Focus:Food&Beverage
theirpreconceptions,butalsothoseof
theirreaders,"commentsMr.Bradley.
"Wehavetobeabletoopenthedoorsof
thecasinotogetpeopletosamplefor
themselvesthequality,serviceandvalue
thatweoffer."
Itremainsafactthateachlocationwithin
theLCIestateisverydifferentandinthat
thecompanycatersforvastlydifferent
markets.TheSportsman'sexquisite
betweencoursessorbetscontrastwith
Linenat235Manchester'svery
contemporarymenu;whiletheGlasgow
Alea'schef'shomemadepastaisdifferent
againfromtheMichelinstarchef'sIndian
cuisineattheLeedsBirdrestaurant.At
theRendezvousinLondon,meanwhile,
40percentofthedishesremain'off-
menu,'reasonperhapsforthecasino's
hugerepeatbusiness.
Eachlocationisdistinct.Thechef
influencingthemenujustasmuchasthe
customers.AsMr.Bradleydescribes,
findingandrecruitingremainsatricky
business.ThechefattheSportsmanwas,
15yearsago,thelocation’sdishwasher,
whohadn'tcookedinakitchenbefore
joiningLCI.Henowexcelsbothasachef
andakitchenmanager.Ontheother
hand,arecentrecruitintheformofa
seniorcheffromMarcoPierreWhite's
kitchenwasunabletocopewiththe
sheervarietyoffooddemandedbyLCI
players.
After29yearsinthecasinoF&Bbusiness,
Mr.Bradleyremainspassionateabout
everyaspectofhiswork."Ilovechange,
it'swhat'skeptmeinthecasinobusiness
forsolong,"hestates."I'veopenedmore
restaurantsandmorebarsthanIwould
everhadtheopportunitytoopenin
anothersector.Winningthebest
restaurantnewcomerinLeedswasa
particularhighpointforme,butequally
havingnineoutof10restaurantsadding otherdepartment)judgeusonF&B,as IbelievewecanmakeaprofitontheF&B
“Wecanhavethe toLCI'sprofitsissomethingofwhichI'm theyhaveexperienceofit.Theyknow sideofthebusinessandwe'removing
greatestfoodinthe alsoextremelyproud." whatfoodtheylike. towardsthat.Inthelastfiveyearswe've
world,butwe'reonly seentheproductchangedramatically,
asgoodasthemost THEGMVIEWPOINT(ANONYMOUS) Mypriorityisupongettingtheofferright especiallyaswe'vereachedouttothe
juniormemberof “Asacasino,weemploybothhostsand inthefirmbeliefthattheprofitwill massmarket.It'sonlyinthelasttwo
frontofhousestaff.If F&Bmanagerstoassistintheoperationof follow.Ifyoufocusonprofit,you'll yearsthatwe'vebeenabletoadvertiseto
theycan'tengagewith thecasinobeyondthegamingoffer.The ultimatelyfailintermsoftheoffer.There thegeneralpublichereintheUK.Inthe
customersatthat hostroleinparticularisstructuredina arearangeoffactorstotakeinto last10yearswe'veseentherisein
level,we'regoingto straightforwardwaytodemonstratethe considerationatthesametime,most importanceofspecificproductsinthe
faildespitethequality diversityoftheoffer,fromgamingtofood importantlythelocationofyourcasino.A casinobeyondthetableoffer.Slots,card
ofthefoodweserve." andbeverage,totheentertainmentoffer. city-basedcasinoasopposedtoa roomsandmulti-playershaveall
MichaelBradley, WhiletheF&Boffercurrentlyisnot destinationlocation,suchasthis,alters contributedtothebottomlineofthe
DirectorofCatering, operatedasaprofitcentreatthiscasino, theofferdependentonwhetheryou'reon casino.Theonlyotherarea,aspartofa
LondonClubs theaimistoensurethatweprovidethe theHighStreet'drinksrun'asopposedto logicalconclusion,isF&B.Itrepresentsa
International. verybestlevelofserviceandqualityof thecustomerhavingtomakeavery significantopportunityforacasinosuch
productforthecustomer. consciousdecisiontovisityourlocation. asourswitha4,500permonthfootfall.
It'ssomethingthatwe'restrivingto It'safactorthatgreatlyaffectsyouroffer
perfect.Wehaven'tcrackedityet,butits andthetypeofbusinesstowhichyou Historicallywe'vecreatedanexpectation
somethinginwhichwearegettingbetter cater.Barsalesplayagreaterpartincity andstimulatedademandinwhich
andbetter,particularlyinregardstonew locations,whiledestinationlocationslean playersexpectcomplementaryfoodand
customers.Theymorethananyother towardstherestaurantoffer. beverage.Asanindustrythat'swhat
typeofcustomer(andmorethanany we'vealwaysprovidedforourcustomer.
G3 l December2009 l Page45
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