One of the country’s top restaurateurs on the difference between service and hospitality.

Q: I’d like my restaurant to provide great customer service, but staffers don’t seem to grasp the concept. Can it be taught?

The most important thing you can do is make the distinction between customer service and guest hospitality. You need both things to thrive, but they are completely different. Customer service entails getting the right food to the right person at the right time. Hospitality is the degree to which your customers feel that your staff is on their side…”

source: “Ask Danny Meyer” by Danny Meyer (Inc. Magazine, Jul.2006)