Go with your gut: chef McConnell

“I think the only thing we've really got is our gut instincts.” - McConnell

“When it comes to opening a restaurant there isn't a guidebook,” he says. “I think the only thing we've really got is our gut instincts.”

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McConnell said it’s important in the restaurant business to remember the people you are cooking for – that is to say, people.

“Family, friends and peers – as well as press - are really important,” he says. “But the most-important person is the customer.”

“Often I find a lot of chefs... forget they are actually cooking for people outside the door. It's important to watch and listen - even though it hurts sometimes - and take it on board.”

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McConnell said a key medium for this listening was social media – a platform unique among business for the way customers treat the sector.

“Everyone loves to take a photo of their dinner,” he said. “We have to acknowledge social media whether we like it or not.

“It's really a really important tool that has really changed the way restaurants market their brand.”

He also touched on the importance of understanding the culture of the region a business operates in. Watch the video or listen to the podcast above to find out more.

Andrew Cornell is managing editor at bluenotes