Entertainment in your restaurant: eleven ideas and what they really cost

Entertainment in hospitality almost never fails on the idea. It fails on execution: something that takes too much work, takes up too much space, or only works once. Below are eleven forms, with an honest look at what you get out of each one and what it costs you.

Ongoing, every day

1. Games on the table via a QR code

Works every day, takes up no space and no staff. Fills exactly the gap between ordering and the food arriving. Downside: it's not a reason to come specially; it makes a visit better rather than drawing guests in. See the overview.

2. An open kitchen

The strongest form of entertainment there is, and the most expensive. Only relevant if you're doing a renovation.

3. Board games in a cupboard

Appealing and cheap to start with. In practice, pieces go missing and someone has to keep track of it. Works best in cafés where people stay a long time, less so in restaurants where the table needs to turn over.

Weekly or monthly

4. A pub quiz

The best way to fill a quiet weeknight. Takes two to four hours of preparation each time if you write the questions yourself. Covered in detail in the guide.

5. Live music

Draws a crowd and completely changes the atmosphere. Costs money per evening, needs space, and you need to consider noise regulations and neighbours. Only works if it suits your venue: acoustic in a small restaurant, louder in a café.

6. A theme night

A country, a season, a dish. Works well if you repeat it consistently and regulars start to expect it. Doesn't work as a one-off.

7. A tasting or workshop

Wine, beer, coffee, cooking. High spend per guest and a strong reason to come, but it takes a staff member occupied with it the whole evening.

Seasonal

8. An outdoor activity

Petanque, a dartboard, a table tennis table. Works brilliantly from April to September and gets in the way the rest of the year.

9. A match on a big screen

Fills the venue at moments you know in advance. Downside: guests who didn't want to watch a match won't come that evening.

For families

10. A play corner

Draws families, takes up square metres you need on busy evenings, and needs to be kept clean. See also what parents really look for.

11. Colouring pages and puzzle books

Cheap and easy to introduce straight away. Keeps a child occupied for five to ten minutes and needs to be kept stocked.

What suits which moment of the week

Entertainment solves two very different problems, and it helps to know which one you have.

Filling a quiet evening

Tuesday and Wednesday, when the venue is half empty. Here you need a reason for people to come, and that's something you announce: a quiz, live music, a theme. Something that's always there won't solve this — no one comes specially for that.

Making a busy evening better

Friday and Saturday, when the venue is packed and the kitchen is falling behind. Here you need the exact opposite: something that's always there, doesn't need your staff's attention, and bridges the waiting time. A quiz night on your busiest evening only makes things harder.

Most venues have both problems, and choose one solution. That's why it so often only half works.

What each form costs, side by side

Money is rarely the deciding factor; time is. This breakdown helps you see what you're really spending:

• One-off money, no ongoing time: a dartboard, a table tennis table, a cupboard of board games. Cheap to maintain, but seasonal or space-hungry.
• Ongoing money, no time: games on the table. A fixed amount per month and nothing else, even on a busy evening.
• Money and time each time: live music, a tasting, a workshop. The strongest crowd-pullers and the most expensive form in both respects.
• No money, lots of time: a self-written pub quiz. Works brilliantly as long as the person who writes it keeps it up, and collapses the moment that person leaves.

That last category is the trap most venues fall into. Something that seems free because it doesn't come with an invoice can be the most expensive option.

The three mistakes made most often

Introducing something on the busiest night

The temptation is to start when it's full, because that's when most people see it. That's exactly when your staff have no time for it, and it goes wrong. Start on a quiet night, where a mistake goes unnoticed.

Stopping too soon

The first time almost never works. A quiz night needs three to four editions before there's a regular group. Anyone who concludes after one go with eight participants that it's not working, stops exactly too early.

Three things at once

Anyone who introduces a quiz, a play corner and live music in the same month won't know afterwards what helped and what got in the way. One thing at a time, with two weeks in between.

How you choose

Go through these three questions before you introduce anything:

1. Does it work every day, or only on the days I organise it?
2. Does it cost my staff time at the moment it's busy?
3. Can I tell within two weeks whether it works?

The formats that score well on all three are the ones that stick around. The rest gets quietly dropped after a month.

The difference between entertainment that stays and entertainment that disappears is almost always how much work it costs on a busy night.