CHAPTER I

RESTAURANT DEVELOPMENT

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 UNIT 1
RESTAURANTS — ROLE IN SOCIETY AND MARKET

Pre-reading
1. Read and translate the following international words:
role sociological sense
atmosphere philosophy control
factor niche ingredient
operation operator expression
radius company ethics
moral mission comfortable
present favorite potential
scenario actual

2. Read and translate the following groups of words derived from

a common root:
1) operate — operator — operative — operation — operating;
2) success — successful — successfully — succeed;
3) present — presenter — presentation — representation — repre-
sentative — presentable;
4) formal — formally — formality — formalize — informal — in-
formality;
5) moral — morally — morality — immoral — immorally — im-
morality — morale;
6) employ — employer — employee — employed — unemployed —
employment — unemployment — underemployment;
7) depend — dependent — independent — dependency — dependant —
dependable — dependability — interdependent — interdependency;
8) own — owner — ownership — ownerless — disown.

Reading
3. Read the text and translate it. While reading the text try and find
answers to these questions:
1. What need does dining out in restaurants fulfill?
2. What factors are necessary in the successful operation of a res-
taurant?

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 3. What does the marketing term niche describe?
4. Where is the data about the demographics of the population usu-
ally available from?

RESTAURANTS — ROLE IN SOCIETY AND MARKET

Restaurants play an important role in society. Dining out in restaurants
fulfill an important sociological need. People need not only nourishment
but also the social interaction that takes place in a restaurant setting. Res-
taurants are one of the few places where we use all of our senses to enjoy
the experience. Our taste, sight, smell, hearing, and touch are all employed
to savor the food, service, and atmosphere of the restaurant.
The successful operation of a restaurant is dependent on a number of
factors. From the restaurant's operating philosophy to controls, and all
the factors in between, it is not easy to succeed in operating restaurants.
This unit covers many of the factors that are necessary ingredients in the
successful operation of a restaurant.

Operating Philosophy
At the heart of an enterprise is the philosophy of the owner or operator.
The philosophy represents the way the company does business. It is an ex-
pression of the ethics, morals, and values by which the company operates.

Mission, goals, and objectives

Many companies have formal mission statements that explain their
reason for being in business. Red Lobster's mission statement is a good
example of a restaurant's mission.

Mission Statement of Red Lobster Restaurants

• Red Lobster's mission is to provide every guest with a dining experi-
ence that exceeds expectations and ensures their return.
• We serve a variety of attractive, excellent tasting food in a comfort-
able, inviting atmosphere.
• We offer a wide range of competitive prices that provide exceptional value.
• Our service is professional, knowledgeable, and friendly.
• We are committed to the success of the individual, their quality of
life, and to providing opportunities for recognition and professional
growth and development.
• We are an industry leader in providing growth and returns to our
shareholders.
• We are America's favorite seafood restaurant and a top choice for
full-service dining.

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 Restaurant Market
The market is composed of those guests who will patronize the res-
taurant. A prospective restaurant owner will analyze the market to deter-
mine whether sufficient demand exists in a particular market niche, such
as Italian or Southern cuisines. A niche is a marketing term used to de-
scribe a specific share or slot of a certain market. A good indication of
the size of the market can be ascertained by taking a radius of from one
to five miles around the restaurant. The distance will vary according to
the type and location of the restaurant. In Manhattan, is may only be a
few blocks, whereas in rural West Virginia it may be a few miles The area
that falls within the radius is called the catchment area. The demographics
of the population within the catchment area is analyzed to reveal age,
number of people in various age brackets, sex, ethnicity, religion, income
levels, and so on. This information is usually available from the chamber
of commerce or data at the local library or real estate offices.
One yardstick used to determine the potential viability of a restaurant
is to divide the number of restaurants in the catchment area by the total
population. The average number of people per restaurant in the United
States is about 500.
Perhaps this kind of saturation is one of the reasons for the high fail-
ure rate of restaurants. Obviously, each area is different; one location
may have several Italian restaurants but no Southern restaurant. There-
fore, a Southern restaurant would be unique in the market and, if prop-
erly positioned, may have a competitive advantage. If someone in the
catchment area wanted to eat Italian food, he or she would have to
choose among the various Italian restaurants. In marketing terms, the
number of potential guests for the Italian restaurants would be divided by
the number of Italian restaurants to determine fair market share (the av-
erage number of guests that would, if all other things were equal, eat at
any one of the Italian restaurants).
Let's take 1,000 potential guests as an example. If they all decided to
eat Italian in the fair market share scenario, each restaurant would re-
ceive one hundred guests. In reality, we know this does not happen — for
various reasons, one restaurant becomes more popular. The number of
guests that this and the other restaurants receive then is called the actual
market share [1, 196—197].

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Vocabulary notes
need çä. ïîòðåáíîñòü
nourishment ïèòàíèå
smell çä. îáîíÿíèå
hearing çä. ñëóõ
touch çä. îñÿçàíèå
to employ çä. èñïîëüçîâàòüñÿ
to savor íàñëàæäàòüñÿ, ñìàêîâàòü
to be dependent (on smth.) çàâèñåòü (îò ÷åãî-ëèáî)
to succeed äîáèâàòüñÿ óñïåõà, ïðåóñïåâàòü
mission statement çä. êðàòêî ñôîðìóëèðîâàííîå îôè-
öèàëüíîå èçëîæåíèå öåëåé, çàäà÷ è
ïðèíöèïîâ ðàáîòû äàííîé îðãàíè-
çàöèè
to ascertain çä. óñòàíàâëèâàòü
Manhattan Ìàíõýòòåí — öåíòðàëüíûé ðàéîí
Íüþ-Éîðêà, ðàñïîëîæåííûé íà îä-
íîèìåííîì îñòðîâå
West Virginia Çàïàäíàÿ Âèðäæèíèÿ — øòàò ÑØÀ
rural cåëüñêèé, äåðåâåíñêèé
block çä. êâàðòàë, íåáîëüøàÿ óëèöà, óëî÷êà
catchment area çîíà îõâàòà; çîíà îáñëóæèâàíèÿ
ethnicity íàöèîíàëüíîñòü, ýòíè÷åñêàÿ ïðè-
íàäëåæíîñòü
age bracket âîçðàñòíîé èíòåðâàë
sex çä. ïîë (æåíñêèé èëè ìóæñêîé)
chamber of commerce òîðãîâàÿ ïàëàòà
real estate office àãåíòñòâî ïî ïðîäàæå íåäâèæèìîñòè
yardstick çä. ïåðåí. êðèòåðèé, ìåðêà, ìåðèëî
viability çä. ñïîñîáíîñòü âûñòîÿòü â óñëîâèÿõ
êîíêóðåíöèè; æèçíåñïîñîáíîñòü
saturation çä. íàñûùåííîñòü
failure çä. íåóäà÷íîå âåäåíèå áèçíåñà, çà-
âåðøàþùååñÿ åãî êðàõîì
competitive advantage êîíêóðåíòíîå ïðåèìóùåñòâî
returns äåíåæíûå ïîñòóïëåíèÿ; äîõîäû
shareholder äåðæàòåëü àêöèé

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seafood ìîðåïðîäóêòû
to patronize çä. ÷àñòî ïîñåùàòü; áûòü ïîñòîÿí-
íûì ïîñåòèòåëåì
market share äîëÿ íà ðûíêå

Vocabulary focus
4. Match the words and phrases on the left with the correct equivalents
on the right:
1) income a) óñïåøíûé
2) available b) ðûíîê
3) share c) âûÿñíÿòü
4) actual d) íåäâèæèìîñòü
5) successful e) åñòü (êóøàòü, ïèòàòüñÿ)
6) term f) âëàäåëåö, ñîáñòâåííèê
7) real estate g) òåðìèí
8) owner h) äîõîä
9) market i) ðåàëüíûé, ôàêòè÷åñêèé
10) eat j) èìåþùèéñÿ â íàëè÷èè
11) reveal k) äîëÿ, ÷àñòü

5. Match the synonyms:

1) get a) type
2) happen b) and so on
3) use c) employ
4) various d) number
5) etc e) different
6) select f) real
7) quantity g) customer
8) kind h) choose
9) actual i) receive
10) guest j) occur

6. Match the antonyms:

1) potential a) more
2) different b) few
3) give c) disadvantage
4) many d) multiply

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 5) less e) equal
6) divide f) actual
7) advantage g) take

7. Match the words on the left with the correct definitions on the right:
1) sufficient a) possible or likely in the future
2) happen b) something that many people like
3) market c) ability to compete, survive, and be successful in an
independent way
4) philosophy d) a word or phrase used for referring to something
5) income e) as much as is needed
6) term f) money that someone gets from working or invest-
ing money
7) popular g) to take place, usually without being planned
8) demand h) trade in goods or services of a particular kind
9) viability i) a system of principles the organization's operation
is based upon
10) potential the amount of a product or service that people want [6]

Comprehension
8. Answer the questions on the text:
1. Why do restaurants play an important role in society?
2. What takes place in a restaurant setting?
3. What senses do we use to enjoy the experience of dining out in a
good restaurant?
4. Where else do we use all our senses to enjoy the experience of
being there?
5. What does the successful operation of a restaurant depend on?
6. Why isn't it easy to succeed in operating restaurants?
7. What philosophy is at the heart of any enterprise?
8. What does this philosophy represent?
9. How do companies explain their reason for being in business?
10. Why do many restaurants have formal mission statements?
11. What is the restaurant market composed of?
12. What is a good indication of the size of the restaurant market?
13. What territory is called the catchment area?
14. Where can one obtain information about the demographics of
the population?

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 15. What is the average number of people per restaurant in the
United States?
16. What figure is called the fair market share?
17. What figure is called the actual market share?

9. Complete the sentences using proper words and phrases in the

box.
sight, smell, and hearing; tasty food; operating philosophy;
the social interaction; patronize; represents

1. The restaurant market consists of the guests who _______ this

restaurant.
2. The guests need not only _______ but also the social interaction.
3. The successful operation of a restaurant is dependent on its
_______.
4. Not only our taste, but also _______ are employed to enjoy the
atmosphere of the restaurant.
5. _______ often takes place in a restaurant setting.
6. The philosophy _______ the way the restaurant operates.

10. Say whether the following statements are true or false. Comment on
the true statements and correct the false ones.
1. The successful operation of a restaurant depends on many ingredients.
2. Restaurants are one of the few places where we use two our
senses — hearing, and touch — to enjoy the experience.
3. The philosophy is an expression of the ethics, morals, and values
by which the company operates.
4. A prospective restaurant owner rarely analyzes the market.
5. To determine whether sufficient demand exists in a particular
market niche chefs dine out in restaurants.
6. Restaurants and cafes play a very important role in society.

Discussion
11. Try to evaluate the financial position of a restaurant on the basis of
the following information about it. These words and phrases will
come in handy:
• to become more and more popular;
• the best seafood place in town;

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 • profit;
• seafood;
• to eat Italian food;
• unique in the market;
• committed to the success of the individual;
• the quality of life;
• to provide opportunities;
• recognition;
• professional growth and development.

After having done the task describe in detail both the restaurant
and its role in the market niche.

12. Work in pairs:

a) Look at the following words and phrases and think of a story
that might combine them all. You may reorder them in any way
you like using any form of the verb:
• a new restaurant opened;
• the catchment area;
• had been thoroughly analyzed;
• philosophy;
• elaborated;
• mission statement;
• guests;
• enjoyed the experience greatly;
• successful operation;
• patronized;
• succeeded in operating the restaurant;
• its successful operation.

b) When you have decided upon the story, tell it to your partner.
Then listen to that of your partner. Ask each other as many
questions as you can to learn further details or clarify some points.

13. Entitle the paragraphs beginning with the words:

Restaurants play…
Perhaps this kind…

14. Divide the text into other logical parts and entitle each of them.

15. Give a summary of the text.

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 Case Study
C O R P O R A T E P R O F I L E : RED LOBSTER (part 1)

Background:
Irrespective of your age, it is always worthwhile taking a gamble and
start a completely new business from scratch. This was proven by a res-
taurant entrepreneur who started a new seafood restaurant thus giving
birth to an enormous restaurant chain.

1. Read the supporting article and provide detailed answers to the

case questions below.
In 1968, a restaurant entrepreneur took a gamble on a new seafood
restaurant concept in Lakeland, Florida. He was already in his mid-
fifties, but Bill Darden decided to roll the dice at a time when most other
men his age were looking toward retirement.
The gamble paid off — more than Darden could ever have imagined.
His single seafood restaurant Red Lobster has since grown to become the
largest seafood restaurant company in North America, with more than
800 restaurants in forty-nine states and Canada.
Darden's restaurant career began in the 1930s in a tiny southern Geor-
gia town called Waycross. It was there that nineteen-year old Darden oper-
ated a small lunch counter called The Green Frog, where he served as man-
ager, night cook, waiter, and counter server. As he saved money from The
Green Frog, he began to acquire other restaurants in Florida, Georgia, and
South Carolina. In 1963, Darden and his partners bought an Orlando
landmark, Gary's Duck Inn, a popular seafood restaurant.
It was so popular that Darden began to think about expanding the
concept — creating a no-frills seafood restaurant that offered fast, effi-
cient service. He collected several investors, hired an ad agency, and, as
they say, the rest is history.
One constant in Red Lobster's twenty-five years of consistent growth
and success has been change. Keeping pace with the ever-changing ex-
pectations of the dining-out public. North America's largest full-service
seafood restaurant company continues to look for new ways to assure
quality and value for its guests.
Innovative menu additions, enhanced service, and new, contempo-
rary decor are recent examples of Red Lobster's commitment to not only
meet, but also exceed, guest expectations.

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