Hospitality Training

April 2017
Expectations
 Be punctual – 15mins prior to starting time
 Arrive in Full Black uniform
 Immaculate grooming: hair neatly tied up, shaven if not, neat beard
 Positive attitude and Smiles!!

Hospitality Etiquette is the little things we do that ensure

the guests have an amazing experience.

We are ENGAGED - The guest is the centre of everything we do.

We host guests. We don't serve customers.
From the moment the guest arrives to the moment they leave, they are our focus
We look for ways to interact - a smile, a quick comment or question, taking the time to
share our passion for our venue.
We ask them questions about their day / night / place they're from
We share our story, when applicable. Our authentic self makes their experience more
personal.

Sequence of Service
 The opening walk - Walk the walk of the client and guests to ensure a great first
impression on arrival. We are particularly focusing on venue presentation and ambience
here and ensuring the opening checklist is completed.

 The Hour Before – floor staff to pre-pour waters on table and have bread and
accompaniments placed identical on every table

 Staff briefing at least 30 minutes prior to event starting.

 Anticipate early arrivals by being ready 15 minutes prior to the event commencing

 Have quick access to drinks for guests on arrival and ensure staff rove drinks and canapes
once most guests have arrived

April 2017
  When time to take a seat, we assist our guests to find their seats

 Beverage staff to offer wines and service their tables. Food staff to assist with initial
service and lapping guests until food service.

 All staff to ensure wine stations are well maintained throughout the event

 Food staff on standby five minutes prior to service to allow time for a brief of what
service will look like and chef’s brief of the meal

 Clear knowledge of the dish, which allergens it contains, how to present it,
which dish is position one and the process for dietaries.

Allergens Procedure
All our guests deserve the right to a delicious meal which is allergen friendly.

It is our responsibility to ensure all guest requests about allergies are taken seriously and that all staff are
aware of the inherent risks food allergies pose and are clear on how to manage them.

Pre Event
Merivale are able to receive appropriate meal requests for guests with food allergies. Confirmation of all
names of the guests and allergy requirements are needed 48 hours prior to event day. Merivale will make
every attempt to identify and declare all ingredients to the guest based on their allergy information
provided.

General briefing to be done by manager

• Event sheet will be received detailing food allergies declared by guests
• Manager to explain who is the Chef on Duty and who will be back of house calling out the
dietaries (depending on event)
• Manager to allocate enough time for the Chef on Duty to present the food and explain dietaries
• Chef on Duty to present photos of the food with explanations. Photos will be stuck onto the pass
afterwards as a refresher for staff (cheat sheet)

Food Briefing
• Food staff to allow enough time prior to food service for a final kitchen brief
• Chef on Duty to present food to staff members and reiterate allergens and food presentation
• Cheat-sheets to be attached to the pass
Food Service
Manager to radio dietaries to BOH supervisor who will coordinate with Chef on Duty the delivery of the
special meal

Should a guest declare a serious allergy throughout the event an assessment of whether the
kitchen can accommodate this is to be made by the Head Chef/Duty Chef. If the Head Chef/Duty
Chef cannot guarantee that the meal has been prepared and served free of the allergen, Event
Manager must declare that we cannot guarantee the meal is free from the specified food
allergen.

April 2017
Serving Allergens by Event Type
• Sit down – manager sweeping will radio through allergen requirements to BOH supervisor as
the sweep progresses
• Buffet – Senior staff members to be at buffet as point of contact for guests, they will be briefed
on all allergens and must remain at the buffet at all times.
• Cocktail – Chef on Duty and supervisor to ensure staff are briefed on what they are serving prior
to any platter leaving the kitchen
• Canapes cheat sheets to be located on the pass
Events with Multiple Dietaries
Floor Manager needs to allocate the dietary role to a supervisor who will coordinate delivery of all
allergen meals.

Post event
Event Supervisor will conduct a debrief with kitchen and staff

 We should never cross cutlery for dietaries, the manager sweeping must keep track of
this. If there are a lot of dietaries, there should also be a supervisor in the kitchen on
radio to communicate with kitchen.

 Once the room has been served, food team to assist with beverages before clearing.

 When a whole table has finished their meal, it’s time to clear unless there is a
requirement to spot clear due to time constraints. Keep it comfortable for the guest by
having a maximum of two staff clear a table at any one time.

 If mains are to be served next, have the beverage team offer guests the option to change
wine. Remove wine glasses after main course

 Once mains have been served, we are also clearing side plates, bread baskets and
condiments at this point in time. This is the earliest occasion this should happen.

 Beverage staff to assist by dropping the dessert cutlery to the sides and keeping table
presentable by folding napkins and pushing in chairs if guests have briefly moved from
the table

 When food staff are serving dessert, have some beverage staff prepare the tea and coffee
trays

 Following dessert, send out teams for tea and coffee.

 Keep the party going by ensuring beverages are still being served, water trays are going
out and the presence of staff doesn’t fall away

 This is usually when RSA comes into play, especially that last hour,
so keep a close eye we are doing everything we can to protect the license.
 After party? Keep the business within Merivale by seeing if guests would move to another
venue and help facilitate this.

April 2017
  When guests depart, have a host farewelling them and directing to post event venue.

 Check venue for lost property and have any outgoings labelled and taken to loading dock

 Time to reset and complete that BOH checklist to have the venue site inspection ready
before signing off the team.

Preventing Intoxication
How are we actively monitoring RSA throughout an event? How do we mitigate the
risk of guest progressing to state of intoxication?
Monitor how quickly guests are drinking; are they mixing their drinks, taking more
than one at a time? Constantly engage with guests, e.g - ask if they’d like a wine top
up rather than automatically refilling

When to escalate?
If concerned guests are consuming alcohol irresponsibly or in a manner that will likely
lead to intoxication, notify your floor manager. Be sure to provide as much
information as possible to the floor manager so they can approach the guest well
informed.

Identifying Intoxication

How do we identify intoxication?

Speech, balance, coordination, behaviour is noticeably affected by alcohol.

What questions are we asking to deem if someone is intoxicated?

Does the person smell of alcohol?
How long has the person been drinking?
When did the person enter the premises?
Was the person affected by alcohol when they arrived?
What type of alcohol has been consumed?
How much alcohol have you seen the person drink?

What to Do?
See the floor manager or supervisor on shift. Under the law, a licensed venue may
refuse entry or eject a patron if they are:

 intoxicated
 violent, quarrelsome or disorderly
 smoking in a smoke-free area
 suspected of having or using illicit drugs on the premises
 behaving in a way that causes the licensee to commit an offence under the liquor
laws

April 2017
 Food Safety | Managing
Allergens
The difference between food allergy and food intolerance

Food allergy = immune system reaction to a food

Food intolerance = other reactions to a food

What are the symptoms of food allergy?

Mild to Moderate Severe

• Difficulty or noisy breathing
• Swelling of tongue
• Hives or welts
• Swelling or tightness in throat
• Tingling mouth, abdominal pain, vomiting
• Difficulty talking or hoarse voice
• Swelling of lips, face, eyes
• Wheeze or persistent cough
• Loss of consciousness or collapse
• Pale and floppy (young children)

What are the most common food allergens?

The nine most common food allergens are:

• Crustaceans
• Eggs
• Fish
• Milk
• Peanuts
• Soybeans
• Tree nuts (eg cashews, almonds, walnuts)
• Sesame seeds
• Wheat

Food intolerances

Having a food intolerance means you will experience an adverse reaction to certain food components
but this does not involve the immune system. In fact, it is quite different from a food allergy.

What are the symptoms of food intolerance?

• Stomach and bowel upsets

• Bloating
• Headaches and migraines
• Wheezing and a runny nose
• Hives
• Generally feeling under the weather
April 2017
 What are the most common food intolerances?

There are many different types of food that people can be intolerant to the most common include milk and
lactose (the sugar in milk), gluten, wheat, food preservatives, and naturally occurring compounds in food such as
caffeine, salicylates, amines and glutamate.

Lactose intolerance is caused by a shortage of the enzyme lactase, which is used to ensure lactose is absorbed
properly into the bloodstream from the stomach.

Milk intolerance is common in children under the age of two years. If left untreated it can result in malnutrition.

Food additive intolerance only affects a very small number of children and adults. The additives most commonly
linked to food intolerance are artificial colours, eg tartrazine and preservatives such as sulphites and benzoates.

Sulphites have to be declared on all packaged products under the NSW Food Act 2003. They are preservatives
and are commonly found in wine and dried fruit. The additive numbers for sulphites are 220–228 and appear in
the ingredient list. Sulphite reactions cause asthma, rashes, irritable bowel syndrome and headaches in sensitive
people.

What about Coeliac disease?

Coeliac disease is a disorder of the small bowel caused by an immune reaction to dietary gluten (a protein found
in wheat, barley and rye).

It is not a food allergy but an auto-immune disease. In coeliac disease, the lining of the bowel is damaged by the
white blood cells of the immune system. Symptoms include nausea, wind, tiredness, constipation, reduced
growth and skin problems.

Common Food Allergies & Special Diets

Shellfish Allergy: Shellfish are divided into two families: Mollusca and Crustacea. Molluscs include mussels, clams,
oysters, octopus, calamari, abalone and squid. Crustaceans include prawns, lobster, crabs and yabbies.

Seafood Allergy: All seafood must be avoided. Pay special attention to dishes and ingredients may not obviously
be seafood-based, eg. anchovies in Caesar salad dressing, fish sauce in Thai dishes.

Coeliac (Gluten Intolerance): Gluten is a protein found in wheat (all varieties), barley, rye, oats and triticale and is
indigestible to someone with coeliac disease. Foods to avoid include these grains and their derivatives (e.g. barley
malt, spelt), wheaten corn flour, semolina, couscous, wheat-based soy and glucose, beer, yeast extracts and any
products made with these. Buckwheat, polenta and pure corn flour are gluten free.

Lactose Intolerance: The inability to digest lactose, a sugar found in milk.

Avoid foods such as all milks, cream, sour cream, yoghurt, fresh cheeses (eg: ricotta) and all products with these
as ingredients. Butter and aged cheeses also contain lactose but in much smaller quantities than milk and may be
able to be eaten by those with a mild intolerance.
Milk Allergy: Distinct from a lactose intolerance, a sufferer could be intolerant to one of dozens of milk proteins.
In this case, all milk-based products need to be avoided: milk, yoghurt, cream, butter, cheeses.

Nut Allergy: Although some people may only be allergic to peanuts (technically a legume), most sufferers are also
allergic to tree nuts, ie: almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, pistachio, walnuts and pecans. Fewer people
again are allergic to coconut, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sunflower seeds and pine kernels. Chestnuts do not
cause reactions in nut allergy sufferers.
Due to the severity of nut allergy reactions, great care must be taken in our advice to guests regarding the presence
of nuts in dishes. Without prior notice and precaution, even menu items made without nuts may have traces of
nuts in them.

Soy Allergy: Sufferers must avoid soy protein and soy flour. Soy protein can be found in edamame, miso, soy sauce,
soy milk, tofu, lecithin (a common emulsifier) and vegetable gums.
 Standard table setting

1. 3 course – 1 wine glass only

2. Napkin fold when guest leaves their seat

3. Standard table of ten people – must be very accurate