Head chefs: booking supplier meetings outside service

Give suppliers, sales reps and producers a booking link with a few fixed slots each week, at times when the kitchen is between services, for example mid-afternoon on two weekdays. Separate a short introduction meeting from a longer product tasting, ask in the description what they want to show and whether you need to taste or just talk, and keep anything unbooked out of service hours. Reps stop arriving at the back door during lunch, and you see new products when you have time to judge them.

A rep who drops by at 12:30 gets a rushed no, and a producer with a good product may never get a proper tasting. Set windows protect service and give every supplier a fair hearing. They also let you group meetings, so you see three suppliers in one afternoon instead of being interrupted on five different days.

On Book, each service has a name, a price and an optional description shown on your page, and each slot belongs to one service, sits within one day and has its own capacity. A price isn't needed here: leave the field empty for each of these services.

Lengths are examples: set your own. Slots repeat each week on the weekdays you choose until an end date, so two afternoons a week takes a few minutes to set up.

Pick the quietest part of your day, after lunch clean-down and before evening prep, or a morning before deliveries if your kitchen opens late. Avoid your delivery window and your busiest days. If the restaurant is closed one day a week, a few slots that morning can suit producers who travel from further away. In weeks when you're short-staffed or launching a new menu, simply don't open those slots, and reps will see the next free week.

The booking form takes first name, last name, email and phone, plus an optional note that reaches you in the new booking email and appears in the visitor's calendar file. Ask in the description for:

Reading the price list first tells you whether the meeting is worth having, and lets you prepare questions on minimum orders, delivery days and shelf life.

A tasting needs a clean corner of the pass, plates and someone free to taste with you, such as your sous-chef or pastry chef. Book tastings in a slot where that person is on shift, and say in the description that samples must arrive at the right temperature. If the product needs cooking, agree in advance who cooks it and on which equipment.

Your current suppliers deserve time too: a short review each season to go over prices, quality issues, delivery problems and what's coming into season. Book these yourself from your calendar in the account review service, a few weeks ahead, so both sides can prepare figures. Keeping reviews in the same weekly windows as new suppliers means your afternoons stay predictable, and a supplier who knows the review date is coming can raise problems there rather than by phone in the middle of service.

Your bookings sync with Google, iPhone or Mac calendars, so meetings appear next to your own schedule, and the bookings list shows the week's visitors. Mention the day's meetings at the pre-service briefing, so whoever is at the back door knows who's expected and sends unbooked visitors to your booking page instead.

Visitors can't move or cancel online: they contact you, and you move the meeting from your bookings list and confirm it yourself, since Book doesn't email clients about changes. After a good tasting, book a follow-up yourself from your calendar; first and last name are required, email and phone optional. Book costs €5/month, everything included: unlimited services and bookings, no commission, no contract.