Richland Staff Library

How has this idea enhanced your club's operation, etc.?

We decided to invest a small amount of money in a library of curated food & beverage books (most vetted by management) that the staff has access to not only on their shifts, but also to take home as needed for additional resources. I expected that we would see some immediate engagement with staff, with some drop off in interest after that, but have been pleasantly surprised that there is continued use of the resources.

An unexpected bonus has been the uptick in collaboration among staff; we regularly see people leave post it notes on certain recipes or topics and when their coworkers reach that page while reading through, they have taken to finding whoever left the note to discuss further topics. This has helped people who aren't as knowledgeable in some areas (i.e. bourbon) find the resident expert, and also facilitated a starting conversation for those with similar interests (who likely have never mentioned it previously). Also, several employees have mentioned that they've been intimidated by ingredients, cooking terms, or general knowledge, but have been able to discretely do this research at their leisure.

How was this idea implemented, and what have been the club members' reactions?

Since placing the books, we've seen a great increase in not only confidence from staff when talking about food and beverage (which in turns increases trust from members that they are being taken care of by a well-informed employee regardless of where they are), but they have also challenged the staff to take more creative liberties with drinks. Our monthly beverage sales have consistently been at 150% of our budgeted numbers and we see many diners spending the whole evening (pre-dinner cocktails, dinner, and post-dinner beverages) with us, rather than visiting just for the meal. Additionally, the staff has been able to curate more interesting dining experiences with food and beverage pairings that we, as managers, would not have had the time to create on our own. The number of members we see on multiple consecutive nights continues to climb weekly.