Do you feel uncomfortable talking to guests?
Do you hide in the kitchen?
Here are some tips that might help you make guests feel welcome.
How to feel comfortable as a host/hostess?
- Always ACKNOWLEDGE guests arrival by making eye-contact and greeting them ex. Hello, good evening, welcome to One Bowl.
- Offer them to sit and FEEL COMFORTABLE they can hang their jacket, maybe chat with others
- NEW or REGULARS?. Ex. are you new to OB? Have I see you here before? Is it your first time?
- If the answer is YES then ex happy/glad/nice to have you again/back
- If the answer is NO then ex. Introduce yourself as a volunteer, ask how they heard about OB and quickly introduce the concept. ex. Hi my name is John and I’m a volunteer. How did you hear about OB?
- TODAYS MENU ex. Today we are serving…..(ask if they are familiar with with the foods and explain if needed) I will bring you a plate as soon as it is ready. In the meantime you can help yourself to te, coffee, water and cutlery. You are also welcome to bring your own drinks. When you are finished you can leave your plate by the donation box (by mentioning the box you are letting them know where to find it)
- FOLLOW UP and PROMOTE How was the dinner? Here is a good time to feel the situation. Are the guests open for conversation? Mention up-coming events, dinners, following us on social media to encourage guests to come again.
- GOODBYE It feels good to be acknowledged. Thank you for coming See you next time.
Example of things to say about One Bowl(OB’s values) : When people come to OB they are not only having dinner but collaborating with a good causeVolunteer run community restaurant that relies on donations (explain how they can contribute via mobilepay or maybe how to volunteer). This is how we stay open. We are a community for everybody and with plant based food from scratch that means clean food with almost no preservatives and being environmentally conscious.
Service tricks
First come first serve. People that come together, eat together. Children should always be served first.
Make things easy for yourself and label the tables in your head ex. with numbers and make a list. That way you can keep track of who came first and how many servings you need at once. Ex table 1 has 2 people = T1-2 and table 4 has 1 person = T4-1
That said… Our service is not the Food, but the cause: fighting food insecurity, providing with a nutritious meal to everyone once or twice a week, a safe space to everyone, etc.
Guests want a second portion?
In case they want to get more food, the second portion should be smaller, we are fighting food waste. It is OK if they ask for more, cause it is also another excuse to be continuously interacting with the guests. Some people use community restaurants for getting to know people, let’s feel their mood, if they are up for a brief chat, maybe we have the chance to explain a bit more the role of a volunteer and the perks of being part of OB.
Have in mind that we are volunteers so if you feel the guests are in the mood(and you too) to chat then it is OK to do so. Likewise if Just have fun and chill with guests!!!