The video discusses a strategy employed by the restaurant 11 Madison Park, aiming to elevate its status from the 50th best restaurant globally to the number one spot. The head chef took his entire team to the current number one restaurant in the world. Instead of focusing on what they already do well, the team was tasked with identifying areas where they were lacking. They pinpointed two specific weaknesses: the coffee was 'nothing special' and the beer was 'disappointing'.

In response to these findings, the chef implemented a novel approach. He designated a team member who was passionate about coffee as the 'coffee smeller,' with the explicit goal of creating the best coffee experience in any US restaurant. This involved not just serving coffee, but engaging customers with questions about roast preferences and elevating the entire coffee ritual. Similarly, another team member was appointed as the 'beer sommelier' (or 'beer smeller'). While beer is not a typical focus in a Michelin three-star establishment, this individual was tasked with going beyond simply offering draft or bottled options. Instead, they were trained to provide expert recommendations, including suggested food pairings, thereby transforming the beer offering into a sophisticated culinary experience. The speaker refers to this strategy as 'reverse benchmarking'.

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11 Madison Park, number 50 restaurant in the world, San Pellegrino Awards, wants to get to number one. He takes his whole team out to the number one restaurant in the world. And everybody starts making lists of what they do really well, so they can go, "Not interested in any of that." Goes, "They're already doing it. So what's the point? What didn't they do well?"

But they come up with two things. Okay, the coffee was nothing special. And so the beer was disappointing. Coffee was disappointing. So he goes back to his own restaurant, says, "Right, you guy who's a coffee nut, you're now the coffee smeller, and your job is to make this the best coffee experience in any restaurant in the US."

Okay. So, you know, you actually go, "You know, I'd like coffee, please. Do you have any roast preference?" You know, etc. And the other guy is the beer smellier. And so, not many people in a Michelin three-star restaurant opt for beer, but they're just expecting nothing. They expect, "Yeah, we got this on draft and we got this in a cap." And instead, they get this guy coming over with suggested food pairings. Now I think that's reverse benchmarking.

The Secret Trick That Took a Restaurant to #1

11 Madison Park, number 50 restaurant in
the world, San Pellegrino Awards, wants
to get to number one. He takes his whole
team out to the number one restaurant in
the world. And everybody starts making
lists of what they do really well so
they can go not interested in any of
that. Goes, they're already doing it. So
what's the point? What didn't they do
well? But they come up with two things.
Okay, the coffee was nothing special.
And so the beer was disappointing.
Coffee was disappointing. So he goes
back to his own restaurant, says,
"Right, you guy who's a coffee nut,
you're now the coffee smeller, and your
job is to make this the best coffee
experience in any restaurant in the US."
Okay. So, you know, you actually go, you
know, I'd like coffee, please. Do you
have any roast preference? You know,
etc. And the other guy is the beer
smellier. And so, not many people in a
Mishan three star restaurant off for
beer, but they're just expecting
nothing. They expect, yeah, we got this
on draft and we got this in a cap. And
instead, they get this guy coming over
with suggested food pairings. Now I
think that's reverse benchmark.

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The Secret Trick That Took a Restaurant to #1

Transcription