Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect

In late 2006, Guidara and Daniel had dinner at Per Se, one of New York’s top restaurants. Their meal was spectacular. But, at the very end, as Guidara sipped a cup of filtered coffee, he was struck by how uninspiring his drink was in comparison to the rest of the meal. Against the backdrop of the amazing meal and the overall magic of the experience, the coffee stood out as just okay.

Later that night, Guidara had an idea. He thought about the fact that, even at the top restaurants in the world, not much care was given to the ancillary cocktail, tea, and coffee programs. He decided to focus on making these programs excellent at EMP, as high quality as the food and wine that the restaurant served. To do so, he identified employees from within the organization who showed passionate interest in each of these areas and put them in charge. The quality of the cocktails, tea, and coffee at EMP flourished as a result.

This endeavor was so successful that the team began to create even more ownership programs, pinpointing different aspects of the restaurant that could benefit from this kind of care and attention, such as linens, side work, education, and silverware.