What’s the biggest difference between a full-service restaurant and a fast casual establishment? Table service. The secret to successfully rolling out this important offering begins well before your servers work the restaurant floor; it starts with a creative and efficient table layouts plan.
Your restaurant’s table layout influences everything from profitability to customer retention. Whether you’re setting up shop in an up-and-coming gastropub or renovating your bistro’s dining room floor, give your table layout some thoughtful consideration with the following must-haves:
1. Make a good first impression. The dining room floor occupies the most space in your restaurant, and rightly so. This is the place where you produce your hard-earned revenue. It’s also the area where customers have what should be a memorable and positive dining experience. Your choice of table layout should make a distinct and immediate impression. Tables arranged in neat rows create a more formal appearance, while a less symmetrical arrangement can feel casual or whimsical. Whatever your style, keep it orderly, choosing shapes, colors, and lighting that come together to enhance the dining room atmosphere.
2. Create effective aisle space. Efficient traffic flow is a must in any well-run restaurant. Aisle space should guide your patrons from one area to another, providing enough room to make their seating area comfortable and easily accessible.
Perhaps more importantly, spatial arrangements should be safe and clear of congestion, allowing for wait staff to flow smoothly from the service areas to their designated tables. Strive to keep customer focus on a fantastic meal, not on visual distractions like cashier stations, bathroom doors, and cluttered service stations.
3. Offer choices. Anchored tables, such as booths and nooks, encourage customers to feel at home and spend more time in your establishment. On the other hand, floating tables, where turnaround can be quicker, will help you turn a higher profit. Keep a balance of seating choices that suit both you and your customers.
Get your floor plan up and running with Revel’s Table Layouts feature. Organize tables by server, create a different screen for each of your restaurant’s dining areas, track or transfer orders, and keep your restaurant turning a profit.
4. Continued Customer Service - Revel’s table service layout has “table timers” that change colors over the course of a meal based on wait time. Our Coursing options allow your staff to maintain consistent check-ins with a table over the course of a night to make sure your customers are happy, and feeling taken care of. There is nothing worse than feeling like your table has been abandoned--Revel’s table timers will help you maintain high levels of customer service and keep them coming back.
Client Login