# Country club life



## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

I am beginning to think that I made a huge mistake entering the country club foodservice. I have never met a more bitter, self-centered group of people in my life. I was brought in to change things up a bit, but I didn't want to move too fast on making menu changes until I got a feel for the members here. So I waited over a month before I made a menu change, everyday having to hear, "Well, how soon are you going to change the menu?!" Now that it is done, all I hear is how horrible all these changes are, and though I changed most of the menu, the food is still very down to earth. I have been told that "I suck", "My food sucks", "There was nothing wrong with the way things were, so why did I change it". My favorite, is that most every member has come to me and told me what I should put on the menu. OK, sure, we can have a 150 item menu. They also demand to have just about everything available to them, so when "Joe Smith" (name changed to protect the guilty) comes in, once a month and wants lobster tail, or so-&-so wants veal liver, or whats-his-name wants Walleye, I am forced to pull it out of the freezer, quick thaw it under hot running water, and blast it in the a 500 degree oven just because they don't want to wait for it. Of course, these people will not call ahead and let me know of their requests, and yet, they are unhappy because the food is dry or tough. Yet, if I gently remind them that all they need to do is call ahead, I am told that they always have these things available. Yet, the last chef was canned because his food was not up to par. I think I am beginning to see a cycle here.


Sorry for the rant. This went on longer than I figured it would. But I feel a little better now.


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## snakelady1 (Mar 7, 2001)

Just say no Pete.....You are going to have to train your customers. Special requests in advance so you don't comprimise your standards....they have been taking advantage of the previous chefs lax authority.


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## greg (Dec 8, 1999)

Sorry, Pete! I feel (and have felt) your pain. Unfortunately, saying no to the customer at a country club is not a thing that occurs very often, and you'd better have good reason if you try. 

One thing that always helped me was remembering the fact that me and my co-workers had more class and manners than these people could ever hope to have; the members certainly can't buy it. Another thing that helps you get what you want is sucking up to them a little. They fall for it most of the time; they're too busy getting their overly large egos stroked that they don't realize you are manipulating them. 

Good luck, and keep those rants a-comin'! (That'll help you, too)


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Pete, don't despair. You can't please every member all at once. Here's how we did it. We solicited volunteers for a food commitee, then picked ONE member as the go-between. You sit down with the commitee ONCE A MONTH with the GM to go over food issues. This way you're not inundated with requests for this or that or outrageous stuff. 

No matter how "classy" the country club, I've always found the following to work: Give the guys lots of meat, and give the ladies lots of salads. Maybe you should get with the country club chefs association in your area too.

Kuan


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Gotta be tough answering to several hundred bosses. Hope the GM is on your side. 
Both you and your wife are working at the CC right? How's it going for her?


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## peachcreek (Sep 21, 2001)

What ever happened with the old lady?


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Yeah, whatever happened to her? It seems as if you need to be a special kind of person to be a country club chef. Most club chefs I know are looking for something or have been there for umpteen years. The perks can be enormous if the members like you, but if they don't, well, we know what happens.

If things are still going OK, you might want to investigate about getting your CCM certification... just in case you want to get out of the BOH and into club management.

Kuan


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## panini (Jul 28, 2001)

CCM country club mentality. It's very hard to deal with when every single member feels that the club has hired you to be their personal chef. Kuan's suggestion for a member food committee as a liaison works.(even taking them out to other clubs) We had this in the clubs when I was there. If all funds are comming in from membership and you're budgeting monthly we used to hold back some monies and have member appreciation dinners and tastings. The tastings(backed by the wine vendors were very popular) We usually managed to add one dish to the menu from the comment cards. Then we always had them for ammunition for the complaints."well a hundred members raved about it two months ago, what happened?!"
gtg you're not experiencing anything different then the norm. Forget management and go directly to members. They are you ticket.
jeff


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Thanks for all the feedback guys. First of all, yes my wife is there with me, as the club house manager (they have done away with a "GM" and now all heads (chef, club house manager, pro, and grounds all answer directly to the Board). She is having lots of issues also. I am sure we will both work things out eventually. I have always prided myself in making sure that I left a place better off than when I arrived.


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## jim berman (Oct 28, 1999)

Pete,
Stick to your guns! You certainly have some challenges ahead of you. "True character is revealed when you come face to face with adversity!"
Keep us posted!


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## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

Dear Pete,

Sometimes wisdom is passed without a word,but only a thought:chef:


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## chefboy2160 (Oct 13, 2001)

Hey , Pete I loved your rant and can realy relate to it . I spent almost 2 years in the position of The Country Club Chef . Man I can remember how some of those members realy grated on my last nerve . Here is one good example , I had this guy who would not accept his plate of food from the kitchen unless the plate was so hot that the waitress had to use an oven mitt to carry it out to him . I used to take his plate from the warmer and put it in the microwave for a couple of minutes and this did the trick untill one morning when he ordered I was defrosting something out in the micro and so I just put his plate on a burner for I think a little to long as when I put his food on the plate man did it sizzle . When the waitress delivered his food he took a drink of water and spilled a couple of drops on his plate and it shattered . He realy didnt want to talk about hot plates to much after that . Oh and by the way this guy was realy not very well liked by the other members so they had a lot of fun at his expense . There are a lot of nose in the air stuck up people who are members of country clubs but there are also some pretty nice folks to . The best thing to have for your position is good food , a quick wit , and a great line of bull $%!+ . Also never let them see you sweat . 
The members are not well conditioned to change so keep this in the back of your head also . Good luck Pete , Your friend in food ,
Doug


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## chiffonade (Nov 29, 2001)

...For this point of view. My husband and I are relocating and *one of the bites he received on his resume was from a country club.* When I read the name of your thread, then read the content, I shouted for him to come look.

One thing you have to realize is (and I hate to be stereotypical) but ====> these people have money and have grown accustomed to it buying them ANYTHING. They feel no need to be courteous or grateful, even for a service that may have been above and beyond.

*Develop a thick skin*. People are very adverse to change. Try going to your favorite restaurant for your favorite dish, only to find out it's not on the menu anymore. Try to ignore the crass comments made by people who are probably old enough to know better. You'd be surprised what some people think is an acceptable comment, but if their kids said it, they'd wash their mouths out with soap.

If someone sends back a steak claiming it's tough, answer "They ordered it well done and my instant read thermometer read well done. If you'd like one prepared medium, I'd be happy to do it for you." I don't believe the chef should take abuse for producing the dish the way the (sometimes) moronic customer ordered it. Apologizing for a band aid in a souffle should be heartfelt, but doing what you're asked doesn't necessitate any apology. Also, management should not hold you to any sort of "decorum" when someone tells you the food sucks or you suck. That member should be banned from the dining room, simply because they are uncivilized.

Is the restaurant management behind you?? A lack of support from them would probably be the linguini that breaks my back. Was there any established time period over which the changes were supposed to take place? Was there any kind of announcement to the clientele that changes were in progress? Advanced warning of such change would have smoothed the way for you by taking away the "surprise" element.

Hang in there, dude...give it some more time. After the clientele has adapted to the new menu, maybe they'll grow some manners.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Here is an update to my life at the Club. In the past few weeks things got really bad. Finally, I had a meeting with the President of the Board. At the meeting he apologized to me for putting me in a very bad position. It seems that he and the other board members were pushing an agenda that really was not reflective of the club as a whole. Though much of the younger members really enjoyed the new menu, the older members got very disgruntled by it. I quickly made another menu change, and replaced some of the old items (though not all of them). This seems to have calmed things down a bit, but there is still lots of tension at the place. It seems the board told the members of only some of the changes taking place, and then went ahead and made many others without consulting them. I am glad that the board has fessed up about this lack of communication, and hopefully we are now headed in the right direction, but there is a long way to go, and Wanda and I continue to take the brunt of the members displeasure. I am trying to keep a positive attitude, and hope that things continue to move in the right direction.


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## chiffonade (Nov 29, 2001)

Now *that* explains a lot! How completely unprofessional to put you in such a position that you wind up wearing a bulls eye on your toque!! This is, in no way, your fault. Hopefully, the new approach will make everyone happy. It still doesn't excuse the utterly uncivilized way you were treated. As far as I'm concerned, they owe you one.

P.S. Great idea about getting a member or two from the clientele in on the board meetings. Let the membership tar and feather one of their own when things don't go their way.


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## isaac (Jun 9, 2001)

crap... i am going to trail at a country club all next week.. ya all have me scared!


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Nah no difference Isaac, just the structure of a country club makes it tough because everyone has some kind of input.

Two years seems par for the course for a country club chef. If the members like you then you're set for life. Many club chefs brag about how many managers they've been through! 

Kuan


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## w.debord (Mar 6, 2001)

Not all clubs members are obnoxious and self-centered (the truely weathier the members the more "normal" and kind they are). What's behind most problems is the politics of the membership. One month isn't enough time to have a clue as to who's who and what's what in a club. 
In every club there's stuggles over "control" and the best clubs have very strong managers who know how to control the membership by dealing with the few that are really in control politicly. And policitcly doesn't mean current "board". 
The board is not always liked or respected by the membership. Look at past board members if you want to find who really has the influence, it's always (from what I've seen) some past president that everyone listens to and who actually still runs things. 

I tried to suggest to you previously to go slow. Rarely are things as they appear to be, life in clubs is political not logical. Chefs that last in clubs move painfully slow....so often it isn't change that these people want. It's quality and service with the same old menus that they really desire. Small changes like adding another oyster ap. that pleases them. They can go to any restaurant for changes, at THEIR club they want the same familar items (they just wish it was cooked a little different one way or another).

To please the ones who cry for change give them buffets dinners and get creative there, not on your printed menus. The young ones who want the change love gourmet bbq's, wine tastings and children involving events. 

You have to break down the membership into groups (old and young, usually) and please these groups in different ways.


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## isaac (Jun 9, 2001)

i just got back from working at the country club... it was awesome.. granting it was only for a week. i loved every minute of it. 

it was a lot of high volume food but you had a lot of room for creativity. all the members were nice and the majority of the empoylees were nice too.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

I am glad to hear that your experience at a Country Club is going much better than mine. Best of luck!


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## cwk (Nov 24, 2000)

jeez Pete 
You sound like my C/C experence.
I quit .
It's not worth the time to argue your point.
bill


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Things have continued to improve around here, but I don't think this is going to be a long term thing, like I was hoping it would be. I just don't have the "servant" mentality. There are just too many people around here that feel that I am nothing but their personal servant, and that just doesn't fly with me. At least the job has gotten tolerable, and I even find myself enjoying it often. So staying on for 1-2 years won't be the torture it has been.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

At least you can look forward to the snow, and shutdown before spring.  Talk about slooooooooooow!

Kuan


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Unfortunately, the club does not shut down for the winter as it is a social club also. They used to close Sunday, Monday & Tuesday January-April, but now the board is reconsidering that also, as a way of generating more revenue. According to some of the staff that was done a few years ago and it was determined that the club would lose more money by opening. But as you know - new board, new outlook, so we just play along. It doesn't matter to me. I get paid either way, but they have to realize that they will need to up my budget by adding those days.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Man, no shutdown? Ah well, it'll be slow anyway  You know what increasing revenue means. It means, on the same amount of labor dollars we should be able to make more money, which means... well, you know, it means you work without hiring more help 

Kuan


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## skitty (Apr 13, 2002)

Good, Luck Pete--I've been through 3 Country Clubs. I hope your Board is really trying to help you out. My experience is that it's usually temporary. The Members will always want special meals and have nothing better to do than to torment the kitchen. Have you tried doing some silly Family Night themed buffets once a week? Low food cost, and it's almost like feeding cattle.......
I really hope it works out--I fianally gave up my country club habit, for good, I hope!


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## w.debord (Mar 6, 2001)

A couple theme ideas, that my current club does.

Every week they have a pasta night $8.95 pp. it's a buffet (cook to order station too) but the dessert gets plated from the kitchen (nothing fancy).

On weekends to help out the kitchen they set up a small buffet in the bar for lunch. Pizzas, chicken wings and such.....it takes the heat off the kitchen that's preping for parties.

Friday night is buffet, (takes the heat off the kitchen again) anything goes, good place to use up left overs from events....

Sat. night CHOP house night. Everyone gets the same starch and veg. they get a choice of meat and a dessert cart is set out in the room for waitstaff serve from it.

All good ideas I think.


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