Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Death to Stir Sticks*

The global Plastics crisis is just being recognized by the citizens inhabiting this planet. But, while 80% of Hilton's guests claim to care about that brand's environmental footprint, a Skift study found that only 53% would be willing to pay extra to ensure sustainable hotel practices. And, that's a challenge, as plastics make housekeeping faster and easier. There is no simple answer, as simple as the problem at hand may be.

But plastic straws? Please. Especially for those of us that consume our drinks straight. I totally get a straw or swizzle for a mixed drink.* But, bourbon on the rocks? Why wouldn't management encourage servers to consider whether a drink needs to be served with a stick? It would save them money plus suggest a modicum of environmental concern.

I gotta give serious props to Delta for eliminating straws in favor of bio-degradable bamboo stir sticks on their flights. For all the travel companies that say they plan to address plastics in 2021 or 2023, Delta has proven that a world travel brand can do it much faster...if they take the issue seriously.

Sadly though, I now get a bamboo stick in most of my Woodfords. So, there's still work to do.

Skift has made the Plastics crisis a focus of its reporting and analysis. It's a long read...but worth your time and consideration.

 

Room Service

You'd think that with the advent of fairly ubiquitous food delivery services (at least in tier one and two cities) that hotels would respond by reducing their pricing and fees to stay competitive. Apparently, one hotel in Chicago doesn't think so.

Giving some air to a recent Facebook rant from our friend Peter Greenberg:

 I was at the W in Chicago and ordered a small 10-inch pizza from room service. That’s it. Nothing more. Nothing less. I expected to pay more for room service. That’s not surprising. I know what a pizza on the street costs. And a pizza delivered to my room should cost more. I get it.

Now let’s look at the bill that arrived with the pizza 38 minutes after the order was placed.

The 10-inch pizza was already a whopping $27. But we’re just getting started.

The hotel then charges me a $7 delivery charge, and then… a nearly 22% “in room delivery,” $6 charge.

This is followed by… sales tax, not just on the overpriced pizza itself, but on the service charges, and that came to $4.59.

And now…not the total, but the SUBTOTAL! It’s $44.53 for a small 10-inch pizza!

But we’re still not done…there was a space left (in case we were totally delusional and wanted to add more to our bill) for GRATUITY.

A GRATUITY? They wanted a tip? Ok…here’s MY tip — not for them, but for YOU.

First, insist on full disclosure from any hotel for ALL the charges it will attempt to hit you with before you order room service.

And second, my advice for hotels: it’s bad enough that this receipt represents a total gouge on guests, but if you still want to blatantly overcharge guests for room service, then at the very least don’t add to the insult by leaving an open space for “gratuity.”

By comparison, a phone order to Dominos for a larger 14-inch, SIX cheese pizza, WITH delivery, costs less than $20. And it got here two minutes faster!

 

Three Pounds?

British research suggests that every airline passenger leaves behind three pounds of waste on each flight they take. Multiply that by 4 billion global passengers each year...and that is a lot of landfill fodder.

Of course, part of that is the fault of the airlines. Unnecessary napkins, straws, swizzles and disposable earbuds are part of the problem. Part of it is the reading material passengers bring on board and leave behind (newspapers and magazines). And, to be sure, the American waste total is likely less because airlines no longer provide meals to those in steerage.

But, still...we need to do better.

Refusing to Back Down

The restaurant at the Flagler Executive Airport is called "Highjackers." Which, of course, causes most to do a double-take in this politically correct world.

But, the story gets better. The restaurant opened less than a month before 9/11. And, in the weeks after the attack on America, the owners anguished over whether the name of the restaurant should be changed. Finally, drawing on the advice of President Bush to a nation in mourning, urging us all to continue our daily lives and enjoy our freedoms as Americans lest these terrorists win, the staff and owners ultimately chose to let the name remain the same. Political correctness be damned.

And, oh yeah, the Bleu Cheese Bacon Burger rocks.

 

What Have We Wrought?

Amtrak has announced that its classic dining car will soon be phased out, another vestige lost from a more refined era of transportation. Interestingly, according to Eater, they are publicly blaming Millennials.

Peter Wilander, Amtrak’s VP of product development and customer experience, told the Post, “Some people, especially our new millennial customers, don’t like (dining cars) so much. They want more privacy, they don’t want to feel uncomfortable sitting next to people.” They are the new generation of riders who just want to look at their phones in private all day.

What in the world have we done?

When it's Not About the Next Election

I love Chicago. Maybe it's because I grew up in its shadow and I feel "at home" there...but, it's just such a perfect destination for the arts, culture, entertainment, sports and culinary. 

Except when you live in pockets of the city that have been ignored for decades; where crime and decay rule. That's the part of any city that breaks our heart.

Chicago has a new Mayor. And, she has a mountain to climb to fix what's wrong with her city while supporting all that is right.

A recent critique in Patch laid bare the challenges ahead. But, it also included a quote from Mayor Lori Lightfoot regarding the path forward that was as refreshing as an autumn morning: 

"And if it means that I sacrifice myself politically, so be it in pursuit of the right thing."

I so want to believe.

Where We Spend

According to new data from Skift, we eat when we travel.

That is, of course, not a surprise...but just how much we spend on culinary experiences may be.

If one takes transportation to and from a destination out of the equation (43% of total consumer travel spend and, at least in my mind, an unavoidably sunk cost), we spend just under 40% of our remaining travel budget on food.

Isn't it time we begin to have a serious conversation about the restaurant industry stepping up to have a more meaningful role in the marketing of our communities? Hotels have borne the burden alone far too long.

Just sayin...

Nothing Better to Do?

When a State Legislature passes a law that forbids plant-based meat providers from using the word "burger," I guess that should signal to us that they've already tackled all the really pressing issues of the day.

Except Mississippi was recently ranked the third worst State in the nation on issues including healthcare, education, the economy, infrastructure, opportunity for residents, fiscal stability of state government, public safety and the natural environment. So...I'd venture that there's still some work to do there.

The bill was promoted as being necessary so that Mississippi residents wouldn't be confused when they went to the grocery store or out to eat. If the Legislature really thinks that those they represent don't understand that a "veggie-burger" is made of vegetables, maybe it should tackle the education system first.

Just a thought...

Just a Little Off Brand

Rolling through the Richmond VA Airport, I stumbled upon a Cheeburger Cheeburger restaurant. SNL fans that know some of the earliest sketches from the '70s will recognize instantly the inspiration for the chain's name.

It was a skit featuring virtually all of the original cast (Belushi, Aykroyd, Murray, Newman, Radner, Morris, Curtin), loosely based on Chicago's iconic Billy Goat Saloon. The bit was that, regardless of what one ordered, the only thing you could get was a cheeseburger ("cheeburger," in Belushi's Greek accent). And, you couldn't get Coke...just Pepsi. And, famously, "no fries...cheeps."

Which is why I had to do a double take when I saw fries featured on the menu board (far right in the image). 

I know I'm being too literal and most people prefer fries to chips. But, if you're going to name a restaurant after an SNL sketch, wouldn't you play along with the bit?

Just a thought...

Shop Drunk Much?

Over 2000 alcohol-consuming American adults polled suggest a $45 Billion industry in drunk shopping. That's billion, with a drunk-ass B.

At least that's the primary data points of a study performed by The Hustle. Among the key findings, 4 in 5 of those who consume alcohol have bought something when they were drunk. It's primarily clothes and shoes (not another drink) and Amazon is the platform of choice.

Millennials buy more while drunk than Boomers. The wealthier one is, the more they buy drunk. Beer makes you buy drunk more than wine...but hard alcohol trumps beer. The biggest drunk shopping States are Kentucky and Connecticut; Montana the least.

I have no idea why this intrigues me or what it means for Destination Marketers. But, I'm quite sure one of you will figure it out.

Let me know when you do.