Restaurants
Restaurant surveys
The restaurant survey that achieves nothing is the one that asks about everything at once and returns a 4.2 out of 5. A four point two tells the chef nothing about which dish to change and the floor manager nothing about which shift is understaffed. Separate the food from the service, ask about this particular visit rather than the restaurant in general, and go deep on one aspect per survey. And collect at the table, with a QR on the bill: a diner who is already home will not remember the dish.
The templates
The QR on the bill beats the email
The best moment to ask is the minute the bill arrives, and the worst is two days later. At the table the memory is intact, the phone is already in their hand, and a complaint can still be fixed before they leave. A QR printed on the bill holder costs nothing and does not require anyone to hand over an email address. Save the follow-up email for delivery orders and group bookings, where you do have the contact and the experience does not end at the table.
An average is not a diagnosis
Asking whether the portion was right on a one to five scale returns a three that means nothing, because it blends the people who found it small with the people who found it enormous. Ask it directionally instead: too small, about right, too large. Thirty-eight per cent saying it falls short is an instruction for the kitchen; a three out of five is not. The same goes for price and for waiting time.
Ask the people serving too
In hospitality, turnover eats the margin, and almost nobody asks the team before they leave. The floor and kitchen template is written so it can be answered honestly: it asks about the load at peak service, about whether people have the tools and information to do the job, and about the intention to stay, without ever asking anyone to name a colleague. The people working the tables know what is broken long before it shows up in a review.