PART – 1: Introduction to Food and
Beverage Service
CHAPTER – 1: Food Service Industry
1. Detailed note on the development of the
food service industry in India.
The development of
the food service industry or catering in India is mainly attributed to the
British, who introduced hotels and restaurants similar to the ones in Europe.
They also established resorts in the hill stations. The rapid development of
transportation, especially the railways in the mid-nineteenth century, enabled
people to move in large numbers. This led to the establishment of lodge and
restaurants in and around the railway stations to cater to the need of the
travellers. Refreshment rooms at railway stations and pantry cars in some of
the trains were introduced.
Civil aviation
developed rapidly after the Second World War. The introduction of the
international flight services in the year 1948 and the mid – 1950s encouraged a
lot of foreigners to visit India and also many international hotel chains such
as the Sheraton, Holiday Inn, Intercontinental hotels, etc started operations
in India.
Reputed hotels
such as The Taj, The Oberoi, The Ambassador were well established when India
became independent. After independence, the hospitality industry grew at a
faster rate. As economic activities augmented, numerous eateries and hotels of
different styles and sizes were established, which catered to the food and
beverages services to the travelers and the general public.
2. Explain
the contribution of the ITDC towards the growth of the hospitality industry.
The Indian Tourism
Development Corporation (ITDC) was set up in October 1966 with the objective of
developing and expanding tourism infrastructure in the country and thereby
promoting India as a tourist destination. ITDC succeeded in achieving its
objectives by promoting the largest hotel chain in India and providing all
tourist services such as accommodation, catering, transport, in – house travel
agency, duty free – shopping, entertainment, publicity,, consultancy, etc under
a single window.
It also offered
consultancy services from concept to commissioning in the tourism field for
private organizations.
3 Classification of catering sectors according to the priority given to the
catering operations, profit motive, and the market they are catering to.
i.
Classification of Food and Beverage sector
broadly into two groups according to the priority given to the provision of
food and beverages:
Primary Catering
Services: Catering establishments which are primarily concerned only with the
provision of food and beverages to the customers. Eg; Food service outlets,
accommodation sectors, various types of restaurants and takeaways.
Secondary Catering
sectors: Catering establishments in which the provision of food and beverages
is not the main activity but a secondary or support activity. Eg; Institutional
catering,transport cateringIndutrial catering, catering services in theatres,
amusement parks, departmental stores, etc. the primary activity of these units
is not the provision of food and beverages to the clients but for the activity
for which it is set up.
ii.
Classification of food service industry according to the profit
motive:
Ø
Commercial
Ø
Welfare
Commercial
Sectors: These operate mainly to earn profit and earn adequate return on
investment through the provision of food and beverage services, eg; F&B
outlets within hotels/resorts/motels/clubs, stand-alone restaurants, popular
restaurants,pubs, bars, coffee shops, fat food outlets etc.
Welfare Sectors:
These operate mainly to provide services at no profit and loss basis. Mostly
run by private bodies or government and operates within their outlined budget
for the provision of F&B services, eg; school catering, university
catering, hospital catering, military catering, prison catering, etc.
iii.
Classification of food service industry according to
Market/type of customer: Food and beverage sectors provide various markets.
Some of these services to the general public while others only to restricted
groups.
Non-captive markets: The customers have a
choice where to eat. The type of restaurant chosen maybe a fine dining
restaurant of a deluxe hotel, stand-alone restaurant, coffee shops, fast food
outlet, specialty restaurant.
Captive market:
The customers do not have a choice where to eat and have to avail services
provided by a particular catering outlet, eg; college students staying in
hostels, hospital patients, old age homes, prisoners and industrial workers.
Semi-captive
market: The customers have a limited
choice of where to eat. In such a market the customers have a choice
before selecting the food and beverges. Once these choices are made, the
customers have no choice but to content with what is offered. Eg; Passengers
travelling by trains and airlines may take food and beverages
epared in the
pantry or wait till the destination arrives, Highway travellersalso have a
limited choice of taking food and beverages from any outlets located on the highways.
4. Classification of the customers in the food service industry
Classification of
the food service industry according to Market/type of customer: Food and
beverage sectors provide various markets. Some of these services to the general
public while others only to restricted groups.
Non-captive markets: The customers have a
choice where to eat. The type of restaurant chosen maybe a fine dining
restaurant of a deluxe hotel, stand-alone restaurant, coffee shops, fast food
outlet, specialty restaurant.
Captive market:
The customers do not have a choice where to eat and have to avail services
provided by a particular catering outlet, eg; college students staying in
hostels, hospital patients, old age homes, prisoners and industrial workers.
Semi-captive
market: The customers have a limited choice of where to eat. In such a market
the customers have a choice before selecting the food and beverages. Once these
choices are made, the customers have no choice but to content with what is
offered. Eg; Passengers travelling by trains and airlines may take food and
beverages prepared in the pantry or wait till the destination arrives, Highway
travelers also have a limited choice of taking food and beverages from any
outlets located on the highways.
5. Difference between a coffee shop from a specialty restaurant
Specialty
Restaurant: Such kind of restaurants serves specialty dishes and operates
mostly during the luncheon and dinner hours (3pm – 7pm – 11pm). The ambience
and décor of such restaurants reflects the theme of the specialty restaurant
and may specialize either in a particular type of food such as fish and chips,
pastas, steaks or a particular type of cuisine for example, Indian, Chinese,
Mediterranean, Italian, etc.
Coffee Shop: The
concept of coffee shops has come from the USA. It is a restaurant that mainly
serves snacks and beverages 24 hrs a day; however it may also serve all the
three meals. Most coffee shops cater to the need of the customers at any time
of the day. The service and ambience of the coffee shops are informal. The
furnitures and the service equipments are not very expensive. The staffs work
in three shifts and the main thrust is on 24 hrs operations, quick service and
high seat turnover.
6. Features of a popular restaurant.
Popular Restaurant:
These type of restaurants are informal, yet hygienically kept and are located
in a busy area such as bus stands, railway stations, shopping area, etc.
Popular restaurants cater to the needs of the middle class and the customers
are in a hurry. These restaurants may have chaat counters, fruit juice counters
and takeaway counters separately either inside the restaurant, within the
vicinity of the guests or outside the restaurant. During luncheons hours, these
restaurants serve business lunch, mini lunch and thali meals in separate areas
to speed up the services. The area of the popular restaurants are quite large
with more number of covers. It serves the dishes that are popular and highly in
demand in the locale with quick services and are moderately priced. It operates
from 7 am to 11pm. The cutlery used are very minimal, made of stainless steel and
restricted to spoon and fork. Example; Annapurna and Saravana Bhavan
restaurants in Tamil Nadu are some examples of popular restaurants.
7. Dhaba
Dhaba: Dhabas are
roadside food stalls found on national and state highways, mainly catering to
the requirements of heavy vehicle crew. It specializes in Punjabi cuisine and
tandoor cooking, serving very limited dishes, which are freshly prepared. The
dishes are kept on tables with service spoons for customers to help themselves.
Coir cots are used for the customers to sit on and narrow table is used for
placing the dishes and eat. The dishes served here are inexpensive and taste
like home – made food. It is also frequented by the youth and families at
times. It offers both vegetarian and non – vegetarian dishes.
8. Difference between a night club and a discotheque.
Discotheque:
Operates during night hours and provides a dance floor for the guests to dance
on. Special sound and lighting effect is created for an appropriate ambience.
Drinks, specially beer and snacks are made available during the operations. The
service is very informal. It is patronized mostly by the youth and couples. The
dress code is not insisted upon. It is generally located in secluded places in
hotels, so as to avoid disturbances to the other guests. The entry is limited
to a certain number of guests according to the floor/room capacity and an entry
fee is levied.
Night Club: It
operates during the night and offers dinner, dance and live entertainment.
Cabarets or floor shows are the main attractions of the night club. Couples can
dance on the floor to the music performed by live bands or recorded music. The
guests here are required to wear a formal wear. Dinner and wine are served at
the table and guests can have their meal while enjoying the show/performances.
Night clubs levy an entry fee.
9. Features of a cafeteria.
The traditional cafeteria
system consists of a straight line of counters containing a variety of hot and
cold dishes. The customers start at the end of a line, pick up a tray, and move
along the length of the counter as they select the dishes they want to have.
This form of service is widely followed in institutional and industrial
catering establishments.
In modern free
flow cafeteria system, the counters are segregated according to the type of
dishes offered – hot or cold, appetizers, soups, breads, sandwiches, etc.
In most cafeteria
style operations in India, guests make payment at the cash counter beforehand
for the items they want to eat and collect them against the bill at the
appropriate counter(s). Cafeterias are situated in railway stations, cinema
halls, shopping complexes, college premises, office premises, etc where the
guests expect quick services. The tables in a cafeteria provide the basic
accessories such as cruets, straw holder, napkin dispenser and water glasses.
The water services and the table clearance will be done by waiters.
1 Influencing factors in the selection of a restaurant?
The influencing
factors in the selection of a restaurant are largely governed by the external
and internal factors.
External Factors:
Are the factors
originating outside the organization on which the management has no control,
thus determining the F&B operations.
Following are some
of the major external influences:
·
Political
Ø
Government policies and regulations on food
packaging, processing, food safety, disposable system, pollution control,
labour laws, etc.
Ø
Tax laws – VAT, service tax, luxury tax, etc.
·
Economic
Ø
Increasing cost of the raw materials, labour,
water and energy.
Ø
Changes in the disposable income of the society
Ø
Credit policies of the suppliers
Ø
Loan policies for starting the venture
Ø
Rate of interest
·
Social
Ø
Changes in the eating habit of the people
Ø
Growth of ethnic minorities that demand
particular r cuisine or preparations
Ø
Changes in the population distribution
Ø
Changes in the socio – economic grouping of the
area
·
Technical
Ø
Advancement in the food processing technology
Ø
High tech food production and service equipment
Ø
Information technology
Internal Factors:
Are the factors
originating within the organization on which the management has its own
control. Some of the major internal influences that govern the operation are as
follows:
·
Food and Beverage
Ø
Highly perishable nature of food commodities
Ø
Wastage, pilferage and poor portion control of
food and beverages
·
Staff
Ø
High level of staff turnover
Ø
Absenteeism
Ø
Poor supervision
Ø
Shortage of staff
Ø
Unskilled staff
·
Control
Ø
Store control procedures
Ø
Purchase procedures
Ø
Proper cash and control to avoid theft
Ø
Correct pricing of dishes
Ø
Issue procedures