Never leave a driver out of sight, you never know how trusting they can be. Practicing proper receiving delivery techniques can prevent unnecessary events. The following is a story of one driver’s dishonesty.

The Basement

In our restaurant there were two areas in which we received deliveries; the main floor of the restaurant and the basement storage which was located near the mall’s receiving docks. Due to our limited space in the restaurant, a significant portion of our deliveries were placed in the basement. The storage room was a locked room which consisted of a bar (beer & wine) cage, several coolers and freezers and an additional locked cage filled with extra china, equipment and tools. Everything in the room that could be opened had a lock.

Access to the basement storage was given to all cooks, bar staff and assigned helpers. Again, because of the limited space, frequent trips would be made to the basement to retrieve food, ice and firewood for our wood burning pizza oven. To restrict access to the storage room, keys were only given to management. In addition, anyone needing to access the basement storage had to notify a manager or supervisor. However, the bar cage was only given access to the bar manager and her team. For an extra security measure, the restaurant installed security cameras which were located on both the main floor and within the basement storage. A live feed to our backend office of the restaurant could be monitored at any time.

Monday Delivery

Mondays, we receive our regular delivery of packaging and takeout supplies. The order was always dropped and inspected inside the basement storage. Unless you were a new driver, you knew the procedure. Once the driver’s truck was parked at the receiving dock, the driver would go to the main floor to notify one of the managers of the delivery. Most of the drivers were used to it and realized at times, they would be required to wait 5-10 minutes until one of the managers or assistants could receive the products. It was a first come first serve basis, so each supplier that arrived would be inspected in that order.

Tim was one of our main restaurant helpers. When a manager was in a bind, Tim would scurry down to the basement and meet the driver. Tim was the nice guy that everyone knew and who formed a relationship with all the drivers. Although he was challenged and struggled at times, he knew how to do certain jobs well and one of them was inspecting the delivery of packaging and storing them in their proper places. This particular Monday, things were different.

Quick Hands

Bob was a fairly a new driver. He was different than the other drivers; impatient and acted like a big tough guy. However, like all the other drivers, he quickly formed a bond with Tim. On this Monday, Tim did his usually trip to the basement to receive the 30 plus boxes of packaging supplies, but what was about to happened was never ever expected.

Going through the purchase order and using his fingers as a guide to scroll down the list, Tim checked the boxes off one by one. Two cases of napkins, three boxes of clamshells, 4 cases of medium size coffee cups and the list went on. Fidgeting at the corner of the room was Bob standing impatiently as usual. As he waited for Tim, his eyes moved back and forth carefully scanning the room. There in the front left corner was the bar cage with the sliding door shut. Peering towards the cage, Bob was in luck. The padlock was through the loop but was dangling and unlocked.

“Oh Tim, I see you don’t have a pen to sign the invoice. I actually don’t have one either,” said Bob with a grin.

“Um, I will be back. I will go to my locker and get one for you, Ok?

Not knowing what he did was wrong, Tim casually walked out of the room to the staff change rooms located down the hallway. In the room was Bob all alone. This time standing patiently Bob waited as Tim was completely out of sight. Bob quickly hopped outside the door and went around the corner ensuring Tim was gone and there were no other bystanders nearby.

Dashing back into the storage room, Bob released the padlock from the loop hole and entered the bar cage. Without any hesitation, he swiped the first bottle he could see; a Cabernet Sauvignon. Placing it in his bulky jacket, he zipped it up and closed the cage door behind him leaving it perfectly as it appeared before. A minute later, Tim returned.

“Here you go, I got a pen.”

“Great! Sign here and we are all done,” said Bob with a big smile.

Tim went about his usual duties and organized the boxes still without a clue of what just happened.

Inventory Count

11:30AM, our bar manager had arrived. While checking the current bar inventory and reviewing the closing inventory from the night before, something peculiar was wrong with the counts. She checked it again and the counts were off; exactly one Cabernet missing. Was it possible the counts were manipulated? We ruled out all the possibilities.

Then suddenly, for some odd reason, I had a terrible gut feeling. It all made sense as we pieced the puzzle together. We checked the cameras and pressed replay to the time Bob arrived with the delivery. There it was at 9:10AM, Bob bravely stole a bottle of wine from the bar cage. We were in disbelief shocked that it happened during regular operating hours.

What did we do?

We spoke to Tim and replayed the video capturing Bob in action. We made sure that Tim understood that what he did was a mistake but at the same time we wanted to let him know we would forgive him. How could we let him go, since it wasn’t necessarily fair to completely blame the guy for being nice and trying to do his job? Plus the bar cage was unlocked.

So who was to blame? This time it was, only us, the management to blame. We just assumed that Tim would know never to leave a driver alone. We also never believed that one of our drivers would stoop down so low to take advantage of Tim’s disabilities. We also made the mistake of not double checking if the bar cage was locked. The last person to enter the cage just happened to be the general manager.

At the end, we contacted our supplier to report Bob. We spoke to the owner and sent a copy of the video tape capturing the incident. Surprisingly, the company allowed Bob to continue with his job. Although we refused to accept any deliveries from Bob, the company disregarded our requests. From that day onwards, a manager oversaw all deliveries to the basement storage.

This could have happened to anybody. Unfortunately it happened to Tim.

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While there are friendly and helpful suppliers, there are some who are not as honest as they appear to be. Sometimes it isn’t your employees you need to watch, it is your suppliers. Implementing the proper controls can encourage suppliers to be more honest and to participate in fair practices.

Purchase Order Form

One of the best ways to keep track of what you have ordered is to create a purchase order form. A purchase order form allows you to record the number of cases or pounds of an item that has been ordered, the description of the item and the cost per unit. The order form should also include the name of the supplier, contact number, salesperson’s name and date of order. You should have a purchase order form for each supplier which will allow you to easily keep track of everything.

Quality Checks

Whether it is your chef, receiver or you as the manager/owner, all deliveries should be checked. Therefore keeping your purchase order forms on a clipboard near your delivery area is highly recommended. Conducting quality checks is a smart way of preventing drivers from skimming your account. Making them aware that you have proper controls in place will encourage them to be honest. A common problem among suppliers and drivers is skimming which is delivering an order that does not meet the restaurant’s quality standards or delivering the wrong quantity. Using your purchase order form is a great way to check if the right items ordered were delivered as well as if the quantity and price matches with what is outlined by the supplier’s invoice. Only you can identify if there is a price discrepancy. A driver can only follow what has been given on the invoice.

Sometimes the price terms you have negotiated with your supplier has not been inputted correctly therefore your price has not carried over onto the invoice.

Another important practice is to check the weight of the items. Therefore, you should have a heavy duty scale nearby. Be familiar with the packaging of the items. For example, a case of green peppers weighs 25lbs, green zucchini weighs 15lbs and a case of lemons contains a 130 count. The more you know, the faster you will be able to check your items. You will also appear much more knowledgeable and confident to your driver when you spot discrepancies within the delivery order.

For non-related food products, you would follow the same procedures in verifying all deliveries to ensure everything is consistent with your purchase order form.

Credit Note

A credit note is offered when a product has to be returned. Most suppliers should have their own credit notes whereby the driver is responsible for recording the amount credited to you. Through my experience it is best to be prepared and to create your own company credit note. Similar to a purchase order form, a credit note should include the following sections; quantity, description, weight and price per unit. You should also include the name of the supplier, date, contact number, receiver name (print), signature line for the receiver and signature line for the driver. Receiving a driver’s signature is crucial since it is the only proof that the credit was approved. It doesn’t necessarily mean you cannot receive a credit without a driver’s signature, but it will be much more difficult and you better be prepared to have a good explanation.

Credit notes are not only given for products that were damaged or spoiled. Errors on behalf of the supplier may really be an attempt to take advantage of you. An item that has been charged correctly may have been purposely shorted or a wrong product case may have been delivered. A manager or receiver may have been distracted and unknowingly signed off on the invoice not realizing the problem.

In these two scenarios, both cases would require a credit note. A copy of the credit note should always be given to the driver while the other copy should be stapled onto the invoice.

Maintaining a Relationship

Keeping in touch with your account manager or the owner of your supplier is an excellent way of maintaining a strong relationship. A supplier not only wants to hear about problems in your recent delivery, they also want to hear the good comments. This gives them reassurance that they are doing their job and that you care. Developing a relationship is to your advantage. Delivery times can improve and so can quality.

Through my experience, treating your drivers with respect can go a long way. Don’t carry an attitude of “he’s just the driver,” instead treat them like they are part of the company. Occasionally, I have awarded honest drivers with free coffee and muffins. I found the rewards are high. They look out for your restaurant’s best interest and can warn you of poor quality products or even missing items within a delivery. When the boss is happy and the company’s drivers are too, everyone benefits.

Photograph by: kamshots

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About four years ago, my family and I traveled to Italy and stayed at a villa in Tuscany.  The food and wine was incredible yet everything remained so simple, but flavorful.  Most of our cooking consists of complex flavors and ingredients.  Gradually this has changed especially with our busy lifestyle.  Although we continue to explore various cultures and cuisines in our cooking, we have learned there is nothing better than simple creations after a long day of work.  One of our favorite meals to come home to is a caprese salad, steak and roasted potatoes and ice cream for dessert.  I guess you can say Italy had inspired us.

The Starter

Ever since traveling to Italy, we have appreciated the simplicity of a Caprese Salad.  Gathering fresh ripe tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella drizzled with high quality extra virgin olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar can really hit the spot. Top this off with some fresh slices of basil and a touch of kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper is all you need.  Depending on your preference you may use Roma tomatoes, field or heirloom tomatoes.  Of course there is nothing in comparison to what you will find in Italy, but you can still find excellent ingredients from your local supermarket or farmer’s market.

The Main Course

In Florence, one of most famous main dishes is the Bistecca alla fiorentina which is a huge t-bone steak (18pz – 25 oz) cooked rare and served with arugula and drizzled with olive oil and a lemon.  The portions are huge.  For us, we opt for a smaller cut (10oz – 12oz) rib-eye or t-bone.  Season the steak with salt and pepper or use your favorite steak spice blend.  If you don’t have a BBQ, place the steaks in a grill pan for about 3 minutes on each side for a perfect medium rare.  As for your starch, try some roasted red skinned potatoes tossed in olive oil, salt and pepper. Depending on what’s in season, fresh spinach sautéed with freshly chopped garlic goes well with this easy to do steak dinner.

The Dessert

A meal without something sweet is incomplete.  There is always room for dessert.  If you don’t have time to bake, then a scoop of ice cream or gelato is just as good.  Melt some chunks of Valrhona or Callebaut chocolate and you will be set.  Of course, you don’t have to spend big bucks on chocolate, so choose what you like.  Feeling a bit guilty? Top your ice cream with some fresh fruits in season.

Simple cooking doesn’t have to be boring.  You can still have a gourmet dining experience in your own home.

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