Multi-Sensory Process.
Bring those happy childhood memories, or memories from the best holiday just by adding one special ingredient, which helps your guest to remind the right memory and connect it to your food or cocktails. But how to do that? It's simple. Ask them.
All your memories are created through multi-sensory process. It means, that you don’t remember only the exact image or situation from your past, but also significant noises, aromas, structures and emotions. I explain this process closely in my book. That’s why you got those feelings related to your past when you taste some food, cocktail or hear some music. You remember the moment, and you connect that food or cocktail to that significant event from your past.
Let’s have an example, so we can understand the topic more. I guess, that we all know the animated movie Ratatouille. The final scene where the food critic Anton Ego try the dish he was served and right after the first taste he got that flashback to his childhood where his mother serves the exact same food for him. That food and the exact taste was associated to his mother, home, happy times and as we can see later, he just can’t get enough and he even opens the restaurant, where the cook (the rat) and waiter works for him. But there is an important thing - the food needs to be served by the main protagonist (Remy - the rat), who somehow knows what makes the food so delicious for him.
We all want this type of guest right? The ones, who are loyal, who repeatedly return to our bar or restaurant. We want them to love the food, to love the cocktails and to feel like home. But how persuade them them to be loyal? Well, we need to start think about consumption as a multi-sensory process that needs to be think thoroughly. That includes sight and visual perception, hearing and all the music and noises around our guests, surrounding and design of the whole space & dishes, hospitality and how we act, serve food or speak to them. Important part of this process are also aromas and flavors, which can associate to memories and we need especially the good ones.
Here is my tip for happy guests:
Create a beautiful & unique experience for your guest, and make every visit unforgettable (in positive ways), so next time, when your guest will be eating or drinking somewhere else, the taste or aroma will make them think about your bar or restaurant and they will associate the food or cocktail itself with it. And the most important thing - ask them about their favorite ingredient, alcohol or garnish. It will prevent you from bringing bad past memories to your guests.
