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The ingredients of the Saturday Night Miracle
By Stefano Giovanazzi
There is a current of opinion among some of our staff that we should re-name our restaurant The Swan – on the grounds that while we’re perfectly calm on the surface, we’re paddling furiously underneath.
Like any successful restaurant, Paperino’s West End prides itself not only on creating a great night out for our growing portfolio of customers, but also making it seem absolutely effortless.
There is, after all, no reason why our diners should know, or concern themselves about, the complexity of the operation which puts a delicious meal in front of them at their command – but the fact is that it is something of an organisational miracle.
We have 185 covers at Paperino’s West End, our newest venture in the buzzing heart of Glasgow’s cosmopolitan student quarter. On a typical Saturday night, each table will have three sittings between the start of the evening, around 6pm, and last orders at 10.45pm.
That’s more than 500 customers and, if each diner has a couple of courses, that’s more than 1000 plated meals coming out of our kitchens – not to mention the constant flow of drinks from the bar. Add to this that, at Paperino’s, we have made a very public pledge that all our food will be cooked freshly, from first principles. All our pizzas are started from scratch, all our meat is cooked from raw and, apart from a base tomato sauce, no sauces are prepared in advance. As they say, don’t try this at home.
So how is the Saturday Night Miracle achieved? Well, a great part of the burden falls on the shoulders of the restaurant managers, who orchestrate the chaos and turn it into a mellifluous symphony. They must be simultaneously aware of, and be ready to deal, with a vast number of details, from the cleanliness of the cutlery to the market price of fish.
In the short space of time between the daytime menu finishing at 5pm and the evening menu starting an hour later, they must organize and motivate the staff, make sure the necessary prep work has been done and be ready to make sure that everyone is satisfied and smiling.
They also have to be diplomats, like Angelo Maresca, maitre’d of the Savoy Grill, who - faced with two customers he knew were arch enemies wanting the same table – placed a bucket on it, told them there was a leak and ushered them to other tables.
Since we opened in May we have built a considerable repeat business, with regular customers requesting particular tables, and these requests have to be factored in to party bookings or sudden rushes of business caused by seasonal factors.
In the kitchen, our 11 chefs are marshaled like a well-drilled military unit under head chef who decides each day what tasks are to be undertaken and delegates these to the chefs de partie, sous chefs, kitchen assistants and kitchen porters.
He is responsible for making sure that food is of the right quality and price – and is produced at the right time – planning menus, ordering food and budget control. He also has to keep records, know the law and how to apply it to food hygiene and employment.
Much of the prep work will have been done as the day business tails off around 4pm to 5pm, but as the Saturday night customers start to flood in the pace quickens dramatically.
One thing the kitchen has learned is that there is no room for Gordon Ramsay-style prima donnas or tears and tantrums. Instead, teamwork is of the essence and everybody does their job with skill, speed and efficiency – all underpinned by a comprehensive and continuing training regime and support not only from their bosses but from their colleagues.
Because this is what makes the Saturday Night Miracle work: the satisfaction that the team gets from looking out over the noise, colour and bubbling laughter of 185 diners engaged in convivial conversations over a meal that they’re really enjoying; the relief and exhaustion when the last tables are cleared; and a comradely drink before setting off for a bit of partying of their own.
And what makes it really special for them is the knowledge that they can do it all again next weekend, and the weekend after that. That’s what makes them professionals.
Stefano Giovanazzi is a director at Paperino’s West End
