136 COMMENTARY The secret to the success of a restaurant does not lie solely in the taste and presentation of the food, nor in the brilliance of the service, but in the combination of these qualities and the venue’s design. Good service requires professionally trained staff with the right attitude; guests must be welcomed promptly and with a smile, understood quickly and taken to their table without incident. When serving a dining table, waiting staff must be mindful of guests’ needs but never intrusive to avoid being perceived as impersonal or bothersome. Furthermore, guests – especially those on cruises – like to be recognised and love when waiters know their preferences, so staff shouldn’t be rotated between venues. Staff must be smart, clean and dressed in keeping with the theme and branding of the venue. Another important aspect of delivering high-quality service is to ensure that there is adequate loose equipment, such as service trolleys or ice bucket stands, for the venue. Clear inputs from the restaurant manager must be provided to the architect to accommodate the required amount of equipment in the restaurant design. Fixed furniture supports, consisting mainly of waiter stations, along with cabinets, stores and lockers, should also be distributed strategically across the main space by a designer. There should also be space for a guest cloakroom, close to the entrance but not visible. All these elements should be placed carefully within the venue to ensure there is sufficient space, not just for the benefit of guests but also to ensure safe and adequate service. Layouts should provide different routes for waiters and for guests, allowing them to move through the space easily and be sufficiently far apart when close to galley accesses. Service is very closely related to design, and the focus should always be on the comfort and experience of the guests. A neglected or visibly aged space is repulsive, creating an unpleasant reputation that is difficult to remedy. A beautiful dining environment, on the other hand, helps to create a positive memory, encouraging a guest to return. A smart architect will know how to transform a purely functional space into one that delights the senses – not only taste and smell, but also sight, sound and feel – in a way that harmonises with the venue’s dining and service concept. For example, a restaurant should be designed to ensure that guests only smell their own food, but using a fragrance throughout the space can disturb the olfactory experience of dining. It’s therefore always preferable to choose an How to design a luxury restaurant Designing a dining venue demands architects to use a wide range of skills, both to ensure they deliver impeccable service and a space that delights the senses MARCO DE JORIO CEO of De Jorio Luxury & Yacht Projects and De Jorio Design Swiss
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