St. Patrick’s Day menu ideas for your restaurant

By Mark Plumlee Everyone’s a little Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, which means that it’s the perfect time to create a specialty holiday menu inspired by the Emerald Isle! Irish beer and whiskey are a great start but don’t stop there. Be sure to add plenty of Irish and Irish-inspired dishes to round out your […]

Attract couples to your restaurant with date nights

By Mark Plumlee Now that Valentine’s Day has passed, it’s time to celebrate anniversaries and date nights for the rest of the year. Many couples struggle to find time to plan a special evening, but your restaurant can help with easy and romantic options, while also promoting and building your business. With tougher competition than […]

Fun promos to celebrate the New Year

By Mark Plumlee Ringing in the new year is the perfect occasion to treat your guests to a celebration, and as we welcome 2023, there are many different ways to make that happen. From events to deals, the new year presents a unique opportunities for restaurants to showcase their exciting offerings. Hosting New Year’s events […]

7 ways to upsell your customers

By Mark Plumlee To maximize the success of your business and get the most out of every transaction for your restaurant, your servers need to know how to upsell.   As any salesman worth his salt will tell you, upselling is an effective way to increase boost your profits and get customers taking you up […]

What are customer profiles — and why should you build them?

By Mark Plumlee Knowing your customers is perhaps the most important part of running a successful small business. Knowing your target audience should inform every decision you make – your overall atmosphere, your menu, your marketing strategies, and beyond. Familiarity with your diners allows your business to provide them with the exact drinking or dining […]

Why you should solicit more online reviews (and how to do it)

By Mark Plumlee If you want to capture the attention of would-be guests on the internet, online reviews are of the utmost importance. According to a study by TripAdvisor, 94 per cent of respondents in the U.S. admitted that online reviews influence their dining decisions. Another study by two economists at the University of California, […]

Omni-channel marketing is a cornerstone of restaurants’ future

By Mark Plumlee Consumers are more fractured than ever before. People receive their information from different channels and different devices, and businesses and brands must compete with a thousand other distractions at any given moment. This makes the job of marketing a restaurant much harder, but it also provides interesting opportunities for omni-channel marketing. Advertising […]

7 ways professional design can help your restaurant in 2022

By Mark Plumlee Over the past two years, thousands of restaurants have shut down across the country. Others have shut down their brick-and-mortar stores and moved to a permanent takeout model. In the place of restaurants that shut down, many new ones have sprung up to take their place. We’re left with an industry full […]

The lasting changes and passing fads of COVID-19

By Mark Plumlee COVID-19 brought massive, sweeping changes to the restaurant industry. Now, with the vaccine rollout well underway and provinces continuing to reopen their restaurants, one giant question remains unanswered. Looking at some of the many shifts restaurant operations have seen over the past year, which ones will turn out to be passing fads? […]

Why COVID-19 could present opportunities for restaurateurs

By Mark Plumlee It’s been a tough 16 months for restaurateurs. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed the industry to the brink, accelerating technological trends and forcing restaurants to adopt to-go business as a foundational revenue stream. As we come out of the pandemic into the “new normal,” get ready to see an explosion of new ventures […]