Lou Lou's Episode 3 – Lou Lou (Eastern Beach, Auckland)
Perfectly nestled at Eastern Beach overlooking the stunning Tamaki Straight, and with a sensational view of Waiheke Island, Lou Lou is a restaurant on the brink of closure.
Business partners Deane and Lou Lou take hospitality to a whole level with their larger than life personalities, yet despite all attempts to provide the perfect dining experience, they are struggling to keep the doors open. This bright, eclectic, and somewhat overwhelming venue is truly one-of-a-kind, and clearly too quirky to corner the local market. The restaurant has never turned a profit and for most of the week, is completely dead!
It’s obvious everything in this place revolves around one person; the name, the colours, the paintings, the plates, they all scream Lou Lou.
And despite all attempts to provide the perfect dining experience, these guys are losing $16,000 every month…not to mention the mounting bills!
It’s clear they desperately need John’s help, but first he takes 5 minutes alone to case the joint, and what he finds is worse than expected!
There are just two other full time staff: cooking up a storm in the kitchen is Chef Warren, the latest in a line of many to be put through his paces, and helping her mum out front is waitress Holly…they may look similar, but that’s where the buck stops.
So after getting past four bright tacky menus John samples Warren’s food, and although agrees he can cook, the direction of the menu is wrong for this location.
Next up he reveals to Lou Lou & Dean that he’s found more problems going undercover a week ago, problems that may surprise Lou Lou & Dean.
And it’s clear from all of this that Lou Lou has one rule; it’s her way or the highway. The décor, plates, colours…they’re all hideous, and further more the service is average and her bubbly personality can at times be very inappropriate…it’s all just too much!
So that night, by all accounts the first service was a disaster; the few people that did come hated the decor and probably won’t return, and the little money they spent won’t even pay the bills for the night…so John needs a massive game plan to turn things around fast!
He starts with the all important first impressions...John has to fix the way these guys treat their customers from the moment they walk in...So by putting themselves in their customer’s shoes, it becomes immediately evident to Dean Lou Lou & Holly how inappropriate it is to leave people waiting.
Next is the menu, and with a confusing eclectic direction at best, it seriously needs his help! John starts with the first clue...the restaurant location nestled perfectly beside the sea. So it’s a no-brainer that the eclectic mix of fine dining, cafe, Mexican and Italian should all make way for fresh sumptuous seafood.
And now service…front of house needs a kick up the backside to make people feel welcome…it may only be day 2 but already John’s seeing huge improvements: the service was outstanding tonight, and not only did the customers love the fresh fish, the team are onboard with the idea as well.
But with the re-launch only days away, the garish colours, ugly signage, monotonous layout & complete lack of street appeal, all need fixing before John can pull in the big numbers for opening night. He wants to transform the café restaurant into a boat shed by the sea…and he’s recruited a team of professionals to help him with a complete makeover in record time.
And while renovations continue, Warren spends has a couple of hours with expert Tony Adcock and the Harbourside team who have created a stunning new seafood menu that he must learn...and the big test; to impress bosses Lou Lou & Dean.
Finally after all the hard work, it’s the day of the big re-launch, so this morning, John’s heading out with Dean in search of locals to support tonight’s big event...
Deans marketing has resulted in big numbers piling up outside, as the team hustle to complete the finishing touches.
And with a critic on the loose tonight, it’s crucial they remember everything John’s taught them about service & hospitality to impress these locals...
It’s their big night so Lou Lou couldn’t have picked a worse time clown about, and although most of the customers are unaware at this stage, others are getting treated to hospitality Lou Lou style, which means big delays.
Our critic can’t complain though; he’s last to arrive and in a real slip-up, first to dine, but at the expense of the other customers.
Service slip-ups aside, ‘Lou Lou AT The Beach’ has definitely changed for the better...
John returns to Eastern Beach and is excited to see that ‘Lou Lou At The Beach’ has continued the drive from their massive re-launch 1 month ago. The massive support has continued but there is one hitch...the chef left, and an exhausted looking Lou Lou had to step in to the kitchen while she frantically searches for a replacement.
Finally though, ‘Lou Lou At The Beach’ is changed and on it’s way to becoming a success story; Lou Lou & Dean are drawing a wage for the first time, and if the team continue the momentum they will be debt free in a matter of months.
