We all love a taste of good life. This taste of good life sometimes includes us visiting some restaurants and hotels to have a taste of “first-class food.” But sometimes it also lands us in trouble when we land in a hotel or restaurant that we cannot afford.
There are several “red flags” that many people often overlook while entering a restaurant only to regret later. Given that nobody forces one to enter a particular restaurant, it is important to be patient and sample through to save yourself the trouble and pain.
How do you know that you have entered an expensive restaurant?
1. Look at the parking lot
Before entering a restaurant, during lunchtime or over the weekend, look at their parking. Does the restaurant have a large reserved parking space? What kind of cars are parked there? My friend, if you see Mercedes Benz, Prando, and those heavy German machines, check your wallet and if you do not fit in the league, look for another restaurant.
2. The waiters
How are the waiters and waitresses dressed? How do they approach you to show you your table or after you sit? Are they speaking English while addressing you? Are they smartly dressed more than you? If so, unless you are rich and “living a simple life”, ask for tap water and leave.
3. The Menu
If you enter into a restaurant and you see their “menu” is written on the wall, near the kitchen window, that is a cheap restaurant. If you are comfortable, you can sit and order anything, eat and even buy for some friends.
But if you enter a restaurant, and you see their menu is in form of a booklet, and it is brought to you in a book cover that is black in color with the name of the restaurant written on it, check your balance before even opening the menu.
4. Music
Sometimes you know the type of restaurant you have entered by the type of music they are playing. Most high-end restaurants play soul music, instruments, or some soothing country music. The music is soft and in the background.
But if you enter a restaurant that is playing music as if their main aim is to burst your eardrums, and to talk to the waiters you have to shout like someone at a local market, you are where everyone else can fit.
5. Availability of food
If you give your order, and it takes 30 minutes to an hour to be prepared, you are in a high-end restaurant. But if you order and food arrives within 30 seconds, you are where everyone else can be. Also, look at what you are offered as you wait for your food; things such as soup are “financial red flags.”
6. People occupying the tables
The moment you enter a restaurant, look at the people already seated and having their orders. How are they dressed? What kind of food are they eating? In what manner is the food being delivered? Do they look surprised when they see you? Do the math.
7. The washrooms
How smart are the washrooms? Do they have the necessary requirements like soap, automatic taps, hot water, a towel, tissue paper, etc? My friend, the moment you open the tap and find out that the water is hot, you are rich and in a rich restaurant.
8. The Kitchen and Chefs
While sitting and waiting for your order, can you see the kitchen and everything that is going on? That is a kibanda and you can sit and order anything. Does the restaurant have a chef or a cook? If you see a restaurant that has a professional chef, nicely dressed and rarely seen in the main setting, you where your money speak. Not you.
9. Location
If the restaurant you are visiting is located in a place where only people with cars are allowed in; no motorbikes, no PSVs, that is an expensive one. If it is located where everyone can see the smoke, or where a Google Map gets confused about the exact location, that is a cheap one.
10. Types of food
A high-end restaurant does not have everything. It has food that is only deemed “respectable” and meant for people who have “money.” You cannot go there and order anything. You have to order what is specified on the menu.
How can you find a better restaurant online?
With the internet, virtually everything is found across the web. If you are looking for a restaurant to visit, all you need is a mobile phone with access to the internet. You can even google something like “restaurants near me,” and Google will give you all the suggestions that you need for you to choose.
The first thing you should look for when selecting a restaurant online is the reviews. Look at what other people are saying about the restaurant. Is it expensive? Do they have better services? Has anyone complained about the food that they offer?
You can also find out whether they have their menu online so that you pre-order and get there when the food is ready. Accessing the menu online also gives you an opportunity to plan yourself financially and know whether it is a restaurant that fits your needs.
Read Also
