The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business

In this book is described how entrepreneurship and hospitality go well together.Good useful tips and valuable information.A book for anyone who is interested in hospitality and entrepreneurship.

Casper van der Most
[...]

Setting the Table by Danny Meyer was enlightening and entertaining. I am pursuing a career in hospitality and his testimony will lead you in the right direction and give you some excitement at the same time.

I'm not even halfway through the book it's amazingly well written and captures my attention in every sentence! Definitely a must read for anyone new to or thinking of getting into the hospitality industry!

The best business book I have ever read. Unwittingly the author was applying Biblical principals which has made him successful. So many of the principals in Proverbs were applied on his road to success.

I have only read 30 page into the book so far which seems very interesting, but I had to note - does no one else see the incredible amout of typos in this book? I'm to sure if it's just the kindle edition which I'm reading, but Harper Collins should fire their editing team either way. There are 4 typos in the free pages preview alone, and the word "for" missing from that all important sentence so many people quote and highlight in this book... I don't understand this kind of sloppy negligence.

Those who wanted something direct and honest like Kitchen Confidential might be disappointed. This work of non-fiction was lacking, in that it did not really provide much details into the food industry and was really a whole book where Danny Meyer is pounding his chest about customer service. Truly 110% the purpose of the book is to make readers believe Mr. Meyer is great at customer service, not to give many insights into the food and dining industry.

I mean, I really got sick of hearing his rant about customer service by page 50. Danny Meyer is a real visionary when it comes to dining, he's opened burger stands (Shake Shack) and then he's opened impressively high end establishments (11 Madison). There's some old videos of when he was opening Union Square Cafe, you could just see how much deep thought he gave into the location of tables and the bar, the staircase, the concept behind the food. In my opinion, it's the fact that he knows so much about food, about the whole dining experience, and his love as a restaurant owner that differentiates him. Unfortunately, you really get no whiff of the visionary side of him and come off the book feeling like he's some used car salesman or infomercial guy.

Obviously person too, Mr. Meyer is pretty indirect about his feelings or this thinking. For example, he recently removed tipping from his restaurants, but gave some false rationale "European diners don't know how much to tip." The true reason is of course that in New York City, the tips cannot be shared with the cooks / kitchen staff / anyone non-customer facing, hence there is an income disparity between servers who could make 6 figures and cooks who are paid almost barely the living standard (note that Per Se and Sushi Yasuda are also gratuity included, probably for similar reasons). So maybe that's unfortunately how people in restaurant business have to be.

I have been working the kitchen for 6 years , all I thought cooking is the key to a good restaurant , without reading this book I have no idea what it take.
I have more detail book review on setting the table on my blog: [...] , go and have read my thought about this book.
if you are interested in owning a restaurant in the future this a must read book

Danny Meyer's name-dropping ode-to-self. While there are some takeaway nuggets, one must sift through pages of ego fodder to find them. Worth a read if only to affirm that you too have the smarts to succeed in hospitality, and it's a whole lot easier if you start with a big-ass war chest!

If you want to know about Danny Meyer's life (which is quite interesting) then this book is for you. If you are looking for a book that gives you a lot of easy to apply ideas to apply to your restaurant or business then you will be disappointed. He does share his values and gives quite a few interesting examples of how to apply hospitality and the importance of it. It's okay

On the cover of the book you will see this quote, "This is the most important business book of our time" - Jim Cramer. I have to disagree. It is an interesting biography of Danny Meyer at best, with a few gold nuggets thrown in from his life experience. I happened to buy the book for a friend who owns a restaurant. If you own a restaurant or want to buy it for someone who does or wants to, then fine, it's a really good resource. Otherwise, there are thousands of other better "business" books out there. Good hunting!

300+ pages of Danny discussing how great and special he thinks he is. Check for this at your local library before buying - at least if you can find it there you'll only be wasting time instead of money as well. Yes, he is a successful entrepreneur, but that doesn't mean he has any business writing. Wish the store had never suggested this book to me, wish I hadn't been fooled by the promotions.

I have to read this book for a business/hospitality class......with every chapter I die a little more inside. Not because of the business and hospitality advice, theories and insight he offers, but because I am so sick of the man talking about himself. If you want to be a narcissist and write an auto biography go for it, but I don't want to be forced to read a book about how a man met his wife their first date, all the places he has traveled because he is so important, and all the money he has made (125,000 a year before he left for the restaurant business in case you were dying to know) I can honestly say I hate this book. I am not reading it, to read about him. I just can't wait until this semester is over this may be the first school book I light on fire after I am done with it to celebrate never needing to look at it again.

Danny Meyer is a legend in the restaurant business. His bestselling business book, “Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business,” should make him a lower deity in the realm of American business gurus.

Beginning with the Union Square Café in 1985 and culminating (for now) with Shake Shack, which went public in 2015 and by 2017 had a market capitalization of nearly $1.5B, Meyer has done more than any other American restaurateur, so far as I’m aware, to create and then reinvent a world-class dining experience across a broad spectrum of genres, from white linen cloth and Dom Perignon to a sloppy cheeseburger and fries.

His secrets for success, as communicated in “Setting the Table,” really aren’t all that original or profound. Nevertheless, in this reviewer’s opinion, they are first rate.

First, he argues, be wary of so-called experts. No matter your field, there will be lots of pseudo-experts proffering wisdom and advice, often at a heavy price. The vast majority are charlatans. Pay them no mind – and certainly pay them no money. Meyer clearnly learned this lesson early on and never forgot it. His first encounter with a supposed industry expert “scared the sh—out of [him].” He wanted him to do things that, as an owner-operator, just didn’t feel right at a gut level. He ignored the “expert” and never looked back.

Second, and related to the first, Meyer learned to listen to and embrace an unfiltered customer experience. Or, as he called it: ABCD (always be collecting the dots). Customer feedback, no matter how unpleasant, is your friend. He understood that everything matters, that hospitality “is the sum of all the thoughtful, caring, gracious things [the] staff does to make you feel we are on your side when you are dining with us.” If you deliver an exceptional dining experience, no matter how defined, that restaurant will prosper.

Third, he learned to break the rules. In fact, one of Meyer’s favorite phases is “who ever wrote the rule that…” The response to that ellipsis included “…you can’t serve slow-smoked pulled pork with a glass of champagne or Chianit Classico, just off Park Avenue?” (i.e. Blue Smoke) or “you can’t create a classic burger-and-shakes drive-in in New York City, where no one drives” (i.e. Shake Shack). His basic belief is that you can always add something fresh to an existing dialogue or genre. Personally, I couldn’t agree more.

I’m not a foodie. In fact, my favorite meal is an In-N-Out double-double with fries. But I am a businessman. And Meyer’s insights and perspectives collected in “Setting the Table” have done more for me than any other business book that I can think of.

Ok, I like Danny Meyer-from his interviews I've seen on TV and dining at a few of his restaurants-Grammercy Tavern, a favorite and many of the Shake Shacks. I don't live in NYC anymore or I would try them all. Listening to this audiobook, read by him, was interesting for maybe the first 4 cds, but the book and Danny got more and more ingratiating and droning until I couldn't take it anymore. What started out just fine turned into relentless self promotion. Danny if you read your reviews-I love that you have embraced Ct. with all your Shake Shacks and I've been to most. Two of them on a couple occasions were really dirty with tables not wiped down and bathrooms that haven't seen a cleaner in a while. A couple of wrong orders. Maybe it's time to get out in the field so the dining experience jives with your book.

"The most important business book of our time", is the Jim Cramer quote plastered on the cover of this book. WHAT?! Cramer must be one of Meyer's good critic friends because none of this book is business oriented.
This book, from the beginning, was so self indulgent and all about "me, me, me", that I actually came to read reviews here on the store to see if it only started out like this and eventually got better, but it seemed from some reviews that it doesn't.

Nevertheless, I decided to read the book myself and low and behold, it didn't get better. If you want to read about Danny Meyer's privileged life traveling the world from youth to adulthood, then read this book. If you want to read about his self indulgent, narcissistic view of himself, then read this book. If you want to learn how to run a restaurant, how it actually works - in a technical manner, then this is not the book. NOTHING AT ALL ABOUT THIS BOOK HAS TO DO WITH BUSINESS, EXCEPT - having good customer service, which is an obvious given.

I can honestly say I know as much about the restaurant business as before I read this book - only now I know more about Danny Meyer and his true love - himself.

This book will be of great interest and even greater value if one or more of the following is relevant to you:

1. You have direct and frequent contact with customers.

2. You train and/or supervise those who do.

3. You need to improve your "people skills" in your business and personal relationships.

4. Your organization has problems attracting, hiring, and then keeping the people it needs to prosper.

5. Your organization has problems with others who, for whatever reasons, consistently under-perform.

It is no coincidence that many of those on Fortune magazine's annual list of most admired companies reappear on its annual list of most profitable companies. Moreover, both customers and employees rank "feeling appreciated" among the three most important attributes of satisfaction. Now consider the total cost of a mis-hire or the departure of a peak performer: Estimates vary from six to 18 times the annual salary, including hours and dollars required by the replacement process.

Until now, I have said nothing about Danny Meyer nor about the restaurant industry so as to reassure those who read this brief commentary that, although Setting the Table does indeed provide interesting information about him and his background, the book's greater value derives (in my opinion) from the lessons he has learned from his successes and failures thus far, both within and beyond the kitchen.

One of the most important concepts in this book is hospitality. Here's what Meyer has to say about it: "hospitality is the foundation of my business philosophy. Virtually nothing else is as important as how one is made to feel in any business transaction. Hospitality exists when you believe the other person is on your side. The converse is just as true. Hospitality is present when something happens [begin italics] for [end italics] you. It is absent when something happens [begin italics] to [end italics] you. These two simple propositions - for and to - express it all." According to Meyer, service is the technical delivery of a product. Hospitality is how the delivery of that product makes its recipient feel about the transaction. This is precisely what Leonard Berry has in mind when explaining what he calls "the soul of service."

Another of the most important concepts in this book is "connecting the dots" which Meyer views as a process by which information accumulated "can make meaningful connections that can make other people feel good and give you an edge in business. Using whatever information I've collected to gather guests together in a shared experience is what I call connecting the dots."

Of special interest to me are those whom Meyer characterizes as mentors to whom he has turned for sound (albeit candid) advice. For example, on one occasion he enthusiastically "showed off" to Pat Cetta (co-owner of Sparks Steakhouse) a new dish just added to the Union Street Café menu: Fried oyster Caesar salad. Cetta's response? "This dish is nothing more than mental masturbation. You're clearly doing it just to get noticed by Florence Fabricant [in the New York Times]. And the bad news is that she won't even like it. I guarantee you that shit is coming off your menu within two months - and if I were you, I'd take it off in two minutes. You know better than that, luvah!" Meyer agreed and quickly retired the dish.

As indicated earlier, I think the lessons which Meyer generously shares in this book, especially those learned from errors of judgment ("the road to success is paved with mistakes well handled") are of substantial value to managers in all organizations, regardless of size or nature. If there were a rating higher than Five Stars, I would give it to this thoughtful, eloquent, and entertaining book.

Danny, thank you for your insights. Your picture of an ideal server as 2 parts Walter Conkite and 1 part Mae West, spoonfuls of Barishnikov and generous sprinklings of Mother Theresa did shape my thinking surrounding hospitality but... not all of us are trying to move your salt shaker (those who read the book will know what I mean). Some of us are trying to support the manager but we're just not able to due to, personality issues, misunderstandings, miscommunications etc... Its just a misleading picture that those underneath you are ALWAYS trying to move your saltshaker. It's just a contentious point of view that doesn't necessarily need to be, but your book seems to portray management-staff relationships to be that way and I am feeling it can be a little outdated and 80's minded. A lot of us are trying to be a part of something great and will follow worthy leaders to the ends of the world. BTW to hell with Hellman's, Kewpie mayo is the King, but I don't think you can get you head out of the 80's enuf to see what's developing in hospitality. Congratulations on all your successes but your time on mentoring young and upcoming professionals is over.

Ok, I like Danny Meyer-from his interviews I've seen on TV and dining at a few of his restaurants-Grammercy Tavern, a favorite and many of the Shake Shacks. I don't live in NYC anymore or I would try them all. Listening to this audiobook, read by him, was interesting for maybe the first 4 cds, but the book and Danny got more and more ingratiating and droning until I couldn't take it anymore. What started out just fine turned into relentless self promotion. Danny if you read your reviews-I love that you have embraced Ct. with all your Shake Shacks and I've been to most. Two of them on a couple occasions were really dirty with tables not wiped down and bathrooms that haven't seen a cleaner in a while. A couple of wrong orders. Maybe it's time to get out in the field so the dining experience jives with your book.

"The most important business book of our time", is the Jim Cramer quote plastered on the cover of this book. WHAT?! Cramer must be one of Meyer's good critic friends because none of this book is business oriented.
This book, from the beginning, was so self indulgent and all about "me, me, me", that I actually came to read reviews here on the store to see if it only started out like this and eventually got better, but it seemed from some reviews that it doesn't.

Nevertheless, I decided to read the book myself and low and behold, it didn't get better. If you want to read about Danny Meyer's privileged life traveling the world from youth to adulthood, then read this book. If you want to read about his self indulgent, narcissistic view of himself, then read this book. If you want to learn how to run a restaurant, how it actually works - in a technical manner, then this is not the book. NOTHING AT ALL ABOUT THIS BOOK HAS TO DO WITH BUSINESS, EXCEPT - having good customer service, which is an obvious given.

I can honestly say I know as much about the restaurant business as before I read this book - only now I know more about Danny Meyer and his true love - himself.

This book will be of great interest and even greater value if one or more of the following is relevant to you:

1. You have direct and frequent contact with customers.

2. You train and/or supervise those who do.

3. You need to improve your "people skills" in your business and personal relationships.

4. Your organization has problems attracting, hiring, and then keeping the people it needs to prosper.

5. Your organization has problems with others who, for whatever reasons, consistently under-perform.

It is no coincidence that many of those on Fortune magazine's annual list of most admired companies reappear on its annual list of most profitable companies. Moreover, both customers and employees rank "feeling appreciated" among the three most important attributes of satisfaction. Now consider the total cost of a mis-hire or the departure of a peak performer: Estimates vary from six to 18 times the annual salary, including hours and dollars required by the replacement process.

Until now, I have said nothing about Danny Meyer nor about the restaurant industry so as to reassure those who read this brief commentary that, although Setting the Table does indeed provide interesting information about him and his background, the book's greater value derives (in my opinion) from the lessons he has learned from his successes and failures thus far, both within and beyond the kitchen.

One of the most important concepts in this book is hospitality. Here's what Meyer has to say about it: "hospitality is the foundation of my business philosophy. Virtually nothing else is as important as how one is made to feel in any business transaction. Hospitality exists when you believe the other person is on your side. The converse is just as true. Hospitality is present when something happens [begin italics] for [end italics] you. It is absent when something happens [begin italics] to [end italics] you. These two simple propositions - for and to - express it all." According to Meyer, service is the technical delivery of a product. Hospitality is how the delivery of that product makes its recipient feel about the transaction. This is precisely what Leonard Berry has in mind when explaining what he calls "the soul of service."

Another of the most important concepts in this book is "connecting the dots" which Meyer views as a process by which information accumulated "can make meaningful connections that can make other people feel good and give you an edge in business. Using whatever information I've collected to gather guests together in a shared experience is what I call connecting the dots."

Of special interest to me are those whom Meyer characterizes as mentors to whom he has turned for sound (albeit candid) advice. For example, on one occasion he enthusiastically "showed off" to Pat Cetta (co-owner of Sparks Steakhouse) a new dish just added to the Union Street Café menu: Fried oyster Caesar salad. Cetta's response? "This dish is nothing more than mental masturbation. You're clearly doing it just to get noticed by Florence Fabricant [in the New York Times]. And the bad news is that she won't even like it. I guarantee you that shit is coming off your menu within two months - and if I were you, I'd take it off in two minutes. You know better than that, luvah!" Meyer agreed and quickly retired the dish.

As indicated earlier, I think the lessons which Meyer generously shares in this book, especially those learned from errors of judgment ("the road to success is paved with mistakes well handled") are of substantial value to managers in all organizations, regardless of size or nature. If there were a rating higher than Five Stars, I would give it to this thoughtful, eloquent, and entertaining book.

Danny, thank you for your insights. Your picture of an ideal server as 2 parts Walter Conkite and 1 part Mae West, spoonfuls of Barishnikov and generous sprinklings of Mother Theresa did shape my thinking surrounding hospitality but... not all of us are trying to move your salt shaker (those who read the book will know what I mean). Some of us are trying to support the manager but we're just not able to due to, personality issues, misunderstandings, miscommunications etc... Its just a misleading picture that those underneath you are ALWAYS trying to move your saltshaker. It's just a contentious point of view that doesn't necessarily need to be, but your book seems to portray management-staff relationships to be that way and I am feeling it can be a little outdated and 80's minded. A lot of us are trying to be a part of something great and will follow worthy leaders to the ends of the world. BTW to hell with Hellman's, Kewpie mayo is the King, but I don't think you can get you head out of the 80's enuf to see what's developing in hospitality. Congratulations on all your successes but your time on mentoring young and upcoming professionals is over.

Author Danny Meyer opened his first restaurant at 27 in the Union Square area of Manhattan. At that time, in the late 1980's, that area, like many others in the City, was struggling, particularly with crime in the park by the same name. To his credit, Meyer opened the restaurant with an eye toward contributing to the community. In this book he shares his customer service and management philosophy - enlightened hospitality - which drives how he develops and build his business, which is now comprised of a handful of establishments, including the very popular Shake Shack. Enlightened hospitality is driven by the management philosophy that places staff first, customers second, suppliers third, the community fourth and investors fifth. This schemes turns the traditional hierarchy upside down but it has worked for Meyers as his restaurants continue to succeed (except for Tabla, which closed in 2010). The approach works because when employees are treated properly they transfer that treatment to customers. Meyers is not the first to expound this but his story may be one of the best case studies for its value. Meyers also shares other details of his management approach, like how he selects for specific traits in employees, makes decisions with his team about potential opportunities and deals with failures. In many ways, this book can be a great supplement to a traditional management textbook as it demonstrates how techniques and approaches work (or don't) in real life.

Meyers is an endearing personality, sometimes to a fault, as he describes how people pleasing sometimes clouded his judgement. He shares a lot of personal insight on the psychology of his motivations, sometimes acting to avoid mistakes made by his father, sometimes feeling as if he lived in the shadow of his successful grandfather. He is deeply aware of his own shortcomings and grows as the story of his accomplishments progresses. Particularly notable are his concerns for contributing to the communities in which his restaurants reside. Slightly on the down side, though not overwhelming, is perhaps a bit too much detail on the tale of each establishment. Overall, however, this is a great book that is filled with great management stories and advice for any entrepreneur.

Not being a foodie (food aficionado/gourmand) myself, I hadn't heard of Danny Meyer until stock picker/funnyman/investment coach Jim Cramer mentioned him on Mad Money. Danny Meyer was mentioned numerous times of having picked a handful of stocks that met his standards, which he dubbed his "Hospitality Index" (more on this later), and how great those stocks had done in the market.

Was there something to Danny's restauranteur flair that could be applied to a wide variety of stocks from Banks, to Industrial stocks, to Telecom? Apparently there was. But first, who the heck is Danny Meyer?

Danny grew up around food, and Hedonism, his whole life. The family would spend extended periods of time in Europe (particularly Italy and France) when he was growing up, and in his twenties, Danny spent extensive time there working for his father's tourism company. All the while Danny went from restaurant to restaurant, cafe to cafe, sampling the very best pastas, seafoods and wines Europe had to offer.

Over the years, he built up quite a nest egg from his great tourism job, and later a sales job in New York. But it didn't feel right to be a money guy or a salesman. He was a foodie at heart. All his friends were in the restaurant business, and he felt it was time to jump in.

Danny tells the story of how he grew from his very first Union Square Cafe, to a massive Group of First tier New York eateries, from French food, to Indian, and American Burgers, and how he learned to be a great boss.

There had to be something to this guy. Something everyone else was missing. Danny lays his cards on the table:

"Hospitality exists when you believe the other person is on your side."

Why is that sentence so striking? Because we remember overwhelming positive feelings in rare cases where that sentence has been true, and we associate cynical, cold feelings whenever we feel a company is just trying to take advantage of us. If Danny's restaurants embody this message, is it any wonder he has so many regular customers? Is it any wonder he's been successful in so many different styles of cuisine? Is it any wound budding foodies desperately want to work for this company?

Some of the anecdotes that relay Meyer's version of Hospitality will really blow you away. Hardly anyone seems to get what Danny has: Today's dollars don't matter, it's Tomorrow's dollars that matter.

In the restaurant business you have to have 3 great servings before a customer will really fall in love with your restaurant. Great ones. One reason Danny's company has been such a hit is they go the extra mile, which is why people become hooked, and then become regulars. What do I mean by `go the extra mile'?

One particularly amazing story from "Setting the Table" is a couple coming into the restaurant and revealing that it was their anniversary that night. It turned out the man had a favourite bottle of Champagne waiting for them at home. When he asked the Maitre d' if it was alright sitting in the freezer,he started to panic: the Maitre d' explained that, left unattended, his Champagne would explode when frozen! The man wanted to cancel the dinner, and rush home to move the Champagne, but the Maitre d' wouldn't let that happen. Knowing their anniversary night would be ruined if the couple had to leave the restaurant, the Maitre d' offered to go over to his house, and remove the bottle from the freezer. He even left a box of Chocolates next to the fridge as congratulations on this special occasion. The couple was stunned at this man's willingness to go the extra mile.

I know what you're thinking: "That kind of thoughtfulness, that kind of devotion, care, for the customer... is that even possible? What about profits? How can they run a business like that?? "

The same way the rest of the `Danny Meyer Hospitality Index' companies run their businesses: they know that by being the best, and creating amazing moments like that one, they'll have hoards of `regulars' night after night, year after year. Recession, Boom, it doesn't make a difference. They do quite well.

There's obviously a ton of stuff in here, I can't go into it all, but I want to highlight something so brilliantly simple Danny did early on in the days of Union Square Cafe: played Sports.

He took out a sheet of paper and cooked up anything negative he could think of about the restaurant. What would detractors say? "The location is bad? The food is too expensive? I have to wait too long for a reserved table? The tables are too small? The wine list is too short?" No matter how small, Danny went down the list of every conceivable weakness and instituted policies to not just meet those complaints, but turn them into strengths. He called it playing Defense. For Offense, just look at all the great things the restaurant was doing and could do.

Here's the brilliance: just like in sports, your Offence doesn't matter if your defence has holes.

In Sports, they say, Defence wins Championships. If you can handle Defence, the Offence is a breeze (especially with such great players/servers and a great coach/chef). And Danny certainly has done just that. Everyday, thousands of New Yorkers descend on his great restaurants, not because their hungry (they are), not because the food is of such delectable quality (it is), but because of the way the servers at any of the Union Square Cafe Group Restaurants makes them feel. And that's something every single company can do better at. More Reviews like this on 21tiger.

Michael Robson
21tiger - books/biz/asia

It took me a long time to plow through this book, as there were many worthwhile tidbits to absorb. I picked up "Setting the Table" after a client mentioned he'd read it. I knew nothing about Danny Meyer going in and can now say I greatly admire and respect the restaurant company has built.

Danny combined following his instincts with listening to trusted advisors and over 20 years, opened 10 restaurants and a catering company in New York City, all while employing a philosophy he calls "enlightened hospitality." While the book is about his journey of building restaurants, business people in any industry can benefit from applying his principles. Here are a few of his keys.

He starts with investing in his community, because he believes that creating wealth for the community increases the chance of increasing wealth for investors. Most of his restaurants were planted in areas that weren't so great when he started, but his commitment helped reinvigorate them.

Know your core values, do not waiver and share them with everyone who works with you. These inner beliefs will guide you through tough times and keep your decision making on course. Everyone has to learn to roll with the punches, but you never concede your center.

Make sure your people, and your clients, feel heard. Most people don't necessarily need you to agree with them, but they do want you to listen and hear them. Could there be more appropriate timing than right now for this message?

Here's something that resonated most deeply for me; advice shared with Danny by his grandfather Irving. "The definition of business is problems." Business is about problem solving. Humans are fallible and mistakes are inevitable. Accept them, embrace them and learn, grow and profit from them. If you're in it for keeps, be overly generous and take a gracious approach in your problem solving. It will always pay off in the long run.

Finally, enlightened hospitality has five stakeholders and decisions are made based on the priorities of 1. Employees, 2. Guests, 3. The Community, 4. Suppliers and 5. Investors. Such a hierarchy certainly seems out of sync with many businesses these days, however it makes perfect sense when you're building loyalty and long-term success. If this sequence doesn't make sense to you, look at how each is the foundation for the next. And read the book, where he explains it in detail.

This is one of the most enjoyable management / customer service books I have read in a long time. By any measure Danny Meyer is a hugely successful entrepreneur who has the magic touch when it comes to restaurant development.

Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group has five eateries in Zagat's top 20 most popular New York restaurants. His two signature restaurants Gramercy Tavern and Union Square Café have share the top two spots since the 2000 survey.

In a very open, well written book, Meyer takes us through his management philosophy based on "enlightened hospitality" and placing employees first and then guests, community, suppliers and investors.

Some of the concepts I particularly liked include:
The five "As" for addressing mistakes and complaints - Awareness, Acknowledge, Apologize, Act, Additional generosity.
The line from legendary retailer Stanley Marcus "The road to success is paved with mistakes well handled." Meyer does not shy away from admitting his own mistakes which gives the book more credibility.
The 51/49 recruitment concept where he suggests the best employees skills breakdown 51% genuine hospitality DNA and 49% technical excellence.

While written by a world class restaurateur almost totally referencing restaurant anecdotes this is a book for everyone in business who wants to inculcate a customer service culture in their organization. Buy it and read it again and again.

The 2006 Zagat Survey lists Gramercy Tavern as New York's most popular restaurant. (It was also #1 last year.)

Union Square Café came in second. (As it did last year.)

Eleven Madison Park ranked fourteen. (Down one from 2005.)

Tabla was eighteen. (Up one from 2005.)

Blue Smoke --- unranked in 2005 --- was the 36th most popular restaurant.

These Manhattan restaurants were all conceived by one man: Danny Meyer, who has also created the restaurants at The Museum of Modern Art and an outdoor joint called Shake Shack. Most restaurants fail, and quickly; these restaurants have, most of them, been around long enough to qualify as "institutions." If you have ever had the good fortune to sample Danny Meyer's food, you know they are likely to remain so deep into the future.

Now Danny Meyer has written a book. It is nominally a memoir about his life in restaurants. But although there are mouth-watering descriptions of great meals, it will be a great tragedy if this book becomes "food porn," devoured by foodies and unknown to the general public. This is a bigger book, and a better book, than that. (Not that there's anything wrong with food porn.) For one thing, it is a business book that should be read --- like: today! --- by anyone whose livelihood involves face-to-face encounters with customers. For another, it is a hands-on, real-world book of practical philosophy that could knock a great deal of sense into those who believe that nice guys finish last and the only way to get to the top is to kick others off the ladder as you claw your way up.

This book obeys the form of memoir, especially in the young Meyer's culinary education --- his writing will remind some readers of A.J. Liebling's postgraduate adventures in Between Meals. But almost every story has a psychological twist; this is a man who has learned a lot by eating and a lot more by listening and watching.

What he's concluded is obvious to those who have been to his restaurants: It's not about the food. It's about the people. It's about the way you feel when you're there --- about the way the staff makes you feel. In a word, it's about hospitality. What is hospitality? It starts with a belief: "The other person is on your side." And then the belief becomes behavior: "Hospitality is present when something happens for you."

Meyer came to this business philosophy young. In 1985, when he was 27 and opening his first restaurant, Union Square Café, he had job applicants answer unusual questions: "Has your sense of humor been useful to you in your service career?" and "What was so wrong about your last job?" and "Do you prefer Hellmann's or Miracle Whip?" In this way, he hired "genuine, happy, optimistic" people. They shared their good feelings with customers. And customers felt liked and valued. They became regulars --- and if the secret of a successful long-term enterprise is not Repeat Business, what is it?

Make no mistake: this kind of hospitality requires work. Not just when the customer walks through the door, but before and after. If Meyer knows a couple is coming to celebrate a birthday or anniversary, he's not above picking up a phone and telling them how much he's looking forward to their visit. Then there was the dishwasher who took extra care with dirty dishes; soon, he'd cut knife-and-fork loss by 50%. His manager told Meyer. And Meyer went to the dishwasher to thank him. Or the time a woman left her wallet and cell phone in a taxi. The restaurant manager began calling her phone, reached the cab driver, and --- without saying a word to her --- he sent a staffer in a taxi to pick up her stuff while she was having lunch. Cost: $31. The customer's response: Overwhelmed. Benefit: "I'd be surprised if this woman hasn't already given Table 100 times that value in positive word-of-mouth."

Mistakes? Of course Meyer has made them. But he listened very hard to the advice he got from legendary retailer Stanley Marcus --- "The road to success is paved with mistakes well handled" --- and figured out how to turn a mistake into what he calls "a great last chapter." He learned about power and how best to use it. He grasped that his first customers are his workers. And he appreciated that, as Dylan says, "you gotta serve somebody" --- to his great credit, he serves both local causes and a remarkable anti-hunger charity called Share Our Strength.

None of this is original; these are lessons many people know. What is dazzling and inspiring about Danny Meyer is that he operates on what he believes. Sure, there's self-interest --- the more you give, the more you get --- but more to the point, there's a sense of a life well-lived. Of a business well-run. Of employees who feel trusted and respected. And, finally, of guests who can't wait to come back. This is the very definition of a "virtuous circle."

I once heard a guru say: "When you aim for the highest things, only the highest things happen." Danny Meyer is proof that this is so. Many would scoff. They cut corners and do well in the short run. They have power for the thrill of pushing people around. Their word is not their bond. But we are talking about the span of a life here, and the worth of your work. "Setting the Table" makes you hungry for the better life just in front of you ---and fills you with confidence that it's attainable. Eat this book.

The best thing about this book, by far, is the anecdotes that Meyer tells about his start in the restaurant business and his ups and downs. The lessons that he learned, the chutzpah that he had in the mid-80s as a young man not yet 30 trying to make it in the New York City restaurant business, the culinary disasters and triumphs, the people he hired and had to fire. All that is as real as it can get. Add his dysfunctional, entrepreneurial family from St. Louis, his early exposure to French cuisine, his clear dedication to his dreams, his ability to make a buck, his unshakable belief in himself and his business methods ... quite a stew.

What isn't so good about this book is that it is too long. A good editor could have cut 20 percent of it and left out nothing significant. Meyer's lessons for business people are useful but are repeated far too many times.

Danny Meyer's "Setting the Table" is a very enjoyable and informative read. It's a nice combination of things: there's the interesting story of how Meyer got his start and grew his business, one restaurant at a time; and then there are the lessons he passes on from the running of his organization. Most impressively, Meyer penned this himself...not a ghostwriter or "with" to be found on the cover.

There are heaps of good lessons in here that are applicable in every walk of life. The other reviewers do a good job spelling out some examples. My favorite is making sure you get to write "the last, great chapter." In Meyer's world, not only do you solve a problem, you look to put a memorable and unique close to the event. Meyer references some wonderful instances.

Danny Meyer's success in the nation's toughest market is no fluke. The evidence of his hard, well-thought-out work abounds in "Setting the Table."

I listened to this book on CD, and if I can take one moment to encourage everyone who wishes they read more books to instead listen to them as they work in their cubicles or travel long distances, please, do it. Begin listening to books on CD or other recorded media. I now wish every book was available as read by their author.

Anyway, Danny Meyer's book on Enlightened Hospitality (that IS what "Setting the Table" is about) is an excellent book on the subject. For an overarching foundation for managing a hospitality venture, be it a restaurant or hotel, or for that matter managing any organization that services the customer directly, Danny's ideas are great. They do in fact turn traditional management concepts on their head, and rightly deserved. I strongly feel that if every industry in America followed Danny's Enlightened Hospitality formula that our economy, perhaps our entire culture, would be better off.

But if you are a wannabe restauranteur, or interested in learning more about the day to day, nuts and bolts, planning, opening, running and managing of a restaurant, this isn't your book. Oh, go ahead and read it, because the management principles, especially how to treat your employees and customers, are useful, even important. But this is not a "how to open a restaurant" book.

As a high-level management book, Danny writes an important and helpful piece. But for little places just trying to get by, this isn't what yu're lookiong for.

 
What can a humanities student learn from an eight-year-old autobiography of a restaurant entrepreneur? A lot has happened since 2006 in the world of business (no iPhones!) and dining alike (Yelp was just two years old!). However, Danny Meyer’s Setting the Table is more than just a book about food, business, or the business of food. While of course, these topics are covered in detail, taken as a whole, Setting the Table is a useful, insightful guide to handling people, assessing your options, making connections, and thinking creatively. Meyer makes a narrative about opening his businesses about much more than just starting restaurants in one of the toughest cities in the world. Instead, he weaves tips and strategies on recognizing and tackling challenges that can be applied in any field and context. His simple, reflective prose makes Setting the Table an accessible read with a lot of personal flavor. In the following review, I will first detail Meyer’s back story, and establish why his upbringing is critical to his position as a thought-leader. Following, I will provide my own perspective on upon which specific principles laid out by Meyer could be most applicable to a student or young professional with their eyes on the future. 
Meyer begins his story under relatively unique circumstances. His mother, a daughter of a wealthy but calculated entrepreneur from the Midwest, and his father, an Ivy League trained entrepreneur with a streak for taking chances, are relatively well off when Meyer is young. However, a pattern soon emerges: his father goes from riding the waves of successful ventures, like international tour companies, restaurants, and hotels, to watching them crumble into bankruptcy. Early in life, Meyer lived vicariously through his father, feeling deeply his failures and successes. Later, recalling his father's yo-yoing success, he would exercise caution when approaching his own ventures. Of course, this part of the story must be taken lightly. Not everyone with a dream comes from a family that can provide the rubric to how to accomplish it. However, Meyer was never seemed to possess a spoiled mentality. Instead, he used his ‘birds in the hand’-who he was, what he knew, and who he knew-to soak up as much business acumen as he could from a young age. He was attentive, inquisitive, and passionate.
However, it was not just the entrepreneurial zeal he was surrounded by that molded young Meyer into a fledgling entrepreneur, but rather, something much more relatable: his love of food. He describes his experiences with food-from Steak and Shake milkshakes and burgers, to fine dining across European countries-like one would describe the love of their life. Not only does he make the reader's mouth water with tantalizing descriptions, but he also begins to describe how he honed in on the qualities that propelled him through the uncertain terrain of the restaurant industry. This singular, consistent passion in his life, is the seed from which Meyer’s success sprung. Thus, the first big lesson readers take away is that no passion is passive; no love or interest, but a ‘hobby.’ By doing what we love, again and again, we become more skilled at it, and when ready, can take the leap from a part-time endeavor, to a full time commitment.
Meyer’s first brush with failure was also his catapult to success. When he had to write in and beg to get off the waitlist of Trinity College, he knew he “finally needed to wake up and come out of hibernation” (Location 349). After college, he held some pretty odd jobs for a future food magnate, but all of which shaped his philosophy and management style. First, he was the Cook County field coordinator for an Independent Party candidate running against Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter. There, he learned to manage volunteers and value their time above all else. “Absent a paycheck, ideas and ideals were the only currency. [This] taught me to view all employees essentially as volunteers” (Location 391). From this observation, Meyer slowly began to build up his business philosophy. However, he took one more detour before throwing himself into the food industry: working for Checkpoint Systems, a manufacturer of pressure tags. “I soon became Checkpoint’s top salesman” (Location 441). The job brought him a six figure salary in his early 20s, as well as the realization that he could not continue to work for someone else. He quit the job, and began at the bottom of the food service ladder.
The qualities Meyer picks up as a young adult are refined as he grows and begins his ventures, and become less, personal characteristics, and more, governing principles for doing life and business. From my own experience as a young professional and student, I found following principles (cited to the e-book locations) as the most universally relevant and useful:

1. “Small signals…can get across a lot more information than at first pass.” (Location 110). 
What can your friend's preferred Ketchup brand tell you about them? According to Meyer, quite a bit. He makes it a point to always look for 'small signals': little hints and clues that allude to a bigger picture, and that could steer his strategy or approach in any circumstance. “I was a sponge with eager eyes, and I noticed everything,” he describes (Location 563). More importantly, these small clues can help him make human connections. For example, if he sees a particular brand of Ketchup on the table at a dining establishment, he can engage the owner in conversation about the origins of the brand, or the people he has met before who have preferred it over others. He makes networks in his head out of the small details, and then connects them-something that I’ll get to in a moment.

2. "Who Ever Wrote the Rule…” (Location 1477)
Many of Meyer's restaurants, including Union Square, Tabla, and Shake Shack, are new and hybrid takes on traditional and beloved classic elements, pulled from a variety of sources. How does Meyer consistently roll out new concepts that still heavily allude to nostalgia? He applies the 'Who Ever Wrote the Rule' mantra. For example, when building Gramercy Tavern he asked, "Who ever wrote the rule that the only way to enjoy luxurious fine dining is in the environment of a stuffy restaurant?” (Location 1581). This kind of thinking makes one aware of the current 'boxes,' or thinking constraints, that exist and are accepted as immovable fact. Meyer describes his ventures: “[they were] all driven by a passion to add something new and compelling to what I call a dialogue between what already exists and what could be” (Location 121). By consciously identifying the 'rules,' or what already exists, one can start to take steps to abolish them, and thus, think creatively and image what could be. For a classroom example: 'Who ever wrote the rule that an essay had to be on paper?' Instead, weave the narrative as a voice over of an animation, or create a stylish website whose usability and design contributes to your essay's bottom line.

3. "ABCD – Always Be Connecting the Dots"
Says Meyer, “dots are information. The more information you collect, the more frequently you can make meaningful connections that can make other people feel good and give you an edge in business. Using whatever information I’ve collected to gather guests together in a spirit of shared experience is what I call connecting the dots” (Location 1581). An extension of principles number 1, Meyer constantly applies ABCD, not just in his staff trainings, but in his daily routines. Making connections in a dynamic environment such as a restaurant is not just a tip: it's a necessary means of survival. Meyer picks up on his guest's body language; whether he had seen them before in another one of his restaurants; or who his guests may know (or who he thinks they should- he describes 'match making' players in the New York publishing scene while seeing them dining in Union Square by seating them close to each other, or making introductions). This kind of actionable, constantly on, attention to detail cannot be willed. Rather, it is a result of practice, of conscious thought activation, and of seeing the benefits of ABCD paying off. And the more you practice ABCD, the more you are able to recognize the potential for what does not yet exist, but should. “The information is there,” Meyer states. “You just have to look” (Location 1226).

4. The Philosophy of “Enlightened Hospitality”
While at face value, it appears that Meyer’s business is food, he makes it very clear that food is just a part of his business. “Hospitality is the foundation of my business philosophy. Virtually nothing else is as important as how one is made to feel in any business transaction.”
 Hospitality exists when you believe the other person is on your side. The converse is just as true. Hospitality is present when something happens for you. It is absent when something happens to you. Those two simple prepositions-for and to-express it all” (Location 172). Meyer infuses every step of his business with making meaningful, long-term relationships. He wants everyone who interacts with his companies to associate them with the highest degree of hospitality. Whether you’re working a fast food or office job, this principle applies to virtually anything you do as part of a network or system. By making your stakeholders- yours bosses, peers, friends, family, customers, clients, and so forth-feel like you will go that extra mile (and for you to actually do it!) can pay off in truly amazing ways further down the road. By framing all behaviors in the principle of hospitality, one can become

From the details of his life growing up in the shadow of a father either riding the wave, or being thrown off his feet by it; to his adventures tasting local delicacies across Europe as a young adult; to a whirlwind career as a hard tag salesmen before quitting it all to open a restaurant, Meyer is candid, humorous, and reflective. Taking us through the narrative of opening the first, then the second, third, fourth, fifth restaurant, Meyer’s story is never dull. Even when patterns emerge in his behavior, the reader is still left questioning what choices he would make, and for what reasons. Meyer knows what his readers are looking for: not only do they want to know who he is, but they want to know how he is. Setting the Table balances retrospective storytelling, revealing the histories behind storied eateries like Union Square Tavern and the first Shake Shack (a hot dog stand), with punchy, actionable guidelines for being an entrepreneur. However, the book’s core lessons are not restricted to those looking to start a venture in or outside the food industry. Anyone can train themselves to look at the small signals, break down dusty rules in leu of new connections, and ABCD. And of course, anyone can commit to the philosophy of hospitality, not just in their careers, but in their disposition. By applying Meyer’s logic and suggestions, readers from virtually any background will likely experience a significant improvement in their daily activities, leveraging of spontaneous situations, and relationships with their peers, coworkers, or friends. As Meyer says, “It’s that simple, and it’s that hard” (Location 77).

I find these days I like my business advice to come from someone who does retail. No stuffy offices and board room tables - give me someone who makes it happen every day in front of the guest. Let them teach me what business is really like.

Danny Meyer's book is the cream of that "been at retail, know what its like" book. I had the opportunity to see him speak at MUFSO in LA in October, and his book reads like he appears in person - genuine, thoughtful, insightful, but with a sense of respect for all. No Jack Welch "I got this all figured out here" attitude in this guy - instead they are hints on how to think about things yourself, told from one who did it and is still amazed it all worked out ok.

1. You have direct and frequent contact with customers.

2. You train and/or supervise those who do.

3. You need to improve your "people skills" in your business and personal relationships.

4. Your organization has problems attracting, hiring, and then keeping the people it needs to prosper.

5. Your organization has problems with others who, for whatever reasons, consistently under-perform.

This book has opened the door to the mesmerizing life of Danny Meyers, the proprietor of a dozen eateries in the New York area and chief of the Union Square Hospitality Group. You will read about his experiences in setting up these restaurants and some of the challenges he's faced. He also writes his candid take on public relations, employee relations, maintaing standards of excellence as related to the food and beverage industry. He also introduces the concept of enlightened hospitality as the secret to his success. As a restauranter I would have loved to read more on this particular concept in this book. Overall a great book with a lot of personal stories and reflections that will help enrich my life, a very good read.

Danny Meyer's charming book is full of great information for anyone who is interested in customer-centric business practices. While organized like a memoir, Meyer explains what inspires him to create new enterprises, how he says no to certain projects, and what he's learned from past mistakes. Most importantly, he defines his successful leadership style, explaining how they hire and train servers and managers to create great customer experiences. A terrific read, and I'll definitely be dining in one of his restaurants on my next trip to New York. Even though the book is about restaurants, it offers many teachable moments for managers in any business that serves the public.

Author, Creating Great Visitor Experiences: A Guidebook for Museums and Other Cultural Institutions

Love it, love it, love it. Finally an empowering business book for those of us who don't believe you have to be a soulless, emotionally retarded cheeseball prick to succeed in the business world. Danny Meyer's financial results give ample validity to his approach, so while you can still get rich the "traditional" way, his experience supports the fact that you can also get rich AND make the world a better place. Gets a little blah towards the end, but all of my stars, underlines and dogears throughout the beginning and middle parts more than make up for that. Others will do a better job of dissecting and analyzing the book in detail, so that's it for me. If you're tired of getting the beat-down for having the gall to have "feelings" at work, you'll love this book.

We all know Danny Meyer is a legend in NYC eateries. His success speaks for itself. But this book really dove into his process for creating successful restaurants, and his deep passion for hospitality. The book talks about both his failures and successes in a very open format so that the reader can truly understand specifics. His unique perspective starts with location (he talks about wanting to be in under-appreciated areas) and flows through to customer retention (surveys, etc). As a lover all of all things process-oriented, this was a real treat. It is interesting to hear his perspective because despite all his success, his primary focus is hospitality, not profits, and not notoriety. This is what must set him apart.

I was about to leave for vacation, and was looking for a beach read. Danny Meyer had been generous enough to supply an endorsement for my book, The Art of Client Service, so the least I could do was buy his book.

I am very glad I did.

Setting the Table certainly is a book on how to provide superior hospitality to customers, but it's more than that: it's the best book I've read on what it means to provide service to clients in ANY business. Its candor, humility, and generosity of spirit are reflected in all the lessons Danny learned, applied, and now recounts as he grew to be a leader.

My only quibble, and it is a small one, is that the book lacks an index. I assume this was a conscious decision on Danny's part, possibly because he does not view Setting the Table as a "how to" guide. But the reality is, the book is loaded with practical advice on how to build and sustain enduring client relationships. An index would help readers refer to lessons that inspired or motivated them.

My one regret is that I failed to include Setting the Table in my book's annotated bibliography of the 20 titles advertising people should read. I will, however, add it to the Art of Client Service website. And most important of all, I will recommend the book to all my advertising industry colleagues.

Honestly I'v read the book and thinks it's the best book on food lit period. Danny Meyer struck at the core of going out, not just the food(as I never ate at one of his places) but at the over all experience. He got it right, take care of each other, than the customers, vendors, and investors. I put myself through college working at resturants and bars and have seen "great" bars in Orange County California, but none of them would compare to the level of thought this guy put into his product.

There's a lot of name dropping in the book, but he's earned it as he gives credit to the people that help shape his product. The first chapters are more like dramatic rise from fiction as it sets it the rest of the book, with a family history and his fathers impression on him. Then Meyer goes into his philosophy of how to run a business. Whenever Meyer has a bit of wisdom, the font changes and the caption is isolated, which is good if you ever want to go back to a pearl wisdom from the gentleman. What is shocking is that the more I read the less it was about food and the more it was the sense that this guy was always just around the corner from having a meltdown. What made the book realistic and appealing was that Meyer didn't always talk about his resturants success but rather how he averted failure. When he did talked about success, it was because of community around him that aided in his success.

Anybody who has visited New York knows that it's a who's who city. I've been to the "city" and ate at some famous resturants. Reading the book, the part about the first years at Gramercy Tavern struck a cord about the dessert wines for waiting patrons. I always thougt it was just accepted practice to wait at the bar till your table was open, but Meyer changed my view and I got a glimpse at how taking potential disaster, Meyer manipulated the crowd into making the wait part of a larger dining experience. I even like the story about how a simple TV spot on a morning show, put his Shake Shack at a tremendous over burden.

Everything from constant gentle pressure, to always centering the table, to context, context, context will ring an air of truth to it. Don't read the book thinking your gonna become like the guy(I think he has two triplets that cover his resturants) but rather read it for a refreshing change in philosophy and management, being nice.

Next year, I think I'll take a trip and reserve a table for one at one of his resturants.

A great book to help your business grow. We all to often take things for granted and miss out on some sales due to lack of Hospitality. Going one step further than the next can set you and your business apart.

I believe 4 stars is appropriate.

This book, however, is a must for one who is studying to open a restaurant. There are so many "how-to" books out there that I believe this autobiography will give you fresh air.

A combination between a "how-to" and a biography gives you a real-story novel which is both entertaining and informative. I will learn a lot of people skills and management skills in this book.

What I don't like is that the story to success in this book happens, although not in "one night" like in other empty successful stories, instead in "two night" (which gives you a little more insight about his transformation to success). Still, that "little more" is not much. You will see that the book lacks of what I call "the process to success", which is all the tiny details that lead to a deal, an innovation, a position, etc.

If you are familiar with simple success stories that don't tell you precisely how they, for instance, came up with Windows, or got a big deal done, or had a turning point, you will end up kinda angry because those transitional things between no-name and big-man are the things that you crave in such that genre. I wish Meyer could tell me more, I really admire him anyway.

This book made me want to quit my job and go wait tables for Danny Meyer. He makes it seem like such a calling--a noble endeavor, an important and honorable profession.

This is also the book I quote from the most--I retell his stories to all sorts of people, because I see important lessons in them that apply in so very many places. Parenting, managing staff, publishing, home renovation, whatever.

It was so much fun to read--lively, with a good pace. Captivating, entertaining. Even when he's "pontification" (stating his philosophy), it was charming to read.

A great, great book.

I loved this book. I have read many many business, management, marketing pholosophy books and this one is way up there in terms of the "takeaways" I got from this book. I especially enjoyed the part about how Danny evaluated potential employees,how he defines the manager's main job as helping to make your employees successful in their jobs, and using Constant Gentle Pressure to keep his business "centered". Lots of wisdom in this one and many relevant and fun anecdotes. Alas, I'm embarassed to say I have never eaten in one of Danny's restaurants, but I will make it a priority now. If you like to learn about management, hospitality, & life and have a pleasant reading experience while doing it...then get this book!

Though it is a business book, I enjoyed reading "Setting the Table" by Danny Meyer. The least what we can read from Danny Meyer is that hard work can pay off, and that if you consistently try to do better than the competition, you don't need to fear them. There are dangers too, in Danny Meyers total Customer Relationship concept... Not every restaurant customer likes to be observed and have his every drink, dish, word and guest kept in a data base. All together a book worth reading for whoever is in the hospitality business.

A great book that describes how to create customers for life, with "enlightened hospitality", creating an outstanding customer experience, based on a dialog with the customer. As he puts it "picking up the rocks" (to find the info) and "connecting the dots", a process that could and should be copied for every business.

His passion for food comes across the written page, its contagious.
I'm not a wine drinker but his passion made me want to give it a try.

I never been to one of his restaurants but I now see a trip to New York to visit his restaurants.

Highly recommended not only for restaurateurs, but for every business that has contact with customers.

This book was inspirational in helping to realize how far hospitality can take us, not just in the restaurant industry, but in many other areas of our professional and personal life. Danny Meyer illustrates that hospitality is really about respecting the needs and honoring the wishes of others. As the result of reading "Setting the Table, I find myself reacting differently to people with whom I work in educational administration and I have recommended this book to others in a myriad of different professions.

This is by far the best hospitality book I've ever read. Danny Meyer is so inspiring and insightful, and full of so many innovative ideas and philosophies that will help guide hospitality professionals for years to come. And he's really serious about his enlightened hospitality concept!

I bought the book because Danny is a long-time friend, from the earliest weeks of the Union Square Cafe. I loved the thought of reliving those days; the nervous night before he officially opened Gramercy Tavern; the unbelievable feat of opening two magnificent restaurants at once with Eleven Madison and Tabla, all as his fourth child was being born(I remember Danny saying okay, 4 restaurants, 4 kids, we stop here now -- I guess one out of two ain't bad)(and by the way, we thought two at once was something -- opening 4 at once at the Modern was still years away); the eager anticipation of Blue Smoke, in part a celebration of our native and beloved St. Louis -- and then the Shake Shack, an unabashed poem to the same city . . . and all the other stories and memories and wonderful times and wonderful meals and wonderful experiences. That's what I thought as Danny signed my book(bookS plural -- like potato chips, you can't eat just one) at his first book signing at Barnes & Noble. What I hadn't counted on was casually picking up the book that evening to leaf dutifully through it before going to sleep -- and not being able to put it down until 2:30 in the morning.

This is not just a book about restaurants, or even businesses -- it is a book about life, and the Transforming Power of being -- what, nice? Kind? Considerate? Caring? Yes, yes, yes and yes. But not in the effusive, gushy way so often mistaken for Nice. Danny does not Do Nice. He does not gush. He does not effuse. Instead, he looks directly at you, then right into you, and somehow finds stuff you probably never even knew was there. From there on, it's a simple step to making you feel terrific, and therefore more optimistic (his word, come to think of it), more motivated, more productive, and okay, happier. About yourself, even if you're not a prospective manager, or busboy, but just someone lucky enough to be his friend. And by the way -- if he looks into someone and finds that person's inner schmuck, there won't be much nice-ing at all. And you can bet the inevitable ensuing dismissal will be final -- but damned polite.

The book is a page-turner, I suppose I mentioned that. Whoever heard of a memoir/business how-to that was a page turner? Well, now you have. I have bought this book for my brother, the CEO of a small, young coffee company; the CEO of one of the giant upscale restaurant chains in the country; a former advertising genius who now directs that genius to improving the present and futures of the University of Missouri; the owner of a legendary inn/conference center in upstate New York; the former owners/proprietors of a country hotel in the Scottish Highlands; my wildly creative and talented nephew, a music major sophomore at NYU --and a blind 88-year-old lady in Scottsdale, Arizona, who "read" it on CD to the comforting sound of Danny's own voice, which she knows, because she is my mother. She is the only other person I know as smart as Danny in making people better than they are.

And I'm not done buying yet -- why do you think I'm on the store again today?

Buy this book. Better still, live this book. You'll be better for it, and so will everyone around you.

Thanks, Danny, we needed that.

Susanne Grayson Townsend, New York City, October 25, 2006

I am a small businessman and I have been reading books on business management for 40 years. Meyer's book is one of the best I've read on people management. His advocacy of fastidious staffing practices, intense training of employess at all levels, and "gentle, constant pressure" to guide employees into the desired performance patterns has produced remarkable results in his own restaurants and can be effectively applied to any business. This enlightened presentation is highly readable and entertaining as well as invaluably instructive.

Danny shares profound yet subtle truth about human nature. I took plenty of notes. Had new ideas. Made new connections and now have a seriously long to do list that I am really excited about and can't wait to share it with my team. We run three vegetarian restaurants, are in the process of opening a fourth and I started as a dish washer twenty years ago.

I had to read this book and do a term paper on hospitality. I even called him to try and conduct an interview . (It didn't pan out, but I didn't really need it...this book is jam-packed with information.) It was so good, I am buying my own copy.

The only issue I have is so miniscule... there's a word that is used on
p. 215...it's South African (it's a Bantu word), and means to convey a sense of humanity. The spelling of the word is ubuntu. Editors should've caught that...

I know, I'm weirdly nitpicky...

If you are an entrepreneur, manager, business owner of any kind this is a great book. If you love food, live or travel to New York it's a wonderful insight to New York's restaurant scene. Danny Meyer's business philosophy applies to any business not just the restaurant industry. I'm reading it as research to start my own business and am finding it invaluable. Plus, I can't wait to get back to New York, but can't decide which of his 11 establishments I want to visit first!

I sent this book to my daughter who is a food service manager for several restaurants in a corporate setting in St. Louis, MO. Excerpts from her critique are as follows: "....his method of business is very common sense for the industry and I have taken some of his thoughts and applied them here. ... he does not overthink or over-analyze ... his approaches all make good business sense and are realistic ... his customer service focus is incredible ... if I had my own business, I would operate in similar fashion"

I've never read a better guide to customer service. It creates a clear vision for a philosophy of taking care of the people who matter most - your employees and the customers they serve. I've never worked in food service, but the book has become a staple of our staff training.

One of the best business books I've ever read. Danny really "gets it" as far as treating his employees and customers like family and VERY important people. THIS is why he is so successful with the top restaurants in NYC. A MUST read for anyone in sales or who deals with customers and employees on a daily basis

Book conditions just as described, fast shipping, great seller.

The book itself is alright, I dont particularly care about all his stories, but it is easy to read, and there are a few good opinions about managing people that were interesting. I would give it a try

I had the great pleasure of working for Danny Meyer briefly in 2002 as a hostess at the acclaimed Tabla, and he is just an exceptional individual. You can tell that first and foremost he cares about his customers and the well-being of his staff. I feel completely honored and blessed to have worked for such a visionary and I am glad to see that he has written a book to let us all in on his great secret of success.

This is one of the best books I have ever read on the hospitality business. Given that it is the industry that I am in, I probably found it more entertaining and insightful than many may who are NOT in the industry. Either way, a great read.

As a young restaurant manager I found this book to be of monumental help. Solutions to comon issues are offered as well as paradigms to share with your staff on the difference between good service and good hospitality.

I was at Page 138 reading with interest when I found that Shake Shack does not offer a gluten free hamburger bun. Here is what they have to say: "Our buns are not gluten-free. However, any burger or flat-top dog can be ordered without a bun." Just curious why many others can figure this out, but you seem to be above it all in this area. Loved the book until this point and then threw it away. Did not even donate the book.

in this book, there was too much name dropping. i found it kinda hard

to stay interested because of that. most readers don't know these people

so i'm not sure why the writer found it important to do this. there

were some great messages in there about service and hospitality. i didn't

even feel like passing this book on to other freinds in the business.

I was at Page 138 reading with interest when I found that Shake Shack does not offer a gluten free hamburger bun. Here is what they have to say: "Our buns are not gluten-free. However, any burger or flat-top dog can be ordered without a bun." Just curious why many others can figure this out, but you seem to be above it all in this area. Loved the book until this point and then threw it away. Did not even donate the book.

in this book, there was too much name dropping. i found it kinda hard

to stay interested because of that. most readers don't know these people

so i'm not sure why the writer found it important to do this. there

were some great messages in there about service and hospitality. i didn't

even feel like passing this book on to other freinds in the business.