Running a profitable restaurant can be challenging for many reasons. During a global pandemic, this can seem almost impossible. With soaring food prices and labor shortages forcing food service establishments to raise wages , profit margins are tighter than ever. Therefore, maintaining a loyal customer base is of paramount importance.
While restaurants are accustomed to prioritizing cleanliness to ensure food safety, emerging infectious disease threats make cleanliness even more important to maintain public health and diner confidence. Fortunately, there are strategies managers and employees can follow to keep restaurants safe and welcoming.
Restaurant cleaning tips that take the cake
Visibly clean restaurants demonstrate their commitment to safety and make those environments more welcoming to customers. Meanwhile, poorly maintained front areas can hurt a restaurant's reputation and profits. In fact, a 2021 Harris poll found that 74% of Americans say a dirty bathroom gives them a negative perception of a company.
Because a minor lack of cleanliness can impact a business, it's important to consider best practices for maintaining facilities that promote guest satisfaction. These include:
1. Create a cleaning checklist
A September 2021 survey by the National Restaurant Association found nearly 80% of restaurants are understaffed. Therefore, it is crucial that your employees have a clear understanding of cleaning expectations and protocols. A good place to start is to create a cleaning checklist and determine when certain areas are likely to need cleaning and disinfecting. With 90% of consumers becoming more concerned about cleanliness, ensure that high-touch areas of your restaurant such as tables, counters, door handles, toilet handles, etc. are cleaned frequently during business hours .
2. Approach the toilet properly
Restrooms are one of the most germ-prone areas in a restaurant due to their purpose and tendency to get very busy. You can also determine customers' perceptions of the overall cleanliness of the restaurant. For these reasons, it is important to invest in bathroom maintenance. Well-stocked and regularly maintained restrooms allow guests and staff to practice good hand hygiene, which helps reduce the spread of germs throughout the restaurant. Another reason to focus on your restaurant's restroom is that nearly 90% of Americans would not visit a restaurant with negative reviews online about their restroom. You may also consider implementing a checklist that is prominently displayed when employees are performing refills and cleans to ensure customer trust.
3. Integrate entrance mats
Entrances need to make a good first impression as they are the first place customers gather when they enter your restaurant. Placing mats at the entrance not only helps minimize slip and fall conditions, but also prevents most dirt and debris from entering your restaurant. This can reduce the burden of floor maintenance as staff can clean faster and do not have to clean entrance floors as often. When choosing rugs, make sure they lay flat and can scrape to effectively remove dirt from shoes and trap moisture. However, simply laying out the mats is not enough. Plan to vacuum or change carpets regularly, especially in winter or during the rainy season. Keep wet floor panels easily accessible when needed in the presence of moisture or spills.
4. Check cleaning tools regularly
First, consider choosing quality cleaning tools, as inferior tools are more likely to wear out faster and increase costs. There are even sustainable tools made from recycled materials, like brushes and broomsticks made from reused plastic bottles and mop heads made from leftover fabric.
It's also important for restaurants to regularly maintain cleaning tools and confirm that they are properly stored when not in use. Cleaning your tools helps reduce cross-contamination and educating staff on why and when to use color-coded tools is essential. For example, there should be unique tool sets for the kitchen and bathroom. This ensures your employees don't spread germs by using dirty cleaning tools or injuring themselves or others .
Communicate your cleaning steps for success
Most of the dining areas are customer oriented, from the entrance and reception areas to the bar and dining areas to the bathrooms. Some restaurants even have open kitchens that allow customers to watch the cooking process up close. Therefore, cleanliness should be a priority as it promotes food safety and infection prevention. Even putting up signs or stickers on doorways or windows to communicate that the company adheres to best practices can help put customers at ease when they are patronizing the store.
In general, the most important aspect is keeping your restaurant welcoming, staying organized, and clearly communicating cleaning measures to your customers and employees. Improving cleanliness and customer confidence will increase customer retention and profits at an increasingly challenging time for the restaurant industry.
