EyeClick has created a mind-explosion of an idea – EyePlay is an interactive virtual playground that can be superimposed on any wall or floor. (I don’t recommend it for ceilings) I first found EyePlay at the 2011 National Restaurant Association trade show in Chicago. I am so in love with this entertainment solution for restaurants that some day when I’m rolling in the dough, I’m going to give one away to a restaurant. I’ve always said that a restaurant doesn’t need a playground to be kid-friendly and that hasn’t changed. What they need instead is the EyePlay.

I’ve been traveling all over the place lately and with that comes many locations for service encounters: the airport, the flight, the hotel, and the restaurants – just to name a few. One thing is consistent: my experience with any product or service is directly related to the people (the peeps) delivering the service not the brand trying to deliver it. And what does the delivered service experience always come down to?  T-R-A-I-N-I-N-G!

On my flight to and from Minnesota, we of course had crying kids. And it was the worst case of crying kids I’ve had in a long time. What happened? Well, the typical. The other people on the plane got really annoyed and rolled eyes as if that body language would somehow turn into pixie dust and somehow silence the child. In one case the parent even tried to ignore their screaming offspring. What else happend? The flight attendants hid. They didn’t want to endure the unreachable expectations of the passengers that their magic powers would somehow work better. And I don’t blame them for hiding. Their company has not done their homework, whether by hiring me or anyone else for that matter, to understand what they could or should be doing to calm that child and ultimately make it a pleasant experience for EVERYONE on board – the other passengers, the employees, and that family that is traveling with the kid. Remember the old saying if momma’s happy, everybody’s happy? Well, that no longer applies. If the kids are happy, everybody’s happy. Especially on a plane! How much longer do we have to wait for airlines to get it? Train Your Peeps!

While in Miami, I attended a conference at the Epic Hotel. Although it was ‘pretty’ it was some of the employees who made me happy I wasn’t actually staying at the hotel. In this case, I can’t put all of them into one bucket as there were people that were great - the servers around the pool for our first night event and some of the doormen (not all). Unfortunately for me during the first night’s event I was struck by one of my wicked migraines. As everyone in my group was enjoying adult beverages for the evening, I was enjoying water with a lime. When they moved our group from the pool deck to the lounge on property, I was told I couldn’t leave with my water. Really? You own the lounge and I can’t leave with my water? So much for being a pah pah hotel that treats you like a VIP. It’s just water people. Then the next day I was getting my car out of valet to go and pick up someone else for our conference and come back. The door guy said I could come and go all day. When I went to get my car from the valet girl, she said “no, it’s $14 every time you come and go.” So which is it? You know what the valet girl told me? “That guy doesn’t work for valet.” WHAT? First of all, nice response. Second of all, he works 20 feet away from you, sends guests to you, and he doesn’t know the policy? Hogwash. Train Your Peeps!

We live in a stressed-out, recession-impacted economy and most of us are just trying to figure out how to survive it – including and especially your employees. But wouldn’t the survival be so much sweeter with a few more smiles? A few more, how can I help you’s? It is time for employers to lead the way. Get back to basics. Give your employees a reason to come to work in the morning and be happy about it. And if they’re not – get rid of them. There’s enough of an uphill battle to get one new customer acquisition as it is. Do you really want to make it so easy for that new customer acquistion to be quickly turned into an old one? TrainYour Peeps! Again and again and again.

The Restaurant Mom was interviewed for this article written by Patricia Cobe for Restaurant Business magazine and www.monkeydish.com

Everyone is on the restaurant industry’s back to improve kids’ menus. The White House, USDA, commodity boards, parents, nutrition advocacy groups, the medical community and more are pushing for healthier menu options. The industry itself has gotten into the act too, under the leadership of the National Restaurant Association. In July, the NRA announced “Kids LiveWell,” an initiative to provide better-for-you menu choices for children; 15,000 restaurant locations have signed on. McDonald’s was one of the first, making a change to its Happy Meals by downsizing the french fry portion and adding apples.

There’s no doubt that childhood obesity is growing at a frightening rate, but how can you sneak in healthier foods while keeping your menu kid-friendly? To find out, Julie Casey, “The Restaurant Mom” and founder of MyKidsPlate.com, a site dedicated to kid-friendly dining, partnered with marketing firm Kidzsmart to conduct a Kids and Parents Discovery Survey in April, 2011. One side was completed by children 12 and under, the other side by their parents. Casual dining customers in Black Bear Diner, Beef O’Brady’s, Cracker Barrel, Famous Dave’s, O’Charley’s and Texas Roadhouse filled out 2,016 surveys. Here’s what they had to say.

We want mom and dad’s food. Older kids asked for bigger portions and more choices; steak got 152 mentions and chicken 137, with the latter going beyond chicken fingers to include BBQ, grilled, salads, wraps, sandwiches and pasta.

Opportunity: “Typical kids’ menu portions are not enough for a 10-year-old,” says Casey. But that doesn’t mean loading down the plate with piles of greasy food. Texas Roadhouse, for example, offers a two-tier kids menu; older children can order a 6-ounce grilled sirloin steak from the RangeR Meals menu, with a choice of fresh vegetables and mashed potatoes on the side for $7.49.

Fish and salad—items perceived as healthier but not usually on a kids menu—were requested by a surprising number of youngsters. Each received 105 mentions on the survey.

Opportunity: Who said kids won’t eat any kind of seafood beyond breaded fish sticks? Legal Sea Foods’ kids menu includes a half lobster for $9.95 and a smaller portion of wood-grilled fish of the day, both served with sides, fruits and veggies.

Broccoli rules. When asked “what is your favorite healthy food to eat,” fruit in general was mentioned 191 times and broccoli, 171. Fruit and vegetable choices like carrots and salad won out over any proteins and frozen yogurt.

Opportunity: Kids know that fruits and vegetables are healthy and dining out gives them a chance to experiment with new varieties. “There’s also an opportunity here for restaurants to educate kids about healthy eating—fruits and vegetables are not the only good choices,” Casey points out. Whole grain breads and pastas, lower fat dairy desserts and many other health-promoting foods can be incorporated into the kids menu.

Greater number of healthy choices. While most parents (71 percent) believe that the healthy options available for kids in restaurants are “just right,” 28 percent say there are not enough. “We can’t wait to see how this statistic changes with the [government] initiatives that are launching,” notes Bonnie McPhee, director of new business development for Kidzsmart.

Opportunity: Grownup diners are really into customization, why not offer kids the same option?  At Freshii, a Chicago-based fast-casual concept, the Fresh Kids Custom Built allows kids to choose between a soup, salad or teriyaki rice or noodle bowl, then add four unlimited toppings of their choice. Landmarc in New York City menus Green Eggs + Ham (above) for dinner.

A buzz-building menu. Adding more healthy choices for kids can trigger positive word-of-mouth; 39 percent of parents would “tell a friend” if a healthier menu was available.

Opportunity: Free marketing! Parents—especially moms—talk up restaurant experiences, both in person and online. “Peer referral is the number one reason families with kids go back to restaurants,” says Casey. Items like Good Earth’s Turkey Porcupine Sliders [5] (left) create buzz.

Food is certainly important to parents and kids when choosing a restaurant, but it’s not the only draw. When asked “what do you like about going out to eat with your parents,” 31 percent of the kids replied, “I like the chance to spend time with them.”

- Patricia Cobe, September 1, 2011  Read the article at monkeydish.com

To download a PDF of the article from AgriLife, click here.

Texas A&M AgriLife (2011, June 9). Fathers’ use of restaurants affect children more than mothers’ use. ScienceDaily. Retrieved July 11, 2011, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2011/06/110609122931.htm