Celebrations

The BRBC seems to have something that engages with people to bring their celebrations into our space.

This is a lovely unexpected bonus for all of us!

In the past week we have had at least 6 "name" celebrations - birthdays & anniversaries. Of these, several were of the significant -decade starters & several were of the significant - "got to another year! variety.

It is often a request for a cupcake that puts us in the know or the request for a candle in whatever dessert the celebrant chooses or a special bottle of wine brought along for lunch or dinner.

Watching friends and family in the joy of celebration is a privilege and all the staff sees our opportunity as one of adding a small bit to the pleasure of the celebrant and ensuring the whole party has a good BR meal & experience.

In particular this past week, we had a V Day birthday - two great dinner regulars shared with us that it was indeed a double "dip" for them last Sunday night. Thanks for that!

We had a great smiling threesome in to celebration the next birthday, with no fanfare, thank you very much!

The good friends, bringing "just a little something" (maybe from Charmed by Claire's) for one of their own, to open and enjoy during lunch or tea. They know we respect their time with us and we do not rush anyone out the door! Thank you for bringing your smiles & more to us!

And a Saturday night 4 generations in attendance birthday event. Lovely marathoner, grand daughter, daughter, wife, mother, sister, sister-in-law, friend & I hope I didn't leave out too many of the relationships in the room - it was a great birthday celebration! Thank you for choosing the BR - we loved making the special cake, with just the right filling, just the right frosting & just the right color writing for the Happy Birthday Mom!

To bring an extra smile or two is really fun -- particularly when surprises, behind the scenes and first time visitors are involved.

Part of the beauty for us, a small place, is that we can, more often than not, do and be more flexible & responsive to the wants & needs of our visitors. The corporate rules of a bigger place do not apply. The ability to make decisions that we feel are best for our visitors and for all of us is core to the BR.

I personally love to see our senior staff make decisions and offers to visitors that fit our ethos in special party situations and in the course of every day meal service - they know the BR & add their own personality to it!

The BR is growing and growing with its community.

Jazz Sunday - March 14th @ BR 11 am

Cranbury-native trumpeter Josh Lawrence is promoting his debut EP “Josh Lawrence Jazz 3” Lawrence will be backed by guitarist Justin Rothberg.

The EP can be found at http://joshlawrencejazz.bandcamp.com

V Day comments from diners

Valentine Weekend Dinner comments from our diners:

We ask one question:

Will you recommend us to your friends & colleagues; Yes x (all) No __ (none)

& We ask for comments:

LOVED IT! Thanks for a wonderful evening and fantastic dinner.

Lovely food and extraordinary service – made Valentine’s Day an event! We would love to have Sunday dinner become a regular thing.

Everything excellent! Thank you for being here.

L____ should work every time we are here. She rocks!

Each and every bite was amazing!! You made our Valentine’s Day perfect! Cant’ wait to come back!!

Superb! Thank you. Hi Rich

Service – A+; Food – excellent

Wonderful start to finish

Lovely dinner we’ll be back

Warm & welcoming, very cozy, dinner was superb!! The lobster to die for- Thank you!

Thank you so much for the duck. It was perfect. The Crème Brulee as well.

V Day weekend dinner

90 + enjoyed dinner on Sat or Sun evenings. What a great start for Chef Huarte! The menu offered taste treats for all & the thoughtful & careful presentation made for visual treats as well.

Accolades to the serving staff came forth abundantly in the customer feedback, as usual - the big three are working for us: food, service & ambiance.

Old friends and first time visitors - all left with a smile & the promise of return visits. These are the experiences which make the 16+ hr days worth it.

WTS (is that the way to say watch this space?) for direct customer comments from the VDay evenings. They are a joy!

Tonight we learned, with some discomfort that...

We are not a steak house. First time visitors, coming from a ways away for dinner. Lamb & filet of beef. We do these dishes well, on a regular basis. Beef can be requested from bloody rare (you know the potential risks if you choose to do this) to well done. And we do the range well, regularly.

What I learned tonight is that we do not have the equipment to do "charcoal" dark on outside, just a little red on the inside & really medium.

Beef on the menu was not what we had planned on day one when we opened. With the decision to serve dinner came the urging of some regular customers for BEEF. So, we do a nice filet, grilled without the flame broiling capability common in steak houses and probably many other fine dining establishments.

How did this come to be an issue with discomfort tonight? -- When you know you can't do it and don't let the customer know the same -- there is a no win situation set up. And we had that in spades tonight. Unhappy customer, unhappy server & unhappy cook. I will say, it was a first & I imagine we could have been prepared for it however we were not. The mis-communication from all BR parties caused us to allow the customer to expect what he ordered - who wouldn't, right?

When I was asked to come down from the office where I was merrily emailing to folks who wanted to do private parties here in the spring... I found a situation gone beyond the food itself. I listened & swallowed the attempt to assuage. And of course, the meal served successful was not billed to customer as I have learned this can be a valuable tool to keep the door open in a tough situation.

I always want to hear the problems customers encounter - the small to large & I know that that helps us grow. Whether it is moving a table out of the front dining room because it was a bit too tight (that you for that comment - everyone is happier with the new arrangement in the front room!) to a problem with a dish - to the mega issue of this filet -- worst nightmare is a customer leaving upset & hungry. There was nothing this individual wanted other than the meal he had ordered, cooked as he had requested. And we could not do it. And we did not do the right job of letting him know when it might not have caused him an upset for the entire dining experience.

I hope these folks will give us another try, particularly now as we get started with our new exec chef. He has a lot to get his arms around and in his first week +, he is doing a great job. On the menu front - he has already put his stamp on our cassoulet & it is now truly ambrosial - served in baking dish & bubbling, just out of the ovens. If you liked it before, come again soon and have a try!

So, until the right piece of equipment is purchased, we will be more careful with orders in the beef / steak category.

What would you do in this case? What would you want if you were the upset customer?

off to Florida

One of the team has made a move -- off to Florida in another week or so. She will be missed; by customers, staff and mostly by friends made during the last year.

A key learning over the last year is that the selection, growth and good keeping of staff are vital to our success. This hits home when one of the core, the ones who stuck with us throughout the first yr + of growth & development need to move on.

In this case, a professional & a vital spirit in the BR during the last year is moving on with her family to a new location & new challenges!

This move leaves a hole. New staff will, if we choose well, spend time in training & development, and keep moving in a strong positive direction fill the needs of the business. And if we are fortunate, they too will grow into team members with a key role to play with customers, staff & they will make friends here.

However this happens, the person, personality, and spirit of the one leaving are not replaced, they are cherished for having spent time with us.

Very fortunately, we have a number of folks who fall in this category. No names here, just a tip of the hat to those who know they are part of the BR.

Oh, this is a bit reflective and on the soft side of biz, it is what it is and I think we are lucky to have people who matter as a key component in the BRBC.

ps -- pics were taken &

may be coming -the going away (& surprise(!)) tea -- who has those pics anyway?

Will it or won't it?

NJ and this part of NJ can be the devil when it comes to snow storms. Growing up, I remember drifts as high as the border hedge (4-5 feet, I think) --

If tonight & tomorrow are what is called for, we will open with skeleton crew for all locals who want to venture out.

For tonight, if you want a great takeout meal - think about stopping in for cassoulet or our great newly formulated mac & cheese in a pint or quart. We have it ready to go, right now and will through the afternoon & evening.

Soups to go will be vegetable & corn chowder for sure - we have a great lentil that may be gone with the lunch crowd.

A double capp by the fireside to share snow stories, now that's how I'd like to spend the afternoon....