she was still upset with us for the restriction.  What does that say about some peoples' character.
3. ... when you purchase a drink or when you purchase two drinks:  as in, "Buy one meal get the next meal of equal or lesser value half off when you purchase two beverages."  Almost all guests will order water if this restriction is not listed.  But why does this limitation exist at all?  The not so little secret in the Food Biz is ... non-alcoholic beverages cost about $0.25 to $0.50 per glass depending on a few factors that I refuse to list here.  So, with this restriction, the restaurant can regain almost all the profit it lost giving you the discount on food.
4. Does not include... :  This could be any exclusion although typical items on this list are taxes, gratuities, and alcohol.  In fact, you should probably have a reminder to tip the waiter based on the gross amount of the bill before the coupon is applied to the meal.  Alcohol is typically excluded because restaurants don't want to deal with someone who comes in just to drink booze (or get plastered).  That's a lawsuit waiting to happen.  And taxes?  The local mafia state always wants its cut (didn't Al Capone say that?).
5. The expiration date:  for the love of all that is holy in the universe, do not forget the expiration date.  A coupon without an expiration date can live on forever; even if you sell the restaurant.  On a more subtle point, an expiration date creates a small sense of urgency that will hopefully bring the guest in sooner - and sooner is always better.
6. Get $5 off if you purchase $20 or more:  OK, it doesn't have to be $5 and $20.  You can pick any dollar amounts you like, just so long as the discount is not greater than your profit margin.  Out of all the coupons I've ever seen, I like this one the best - no holds barred.  As the owner, you make sure that you're at least breaking even.  And the customer is free to order anything he wants ... and can even come in by himself.

An alternative to Coupons:

Coupons cost money (even if it's just your profit).  But, some marketing beyond word-of-mouth is almost always necessary.  What to do?  Give this a shot:  don't print/offer coupons.  Instead, advertise regular deals.  My BBQ place did just that on at least one item.  If you purchased a full rack of ribs, you also got two pints of vegetables for free.  And yes, it brought in a lot of customers.  And yes, we still made a profit.

Your restaurant may need coupons for a variety of reasons:  it's the slow time of year, competition is fierce, you're new in town, or you're in a small town.  The list goes on.  But you can't let your marketing campaign drive you under.  No one wants to be a busy failure.  If you fallow the items listed above, you will be a busy success.

Russell

Coupons Trending

Coupon Trends Over the Past Few Years

Coupons are the double-edged sword of the restaurant biz.  They steal your profits (which you have a complete right to) but they can bring in new customers.  Many people won't try a new restaurant without a coupon.  Some of those won't go to a restaurant at all without one,

As you can imagine, a delicate balance has been struck by restaurateurs who offer coupons.

 

Section I:  Who Offers Coupons?

It used to be that only Mom & Pop proprietors and fast food joints offered coupons.  Their Restaurants sat in locations that had little or no auto traffic.  Or perhaps they needed to sell more product to meet sales goals.

Now, just about everyone - big & small - offers coupons.  First out of a sense of community.  Non-profit fund raisers (e.g. school booster groups) are able to sell more coupon books when big names are available.  And the big names earn a "sense of belonging" in the surrounding neighborhoods.  Second: fierce competition.  The proprietors start to get more business from the people looking to get a good deal.

Section II:  Coupon Venues

Originally, customers dutifully sat around their dining tables with Sunday editions of their newspapers as well as the weekly load of print ads delivered by mail and door hangers.  They would spend two or three hours flipping page after page; scanning for coupons based on restaurant genre, location, and known reputation.

It should be no surprise, however, that coupons are now widely available online.  Internet coupon websites like Groupon.com, Yelp.com, and Restaurant.com have been around for several years.  These internet coupon companies are very popular with shoppers.

And there are a few reasons for this.  First, customers can narrow their search for a restaurant by several factors such as: location, food type (BBQ, Mexican, etc.), and type of coupon.  This in turn reduces the amount of time they spend looking for coupons.  Second, they can also compare coupons between restaurants.  Third, using a computer (especially in this type of application) makes the shopper feel smarter and more powerful.  Who knew couponing online could produce megalomania?

But couponing online produces one more magical effect.  The internet shopper pays for the coupon they print off.  Even if the amount is miniscule, paying for it heightens the value of the coupon and keeps it at the forefront of the customer's mind.  So they are much more likely to come to your establishment than those who still flip through direct mail packages.

Section III:  Coupon Values

The value of coupons has been getting lower over the years.  Driven by competition, increased quality of home-cooked meals, and the economy, restaurant profit margins have been hit hard.  Consequently, the discounts available on coupons have dropped sharply.

Early coupons were for 50% off your meal.  Then, 25%.  Then 10%.

Then came "Buy one, Get  one free".  The free meal is always of equal or lesser value.

Then came "Buy one, Get one free ... when both diners purchase a beverage of any kind".

Also popular beginning in the early 2000's:  "Buy $20 or more and get $5 off."

Then, whatever coupon you used came with the stipulation: "Not valid with any other offer."  and "Only one per party."

Over the last five yeas, "Buy one, get one free" became "By one, get one half off."

Most internet coupons require you to purchase $xx amount to get $xx amount off.  For example, groupon.com issued a $16 coupon on our behalf; BUT YOU HAD TO PURCHASE $16 of food before the coupon could be used.

Finally:

I don't see the value of coupons returning to their glory days.  First, restaurants simply cannot afford to feed people for free or to even pay for part of the meal.  Second, restaurant organizations are helping their clients overcome this type of obstacle (and yes, coupons are an impediment to business).  And third, even TV shows such as Kitchen Nightmares and Restaurant: Impossible are directly telling their clients to dump coupons in general.

Good luck diners!
Good luck restaurateurs!

Russell

My Trail of Tears

Consider this before you open a restaurant.

The restaurant history of Russell Britt.

1980 to 1983:  Six Flags Over Texas
A) There were 13 Pink Thing Carts; now there's just two.
B) Rose's Cantina served nachos and foot-long hot dogs.  Now it's just snow cones.
C) Colonel's Café served Chicken Fried Steak.  Now it's one of five pizza places.
D) Southern Plantation Chicken served Fried Chicken.  Now it's an Alligator place.
E) The Alligator Place, Casa de las Banderas (Mexican food), and Dry Hole Charlie's are now open only between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  They are closed during weekend-only operations.

1984:  El Chico in the Golden Triangle Mall in Denton, TX is now closed

1984:  Bonanza on I-35E in Denton, TX is closed and the building is now a feed store.  It's sister restaurant on I-35E in Lewisville, TX is also closed.

1985:  El Chico on I-35E in Lewisville, TX.  I opened the restaurant in 1985.  It was new, clean, had great access to the interstate freeway and was substantially renovated in 1995.  Business was booming!  It is now closed.

1985:  Tio's Mexican Restaurant (not to be confused with Tia's Mexican Food Restaurant) located in Highland Village, TX.  It was closed by the Sheriff's Office - probably for falling behind on the lease payments.

1986 to 1990:  Steak & Ale at 10909 Composite Drive near the intersection of Walnut Hill and I-35E in Dallas, TX.  This was part of Dallas' well-known Restaurant Row which included Bennigan's, Old San Francisco Steak House, Tony Roma's Ribs, Red Lobster, TGI Friday's, Chili's, and Trail Dust Steak House.  This particular Steak & Ale was closed in 1999 or 2000.  At last visit, all restaurants (except for the TGI Friday's and the Chili's) are closed.  The Steak & Ale and Tony Roma's were razed and a Car Dealership now occupies that location.  The Bennigan's was razed and two gas stations now occupy the that location.  The Red Lobster was also razed.  I don't know what occupies that address now.

2003 to 2006:  O'Charley's in Florence, KY.  This restaurant used to pull in $95 to 100k per week.  There's more competition in the area now and an O'Charley's was opened in Campbell County, KY.  Since then, sales for my former employer have dropped.  But it is still there and it is still profitable.

2008:  The entire Steak and Ale Corporation closes.  The Bennigan's and Bay Street restaurants (which operated under the Steak & Ale banner) are also closed.  I wasn't working there at the time (so it's not my fault).

Oct. 2012 to May 3, 2013:  H & D BBQ & Grill.  Open for approximately six months.  It closed it's doors permanently today.

The moral of the story?  (If there is one).  All but two of the restaurants/locations are closed permanently.  The other locations are substantially changed and not performing as well as they had in the past - regardless of the reasons. 

If you are considering opening a business (and especially if it's a restaurant), prepare a detailed exit plan in the event things don't work out.  Some items (but not all) to consider in the plan are:

1. How will you sell the business and its assets?
2. How much monetary loss can you handle?  Can you handle 1 month?  Are you willing to take out a second mortgage?  If things do get better, how long will it take to get into the black?
3. Are you networked into another job if the restaurant closes?

Russell

Update 5/03/13 @ 8:45pm CDT
The owners of H & D BBQ & Grill will continue to run a catering only business from a location in Allen, TX (North of Plano, TX).  If that succeeds, they will try to open a Take Out only storefront in Allen. 

Coupon Delirium

Alternate Title:  "Why I Hate Coupons"

delirium:  noun

1. A temporary state of mental confusion and fluctuating consciousness resulting from high fever, intoxication, shock, or other causes. It is characterized by anxiety, disorientation, hallucinations, delusions, and incoherent speech.  [emphasis - mine]

2. A state of uncontrolled excitement or emotion: e.g.  this lady walks into a restaurant with three coupons.

Over the past few years, some people have become really cheap. 

Here's what happened yesterday at lunch:

A woman calls in a large order.  "I have a Restaurant.com coupon." she says rather simply.  The Owner/Manager and I are both on the phone.  He's letting me take the order and explain the limitations on this particular coupon.

"Of course ma'am." I say.  "There are a few conditions regarding this coupon.  You must spend $37.50 on food.  It does not include our lunch specials.  The coupon does not cover beverages.  It does not cover Sales Taxes.  It does not cover gratuity.  It can be used for Take Out orders.  If all this is done, $25 will be deducted from your bill."

(By the way, this list of "conditions" is one reason I hate coupons; especially internet coupons.)

"That's fine," says the mystery woman.  "We'll be ordering a lot of food." 

"We need," she continues ...
1) Grilled Chicken Breast dinner
2) Grilled Shrimp Dinner
3) Two stuffed Baked Potatoes.
4) Three-meat combination dinner
5) Two-meat combination dinner.
6) Grilled Salmon dinner
7) Rib Dinner, and
8) Sliced brisket dinner.

"Yes ma'am."  I say.  "and your total before taxes is ... $75.86"

"Fantastic." says the woman.  "I have three Restaurant.com coupons."  That's right!  She expects us to deduct $75 from the check so that her friends only have to pay a combined $0.86 plus tax on their food!

Now, there are two things a waiter never wants to say: "No" and "Sorry."

"I'm sorry ma'am."  I say.  "I can only take one coupon per order."

"But I spent more than $37.50.  And using one coupon per visit isn't part of the conditions you listed before."

At this point, the Owner takes over the phone call.  Thank you Big D.  I really owe you one.

"Yes ma'am."  Says the Owner.  "If you'll look in the left column in the second to last paragraph, you'll see the line about one coupon per visit."

"Well, can I divide up the bill into two parts and then use two coupons?"

"Not likely ma'am.  Since the current food cost is $75.86, it's more probable that one order will be over $37.50 and the other order will be below $37.50.  And you'd only be able to use one coupon."

"OK.  Hold on a moment."  She puts us on hold while I continue to get seated.  Yep, there's at least six people I haven't helped yet just because of this order.  The Owner let's me off the phone call so I can wait on the new customers.  Thanks Big D.  I now owe you two.

While I'm filling the new guests drink orders, I can hear the owner, "Yes ma'am.  You'd like to delete the Grilled Shrimp dinner, one of the stuffed baked potatoes, the grilled chicken dinner (yada yada yada).  Your new food total is $40.55.  Your total after the sales taxes and the $25 discount is $19.10.  Your meals should be ready in about 7 minutes."

She comes in to pick up the Take Out orders and hands me a twenty.  While I'm getting the change (all ninety cents), she says to the owner, "We really were expecting a free meal today."  And by that, she expressed self-righteous  indignation that we (i.e. the Restaurant) ruined her lunch and her friend's lunches.  Well, who were we that we weren't willing to pick up the cost of someone's meal.

Hello ... McFly!  When customers use a coupon, the restaurant is foregoing its profit to give that person an opportunity to try something new.  The restaurant does not have the money to PAY FOR OTHER PEOPLE'S MEALS!!!  Hell !!  If this woman thought she could steal a meal by using three coupons, why shouldn't the two bit granny go all the way and use 200 coupons?  That way, the restaurant could pay for her food AND HER MORTGAGE!!!

Please, please, please ... if you use a coupon, do not even ask if you can use two coupons at one time.  And for the sake of all that is good and right, tip your waiter on the total bill before the check is discounted.

You may now commence with comments ... both constructive and unconstructive.

Russell

The Bleeping Bleep Report (Ep 9)

The Bleeping Bleep Report
for Hell's Kitchen - Episode 9
first aired 04/30/2013

After some very tepid bleeping from last week, things seem to be back to normal for the crew at Hell's Kitchen.  Here are the numbers:

Chef Gordon Ramsay:  31
Barrett:  10
Susan:  0
Nedra:  15
Ray:  14
Zach:  4
Anthony:  2
Jacqueline:  8
Amanda:  13
Cyndi:  4
Jon:  8
Mary:  0
Ja'nel:  1
Michael:  2
Unknown:  6
Total:  108
An average of 2.57 per minute or one bleep every 23 seconds based on a 42 minute air time.

One other notable item:  At the end of the episode, Chef Ramsay didn't say "Piss off" or "Bleep off".  He said, "Leave me alone."  Very Garbo-esque.

The Red Team lost and put up Amanda and Jacqueline for elimination.  After a commercial break's deliberation, Chef Ramsay booted Jacqueline. 

Ta ta Jacqueline.  May you go on to be the chef we all know you can be. 

Every one else can bleep off.

Russell

The Bleeping Bleep Report (Ep 8)

The Bleeping Bleep Report

for Hell's Kitchen - Episode 8

First Aired 04/23/2013

 

Shocking:  Chef Gordon Ramsay DID NOT have the most number of bleeps today.

 

Chef Gordon Ramsay:  12

Barrett:  10

Susan:  0

Nedra:  8

Ray:  2

Zach:  7

Anthony:  0

Dan:  17

Jacqueline:  1

Amanda:  3

Cyndi:  1

Jon:  10

Mary:  0

Ja'nel:  0

Michael:  12

Unknown:  3

Total:  86

That is approximately 2 per minute or 1 bleep every 29.3 seconds based on a 42 minute air time.

 

Special mentions:

1. These numbers are down again.  It would seem the dinner services are getting better.
2. Dan had three "silent bleeps" when the editors blurred out his universal fowl symbold for [bleep] off.
3. Mary - Mary? - Mary!  Miss mary whispered "Oh, my gosh!" when barrett served up raw chicken.  I almost counted that as a bleep.

 

Released:  Dan and Barrett were selected for elimination.  Dan was punted.  Good bye Dan.  May you put this fiasco behind you and succeed in your future endeavors.

 

Everyone else can bleep off.

 

Russell