A few weeks ago, on their YouTube channel "Cruise With Ben and David," the duo took a cruise on the Norwegian Epic. They chose this particular ship to see for themselves if the negative social media reviews about its cleanliness, crowding, and dated appearance were justified. Their insights, shared across two videos, offer valuable lessons for any business with a physical location.

Ben and David's 10-night cruise cost $4,500. The Norwegian Epic, launched in 2010, underwent refurbishment in 2021 for its Haven suite area, which looked stunning. However, the rest of the ship appeared neglected and in disarray.

While the pair found some positives to mention toward the end of their videos, the majority of their review highlighted serious issues. They noted that the interior spaces felt dark and cramped, with low ceilings that contributed to a dated atmosphere, especially compared to other Norwegian ships. The placement of elevators was illogical, with some situated far apart from each other. Loudspeaker announcements were lengthy and disruptive, and long lines formed at the bars. Tables and decks were littered with abandoned glasses, straws, and cans, while the decks, stairs, and equipment were filthy, rusted, and stained. Pools and hot tubs were dirty and missing tiles, and the large windows hadn’t been cleaned in months. Guests were unable to use some of the water slides, and the chaise lounges showed visible wear and stains.
Ben and David pointed out that the Epic felt distinctly different from other Norwegian vessels.

Design Flaws in the Cabins
The issues extended into the cabins, where design flaws became evident. The toilet was located right by the cabin door, lacking an exhaust fan or privacy door—just a curtain. The room had an unpleasant odor, and flushing the toilet was audible in the hallway. The shower's frosted sliding door was off its rails, offering no privacy, and water leaked onto the floor.

The sink was situated in the bedroom area, forcing guests to navigate around each other due to limited space. The TV was small and had a burned-in screen, while drawers barely opened. There were no electrical or USB ports by the beds, the hair dryer was broken, and the sofa faced a filthy, rusted mirror. The carpet was old and dirty, and the sink counter was chipped. Although the patio was generously sized, the railing fixtures were rusted, and the small table barely fit two glasses. Cabin cleaning was inconsistent and untimely. Clearly, the design decisions made for the Epic need to be reevaluated.

Management's Responsibility
So where is Norwegian’s management during all this? It appears no one is addressing the myriad of complaints or taking action to improve the ship’s condition. Allowing the Epic to fall into such disrepair tarnishes the Norwegian brand and reflects poorly on those responsible for its upkeep.

While Ben and David acknowledged the crew's positive attitude and some enjoyable meals, these aspects were not enough to overshadow the ship's overall condition.

Lessons for All Businesses
Though this article focused on Ben and David's cruise experience, there are lessons applicable to any business, including restaurants. Success requires managing every aspect, from the cleanliness of both public and staff areas to management presence, staff performance, and the quality of food and drinks. When something/anything doesn't enhance the experience, do something about it.

Having never cruised with Norwegian before, this experience would certainly not inspire me to do so. If they utilize a mystery shopping service, it seems the reports are going unread. The takeaways from Ben and David’s review highlight the importance of maintaining standards and addressing customer feedback—key elements for any successful business.

It never ceases to amaze me how often detailed negative reviews on social media sites go unanswered by restaurant management, whether on Yelp, Google, TripAdvisor, or OpenTable.

Potential customers can read these reviews 24/7, influencing their decision to visit your restaurant or look elsewhere. While the reliability of online reviews can be questionable, they are visible to everyone. The motives behind these reviews can vary—some people want to share their experiences, others seek compensation, and some may even be competitors trying to harm your business. Regardless, you should respond to each review individually and thoughtfully.

When multiple unflattering comments reveal common issues, they provide valuable insights into areas of your operation that need attention. Responding to reviews positively and service-oriented can turn a negative into an opportunity. There may be aspects of your front-of-house or back-of-house operations that seem fine to you but are problematic in reality. Reviews offer feedback you might not want to hear but should consider seriously.

As a restaurant owner, you can't fully experience your establishment as your customers do. You won't be treated the same way as unfamiliar patrons (or mystery shoppers), who can provide the feedback necessary for your business's growth over your competitors.
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Do your restaurant a favor by responding positively to critics for everyone to see, and address operational deficiencies to prevent future negative reviews. After all, it's your business's reputation at stake.

After the last of the COVID restrictions have disappeared, and we're glad, for many, it's still been a rough 3 years, especially for the restaurants and the vendors and suppliers that provide services, products and equipment to them.

Besides supply chain issues, the lack of staffing has also become a major concern that wasn't as much of an issue prior to the pandemic. While some QSRs survived because of their already established drive-thru service business, it's the dine-in restaurants and bars that suffered the most. Just last week, a Starbucks location inside a local Safeway store had a sign up announcing that they were closing several hours early because of a lack of staff and the deli in that same Safeway store similarly had shortened their hours for the same reason. The staffing crunch however, has created additional problems. It has forced restaurateurs to offer higher wages and increased benefits in order to entice applicants and remain competitive for the people who are actually looking for food service work.

When filling FOH positions in your restaurant, remember that one of the most important things to look out for is "attitude." A person who appears to be genuinely friendly, helpful and engaging with others will be a better investment because that positivity translates to better service and experiences for your customers. All the staff in the world won't do a thing for your bottom line though as long as you don't have enough customers walking in the door.

The question is, have your customers returned and are they still coming back? If they're not, we can help. Time's a ticking.

Since so many restaurateurs appear to rely on social media for measuring their customer service, I've noticed that there are A LOT of terrible reviews out there. With complaints about poorly prepared food and drinks, rude staff/managers, lengthy waits, and inattentive service, there's a question to be asked - why don't they do something about it?

After all the time, money and effort invested into the concept, why drop the ball? Operational performance is what ultimately matters. It's transforming first time diners into regulars that makes the restaurant successful, not encouraging a majority of them to never return.

While it may not be possible to please every customer 100% of the time, it is critical to minimize the number of times that those situations occur and arm your staff with the most effective ways to handle them when they do happen.

It can get a bit overwhelming (and time consuming) to read opinions and reviews posted on social media sites. And where do you stop between Yelp, Facebook, TripAdvisor, Google, Leafly, and YP, just to name a few? It seems that so many people want to share their opinion about everything!

There is a good side to it. As consumers, we can read what other people took the time to write about a business. Not all businesses however, have a lot of reviews and what ones that are there are spread out over a long period of time so it's hard to be sure. Add to that the knowledge that many businesses offer incentives to their customers to post (positive) remarks. Still others may engage an outside service to do that or get friends and family to say how great the place is. So the downside is that we should only take the comments at face value.

From a business perspective, the good side is that there is a lot of free feedback out there just waiting to be read and there are so many 4 and 5 star ratings out there just waiting to be had. It's certainly nice to see good things written. But what about the bad reviews? Once they're posted, they're there for all the world to see. What can make them worse is that some businesses take it to the next level and respond in a negative way which tends to compound the problem and makes the business look even worse.

My question is this - besides an owner retiring or a partnership breaking up, why do businesses with a majority of 4 and 5 stars still go out of business? It happens all the time.

Guess the lesson here is not to exclusively rely on social media sites to effectively manage your staff and your business.

Everyone knows that consistency matters. The dining environment should always be clean and inviting for customers. Policies and procedures should be consistently followed by all members of the staff. Front of house staff should be consistently service-oriented, friendly, anticipating guest needs and demonstrate a sense of urgency. The back of house staff should be consistently preparing delicious food while following food handling guidelines and minimizing waste. Bartenders should be preparing great drinks correctly and consistently.

There are times though when the need for consistency becomes even more important. One scenario comes to mind and it probably happens all the time.

Two people seated at the same table order the same entree. When the meals are delivered, they don't look the same. They aren't the same size or portion and perhaps they don't even look like the same item. One plate might have a generous portion of fries, while the other has half. If the food is hot enough that it's steaming when it's brought to the table, both entrees should be steaming, not just one.

What is the likely initial reaction? Both of them will be surprised and look at each other.

What is the likely result? Only one of them will end up being happy. It means that as much as 50% of the customers at that table are disappointed.

Avoid doing that to your guests. Whether it's bar drinks, appetizers, entrees or desserts, the need for consistency is elevated when 2 (or more) people at the same table order the same thing. I'm just saying.