Hit 300 covers on a Friday and didn't lose my mind

Been cooking for about 6 years now. Last Friday we did 300 covers at my spot in Portland. That's the most I've ever run a station through. Thought I'd be drowning but the prep work and a good rhythm saved me. Anyone else hit a personal best that surprised them?

3 comments

3 Comments

amy9751mo ago

Honestly, do you think hitting that number is more about how well you know your own station's flow or how good your expo is at pacing you through the tickets? I've seen dudes crush 300 on a slow night because the expo was sending thems in waves, not dumping 10 tickets at once. The rhythm thing you mentioned is huge too, but if the expo is sloppy, no amount of prep can save you from getting buried. Just a different way to look at it, cause kitchen flow is a two way street.

the_elizabeth1mo ago

Yeah, but have you ever had an expo who just starts singing orders like it's a rap battle?

sarahpatel1mo ago

Prep work is EVERYTHING for those numbers, but amy975 is right about expo being the other half. My last spot had an expo who loved dropping 15 tickets at once right at 7pm and it would bury me no matter how dialed my mis en place was. Best thing I ever did was start calling ahead on my own station, telling expo "hey I've got 6 pans left on this fish special" so they could pace me a little. Keep your cooler organized by protein and you can grab without looking, that saved me big time when my hands were covered in oil.