These days, consumers are extremely picky. They know what they want and they often won’t accept anything other than this. This is especially the case when it comes to eating out in restaurants. In fact, ever since the introduction of online review sites, restaurants have really had to step their game up so that they don’t accumulate too many one-star reviews on the likes of TripAdvisor and Yelp.

So, what exactly do customers want from the restaurants they visit? Here are a few points that customers will look out for as well as a few practical things that all good business owners will need for their establishment.

An Enticing Menu

Possibly the most important part of any restaurant, the menu needs to entice your customers through your door. Creating the right menu can take a few attempts as you will need to create a wide range of dishes that are easy enough for your kitchen staff to create. Of course, if you have hired some experienced chefs, they will be able to help craft a delicious menu that will surely keep your customers returning again and again.

Lunch meeting? Our lunch menu is here to impress, available from 11:30am – 2pm. * * * * * #jackrabbitpdx #whatsforlunch #pdxlunch #lunchtime #businesslunch #worklunch #lunchwithfriends #downtownpdx #pdxfood #pdxeats #pnwfood #foodlover #foodie #heresmyfood #dinnertime #portlandrestaurants #portlandfood #travelportland #eaterpdx #eater #portlandeats #inpdx #pdxnow #eeeeeats #foodILYSM #pdxyelp #nomnomnom #whatiate #letseat

A post shared by Jackrabbit PDX (@jackrabbitpdx) on Aug 13, 2018 at 7:00am PDT

Good Management

Another important factor in any restaurant, that possibly comes in second after a good menu, has to be a good manager. If you don’t already have much experience in the service industry, you might want to hire a dedicated restaurant manager to take care of the front of house of your eatery for you. The manager can take care of all your waiters and waitresses and ensure that every service goes as smoothly as possible.

Plenty Of Insurance

Don’t forget to take out a thorough insurance policy for your restaurant as well. In fact, it could be worth taking out a few different policies to ensure that you are fully covered for any eventuality. First of all, you need to make sure that you are insured as an employee just in case you are ever taken to an employment tribunal. Not only that, though, but you should insure all the expensive equipment in the kitchen. Plus, take out some professional liability insurance to protect you if someone were to hurt themselves on your property.

A Partnership With An Online Delivery Service

Food-delivery apps, such as UberEats and Grubhub, are now extremely popular with customers. So, it’s necessary for all restaurants to join a few different services so that you can increase your customer base to include all those individuals who would rather order in.

Delicious #Koreanbbq with one of my oldest friends @shardxxx (20+ years!). So glad I was able to see him a few times this past week, it had been too long. . . . #koreanfood #bbq #pdxeats

A post shared by Tokyo Belle (@tokyobelle) on Aug 12, 2018 at 9:58pm PDT

An Active Social Media Presence

Don’t forget about social media either. It is such a huge phenomenon these days, and many people say that they often find out about new restaurants and eateries by checking their various social media channels. It’s hard to see how a restaurant without any social media would prosper in this day and age.

As you can see then, there are many things that a restaurant needs to succeed in 2018. Some may be able to survive without one or two of these points, but they are certainly the exceptions to the rule!