May 28, 2025 • 35 mins
Join Susan Tung, your host from Table 13, as she shares her memorable experiences and vital lessons learned from a nine-day Caribbean cruise. From the operational excellence of cruise hospitality to the minor inconsistencies faced, Susan draws parallels with running a restaurant. She provides insights on maintaining customer service, the importance of staff training, and building loyalty within the hospitality industry. Tune in for valuable tips for restaurant owners and anyone interested in culinary entrepreneurship, as well as some personal stories of family bonding and adventure.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:01):
Hi everyone.
Welcome back to Table 13.
This is Susan Tung.
I am your podcast host today.
Normally I am joined by my co-host Morgan, but today we're doing things a little bit differently.
I recently got back from my crew and I really wanted to share with you guys the experience that I had, things I learned.
I think when you own a restaurant or you're in the hospitality industry, you are always looking at things from the lens of someone that's in the industry.
(00:29):
Thought that there were just so many things that I witnessed and experienced that I really want to share with you if you are a restaurant owner or just in the gen food business in general.
we went on a nine day cruise to the Caribbean.
we embarked from Cape Liberty in New York.
we went to New York a few days ahead because we didn't wanna miss the cruise.
(00:51):
we stayed in Airbnb for a couple days and then we took off on our cruise and met up with the rest of our family.
there was actually 17 of us.
the.
Cruz went to four different stops, and I will say I was not expecting the stops to be as short as they were.
But hey, when you have kids, a vacation is a vacation for me, as someone that runs a restaurant, it was a lot easier for me to disconnect than I think a lot of people realize.
(01:21):
This wasn't my first trip.
I have gone away for weeks at a time previously, and the restaurant has run smoothly.
And leading up to this trip, I had my meetings in place with my managers.
I made sure, the events that were happening while I was away were taken care of and all the details were passed along to the right people.
So really everything went very smoothly.
(01:42):
I actually didn't have internet on the cruise.
It was like $30 a day for wifi there, which is insane.
So I was basically forced to disconnect and I'm very okay with that.
(02:02):
What was I kind of hoping to gain from this break was really just time away with my family.
My parents were on the trip, And my brother, and that's, this is the first trip that we've been on in decades.
Like the last time we were on a trip together with the four of us would've been when we were kids and my parents had to shut down the Chinese restaurant and we'd go away somewhere, which is what we did frequently.
(02:25):
because like every March break we would go somewhere.
That was my parents' way of getting a break themselves, but spending time and making memories with us as kids.
So for us to do this was really special because now you know, my parents have the grandkids, which all came along as well.
And you know, our original family of four, our core family has just grown so much since then.
(02:49):
So first, let's talk about New York.
This is the first time I've been in New York since I was a kid.
So the last time I was there I was like seven years old.
So I don't really have a lot of memories, but I will say as someone that loves the hospitality industry and food and beverage, I feel like I really missed out on the joys of New York.
You know, I grew up in Peterborough and then I spent my twenties in Toronto, which is great.
(03:16):
But now that I've seen New York as an adult.
I will say I really wish I spent more time there in my twenties just because of the hospitality industry and how booming it is and how much is going on there.
So, I mean, I was only there for a couple days, but that was actually the main takeaway that I got.
Dave always felt like we were taken care of.
(03:38):
he actually had a server assistant as well and she was really fantastic.
one really great thing that they did actually in general, was they always made sure the kids ordered first and they got the food out for the kids, right? We know kids want to eat early, we wanna take care of them first, The most high level places that I've been to, they always take care of the children before the adult.
Because ultimately when you're a parent, that is what you care about.
(04:01):
So that is what the servers cared about too, which I loved.
And I love that they always, had a high chair ready for us when we came.
'cause it's like, Hey, we're coming here every single night.
Like there's no reason why we have to ask for a high chair every night.
So that was really great as well.
Dave was someone that, you know, if one of us was missing 'cause someone wasn't feeling well, like he would notice, even though there was a group of 17 of us, he would notice.
(04:24):
One thing that really stood out was one night Matt actually didn't come to dinner and it was a lobster night.
And Dave made sure that, you know, I took home a meal for Matt and the worst part about it is, you know, even though I'm Matt's wife, I was not thinking about that.
I'm more like, it's fine, Matt can just go to Buffet and get his own food and whatever.
(04:48):
Dave was like, oh my gosh, Matt's not here.
Let me send a meal with you.
And he was just so amazing for things like that.
just making sure everyone was taken care of.
The other thing that's really stood out about Dave was he genuinely spoke, kind and positively about the Royal Caribbean.
(05:10):
So, you know, it's a big company and to see the amount of loyalty and happy staff that they have is really great.
for an organization that big to achieve that level of high level of service, it's really hard.
You know, a lot of training, a lot of culture has to be built into it, and it's very evident.
So even just hearing Dave talk about how happy he is and how much he enjoys working there and how proud he is, like you can tell that that's actually where he wanted to be.
(05:42):
And obviously he's compensated well, versus if he was to work back home in the Philippines.
so in terms of any moments that fell flat or felt inauthentic, I'm gonna just preface this with my experience on this cruise ship was literally like amazing.
So for me to actually have to pick something out, is actually hard.
(06:02):
But if I had to pick something that felt inconsistent or inauthentic.
there was a time where, so my daughter, hunter is she can't eat dairy.
she hasn't been able to since she was a baby.
So there is a place that sells pizza and not sells.
But you know, you order pizza, you just go up to it and there's a display of pizza, but she can't have cheese.
(06:25):
So.
Fun fact, I actually just asked and said, Hey, do you guys happen to have any dairy free pizza? And amazingly they do, but they have to make it to order.
So it's like a 10 minute wait, which is totally fine.
But what felt inconsistent was the next day I actually went and asked someone about it and it was a different person that day and they said, oh no, we don't.
So then I was like, are you sure? Like, you know, I was here yesterday and I was able to get something for my kid and in my brain I almost like self-doubt in myself for a second.
(06:52):
And I'm like, no, it was dairy free because my child didn't explode.
so I do know you have a dairy free pizza.
So then she went into the back and asked and like.
It was fine.
So I felt that was really inconsistent, you know, in terms of the training and the staff knowing what was actually available.
So then the next part that also felt inconsistent was they asked me like what I wanted on it.
(07:12):
And I felt like that was weird because I didn't really know you can customize it.
and then I said to her, I was like, well, I'd like cheese on it.
And then she looked at me like I had four heads because it's like, my kid can't eat dairy, but I'm asking for cheese.
So they actually have a dairy free cheese, which is what they're putting on it.
And anyways, it all got sorted out, but it was just a very inconsistent and, tedious conversation to have when, you know, if all they had to do was educate the person at that station what they actually serve.
(07:45):
but besides that, like I said, I'm really just nitpicking if I had to pick one little thing.
So if I were to compare cruise hospitality to what we aim for in a restaurant setting.
I will say the cruise setting is different and they nail it.
(08:08):
But what's different about the cruise setting is you are interacting with all different levels of staff and employees on a cruise ship.
You're dealing with the state room attendants, housekeeping, the servers, the pool attendants, the people doing the excursions, security We even, Experienced interactions with the doctor on board, but you're interacting with everyone.
(08:36):
And I will say those experiences were so consistent because they are trained to make sure the customers are taken care of and it's done so genuinely where they actually care about your experience and they want you to be happy and taken care of.
Whereas I find a restaurant is different because you know, in a restaurant you've got front of house, back of house, right? And generally customers are interacting with just the front of house.
(09:05):
You know, there are certain situations in the back of house where it may be an open concept kitchen, which is what I have and.
But generally speaking, we, when in a restaurant you're, you're usually just dealing with one half of the business operations.
But like I said, to achieve this level of service at all levels was really, really impressive.
(09:39):
So let's talk about the stops and where we actually went.
So, like I said, we did a nine day Caribbean cruise.
We stopped in Bermuda, St.
Martin, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Ported Plata in the Dominican Republic.
We were originally supposed to go to levity and Haiti, but there was a lot of issues happening there.
(10:01):
So we got rerouted.
And one of the standout, and I'm gonna say this actually in a negative way, unfortunate standout experiences was in, oh shoot, I wanna say it was in Bermuda.
(10:21):
Yeah, I think it was Bermuda.
We went to a beach where it's really known for the planes.
Landing just like right next to the beach.
So it's a huge tourist destination.
People would like specifically come to this beach just so they can watch the airplanes land above their heads.
it's super windy.
(10:42):
Such a cool experience to see, I got some really cool videos and it's funny 'cause they actually built everything around it to just cater to that.
we went to a restaurant right next to it and they even had screens on.
arrival times, obviously super smart 'cause us as guests, we're there for the planes.
We wanna see when the next plane is coming in, so they've got screens all over just like an airport.
(11:04):
And that was really cool, just that ambiance itself.
The food itself was actually not bad.
I will say presentation and food was fantastic, however, the service was pretty bad.
you've got a lot of staff there who.
Really, like, I don't think I saw anyone smile.
(11:25):
they were miserable.
And I, you know, part of me wonders now, like, are they miserable because they're constantly dealing with tourists so they don't get that genuine joy of serving the food there.
but nonetheless, I think when you are working in hospitality, you should still always have a level of.
Positivity and kindness.
(11:45):
Otherwise you could just go work somewhere else.
But I'm sure the money there is so good based on tips that they're not gonna go anywhere else.
So you've kind of got this culture of like mediocrity when it comes to service, except this place is so busy because of tourism.
So the owner can totally get away with mediocrity and poor levels of service.
So why was that experience so bad? Okay, so besides the servers being completely miserable, one of our items like not come out and, you know, we followed up with them, but it was actually the experience of following up that was really.
(12:19):
Poor, you know, it was like, yep, I'll go check on it.
And then like 10, 15 minutes passed and they didn't come back to tell us where it was at.
'cause what we really wanted to do was say, Hey, if it's not coming, just cancel it.
But, there was no communication.
they were more so just like unfortunately, like order takers.
so they just kinda went off to find our food.
What was even worse on top of that was when the pizza finally came.
(12:43):
It wasn't really hot anymore.
So not only did it take them forever to go and get the item that was missing when it actually came to our table, it wasn't even hot and the food was terrible.
and it was funny because my parents were, you know, there from the hospitality industry as well, and they're like, well, we should say something, blah, blah, blah.
And I, you know, me just being me, I'm like, you know what guys, we're just gonna take the L on this one.
(13:08):
These people, clearly they don't care about our experience.
Like there is no point in just like raising a fuss.
I'm like, I'll just pay the bill.
I don't care.
But this place, it felt like they were just gonna charge us regardless of whether we were happy or not.
So, that's kind of what happened.
But I will say everything else about the experience was good.
Just that little tidbit.
(13:31):
What really inspired me from my trip was seeing the level of loyalty.
Of customers slash like guests on the Royal Caribbean cruise, the people that go on cruises.
And I, I can, I understand now because now that I've gone on 1, 1, 1, I really wanna go back, but the people that I met on these cruises, and I'm not saying, just saying like one person, like I, I'm a pretty outgoing person.
(14:00):
I chatted with a lot of people a lot.
And the number of people that go on cruises more than like once a year and just the number they've been on is astounding to me.
You know, one random girl that I talked to, you know, in like the playroom said that she's been on, she's like, she's like lost count.
(14:21):
She thinks she's at 15, but she actually feels like she's lost count.
You know, I actually had a friend go on the cruise right after me and I'm seeing her Facebook comments and people saying things like, loyal to royal and I, I get it.
You know, if you are someone with kids and a family, Royal Caribbean, they do a fantastic job of taking care of everyone because happy kids means happy parents.
(14:48):
The other thing that I noticed was, you know, in their promenade, that's like kinda the area where like you can go shopping, it's like a little mini strip.
There was a storefront, called Next Cruise and that's where people are booking their next vacations.
And like the first day when I went, I kind of laughed myself and I was like, oh, of course they're really trying to get you to.
Book again.
you know, how smart of them to just put that in there, you know, to get people to come back already so soon.
(15:13):
And I really disregarded it.
But then as the cruise went on, I noticed way more and more people going in there to actually book their next cruises So the amount of loyalty and retention that they have is.
Pretty high.
And the fact that they're able to just keep selling cruises as you're on a cruise already is very impressive.
(15:37):
Like if I was in my restaurant and I could literally get someone to buy their next meal already as they're sitting in there, that's what we really wanna strive for, right? So in a restaurant, how the heck can we take that model and experience and transform that into our restaurant? How can I get someone who's eating a bowl of fu.
(15:59):
To pay me now for their next bull.
And I think we need to adopt that mindset of retention and getting someone back in.
One thing I will say, I was kind of surprised, was like, you know, it was my first cruise and I don't think there's a way for them to track this, but I mean, hey, if it's my first crew, like you should hook me in.
(16:22):
I really love this trip and this experience as a family person.
There was literally something for everyone, right? Whether you're into physical activity, outdoor sports, or you know, you've got kids, they literally have activities for different age groups at different time of the day.
It's almost like they think about, if I was a teenager, what would I be doing? What would my day look like? Or if I was a 3-year-old, what would my day look like? And if I was a mom, what would I look? What would that day look like? And then that's how they schedule their programming.
(16:52):
So it's incredibly well thought out.
And just everything is so accommodating from, the state room attendance.
They're there to, flip your room, clean it, and they're doing it, to make it convenient for you.
Even just the food itself, right? You know, you've got your chicken strips and fries for the kids, like you've got family friendly food at all times and there really wasn't anything missing.
(17:21):
And I think that just comes from.
Paying attention to the details and thinking about your client avatar and knowing who you're trying to target and what kind of customer you're trying to bring in.
And basing everything and building everything around that.
And I also will say that even a lot of their promotions, like they have this promotion called, you know, kids Sale Free, which is really smart.
(17:47):
'cause I, at the end of the day, you're really just paying for it in your own, your own.
That's just like this added expense to having children, right? You wanna go on vacation? Well now you get to pay double 'cause you have two kids.
But you know, the way they've marketed it is different.
It's more just like, Hey, your kids are on us.
You can still come and enjoy.
(18:13):
We went to a restaurant that my brother had scoped out.
he's that foodie, the one that's gonna go online to see which restaurant you have to go to when you're in certain places.
I am actually not so much like that.
More so because of just time on my hands.
And I am more of a quick, you know, go on Trip Advisor or go on Google to find what's near me.
and I also blame this as part of, you know, having kids and just going the convenient route.
(18:37):
Based on where I am at in my life right now.
So my brother was responsible for picking the restaurant that we were all gonna go to while we were in New York.
And he picked one that was, I feel like, kind of very bougie, just, you know, for what we paid and what we got.
And it was one of those places where you had to book three days in advance because they were gonna make the food, and prep it well ahead of time.
(19:02):
It wasn't the right fit for us because, you know, we are a family.
You know, you walk in, it's a very moody ambiance.
There's candles and it's dark, and we're coming in with like a couple toddlers and a baby and like a 10-year-old So, you know, if our kids are having issues and they're throwing a tantrum, we're not gonna leave them in the restaurant.
(19:22):
We are going somewhere else.
We're going for a walk.
One of the experiences that really stuck out in my mind from going to that restaurant was observing the staff.
So the server that we had was fantastic.
He was clearly someone that's been there for a long time.
He knows the menu.
Everything was great.
What really actually stuck out to me was this kind of like server assistant that he had.
(19:48):
he was very attractive, like almost looked like, you know, he's trying to make it as an actor and you know, he's working that job as like a side hustle, which is very common in New York.
Obviously, I.
But actually, if I were to actually relate who they really remind me of, they remind me of Archie and Jughead, but like the Netflix version, not the cartoon.
(20:09):
you know, you've got Jughead, who's like the really witty one and he, he was our server.
And then you've got Archie, who's the pretty boy and like he's there for the looks.
So anyways, Archie was just kinda like floating around and he was always just floating around, but in like a way that was.
(20:29):
Awkward.
and you can just tell that he didn't feel comfortable being there.
It's almost like he was trying to figure out what he was supposed to do.
And there was even times where he would come and like clear the plates when he wasn't supposed to clear the plates but he'd already committed to doing it, and you could kind of hear him talking to the main server, Archie, or not Jughead, about what he was doing.
(20:50):
And then.
Jughead's, like, oh no, you're not supposed to do that yet.
But Archie had already committed, so he's just gonna go with it.
so there were just like weird points in the service that were not very, that didn't just flow.
And again, those just come down to like training and giving feedback.
Archie just didn't have that steps of service nailed down and there was just certain points of the service where you can tell he.
(21:18):
I didn't know what to do.
but yeah, again, so this is why training is really important.
You know, it's important to give people very clear instructions.
I would imagine a place like that to have a relatively good training program because they seem like they're a very high end place, but.
From what we saw, it didn't ruin the experience, but it was definitely just inconsistent with everything else, right? The ambiance, the food, the menu, the price.
(21:43):
and then you just had this awkward person that was floating along with it.
So let's talk about the cruise ship, this was my first time on a cruise and they're essentially just mini resorts that are floating on the water.
(22:05):
I wasn't really expecting it to be as big as it was.
And actually the one that we were on, it was called Legacy of the Seas, and it was, once you like see it in person, you're like, holy crap, this is huge.
And that first reaction is always like just breathtaking.
If you've never been on one of these giant ships.
(22:27):
I will say the check-in experience was incredibly smooth.
Was really, really smooth and the people were incredibly helpful as well.
I will say that was like a 10 outta 10 experience, just like checking in.
(22:50):
The literal onboarding process was as smooth as it could possibly be.
Considering they are loading thousands and thousands of people onto these cruise ships.
There is so much luggage, so many bodies and strollers, and there's just so much going on.
They've really got it down to the science on how to make it as efficient as possible.
(23:13):
And I think about that in my own restaurant.
How do we make the quote unquote onboarding experience as smooth as we can? you get customers that come in your door for the first time, they've never been there before and they're lost.
And that's how I felt going onto this cruise ship.
I've never been there before.
So it's really important that we have people that are helpful and can direct people onto the next step and think about.
(23:39):
What might this person be needing right now and how can I make their life a little bit better? And I really felt that us going through that process, you know, that first impression was really important and they really nailed it.
I was actually really excited, you know, just seeing the boat and I gave, like I said, I gave a 10 outta 10 experience.
(24:09):
One of our favorite people that we interacted with every single night was Dave.
He was our server, at the restaurant where we had like a standing reservation.
So the ship itself had multiple restaurants, but we always had dinner in the same restaurant and always had the same server, which was really nice.
And we were able to build a relationship over the week that we were there.
(24:30):
Also, it was kind of coincidental that he was Filipino and then my brother's in-laws and them are all Filipino as well.
So there was that human connection and I think it was nice for him as well to be able to serve people that he could speak his own language in, every now and then.
So it really goes to show you that even though you are part of a big corporation, you're part of this big, conglomerate of cruise ships, you can still be yourself and even use that to your strength to really relate to your customers.
(25:00):
One experience with Dave that was really standout was one night Matt didn't actually come to dinner 'cause he wasn't feeling very well and it was actually lobster night and the joke was like, you know, it's like, okay, well everyone gets a lobster, right? the average quota.
So Matt.
(25:21):
Isn't that big of a lobster fan, like he will eat it, whatever.
but Dave really wanted to make sure that Matt got taken care of.
So he noticed that he wasn't there and made sure that, he sent me back to the room with a lobster and dinner for him.
Whereas I'm like, as a wife, I'm like, that's fine.
He'll just go to the buffet and get something.
So, you know, Dave really looked out for us, and really just kind of went above and beyond.
(25:45):
And went beyond just serving the people that were there at the table.
you know, as a mom and business owner.
It's really nice to not have to worry about little things, right? Like what are we going to eat today and what are we gonna do today? There was just always something going on on those ships and just knowing that it's family friendly is also such a relief going into an environment where you know your kids are wanted there and that there's things for them to do.
(26:10):
It's the best I, again, if I look at it in my own restaurant, right? We are a family friendly restaurant and it's important that we communicate that to our customers.
We wanted that food, so we.
went there to have the food.
But when you go to a restaurant and you know that you are welcome there with your kids, it just kind of takes this burden off your shoulders.
(26:31):
So if you are a restaurant owner and you are family friendly, make sure that stuff is on your Google page and you communicate that in your Instagram and social media.
And if you have high chairs, even better.
And if you have change tables, great.
Communicate that.
If you don't have change tables.
You should think about getting some, you would be amazed like the amount of people that will come to your restaurant because they are family friendly.
(27:04):
One of the small things that people did on this trip that made a really big difference for our experience was these floating ducks.
And this is not done by the cruise ship or the staff, it's actually just.
By the guests, I didn't know this and none of us actually knew that this was a thing, but people hide, ducks all over the ships for kids or whoever to find.
And it's just those like little added joy.
(27:25):
It just feels like it's constantly an Easter egg hunt.
And whenever there was downtime we would just walk around the cruise ship looking for ducks.
And for like a 3-year-old, that is the best.
She collected and amalgamated this.
A collection of ducks that were all different.
You know, there's one that had a, came with its own Jeep.
There was one that was like in a bikini.
There was one that came with a hat.
(27:46):
So they're all really like different and unique and you just have these little collections, which was super fun.
at one point Hunter had these ducks and my nieces were trading them for candy with her, which was really funny 'cause Hunter can't say no to candy.
so let's talk about, you know, the bad, right? So Royal Caribbean.
Really there weren't any bad experiences.
(28:06):
I love really, truly everything about it.
but my worst experience, my worst service experience that happened was on the way home.
We were at New York Airport and there was this, sandwich shop.
That was super lined up and I was like, oh man, that must be good.
So I went there and the line took like 30 minutes to get through the front line.
(28:28):
Also kind of a bad idea on my end.
You know, I had a kid that was getting a little bit hungry and time was not really on my side in terms of that, They had actually run out of, hot sandwiches, which is actually one half of their menu, and they weren't really communicating that effectively with the customers.
So people would line up for like 30 minutes and get to the front of the line, and then the lady would be like, oh, we don't have any hot sandwiches.
(28:50):
And you can imagine the reaction people had.
They were so angry.
Some people would leave the line, some people would just order anyways, but they were just like annoyed.
they did try to communicate that every now and then the girl would like yell and be like, oh, we don't have any hot sandwiches.
But it was very inconsistent.
the people that working, they're working there were also just really miserable.
You can tell that it was one of those food places where they.
(29:15):
I had one person that was doing all the work, and then the other people just like, were not really contributing.
So the one person that was doing all the work and talking to the customers, like she was hustling as, you know, as fast as she possibly could, but again, not very happy, not a great environment.
She even her tone wasn't great and it was just very negative to the point where when she took someone's sandwich order, just the way she reacted and spoke to him, he just like got outta the line and, you know, swore.
(29:46):
And yeah, the way he reacted was justified and, you know, the way she was acting and speaking.
And for me it was just a sandwich and it was good.
it's funny though because the experience was so terrible.
It really balanced and kind of negated anything about the food.
(30:07):
'cause now when I think about that food, I'm gonna think about that really terrible experience.
So yeah, we are establishments that sell food, but people remember feelings more than food.
And I think we need to remember that all the time when we're training people, when we're operating, when we're marketing.
(30:27):
That the customer experience is always going to come out on top.
I was eating my sandwich and I even like went on their Google, review page just to see what people are saying.
'cause I'm like, maybe this is just a one-off day.
No, we have like a 2.5
rating on Google.
which is quite impressive.
I actually think they should have been a little bit lower, but sometimes it depends who's working.
(30:53):
And I didn't leave a review.
Then I went on their website to see if they actually care about feedback.
'cause I noticed they weren't really responding to the reviews either.
And then I went on their website to look if there's any feedback form.
And I was like, you know what? If there's like a feedback form, maybe I'll just tell 'em about the experience.
Just let them know.
But that wasn't there.
(31:14):
And.
Maybe I'm stretching, but to me, that tells me that they don't care about what other customers say.
They're such a big company because they have so many locations that the opinions of others doesn't really matter.
And that's kind of what I got from that.
not being able to communicate with anyone or leave feedback.
(31:35):
So anyways, at the end of day.
You know, when you're that big, maybe it doesn't matter, but eventually I think it'll catch up to you, because you know, bad service and eventually bad food is not gonna make you successful.
(31:58):
How has this trip changed the way I view my own customer experience? Well, the cruise ship, if anything, taught me if.
If the cruise ship taught me anything, it's that you should have a simple message that you wanna communicate, you know, to your employees and you gotta stick to it.
So with World Caribbean, I don't know if this is for sure, but I mean, I saw it on the wall.
(32:20):
It says greet and smile, like it's in giant letters, in like their hallway, like their staff hallway.
Literally every single person, no matter what position they were in, was doing that.
They would greet and smile at every single one.
And that made.
Everyone approachable.
It made them ready to help other people.
It made customers feel comfortable with asking questions if they didn't know something, and it's so simple.
(32:44):
It's three words, greet and smile.
So if you think about your business, what do you communicate with your staff that trickles from the top down to the bottom? If it's just one phrase, what would that be? Another thing that made me think about my customer experience was.
the cruise ship does a really good job with in-house marketing, so there's only so many channels on their tv.
(33:06):
And one of the channels was dedicated to their own cruise line and featuring the other ships, and obviously I had nothing to do, so I watched it and now I really wanna actually go on their newest ship, which is Icon and that's probably gonna be the next one I go on.
'cause they did a really good job selling it.
It's amazing.
It's newer, it's, got more features to it.
(33:28):
so they did a really good job with that.
And, you look at your own business, how much are you educating your customers on reasons to come back again? So one, they made the offer really, really good so that people were willing to fork out money or like a deposit to book their next trip.
And two, they did a really good job with just convincing people that this is the next thing that you have to do.
(33:49):
You need to come back again.
And if you could translate that into your own restaurant.
You know that four walls, marketing, what are we doing inside the four walls? Whether it's what people are talking about, what's on the actual walls itself, on the tables, you know, on flyers, What are we doing to make someone come back? And what are we doing to guarantee that, whether that's through an offer, coupons, whatever it may be.
(34:13):
And for some people that might be nothing.
So if that's you, think about what you can do to make them come back.
Not someday, but next week or next month.
When I do this exact trip again, absolutely I had a great time.
but I definitely wanna do a newer ship, just because that's just how I am and I really love that we went with such a big group and the chances of us all going together again are probably a little bit slimmer.
(34:39):
I would love to do that 'cause it's kind of nice having.
Babysitters.
yeah, and that's it for today.
I really hope that you guys got something out of my own personal experience, and if you have any questions about, restaurant life, restaurant ownership, or just the cruise itself, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram at Susan Tongue.
And again, one of these days I will create an Instagram page for this, I swear.
(35:02):
But yeah, reach out and have a great day, guys.
Bye.
Hi everyone.
Welcome back to Table 13.
This is Susan Tung.
I am your podcast host today.
Normally I am joined by my co-host Morgan, but today we're doing things a little bit differently.
I recently got back from my crew and I really wanted to share with you guys the experience that I had, things I learned.
I think when you own a restaurant or you're in the hospitality industry, you are always looking at things from the lens of someone that's in the industry.
(00:29):
Thought that there were just so many things that I witnessed and experienced that I really want to share with you if you are a restaurant owner or just in the gen food business in general.
we went on a nine day cruise to the Caribbean.
we embarked from Cape Liberty in New York.
we went to New York a few days ahead because we didn't wanna miss the cruise.
(00:51):
we stayed in Airbnb for a couple days and then we took off on our cruise and met up with the rest of our family.
there was actually 17 of us.
the.
Cruz went to four different stops, and I will say I was not expecting the stops to be as short as they were.
But hey, when you have kids, a vacation is a vacation for me, as someone that runs a restaurant, it was a lot easier for me to disconnect than I think a lot of people realize.
(01:21):
This wasn't my first trip.
I have gone away for weeks at a time previously, and the restaurant has run smoothly.
And leading up to this trip, I had my meetings in place with my managers.
I made sure, the events that were happening while I was away were taken care of and all the details were passed along to the right people.
So really everything went very smoothly.
(01:42):
I actually didn't have internet on the cruise.
It was like $30 a day for wifi there, which is insane.
So I was basically forced to disconnect and I'm very okay with that.
(02:02):
What was I kind of hoping to gain from this break was really just time away with my family.
My parents were on the trip, And my brother, and that's, this is the first trip that we've been on in decades.
Like the last time we were on a trip together with the four of us would've been when we were kids and my parents had to shut down the Chinese restaurant and we'd go away somewhere, which is what we did frequently.
(02:25):
because like every March break we would go somewhere.
That was my parents' way of getting a break themselves, but spending time and making memories with us as kids.
So for us to do this was really special because now you know, my parents have the grandkids, which all came along as well.
And you know, our original family of four, our core family has just grown so much since then.
(02:49):
So first, let's talk about New York.
This is the first time I've been in New York since I was a kid.
So the last time I was there I was like seven years old.
So I don't really have a lot of memories, but I will say as someone that loves the hospitality industry and food and beverage, I feel like I really missed out on the joys of New York.
You know, I grew up in Peterborough and then I spent my twenties in Toronto, which is great.
(03:16):
But now that I've seen New York as an adult.
I will say I really wish I spent more time there in my twenties just because of the hospitality industry and how booming it is and how much is going on there.
So, I mean, I was only there for a couple days, but that was actually the main takeaway that I got.
Dave always felt like we were taken care of.
(03:38):
he actually had a server assistant as well and she was really fantastic.
one really great thing that they did actually in general, was they always made sure the kids ordered first and they got the food out for the kids, right? We know kids want to eat early, we wanna take care of them first, The most high level places that I've been to, they always take care of the children before the adult.
Because ultimately when you're a parent, that is what you care about.
(04:01):
So that is what the servers cared about too, which I loved.
And I love that they always, had a high chair ready for us when we came.
'cause it's like, Hey, we're coming here every single night.
Like there's no reason why we have to ask for a high chair every night.
So that was really great as well.
Dave was someone that, you know, if one of us was missing 'cause someone wasn't feeling well, like he would notice, even though there was a group of 17 of us, he would notice.
(04:24):
One thing that really stood out was one night Matt actually didn't come to dinner and it was a lobster night.
And Dave made sure that, you know, I took home a meal for Matt and the worst part about it is, you know, even though I'm Matt's wife, I was not thinking about that.
I'm more like, it's fine, Matt can just go to Buffet and get his own food and whatever.
(04:48):
Dave was like, oh my gosh, Matt's not here.
Let me send a meal with you.
And he was just so amazing for things like that.
just making sure everyone was taken care of.
The other thing that's really stood out about Dave was he genuinely spoke, kind and positively about the Royal Caribbean.
(05:10):
So, you know, it's a big company and to see the amount of loyalty and happy staff that they have is really great.
for an organization that big to achieve that level of high level of service, it's really hard.
You know, a lot of training, a lot of culture has to be built into it, and it's very evident.
So even just hearing Dave talk about how happy he is and how much he enjoys working there and how proud he is, like you can tell that that's actually where he wanted to be.
(05:42):
And obviously he's compensated well, versus if he was to work back home in the Philippines.
so in terms of any moments that fell flat or felt inauthentic, I'm gonna just preface this with my experience on this cruise ship was literally like amazing.
So for me to actually have to pick something out, is actually hard.
(06:02):
But if I had to pick something that felt inconsistent or inauthentic.
there was a time where, so my daughter, hunter is she can't eat dairy.
she hasn't been able to since she was a baby.
So there is a place that sells pizza and not sells.
But you know, you order pizza, you just go up to it and there's a display of pizza, but she can't have cheese.
(06:25):
So.
Fun fact, I actually just asked and said, Hey, do you guys happen to have any dairy free pizza? And amazingly they do, but they have to make it to order.
So it's like a 10 minute wait, which is totally fine.
But what felt inconsistent was the next day I actually went and asked someone about it and it was a different person that day and they said, oh no, we don't.
So then I was like, are you sure? Like, you know, I was here yesterday and I was able to get something for my kid and in my brain I almost like self-doubt in myself for a second.
(06:52):
And I'm like, no, it was dairy free because my child didn't explode.
so I do know you have a dairy free pizza.
So then she went into the back and asked and like.
It was fine.
So I felt that was really inconsistent, you know, in terms of the training and the staff knowing what was actually available.
So then the next part that also felt inconsistent was they asked me like what I wanted on it.
(07:12):
And I felt like that was weird because I didn't really know you can customize it.
and then I said to her, I was like, well, I'd like cheese on it.
And then she looked at me like I had four heads because it's like, my kid can't eat dairy, but I'm asking for cheese.
So they actually have a dairy free cheese, which is what they're putting on it.
And anyways, it all got sorted out, but it was just a very inconsistent and, tedious conversation to have when, you know, if all they had to do was educate the person at that station what they actually serve.
(07:45):
but besides that, like I said, I'm really just nitpicking if I had to pick one little thing.
So if I were to compare cruise hospitality to what we aim for in a restaurant setting.
I will say the cruise setting is different and they nail it.
(08:08):
But what's different about the cruise setting is you are interacting with all different levels of staff and employees on a cruise ship.
You're dealing with the state room attendants, housekeeping, the servers, the pool attendants, the people doing the excursions, security We even, Experienced interactions with the doctor on board, but you're interacting with everyone.
(08:36):
And I will say those experiences were so consistent because they are trained to make sure the customers are taken care of and it's done so genuinely where they actually care about your experience and they want you to be happy and taken care of.
Whereas I find a restaurant is different because you know, in a restaurant you've got front of house, back of house, right? And generally customers are interacting with just the front of house.
(09:05):
You know, there are certain situations in the back of house where it may be an open concept kitchen, which is what I have and.
But generally speaking, we, when in a restaurant you're, you're usually just dealing with one half of the business operations.
But like I said, to achieve this level of service at all levels was really, really impressive.
(09:39):
So let's talk about the stops and where we actually went.
So, like I said, we did a nine day Caribbean cruise.
We stopped in Bermuda, St.
Martin, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Ported Plata in the Dominican Republic.
We were originally supposed to go to levity and Haiti, but there was a lot of issues happening there.
(10:01):
So we got rerouted.
And one of the standout, and I'm gonna say this actually in a negative way, unfortunate standout experiences was in, oh shoot, I wanna say it was in Bermuda.
(10:21):
Yeah, I think it was Bermuda.
We went to a beach where it's really known for the planes.
Landing just like right next to the beach.
So it's a huge tourist destination.
People would like specifically come to this beach just so they can watch the airplanes land above their heads.
it's super windy.
(10:42):
Such a cool experience to see, I got some really cool videos and it's funny 'cause they actually built everything around it to just cater to that.
we went to a restaurant right next to it and they even had screens on.
arrival times, obviously super smart 'cause us as guests, we're there for the planes.
We wanna see when the next plane is coming in, so they've got screens all over just like an airport.
(11:04):
And that was really cool, just that ambiance itself.
The food itself was actually not bad.
I will say presentation and food was fantastic, however, the service was pretty bad.
you've got a lot of staff there who.
Really, like, I don't think I saw anyone smile.
(11:25):
they were miserable.
And I, you know, part of me wonders now, like, are they miserable because they're constantly dealing with tourists so they don't get that genuine joy of serving the food there.
but nonetheless, I think when you are working in hospitality, you should still always have a level of.
Positivity and kindness.
(11:45):
Otherwise you could just go work somewhere else.
But I'm sure the money there is so good based on tips that they're not gonna go anywhere else.
So you've kind of got this culture of like mediocrity when it comes to service, except this place is so busy because of tourism.
So the owner can totally get away with mediocrity and poor levels of service.
So why was that experience so bad? Okay, so besides the servers being completely miserable, one of our items like not come out and, you know, we followed up with them, but it was actually the experience of following up that was really.
(12:19):
Poor, you know, it was like, yep, I'll go check on it.
And then like 10, 15 minutes passed and they didn't come back to tell us where it was at.
'cause what we really wanted to do was say, Hey, if it's not coming, just cancel it.
But, there was no communication.
they were more so just like unfortunately, like order takers.
so they just kinda went off to find our food.
What was even worse on top of that was when the pizza finally came.
(12:43):
It wasn't really hot anymore.
So not only did it take them forever to go and get the item that was missing when it actually came to our table, it wasn't even hot and the food was terrible.
and it was funny because my parents were, you know, there from the hospitality industry as well, and they're like, well, we should say something, blah, blah, blah.
And I, you know, me just being me, I'm like, you know what guys, we're just gonna take the L on this one.
(13:08):
These people, clearly they don't care about our experience.
Like there is no point in just like raising a fuss.
I'm like, I'll just pay the bill.
I don't care.
But this place, it felt like they were just gonna charge us regardless of whether we were happy or not.
So, that's kind of what happened.
But I will say everything else about the experience was good.
Just that little tidbit.
(13:31):
What really inspired me from my trip was seeing the level of loyalty.
Of customers slash like guests on the Royal Caribbean cruise, the people that go on cruises.
And I, I can, I understand now because now that I've gone on 1, 1, 1, I really wanna go back, but the people that I met on these cruises, and I'm not saying, just saying like one person, like I, I'm a pretty outgoing person.
(14:00):
I chatted with a lot of people a lot.
And the number of people that go on cruises more than like once a year and just the number they've been on is astounding to me.
You know, one random girl that I talked to, you know, in like the playroom said that she's been on, she's like, she's like lost count.
(14:21):
She thinks she's at 15, but she actually feels like she's lost count.
You know, I actually had a friend go on the cruise right after me and I'm seeing her Facebook comments and people saying things like, loyal to royal and I, I get it.
You know, if you are someone with kids and a family, Royal Caribbean, they do a fantastic job of taking care of everyone because happy kids means happy parents.
(14:48):
The other thing that I noticed was, you know, in their promenade, that's like kinda the area where like you can go shopping, it's like a little mini strip.
There was a storefront, called Next Cruise and that's where people are booking their next vacations.
And like the first day when I went, I kind of laughed myself and I was like, oh, of course they're really trying to get you to.
Book again.
you know, how smart of them to just put that in there, you know, to get people to come back already so soon.
(15:13):
And I really disregarded it.
But then as the cruise went on, I noticed way more and more people going in there to actually book their next cruises So the amount of loyalty and retention that they have is.
Pretty high.
And the fact that they're able to just keep selling cruises as you're on a cruise already is very impressive.
(15:37):
Like if I was in my restaurant and I could literally get someone to buy their next meal already as they're sitting in there, that's what we really wanna strive for, right? So in a restaurant, how the heck can we take that model and experience and transform that into our restaurant? How can I get someone who's eating a bowl of fu.
(15:59):
To pay me now for their next bull.
And I think we need to adopt that mindset of retention and getting someone back in.
One thing I will say, I was kind of surprised, was like, you know, it was my first cruise and I don't think there's a way for them to track this, but I mean, hey, if it's my first crew, like you should hook me in.
(16:22):
I really love this trip and this experience as a family person.
There was literally something for everyone, right? Whether you're into physical activity, outdoor sports, or you know, you've got kids, they literally have activities for different age groups at different time of the day.
It's almost like they think about, if I was a teenager, what would I be doing? What would my day look like? Or if I was a 3-year-old, what would my day look like? And if I was a mom, what would I look? What would that day look like? And then that's how they schedule their programming.
(16:52):
So it's incredibly well thought out.
And just everything is so accommodating from, the state room attendance.
They're there to, flip your room, clean it, and they're doing it, to make it convenient for you.
Even just the food itself, right? You know, you've got your chicken strips and fries for the kids, like you've got family friendly food at all times and there really wasn't anything missing.
(17:21):
And I think that just comes from.
Paying attention to the details and thinking about your client avatar and knowing who you're trying to target and what kind of customer you're trying to bring in.
And basing everything and building everything around that.
And I also will say that even a lot of their promotions, like they have this promotion called, you know, kids Sale Free, which is really smart.
(17:47):
'cause I, at the end of the day, you're really just paying for it in your own, your own.
That's just like this added expense to having children, right? You wanna go on vacation? Well now you get to pay double 'cause you have two kids.
But you know, the way they've marketed it is different.
It's more just like, Hey, your kids are on us.
You can still come and enjoy.
(18:13):
We went to a restaurant that my brother had scoped out.
he's that foodie, the one that's gonna go online to see which restaurant you have to go to when you're in certain places.
I am actually not so much like that.
More so because of just time on my hands.
And I am more of a quick, you know, go on Trip Advisor or go on Google to find what's near me.
and I also blame this as part of, you know, having kids and just going the convenient route.
(18:37):
Based on where I am at in my life right now.
So my brother was responsible for picking the restaurant that we were all gonna go to while we were in New York.
And he picked one that was, I feel like, kind of very bougie, just, you know, for what we paid and what we got.
And it was one of those places where you had to book three days in advance because they were gonna make the food, and prep it well ahead of time.
(19:02):
It wasn't the right fit for us because, you know, we are a family.
You know, you walk in, it's a very moody ambiance.
There's candles and it's dark, and we're coming in with like a couple toddlers and a baby and like a 10-year-old So, you know, if our kids are having issues and they're throwing a tantrum, we're not gonna leave them in the restaurant.
(19:22):
We are going somewhere else.
We're going for a walk.
One of the experiences that really stuck out in my mind from going to that restaurant was observing the staff.
So the server that we had was fantastic.
He was clearly someone that's been there for a long time.
He knows the menu.
Everything was great.
What really actually stuck out to me was this kind of like server assistant that he had.
(19:48):
he was very attractive, like almost looked like, you know, he's trying to make it as an actor and you know, he's working that job as like a side hustle, which is very common in New York.
Obviously, I.
But actually, if I were to actually relate who they really remind me of, they remind me of Archie and Jughead, but like the Netflix version, not the cartoon.
(20:09):
you know, you've got Jughead, who's like the really witty one and he, he was our server.
And then you've got Archie, who's the pretty boy and like he's there for the looks.
So anyways, Archie was just kinda like floating around and he was always just floating around, but in like a way that was.
(20:29):
Awkward.
and you can just tell that he didn't feel comfortable being there.
It's almost like he was trying to figure out what he was supposed to do.
And there was even times where he would come and like clear the plates when he wasn't supposed to clear the plates but he'd already committed to doing it, and you could kind of hear him talking to the main server, Archie, or not Jughead, about what he was doing.
(20:50):
And then.
Jughead's, like, oh no, you're not supposed to do that yet.
But Archie had already committed, so he's just gonna go with it.
so there were just like weird points in the service that were not very, that didn't just flow.
And again, those just come down to like training and giving feedback.
Archie just didn't have that steps of service nailed down and there was just certain points of the service where you can tell he.
(21:18):
I didn't know what to do.
but yeah, again, so this is why training is really important.
You know, it's important to give people very clear instructions.
I would imagine a place like that to have a relatively good training program because they seem like they're a very high end place, but.
From what we saw, it didn't ruin the experience, but it was definitely just inconsistent with everything else, right? The ambiance, the food, the menu, the price.
(21:43):
and then you just had this awkward person that was floating along with it.
So let's talk about the cruise ship, this was my first time on a cruise and they're essentially just mini resorts that are floating on the water.
(22:05):
I wasn't really expecting it to be as big as it was.
And actually the one that we were on, it was called Legacy of the Seas, and it was, once you like see it in person, you're like, holy crap, this is huge.
And that first reaction is always like just breathtaking.
If you've never been on one of these giant ships.
(22:27):
I will say the check-in experience was incredibly smooth.
Was really, really smooth and the people were incredibly helpful as well.
I will say that was like a 10 outta 10 experience, just like checking in.
(22:50):
The literal onboarding process was as smooth as it could possibly be.
Considering they are loading thousands and thousands of people onto these cruise ships.
There is so much luggage, so many bodies and strollers, and there's just so much going on.
They've really got it down to the science on how to make it as efficient as possible.
(23:13):
And I think about that in my own restaurant.
How do we make the quote unquote onboarding experience as smooth as we can? you get customers that come in your door for the first time, they've never been there before and they're lost.
And that's how I felt going onto this cruise ship.
I've never been there before.
So it's really important that we have people that are helpful and can direct people onto the next step and think about.
(23:39):
What might this person be needing right now and how can I make their life a little bit better? And I really felt that us going through that process, you know, that first impression was really important and they really nailed it.
I was actually really excited, you know, just seeing the boat and I gave, like I said, I gave a 10 outta 10 experience.
(24:09):
One of our favorite people that we interacted with every single night was Dave.
He was our server, at the restaurant where we had like a standing reservation.
So the ship itself had multiple restaurants, but we always had dinner in the same restaurant and always had the same server, which was really nice.
And we were able to build a relationship over the week that we were there.
(24:30):
Also, it was kind of coincidental that he was Filipino and then my brother's in-laws and them are all Filipino as well.
So there was that human connection and I think it was nice for him as well to be able to serve people that he could speak his own language in, every now and then.
So it really goes to show you that even though you are part of a big corporation, you're part of this big, conglomerate of cruise ships, you can still be yourself and even use that to your strength to really relate to your customers.
(25:00):
One experience with Dave that was really standout was one night Matt didn't actually come to dinner 'cause he wasn't feeling very well and it was actually lobster night and the joke was like, you know, it's like, okay, well everyone gets a lobster, right? the average quota.
So Matt.
(25:21):
Isn't that big of a lobster fan, like he will eat it, whatever.
but Dave really wanted to make sure that Matt got taken care of.
So he noticed that he wasn't there and made sure that, he sent me back to the room with a lobster and dinner for him.
Whereas I'm like, as a wife, I'm like, that's fine.
He'll just go to the buffet and get something.
So, you know, Dave really looked out for us, and really just kind of went above and beyond.
(25:45):
And went beyond just serving the people that were there at the table.
you know, as a mom and business owner.
It's really nice to not have to worry about little things, right? Like what are we going to eat today and what are we gonna do today? There was just always something going on on those ships and just knowing that it's family friendly is also such a relief going into an environment where you know your kids are wanted there and that there's things for them to do.
(26:10):
It's the best I, again, if I look at it in my own restaurant, right? We are a family friendly restaurant and it's important that we communicate that to our customers.
We wanted that food, so we.
went there to have the food.
But when you go to a restaurant and you know that you are welcome there with your kids, it just kind of takes this burden off your shoulders.
(26:31):
So if you are a restaurant owner and you are family friendly, make sure that stuff is on your Google page and you communicate that in your Instagram and social media.
And if you have high chairs, even better.
And if you have change tables, great.
Communicate that.
If you don't have change tables.
You should think about getting some, you would be amazed like the amount of people that will come to your restaurant because they are family friendly.
(27:04):
One of the small things that people did on this trip that made a really big difference for our experience was these floating ducks.
And this is not done by the cruise ship or the staff, it's actually just.
By the guests, I didn't know this and none of us actually knew that this was a thing, but people hide, ducks all over the ships for kids or whoever to find.
And it's just those like little added joy.
(27:25):
It just feels like it's constantly an Easter egg hunt.
And whenever there was downtime we would just walk around the cruise ship looking for ducks.
And for like a 3-year-old, that is the best.
She collected and amalgamated this.
A collection of ducks that were all different.
You know, there's one that had a, came with its own Jeep.
There was one that was like in a bikini.
There was one that came with a hat.
(27:46):
So they're all really like different and unique and you just have these little collections, which was super fun.
at one point Hunter had these ducks and my nieces were trading them for candy with her, which was really funny 'cause Hunter can't say no to candy.
so let's talk about, you know, the bad, right? So Royal Caribbean.
Really there weren't any bad experiences.
(28:06):
I love really, truly everything about it.
but my worst experience, my worst service experience that happened was on the way home.
We were at New York Airport and there was this, sandwich shop.
That was super lined up and I was like, oh man, that must be good.
So I went there and the line took like 30 minutes to get through the front line.
(28:28):
Also kind of a bad idea on my end.
You know, I had a kid that was getting a little bit hungry and time was not really on my side in terms of that, They had actually run out of, hot sandwiches, which is actually one half of their menu, and they weren't really communicating that effectively with the customers.
So people would line up for like 30 minutes and get to the front of the line, and then the lady would be like, oh, we don't have any hot sandwiches.
(28:50):
And you can imagine the reaction people had.
They were so angry.
Some people would leave the line, some people would just order anyways, but they were just like annoyed.
they did try to communicate that every now and then the girl would like yell and be like, oh, we don't have any hot sandwiches.
But it was very inconsistent.
the people that working, they're working there were also just really miserable.
You can tell that it was one of those food places where they.
(29:15):
I had one person that was doing all the work, and then the other people just like, were not really contributing.
So the one person that was doing all the work and talking to the customers, like she was hustling as, you know, as fast as she possibly could, but again, not very happy, not a great environment.
She even her tone wasn't great and it was just very negative to the point where when she took someone's sandwich order, just the way she reacted and spoke to him, he just like got outta the line and, you know, swore.
(29:46):
And yeah, the way he reacted was justified and, you know, the way she was acting and speaking.
And for me it was just a sandwich and it was good.
it's funny though because the experience was so terrible.
It really balanced and kind of negated anything about the food.
(30:07):
'cause now when I think about that food, I'm gonna think about that really terrible experience.
So yeah, we are establishments that sell food, but people remember feelings more than food.
And I think we need to remember that all the time when we're training people, when we're operating, when we're marketing.
(30:27):
That the customer experience is always going to come out on top.
I was eating my sandwich and I even like went on their Google, review page just to see what people are saying.
'cause I'm like, maybe this is just a one-off day.
No, we have like a 2.5
rating on Google.
which is quite impressive.
I actually think they should have been a little bit lower, but sometimes it depends who's working.
(30:53):
And I didn't leave a review.
Then I went on their website to see if they actually care about feedback.
'cause I noticed they weren't really responding to the reviews either.
And then I went on their website to look if there's any feedback form.
And I was like, you know what? If there's like a feedback form, maybe I'll just tell 'em about the experience.
Just let them know.
But that wasn't there.
(31:14):
And.
Maybe I'm stretching, but to me, that tells me that they don't care about what other customers say.
They're such a big company because they have so many locations that the opinions of others doesn't really matter.
And that's kind of what I got from that.
not being able to communicate with anyone or leave feedback.
(31:35):
So anyways, at the end of day.
You know, when you're that big, maybe it doesn't matter, but eventually I think it'll catch up to you, because you know, bad service and eventually bad food is not gonna make you successful.
(31:58):
How has this trip changed the way I view my own customer experience? Well, the cruise ship, if anything, taught me if.
If the cruise ship taught me anything, it's that you should have a simple message that you wanna communicate, you know, to your employees and you gotta stick to it.
So with World Caribbean, I don't know if this is for sure, but I mean, I saw it on the wall.
(32:20):
It says greet and smile, like it's in giant letters, in like their hallway, like their staff hallway.
Literally every single person, no matter what position they were in, was doing that.
They would greet and smile at every single one.
And that made.
Everyone approachable.
It made them ready to help other people.
It made customers feel comfortable with asking questions if they didn't know something, and it's so simple.
(32:44):
It's three words, greet and smile.
So if you think about your business, what do you communicate with your staff that trickles from the top down to the bottom? If it's just one phrase, what would that be? Another thing that made me think about my customer experience was.
the cruise ship does a really good job with in-house marketing, so there's only so many channels on their tv.
(33:06):
And one of the channels was dedicated to their own cruise line and featuring the other ships, and obviously I had nothing to do, so I watched it and now I really wanna actually go on their newest ship, which is Icon and that's probably gonna be the next one I go on.
'cause they did a really good job selling it.
It's amazing.
It's newer, it's, got more features to it.
(33:28):
so they did a really good job with that.
And, you look at your own business, how much are you educating your customers on reasons to come back again? So one, they made the offer really, really good so that people were willing to fork out money or like a deposit to book their next trip.
And two, they did a really good job with just convincing people that this is the next thing that you have to do.
(33:49):
You need to come back again.
And if you could translate that into your own restaurant.
You know that four walls, marketing, what are we doing inside the four walls? Whether it's what people are talking about, what's on the actual walls itself, on the tables, you know, on flyers, What are we doing to make someone come back? And what are we doing to guarantee that, whether that's through an offer, coupons, whatever it may be.
(34:13):
And for some people that might be nothing.
So if that's you, think about what you can do to make them come back.
Not someday, but next week or next month.
When I do this exact trip again, absolutely I had a great time.
but I definitely wanna do a newer ship, just because that's just how I am and I really love that we went with such a big group and the chances of us all going together again are probably a little bit slimmer.
(34:39):
I would love to do that 'cause it's kind of nice having.
Babysitters.
yeah, and that's it for today.
I really hope that you guys got something out of my own personal experience, and if you have any questions about, restaurant life, restaurant ownership, or just the cruise itself, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram at Susan Tongue.
And again, one of these days I will create an Instagram page for this, I swear.
(35:02):
But yeah, reach out and have a great day, guys.
Bye.
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