In a month when the National Living Wage (NLW) has come into effect and all employers and clients have re-budgeted to allow for the £7.20 minimum (rising to £9.00 by 2020), it’s good to know that those in our industry won’t simply be digging deeper into the ‘tip pot’ to top up the payroll budget.
This weekend we said farewell to two of our longest serving Managers (Gary and Gill we will miss you both desperately). To mark the occasion we went for a meal at a local very well established Hotel. We had a wonderful meal all of which was buffet service. What did leave a nasty taste in my mouth was that they felt it acceptable to levy a service charge as our party exceeded a certain number. It seems bizarre to me that any restaurant whether it is High Street or hotel would build a restaurant with, let’s say 100 seats, actively promote themselves within their community and then saddle their customers with a levy for actually turning up!
This year, and for the third consecutive year bartlett mitchell has won the Sustainable Restaurant Associations SRA’s highest award for operating sustainable restaurants. Even they have put their weight behind the Employment Secretary’s recommendations.
“The UK dining public’s attitude to tips and service charges is straight forward. When, in 2014, we asked consumers to identify the sustainability issue that mattered most to them when eating out, fair treatment of staff came out on top. Ensuring staff who have contributed to a pleasurable dining experience receive all their tip is a key part of that fair treatment”
This year bartlett mitchell celebrates being busy cooking for 16 years. So many people have asked me what the secret ingredient to our success has been and the answer is simple, our people. From day one we have never referred to our people as employees or staff but as ‘team’. A Team is working together to make a positive difference to the working day of our customers. Quite frankly they earn and deserve every penny of the NLW. Ian, Wendy and I recognise that the success of our business is as a result of our people
David James
Director of Food Services
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My earliest food memories are of my mum’s baking; coconut pyramid cakes were my favourite.
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