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Public holidays, including Easter, are a great time to increase your customer numbers. With a four-day weekend for most, there is plenty of opportunities to get some additional passing trade into your café.

It won’t just be your café that’s looking to make the most of the period though so you’ll need to get a little creative.

To help, we’ve put together some Easter themed ideas that are sure to get your café filled up:

Easter specials

The simplest and most common promotion technique in attracting Easter trade is to add some themed items to the menu. For restaurants, this would involve adding seasonal dinner plates but for a café, this could be done by selling fresh homemade hot cross buns, an Easter egg milkshake or some themed brunch options.

Host an egg hunt

If you’ve got some outdoor space, one way of getting good numbers into your café is to host an Easter egg hunt for children. Alternatively, you might prefer a host something less space-sapping, such as an egg-painting workshop. Both are just as likely to be a hit with young families.

Coffee inside an Easter egg?

Okay. This one might be a step too far for some, but it’s certainly going to get people talking about your café. A couple of years ago saw a few cafés in Australia and New Zealand start a craze that involved serving coffee inside Easter eggs.

The craze didn’t quite make its way to the UK but could your café be the one that brings the idea here? It’s certainly an idea that’ll get people talking! You can see what we mean in this video by Karvan Coffee in Perth, one of the cafés to serve the eggspresso.  

Café furniture

If you are looking to give your café a refurbishment to make it stand out from the competition, Trent Furniture has a range of traditional, contemporary and unique chairs, table and stools for cafés. Browse our full café furniture range today to see what’s available. 

If you don’t appeal to young families then your restaurant is missing out on a huge market. Having an atmosphere and facilities that are suitable for children means that you can attract additional custom through school holidays, weekends and evenings.

Some restaurants pass themselves as being child-friendly simply because they give infants a colouring sheet upon entry. But for parents, there are far more considerations that make your restaurant a child-friendly space that they want to take their children to.

For some restaurants, having children running around doesn’t fit with their brand. But if it’s a demographic you’d like to reach, here are some ways of creating a truly child-friendly atmosphere:

Children’s menu

You’ll struggle to find many youngsters that are happy to eat of the standard menu. We all know how fussy children are!

But while children’s menus are usually full of chips, nuggets, fish finger and beans, why don’t you add some healthier options in there, too? This is guaranteed to score a few brownie points with parents.

Furniture

A full-size chair simply isn’t going to cut it if you want to be seen as a child-friendly restaurant. The children’s faces will barely make it above the table, let alone be able to eat from it!

You’ll either have to have some booster seats handy or have a set of high chairs for the youngsters to use. Make sure that you have plenty available, too. The last thing you want to be doing is turning families away because your only two high chairs are currently being used!

Facilities

In terms of facilities, a toilet with a good baby changing space is top of the list for most. Preferably, your restaurant will have a designated baby changing room available complete with all the amenities the parent needs.

At the dinner table, you’ll need to stock up on some child-sized cutlery and some plastic cups. Believe us, giving kids plastic cups will save plenty of glasses being smashed!

Activities

Relying on children using phones and devices is a big mistake. Families eat out to spend time together and socialise; so the last thing parents will want is for their youngsters to have their heads buried in their phones. Instead, have a stash of toys, crayons and activity placemats ready for the children.

Spring is here and the sunshine is coming! Just like your home, there’s no better time to give your restaurant a new fresh lease of life with a clean and clear out than spring.

But where should you start?

Here are some areas you can’t afford to miss when you come to give your restaurant a spring clean:

Exterior improvements

The exterior of your restaurant will need to be brought into the new season. Through autumn and winter, it’s sure to have collected a fair amount of grime and dirt that won’t look great in the sunshine.

Pressure wash your walkways and entrance areas to clear the dirt and add colourful hanging baskets and table plants to your outdoor tables. Ensuring your exterior is up to scratch gives your restaurant the best first impression possible to potential customers.

Deep clean the kitchen

Wipe down sleeves, mop and declutter your walk-in fridges and freezers.
Fully clean your ovens
Clear all the grease that has built up on your hobs and grill areas
Reorganise storage areas
Steam clean cooker hood

Flooring

The wild weather through winter sees customers trudge all sorts of dirt through your restaurants. In time for spring, it’s recommended to give your flooring a deep clean, whether it be carpeting or wood. This gives your restaurant a sparkling clean floor, ready for summer. Trust us, it’s well worth the effort. 

Furniture checks

Every restaurant should regularly inspect their furniture for damage and signs of wear and tear. Doing so will prolong the furniture’s life and mean you don’t have to replace items so often.

Go around your dining area and ensure legs and tops are sturdy, and tighten up any bolts which have become loose or wonky. Check for scratches on metal frames and tears or rips in upholstered seating. Wooden table tops may need to be sanded or polished, too.

Your furniture has to endure a rigorous commercial environment, so it’s important for you to maintain them properly to get the longest lifespan out of them. You can also read our guide to keeping your restaurant furniture in good condition.

Replacing furniture

It might be that your restaurant needs a complete new overhaul of your furniture. Each restaurant will have different needs and requirements depending on the image they’re trying to present and the budget they have. Our furniture experts are able to advise you on possible chair and table combinations for your restaurant.

Whatever interior your restaurant is looking to create, Trent Furniture can help. Call us now on 0116 2864 911.

In response to the demands of the environmentally-conscious consumer, eco-friendly products have altered our attitudes, from how we eat to what we buy, and decorating and furnishing our spaces is no exception.  As the interest in sustainable furniture continues to grow, we’ve put together some expert advice to filling your café, bar or restaurant with environmentally-friendly furniture.

Where do I start?

Founded upon the recycling loop, where furniture can be continually reused, the search for eco-friendly furniture begins with research.  Nowadays, it’s easy to spot sustainable furniture as companies certify the source of their materials. To help you make more informed furniture choices, we recommend reading up on the various certifications and their meanings, as well researching into the background of the store or supplier you are buying from.

Buy local

Eco-friendly doesn’t have to mean brand new, and furnishing your café, restaurant or pub with second-hand furniture decreases the need for new resources. You can still up-cycle your pieces to match the theme of your establishment; there’s nothing a lick of paint or new fabric cover can’t fix.

Look out for recycled materials

The list of recyclable materials is growing! This means more and more furnishing products made from cork, rubber, straw and flax, for example, are appearing in the showrooms of furniture stores. These materials, once they have come to the end of their usable life span, can easily be recycled, therefore helping to avoid the ever-increasing amount of landfill waste.

Fix it!

Often overlooked is the durability of quality-made products. If a piece of furniture, a solid oak table for example, can be easily repaired, it decreases the chances of it ending up in landfill. As well as decreasing your carbon footprint, continuing to repair rather than replace your furniture will also save you some extra cash, too!

What to do when you’ve finished with your furniture

Trends and tastes do change over time and what’ve we come to love can often no longer spark the same sense of joy in us that it once did. It may seem obvious, but continuing to recycle is key to keeping the cycle moving, and more importantly, keeping the environment more sustainable.

At Trent, we recognise the responsibility we have to help safeguard the environment for the future. That’s why all of our wood comes from sustainable and properly-managed sources. To find out more information about our recycling policies or to get in touch with one of our industry experts, contact us via phone or email.

T: 0116 2989 906 or 0116 2983 688
E: sales@pubfurnitureuk.co.uk 

When it comes to furnishing your establishment, choosing the right furniture that defines your space is essential. A stand-out and practical piece common to bars, hotels and pubs, the poseur table is ideal for saving space in often-busy areas. We’ve put together a short guide about the difference a poseur table can make to your establishment. As experts in furniture, we are always looking for ways to inspire you to make the most of the furniture you buy from us.

Typically used to rest your freshly poured drink on, a poseur table can help to create an intimate atmosphere in bustling bars or café areas. When coupled with bar stools, your space is transformed into a comfortable and relaxing area to socialise in, as their brevity makes them less formal in comparison to heavier, more robust furniture.

Regardless of the style of your space, we have the poseur table to match. From luxury wooden tables for rustic and homely pubs, to sleek chrome fittings for more contemporary bars and restaurants, poseur tables don’t only have to have drinks resting on them! For example, due to their height making them perfect for resting a laptop on, our collection of over 20 poseur tables can streamline networking at any event, creating mini social hubs, wherever you are.

Furthermore, for the summer season, an aluminium made, waterproof poseur table is ideal for outdoor use; its sturdy base ensures it survives the not-so-glorious summer weather. The lightweight nature of the table itself ensures it can be easily moved when required, whilst its versatility can help you to create spaces unique to your venue.

Since 1960, we’ve been helping our customers find the right product at the right price. At Trent, we stock and supply a wide range of poseur tables, available in melamine, solid wood and veneer finishes, most of which have a matching dining-height table available to purchase.  

To view our full range of poseur tables, follow the link to our website here. Online or over the phone, our friendly team of experts are on hand to ensure your queries are resolved quickly.