Restaurants are losing out on income and customers by a combination of poor service and not cleaning and polishing their glasses, cutlery and crockery properly, a new study has found**. Over half of the 2,000 consumers surveyed by Miele Professional (52%) stated that dirty glassware was their ‘top restaurant turn off’, and a further third (32%) said that if they were to experience dirty utensils, they would be unlikely to ever return.
Pubs are the worst washing up offenders, with two out of five (43%) British consumers claiming to have experienced dirty glassware or crockery whilst having a drink or a meal in a pub last year. More than one in six (16%) have experienced the same in popular high-street eateries. High-end restaurants have come out as the ‘cleanest’, with just three per cent of those surveyed saying that they have experienced dirty glasses or crockery at these establishments.
The UK’s ‘top restaurant turn offs’
1. Bad/unfriendly service (79%)
2. Unclean bathrooms (66%)
3. Dirty cutlery or crockery (65%)
4. Stains on the table cloth or table (55%)
5. Dirty glass ware (52%)
Clean glassware and tableware very important
Nearly nine in ten respondents have said that clean glassware, crockery and cutlery is very important to them – this was highest for the over 55s, where more than four in five (92%) stated that it’s very important to them. It’s clear that grubby glassware affects women more than men too; less than half (45%) men voted dirty glasses as a ‘top restaurant turn off’ compared to nearly two-thirds of women (57%). Three per cent of respondents even confessed that they would leave a restaurant mid-meal if they were given a dirty glass or plate.
Highest standards of cleanliness necessary
Miele Professional has launched a new commercial dishwasher with a freshwater system that is designed specifically for sparkling clean glassware and cutlery. The BRILLIANT dishwasher guarantees spotless glassware and cutlery and eradicates the need for manual polishing in hotels, pubs, bars and restaurants.
Les Marshall, Sales & Marketing Director at Miele Professional commented: “Nobody wants to feel that they’re eating or drinking in a restaurant, bar or bistro that doesn’t have the highest standards of cleanliness and the results of our recent survey prove that. Fortunately, there is a solution to the problem, one that will also free up hours of expensive man-power. The new Miele Professional BRILLIANT machine ensures a sparkling clean finish for these items, and a pleasant dining experience for all.”
About the survey
The survey found that 94% of the UK population visit restaurants, and that 52% of these view dirty of glassware as a ‘top restaurant turn off’. According to the Office for National Statistics, the UK population is currently 63.7 million. 94% of 63.7 million = 59.9 million. 52% of 59.9 million = 31.1 million.
**Survey carried out by Censuswide. 2,000 UK consumers were surveyed online between 14 – 17 February 2014.
*** When used with a reverse osmosis water system.
About Miele Professional
Miele Professional is the global leader of commercial laundry equipment, dishwashers, washer disinfectors and sterilisation equipment designed for use in a wide range of industries including the cleaning, care home, hospitality, health, leisure, veterinary, laboratory and hospital sectors.
For more information visit www.miele-professional.co.uk