Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect

Product Information

Guidara’s team surprised a family who had never seen snow with a magical sledding trip to Central Park after their dinner and a group of “foodies” departing New York with a dirty water hotdog in their fine-dining restaurant Guidara makes his nonfiction debut with an enthusiastic guide for leaders [and asserts] sage advice about leadership.”– Kirkus Review Let me start by saying that I'm not in the hospitality business, but have certainly worked in service and have a service-oriented career, so I'm kind of the audience, but not also really for the book. I was just... whelmed. Imagine every famous chef and restaurateur you've ever heard of milling around, drinking champagne and catching up with friends-and not one of them was talking to us. I'd never felt so much like a freshman at a new high school trying to figure out where to sit in the cafeteria, not even when I was a freshman.

How did Guidara pull off this unprecedented transformation? Radical reinvention, a true partnership between the kitchen and the dining room—and memorable, over-the-top, bespoke hospitality. Guidara’s team surprised a family who had never seen snow with a magical sledding trip to Central Park after their dinner; they filled a private dining room with sand, complete with mai-tais and beach chairs, to console a couple with a cancelled vacation. And his hospitality extended beyond those dining at the restaurant to his own team, who learned to deliver praise and criticism with intention; why the answer to some of the most pernicious business dilemmas is to give more—not less; and the magic that can happen when a busser starts thinking like an owner. At the time, I had no idea the Four Seasons was the first truly American fine-dining restaurant. Or that the elegant, mid-century modern interior was so iconic, it would eventually be designated a landmark by the City of New York. Is it good that a fine-dining restaurant breaks the tradition of not allowing their staff to dine there because a lot of old ones are elitist and awful? Of course, but I'm not giving gold stars to basic human decency. Treating people decently? It's okay. Could use improvement. Our restaurant was excellent and made a lot of people happy. But it hadn't yet changed the conversation. Chefs at the finest restaurants in the world had long been celebrated for being unreasonable about the food they served. At Eleven Madison Park, we came to realize the remarkable power of being unreasonable about how we made people feel. I'm writing this book because I believe it's time for every one of us to start being unreasonable about hospitality.We called it the Welcome Conference, and it was an instant hit with restaurant people. Dining room professionals from all over the country attended lectures, networked over drinks, and went home reinvigorated. That word "unreasonable" was meant to shut us down-to end the conversation, as it so often does. Instead, it started one, and became our call to arms. Because no one who ever changed the game did so by being reasonable. Serena Williams. Walt Disney. Steve Jobs. Martin Scorsese. Prince. Look across every discipline, in every arena-sports, entertainment, design, technology, finance-you need to be unreasonable to see a world that doesn't yet exist. I had given away thousands of dishes, and many, many (many) thousands of dollars’ worth of food by that point in my career, and yet I can confidently say that nobody had ever responded the way that table responded to that hot dog. In fact, before they left, each person at the table told me it was the highlight not only of the meal, but of their trip to New York. They’d be telling the story for the rest of their lives.” At the reception afterward, we ran into Massimo Bottura, the Italian chef of Osteria Francescana, a Michelin three-star based in Modena-and number six on the list (not that we were counting). He saw us, started laughing, and couldn't stop: "You guys looked pretty happy up there!"

When you create a hospitality-first culture, everything about your business improves-whether that means finding and retaining great talent, turning customers into raving fans, or increasing your profitability. It's my hope this book will be part of the movement ushering in this new era. But my motivation isn't your bottom line-or not my only one, anyway. Because what I'd really like to do is let you in on a little secret, one that the truly great professionals in my business know: hospitality is a selfish pleasure. It feels great to make other people feel good.WillGuidara weaves heartfelt stories and keen observations to illustrate how purposeful, no-holds-barred hospitality satisfies our essential need to belong. An exceptional book for anyone or any organization aiming to excel at human connection.”– Danny Meyer, CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group and author of Setting the Table We had a radical idea of what the guest experience could be, and our vision was unlike any other out there. "You're not being realistic," someone would invariably tell us, every time we contemplated one of our reinventions. "You're being unreasonable."

One of the five best management books I have ever read. Plus, it is the most engaging and entertaining – by a wide margin. This is, flat out, not a book to miss.”– Roger Martin, writer, strategy advisor and management thinker My leadership in education is grounded in building a “culture of culture”, which is so resonant in this book, as Guardia so engagingly reflects on the impact of investing in people In dining rooms, in conference rooms, and in all corners of hospitality, Will Guidara has made a career out of going above and beyond, giving people what they want, even when they don’t know they want it. This book puts his story, and more than a few of his trade secrets, in your hands.”— Questlove There's a long-standing debate in my profession as to whether hospitality can be taught. Many leaders I respect believe it can't; I couldn't disagree more. In fact, in 2014, I founded a conference for dining room professionals with my friend Anthony Rudolf, who was at the time the general manager of Per Se, with the intention of doing just that. Essential lessons in hospitality for every business, from the former co-owner of legendary restaurant Eleven Madison Park.Guidara explores how innovation and investing in teams can have a profound affect on the experiences of those within an organisation and who are served Will Guidara is one of the very best in the hospitality business, but this book is for everyone. His insights on how to be a great entrepreneur cut through the noise.”– David Chang, chef and founder of Momofuku, and host of Ugly Delicious It felt like "The Art of Gathering" in its emphasis of elevating a moment. The cost of experience was well-defined. I learnt so much about the return on investment in people. Throughout this book, I felt supremely reminded of Gift Economy, as the author spoke on the Hospitality Economy - citing it often as the guideline. Guidara justified this extravagant generosity by using a 95/5 practice in his budgeting; he was stringent and disciplined in the 95%, leaving room for dreaming and creativity in the 5%. Not only did he create "legend" moments for the customers at EMP, but he asked his employees to join in as "dream leaders," actively taking stake in turning a moment into magic. Chefs gathered at different conferences around the world, but there wasn't a single one for the people who worked in the dining room. So we set out to create a space where like-minded, passionate people could form community, trade ideas, and inspire one another-and, in so doing, evolve our craft.