Customer Reviews

Lessons in Service from Charlie Trotter

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My business career has been in the service industry, so I've read a lot of books about giving brilliant service - books full of fine phrases, but they don't show "who has to do what to whom" to make it happen. Ed Lawler's book really shows you how to make it happen.

Lawler evidently lives in the real world. He has got inside "Charlie Trotters restaurant" - one of the legends of good service way beyond Chicago. But this is not a "hymn of praise" sort of book, it's open about the problems, challenges and shortcomings as well.

His starting point is that good service is an accumulation of little things done right, and he goes right into what those little things are. Example: Chapter 5 Learning the Ropes shows how role play and feedback are far more effective than a service manual, how shadowing by a senior mentor actually works, how to use complaint and compliment letters in staff meetings. Chapter 6 has some great stuff on treating first time customers well and returning customers differently (because you know their preferences).

A unique feature of this book is the section on getting backroom staff to collaborate seamlessly with front of house people (page 128-141). The 12 point checklist on page 141 is a gem - applicable across the whole service industry.

A minor nitpick is that the quote from Dostoevsky appears twice, but aside from that, the book is excellent. I have never eaten in Trotters restaurant myself, but reading this book, I can practically taste the food and feel the atmosphere. I thoroughly recommend this book

While I've never had the privilege of dining at Charlie Trotter's famed Chicago eatery, I was absolutely enthralled with the vivid portrait journalist Edmund Lawler paints in "Lessons in Service from Charlie Trotter." This is Lawler's second outing in Trotter's famed kitchen; his previous book, "Charlie Trotter's: A Pictorial Guide to the Famed Restaurant and Its Cuisine," is another great behind-the-scenes look at the culinary master. But instead of focusing on bread and circuses this time out, Lawler effectively pulls away the curtain to reveal just how Trotter continues to stay in the upper echelon of culinary masters. From managerial techniques to customer satisfaction, "Lessons" gets to the heart of Trotter's business, and how he has managed to stay at the top of his game since 1987. The book is helped immensely by reactions from Trotter's service staff, leaders in the restaurant industry and the chef himself, who believes that empowerment and a keen eye on every detail is the key to success in any business. While some may unjustly dismiss this book as "just another restaurant guide," many of Trotter's techniques (especially those about first impressions at an interview) are germane to most any business where service is the No. 1 priority. Sure everyone knows that the customer is always right, but if Lawler's book is any indication, Trotter knows how to make customers feel "right" more than anyone else in the business.

Among the many differences between Charlie Trotter and a thousand other gifted chefs, the one that sets his Chicago landmark apart from the crowd is fierce attention to service, as Edmund Lawler points out in this wonderful survey of the Trotter philosophy. Waiters at Charlie Trotter's have no manual, but they strive to follow the Golden Rule - treat customers as you would be treated, not just in general, but in every tiny circumstance. Not only that, but Lawler also points out, Trotter's senior servers enjoy full health care coverage, $2 employee meals and a sense of responsibility. It's so simple, really. Trotter treats his employees as he would be treated. Lawler lays it all out in a readable and succinct fashion, with each chapter backed up by handy "service points." Whether you're running a restaurant, an airline, an investment bank or a lemonade stand, you could learn from reading Lessons in Service. Oh, if only more service business managers would!

This book stresses the value of service, attention to detail and the customer experience. These are all very important and it is wonderful to see that someone still has an appreciation of them in this world that at times seems to have left even common courtesy behind. I am somewhat disappointed that the book was not produced to the exceptional standards that Charlie Trotter boasts in it's pages. It is somewhat redundant and contains many misspellings. Even when recommending Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, the authors name is spelled Stevens instead of Stevenson. The print quality, paper and layout are great. The editing, spell-checking and typesetting need much improvement to be five-star quality. Terrific content, a little lacking in presentation.

This is an excellent for any manager in the hospitality industry. With hundreds of management books out there, very few deal with this industry, which is one of the most dynamic ones in the world. While not a true management book, it does offer lots of insight and ideas for those in the industry. I highly recommend this book.

The book was in perfect condition, and I love it! While I did not necessarily need to purchase the book for class, I'm glad I did. It's a great read and has really good insight to what people who are serving your food actually feel.

Charlie Trotter has integrity and ethic that shines through in this book. He will do almost anything for his guests and his community. He teaches a lot about how to run a restaurant and having a great attitude about it. I thought I was going to get a book about actual service. This book is about how he runs his restaurant and the service provided there. Going above and beyond the call of duty is the norm at his place. If you are looking for a book on how to serve this probably isn't it. As far as theory and how to be a better server, or better anything for that matter check this one out.

Depressing because I wish I could work for an owner like Trotter who puts thier success back into their business and not their pockets.

I read this book having read some of Trotter's beautiful cookbooks. There are truly some interesting concepts in this book (servers on salary? Very innovative.) and some grandiose tales of amazing service, but this book does not read as a manual of quality service, nor a narrative of a property and a tradition. I felt increasingly as I read that it was just an overblown pamphlet for the man and his restaurant. Fair enough.

Until I made a years-anticipated journey to the restaurant, and was flattened by the absolute lack of impact it had on me. The amazing attention to detail was not there, the food experience was a letdown, and the service, above all the service was absolutely saddening. This is not a restaurant review, but after reading a supposedly non-fiction book, the subject matter did not deliver a fraction of the promise of the text. A complex plate of a series of small composed bites of food was presented with little explanation. My wife asked, as the waiter was walking away, "Does the chef recommend you eat these in a specific sequence, or all together, or...?" The waiter stopped and said, and I swear it's true, "It don't matter." I'll never forget.

At the end, as I was feeling so sadly underwhelmed, the comment card that is such a huge part of Trotter's foundation of evolving service in the book, was not presented. I found later that I could receive it by filling out an online form. Really.

At the end of the day, to sum it up, the book is long-winded, the stories over-wrought, and the lessons hard to believe. The only thing that could sell this book as a worth-while read would be the restaurant delivering on all that promise. It simply does not. Which nullifies the value of the book, in my opinion.

Actually, rather than lessons in service, or really much of anything, this book is essentially an inconsequential marketing text that repeats itself, adds little to nothing a little common sense doesn't provide, and tars the name of Charlie Trotter in the bargain.

Is it a bad book? Well, I got through it, and didn't throw it down in disgust, but I found myself scratching my head at the end, wondering where my money went. I felt neither elucidated nor any better able to perform exceptional service. If I had to read one more time about the exquisite flatware and fine bone china, I may crack those delicate dinner plates over the author's head. Not out of spite would I do this, mind you, but rather to let him know that beating your audience over the head with the same piece of useless information can be rather annoying.

In short-- get this book if you are a middle-management corporate type that likes to use metaphors for motivating your sales team. If you are in food service, I am not sure how much of this will be relevant to you.