Café-Restaurant De Bazel: Hotspot on Amsterdam’s Vijzelstraat achieves success

Café-Restaurant De Bazel in Amsterdam is located in a special building (De Bazel) that also houses the city archives. The interior is particularly impressive. The floors are inlaid with wood and glass tiles, and there is a huge central hall under which the Treasury is located: huge vaults where Dutch gold and securities were once kept.

It is now a freely accessible museum of and about Amsterdam. The restaurant itself is on the first floor and attracts many museum visitors during the day. In the evening, the restaurant is mainly frequented by people who appreciate the ambience and the delicious food.

EASIEST SYSTEM

De Bazel uses Guestplan’s digital seating system to manage all reservations. Owner Dorian van Zomeren says: “I had known about it for some time, even before I came to De Bazel. I also looked at other systems, but found them less clear.

He continues: “A big advantage is that the system is very user-friendly, which is especially important for new employees. You want everyone to understand it right away. There are training courses, but we never use them. Not necessary. You can also easily share applications with your staff, so they know what the table layout is for that night before they leave. If it is busy, they are less shocked”.

INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

There are three screens inside the restaurant. One at the entrance and two in the restaurant. In addition, Van Zomeren says that the Daily Notes are often used. “For example, to inform the staff that the window cleaner is coming that day. In that sense, I also use it as an internal communication tool. Sometimes we also print things out, for example to hang up or distribute.

NEWSLETTER

De Bazel is also considering using Guestplan for a newsletter. “With the current privacy rules, you are not allowed to simply use the email addresses of reservations to send a newsletter. You need permission. In the past, for example, you had to ask for an email address with the bill. That’s inconvenient. Now, as guests who have made a reservation, we can add a text asking if they are also interested in receiving a newsletter. If so, we put them on a separate list. In no time you have a good list of interested guests.