From the May 2006 Hospitality News Featuring CoffeeTalk
by Andrew Hetzel
“Would any of you like an after dinner coffee?” naively asks the young waiter in the perfectly pressed white shirt that has silently materialized out of thin air at the head of our table; blissfully unaware of the dilemma he has just caused for anyone - like me - who loves good coffee. Dinner conversation comes to an abrupt halt as I stare blankly back at our friendly server anxiously contemplating my response. All commotion and noise except the beat of my racing heart has suddenly ceased in the busy restaurant; no more laughing, background music or clanking of silverware on porcelain; it is as if all time around us were standing still and the spotlight is on me.
After enjoying such a perfect meal, I had completely forgotten that the single most dreaded moment of dining out was still to come (and no, I am not speaking of paying the check). Would I like a cup of restaurant coffee? Well, I think to myself, I’d like a cup good coffee, but what do they serve here?
Urgently, I call on all of my senses in an attempt to get any hint of what sort of experience is in store: is there some machinery in view that I can observe for quality and cleanliness? Do I hear the tortured wailing of innocent dairy products being scalded? Can I see the logo of a competent coffee roaster that is known to uphold standards of quality at their wholesale accounts? Or perhaps even steal a glimpse of a drink passing by for some other table? Nothing: it’s a total gamble – a gamble that from experience will prove to be a losing proposition. Contrary to all logic, great tasting food at a casual or fine dining restaurant is rarely an indication that great tasting coffee is to follow.
With all of the time and care that regularly goes into choosing fresh ingredients for the evening’s specialties, preparing those creations, pairing them with complimenting wines recommended by a sommelier and tasty desserts from a resident pastry chef, one should expect at least the same attention to detail with restaurant coffee, particularly since coffee is the final opportunity for any chef to leave a lasting impression with his or her guests. The naturally occurring oils in coffee create a long-lasting taste experience that remains with most restaurant and hotel customers for several minutes or hours after their departure. It is unnerving that any business would knowingly allow the final perception of their brand experience to be a bitter one, and yet, it happens every day in many of this country’s most celebrated dining spots and top hotels.
The uncertainty caused by a lack of correlation between food quality and coffee quality when dining out causes not only the devoted “coffee aficionados” but also an increasing share of casual coffee drinkers to forgo restaurant coffee entirely in favor of a known product elsewhere. When your customer walks out the door on their way to coffee shop after dinner, your best opportunity to sell one of the most profitable items on your menu leaves too.
With the proliferation of large coffee shop chains and independent coffee houses in North America over the last decade, specialty coffee consumption is on the rise and consumers’ palates have begun to mature so that the expectation of coffee quality for even the average consumer is higher than ever before. Restaurateurs take note: with this maturation comes the confidence for consumers to decide what tastes good to them and what does not.
Surprisingly, large fast food chains have become some of the earliest respondents attempting to capitalize on the average consumers’ maturing coffee tasting palate. After years of pinning their hopes for profit growth to a hodgepodge of crash diet fads and breakfast burritos, it seems that recently you cannot walk two city blocks without seeing another quick service restaurant or convenience retailer boldly advertising improvements to the quality of their coffee. What has galvanized a food industry to make coffee a predominant focus? It’s profitable, improvement is relatively simple and in demand; with very little extra cost, these retailers have seen retail sales improve, customer satisfaction increase and best of all, that they make more money by commanding higher prices for a product customers are already buying. Casual and fine dining restaurants can take their cues from this pattern as the same truths apply at both large and small scale.
Interrupted by the server an effort to hasten my decision or at least to put end this uncomfortable silence, the starched-one proposes: “…perhaps an espresso or cappuccino?” Fully aware it will torment me further, one of my ever-helpful chums responds: “This is a difficult step for him, he’s in the coffee business and is very picky about what he will drink.” Traitor! How dare he disclose my secret identity. With my cover blown, I apprehensively agree to a cup of brewed coffee.
“Since you’re in the business, you’ll have to let us know what you think about our coffee,” says the server. I’ll always tell you what I think about your coffee; you should be more concerned about the customers that do not.
# # #
Andrew Hetzel is the Founder of Cafemakers, a specialty coffee business consultancy based in Hawaii. Cafemakers assists restaurants, hospitality businesses and coffee shops in North America and worldwide to improve customer satisfaction and profitability by serving better quality coffee. Information is available online at www.cafemakers.com or by calling (808) 443-0290.