I’ve just finished Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara, and it’s one of the most enjoyable business books I’ve read in a while. It’s part memoir, part strategy guide as Guidara tells the story of how Eleven Madison Park became the world’s best restaurant in 2017.
What struck me most was how deliberately he built a culture that combined two layers:
- First principles done really well — the operational excellence that any hospitality business needs.
- On top of that, an exceptional approach to people management — not just managing staff, but empowering them to delight customers in creative ways.
He talks about giving team members the resources and flexibility to go “above and beyond”, and then celebrating those moments when they did. That mindset of “How can I make this an amazing experience for this customer?” is something I think applies far beyond restaurants.
One of Guidara’s more radical shifts was rebalancing the levels of prestige within the restaurant. Traditionally, the food takes the limelight, but he recognised that the front of house is the part customers actually experience most. That’s not unlike organisations, where prestige can be unevenly distributed between different parts of the business. If we want to achieve greatness, maybe we should think less about internal status and more about where we truly create value for the people we serve.
I also enjoyed the book for its New York restaurant scene backstory and the little tips such as the first person that people meet at the restaurant shouldn’t be hiding behind anything like a desk or a table or even an ipad – it makes a real difference to the welcome people feel.
Translating the principles of unreasonable hospitality to other industries is challenging, but that’s where the fun lies. Whether you’re running a startup, an investment firm, or any kind of service organisation, the lesson is clear: combine operational excellence with a culture that empowers people to create memorable, human experiences and you’re off to a good start.
