High five for Mary, a team player in destination travel

We all have great affection for good customer service.  Sometimes our expectations are crushed, other times we are elated when it is done well.  Those of us who work in or around the F&B or hospitality/travel industry have a key appreciation for this aspect of our business.

Just look at the plethora of resources out there to get it right.  One notable of late comes from Rich Gallagher whom I met when he was at the CBORD group and I at Cornell.  He leads the Point of Contact Group and his recent release The Customer Service Survival Kit (#1 on Amazon for customer service) ~ one of many great reads written by him ~ takes the art of "deeply hearing" and makes it an easily applicable tool for those on the front lines of people management.

I do think it's teachable, this handling of people thing.  However, there are individuals that simply ooze it from their pores with very little thought about it. I have plenty of experiences with these oozer types in my back yard.  Take Oscar the bartender at Saltus River Grill, who remembers your face and your name even out of uniform to introduce you to his family, because in his eyes you are one of his peeps.  There's Nick Borreggine who owns Fat Patties that will take your text about your 84 year old father coming to dine in because you are home sick, who then sends ice cream home to put you on the mend.  And Nancy Vista of Nuances who's outlasted many in the business sector along Parris Avenue in the Old Village of Port Royal. She has always put "local" on the map in a village seen more as a side show than a main event~no one leaves her store empty handed or without knowing a bit more about the Town of Port Royal.

Any day of the week I could provide an abundant list of the individuals with the uncanny ability to do it (customer service) right, but what spurred my interest this week was a trip to Savannah and a stop for breakfast at a Denny's on Abercorn Street. You know how it goes, you're dining with your elderly father, on a holiday weekend in a major destination location just outside Hunter Army Air Base, the dining room is filled with young families with multiple children in tow. What made the experience rather special was Mary our waitress. For every table she sat she asked where they were from, how long were they here for and then proceeded to provide several "not to miss" suggestions as to where the family could go.  On our departure I remarked to her how special her effort was (going above and beyond). She replied "30 years I've been in this business and I have grand babies at home, I have a keen sense of what people can do in our town."  I for one know there are many fine people that make a living in the food and beverage industry, despite the best efforts of many to deny its significance, so my first instinct was to applaud her longevity, but what struck me was her use of "our" town. I'm rather obsessed with communities speaking in plural terms "our," "we," etc.

The best referral comes from someone local and informed. Here's a petite woman, in uniform, clad in an over-sized Easter Egg necklace and a pastel colored sweater schlepping food, taking the time to make the breakfast experience more than about a plate of food. A genuine encounter with someone from Savannah who cares enough to walk you out the door into other parts of the city.  That's grand.  A local working the floor with a clear understanding of the big picture in destination travel. In a city filled with great food and multiple breakfast options, it clearly would be worth the drive to experience Mary again.

An army of individuals work hard to make us feel welcome on the road or at home. As we head into the peak season of the year for travel (summer) let's not ever fail to recognize their efforts on our behalf.

Body Double at a Wine Tasting

Once in a while I get lucky.  That was never truer than this past Monday when a good friend rang me up to say she had the flu and that she needed a "body double" to stand in for her at a local wine dinner.  Essentially I was being asked to attend the event with her husband because she was sick and wouldn't be able to taste the wines.  (I was sorry to hear she was feeling poorly, but I may have in my own elation on the prospect of attending fail to tell her that in the course of the conversation. I'll be sure to mention that in my follow up note to thank her!)

Needless to say in a small town such a switch up could create quite the buzz, but when it comes to my "standing in" at a wine, beer, or liquor pairing dinner no one's going to question the logic behind that call (I'm the right gal for the job).  I was requested to arrive promptly at 7:00 o'clock for the occasion held at Saltus River Grill in Beaufort, SC and told that my "date" would meet me there.  It is important to note that I didn't even ask what wines were being poured.  First of all, the restaurant rallies beautifully with a new executive chef so the food is going to be divine and second, this friend would never lead me astray, especially when it comes to wine from California.  It is appropriate for me to point out that the spouse of my requester is also truly entertaining, knowledgeable about wines and fun to hang out with (just like his wife)!

I arrive 15 minutes early and watch as the obvious couples attending the dinner make their way toward the seating area designated for the wine tasting.  At this point I'm solo, standing out like a sore thumb waiting for my "other half" to arrive. The house wine buyer does everything she can to ignore me standing there. She loathes me, is most likely confounded by my presence as I don't appear on her guest list...she goes out of her way to simply cast aside my presence, but I'm not deterred. I eventually present myself as a substitute for one member of the Jenkins party to which she seemed to take a deep sigh of reluctance. Lucky for me the winery representative notes that I've not been introduced to her as the other couples had been and quickly makes her way to me as I join the group (I immediately like my new friend, Tracy Smith, Marketing Wine Club Manager from Terra Valentine Winery, Napa, California, but later in the evening when I learned she was 27 years old doing what she loved for a living I fell in love with her).  Several minutes go by, still no date, the house wine buyer now irritated because my better half's late arrival implies holding up a timely start to the occasion, "When will "he" be arriving?" she asks. Noting her irritation I indicate it would be alright to pour the first wine without him.  At this stage I just want the first wine poured so I can get past this awkward solo moment and the disdain seething from the wine buyer.

And no sooner did the first wine go down, my date arrives. The courses flowed with exquisite service throughout the evening.  A first course crab bisque with the Sauvignon Blanc was perfect.  My favorite course, the second, a skillet browned crab cake, house-made chow chow, pickled mustard, chives and buerre blanc paired with a lovely Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir and a Cab Franc. The entree course a sirloin cooked sous vide and wood grilled, creamed spinach, truffle parmesan pomme frites, natural demi glaze paired with two lovely Cabernet Sauvignons, Spring Mountain and a Yverdon.  Memorable, best word to describe what I mention here, both the wine and the food, but also the people who sat in close proximity.

That's the thing about wine tastings, no one's a stranger by the time its all over, wine being the elixir for merriment, but also the common denominator for discussion (no small talk in other words). No luck needed.