PDA

View Full Version : Tables and sales rate



tiggerhobbes
02-04-15, 09:31 PM
Have you noticed any real increase in food sales rate with more tables?

I don't know if I want to pay 40k for a table if it's just decoration, on the other hand I'm throwing away food to move onto new recipes, so if it makes a difference it's probably worth it?

WinnyWoos
02-05-15, 06:06 PM
I have max tables at lv 38 and I don't have to toss food out, ever. But I don't close my doors so I have customers coming at all times. Most of the time no matter how much I had before logging off, when i log back on the food is gone. So I don't know if your servings are tons more than mine or if it's the tables? I'd say I make the money for the table back in less than half a day/day.

mcmug17
02-09-15, 12:09 AM
Definitely.

Each guest eats for 30 seconds. If guests don't have to waste time on the host or walk to the seat and then wait to be served, each table should take 2 guests per minute. In other words, if you have 10 tables out, you should be serving 20 guests per min.

Obviously this is not the case. I constantly tinker with my tables to get the best sales rate by minimizing these 3 factors. Right now I have 16 tables and serve around 26/27 guests per min. When I had 15 tables and before a floor plan change I was going 20-22 per min.

Another thing to consider, maybe pretty obvious, is that the more items you have out, the slower they get sold to empty a counter. If I have 9 dishes out, each dish will be sold at a rate of ~3 per min (27 guests per min / 9). I take this into consideration when I make recipes.

mcmug17
02-10-15, 08:22 AM
So I just turned 33 and bought another seat to max out...

I no longer have customers walk out on me because of no empty seats, but I can't fill that last seat fast enough! It gets used like every few minutes only. I won't be adding new seats until I can figure out how to increase the turnover rate of that last seat.

tiggerhobbes
02-10-15, 09:42 AM
Happy birthday? (j/k)

I finally maxed out my tables and food seems to be selling faster. With that said, I don't recall ever seeing it totally filled, I typically see one or two empty seats towards the end of the 'row.' And interestingly, the seat behind the door never get used. I do find it interesting that where you place the seat matters so it's not just a straight forward math formula. I wonder if it's the same rate if you closed the game and it keep selling without running the 3d graphics.

Another interesting thing is that I only used to get that clock thing when the walkways were too narrow. Giving people enough room to dodge each other has eliminated the clock/seat graphic for my game layout.

queentina3
02-10-15, 09:47 AM
I've had to change my place up a bit too as there was just too much congestion and I'm only on the 5th expansion. The servers were constantly bumping into the customers and there was such a backlog at the door....What I have now seems to be working for the moment and once I expand again, I'll probably have to change it up a bit again as well, though that won't be for a while. I'm closing in on level 25 and I'm hoarding my supplies to use for the Seafood shop. LOL

mcmug17
02-10-15, 07:20 PM
Happy birthday? (j/k)

I finally maxed out my tables and food seems to be selling faster. With that said, I don't recall ever seeing it totally filled, I typically see one or two empty seats towards the end of the 'row.' And interestingly, the seat behind the door never get used. I do find it interesting that where you place the seat matters so it's not just a straight forward math formula. I wonder if it's the same rate if you closed the game and it keep selling without running the 3d graphics.

Another interesting thing is that I only used to get that clock thing when the walkways were too narrow. Giving people enough room to dodge each other has eliminated the clock/seat graphic for my game layout.

Oh Thanks! I'm now 33 1/2 lol

I've tinkered my seats today and the guest flow has become kinda wonky. Sometimes I get a line and sometimes I don't. I used to be able to sustain a 26/27 serving rate, but I'm seeing anything from 25 to 29 now. Strange... Anyway, out of curiosity I completed closed the game, I mean I closed the application for 5 minutes. I had 11 different dishes out so I should be selling ~2.45 per plate per minute. When I open the game again I expected to see ~12 from each plate gone. I'm surprised to find that the number was 18! Anyone interested in the stats can do the same experiment and share your results! I'm not going to lose any sleep over selling more plates than I expected... ;-)

You should allow enough clearance around the door. The 6 spots surrounding the door may look empty but they're "phantom blocks".

So I'll let you know if I can sustain 28-29 per min. I would be super happy. If the host doesn't "let go" of guests quicker as I level up, I don't know if I can ever beat 30. Do you mind sharing your rate?

tiggerhobbes
02-11-15, 01:39 AM
I will count my sales rate later, right now there is something wonky going on, only the first 4 tables get used and then people have the seat/ clock sign and leaves my restaurant.

Everything was normal until a sudden hard refresh and people stopped using my tables further inside. Both CID and the herbs lady left already, have no idea what's going on.

Oh and @MuMug, I've noticed there are patrons in your restaurant that is unreachable by your trapped server so that they just sit there forever? IDK, maybe I just visited while you were in the middle of reorganizing.

tiggerhobbes
02-11-15, 03:54 AM
So on one counter, I sold 131 dishes in 2 hours. I have 20 counters all with food on it, I let my game run on my phone during the 2 hours.

Which means 20 x 131 / 120 = appr 21.8 dishes per minute. I'm lvl 49 with max tables (21.)

tiggerhobbes
02-11-15, 05:33 AM
So I switched up my tables setup as the end of the rows tables weren't getting used.

I turned a linear (======) arrangement into a L-shaped arrangement.

Shockingly, I only sold 60 plates on one counter in an hour, instead of 131/2hr in my previous table arrangement.

There was also noticeable congestion at the 'intersection.'

I would experiment some more, but I'm looking at deleting food from 2 - 3 counters or waiting it out for the valentine goal now that the letters drop rate seem more reasonable. So I'm going to go back to 'best practice' arrangement for now.

Rockinkitten
02-11-15, 11:57 AM
Make sure your waitresses don't have to walk all the way around to serve, give them plenty of options down the middle.

queentina3
02-11-15, 12:49 PM
Make sure your waitresses don't have to walk all the way around to serve, give them plenty of options down the middle.

And to add to that if you can have your counters close enough to the tables it will give them less time between the two and the food should sell faster. The longer they have to walk between counters and tables, the longer it will take to sell. :)

WinnyWoos
02-11-15, 03:35 PM
I let my game run on my phone during the 2 hours.

Instead of having your game run on your phone while not playing, I would try force closing the game instead of leaving it running. It'd def be worth a shoot anyway...just a thought.

PraxisOfGood
02-11-15, 04:21 PM
And to add to that if you can have your counters close enough to the tables it will give them less time between the two and the food should sell faster. The longer they have to walk between counters and tables, the longer it will take to sell. :)

I've been fiddling with this in my store and have come up with an arrangement that I'm really happy with. In fact, in my restaurant I have 16 tables, expansion 5, and my servers don't move at all! I'm also a bit proud of the fact that my cooks can reach all of the appliances, although that isn't technically important for anything as far as I can tell. I haven't tried counting how many customers I serve in a minute, but I have a feeling it would be hard to beat. Stop by and see what you think of it!

infinitelove19
02-12-15, 12:57 AM
Layout, number of tables and the time it takes customers and servers to get around makes a huge difference in rate of sales and customer turnover. I am quite happy with my layout, cooks and appliaces in corner furthest from the door and customer tables in an L-shape with the corner of the L nearest the door. Servers stay on the inside of the L, customers stay, sit and walk around the edge. My customers have a further distance to walk than the waiters, but almost no customers get turned away.

Feel free to add me and come have a look, and I am not sure if we are already neighbors or not, but I'd be happy to look at your restaurant and share some thoughts, let me know. :-)

Edited to add: Sold 83 baked potato in exactly one hour with 19 counters full. Not bad!

queentina3
02-12-15, 08:34 AM
infintelove19, I think we may already be neighbors as your layout sounds similar to one of my neighbors. Are you Le Cafe, level 38?

travelingcircus
02-12-15, 09:46 AM
No, queentina3, that's me :D.

It's hard to know who your neighbors really are when the names don't match ID's. What is your game name?

enaid03
02-12-15, 10:10 AM
Another question - wasn't it said somewhere that the counters needed access to the servers?

Some of you have them blocking access to the servers. But apparently it works?

PraxisOfGood
02-12-15, 11:55 AM
I recall seeing a dev warning about a restaurant that had NO counters available for servers (and that restaurant somehow got the food to customers without servers), but I didn't take that to mean that ALL counters had to be available. If only some of them are available, your servers will "take" the food from there even if the counter that has that dish is not the one that they are standing at.

The attached photo (I hope) shows my restaurant, which takes that to a rather extreme end. It currently works fine -- more than fine, to be honest. If anything, I think it is more of an exploit that my servers don't have access to the front door. I hope my restaurant never catches fire! ;)

18334

queentina3
02-12-15, 12:18 PM
No, queentina3, that's me :D.

It's hard to know who your neighbors really are when the names don't match ID's. What is your game name?

I'm AppleBlossom. LOL!!! Your set-up sounds very similar to what infinitelove was talking about. I just changed mine up yet again, hopefully to end any further congestion while still selling enough that I can keep pace. At least now my servers won't bump into the customers. I really need to expand again and now that I've expanded my pantry, I think that will be my next set goal to myself - expand my restaurant another level.


Another question - wasn't it said somewhere that the counters needed access to the servers?

Some of you have them blocking access to the servers. But apparently it works?

TL said it wasn't a function of the game and they couldn't guarantee that your game may not glitch, or something to that affect. Just like blocking the door isn't a function of the game. I ONLY block my door when I rearrange things, then unblock it. However, if I wanted to hoard food, I wouldn't block the door but just remove the chairs from the tables. If they can't sit, they can't eat, but they can still come in and out again, leaving the game to function normally. It is no different then if there aren't any tables available to sit at as their full. I haven't done this yet as I don't care if I run out of food. I always have something available to place on an empty counter when I log back in so I won't lose Cid or Lilly or Frank, but otherwise the rest can starve until I'm ready for them. :)

LonePudding
02-12-15, 12:45 PM
Im only at expansion number 3, is it too early to start maximizing my profits from layouts? what level did you guys start at?

Ps. if you see an invite from cocobeans its me!

queentina3
02-12-15, 01:16 PM
Im only at expansion number 3, is it too early to start maximizing my profits from layouts? what level did you guys start at?

Ps. if you see an invite from cocobeans its me!

I'd say start as early as you can as you'll need the coin to learn recipes and expand. :)

LonePudding
02-12-15, 01:29 PM
I'd say start as early as you can as you'll need the coin to learn recipes and expand. :)

Thank you!

infinitelove19
02-12-15, 03:08 PM
infintelove19, I think we may already be neighbors as your layout sounds similar to one of my neighbors. Are you Le Cafe, level 38?

Thanks for adding me! As you discovered I am "Sparkles Cafe" level 49. I really like your layout, Appleblossom, but there is one flaw. I had this problem when I was low on space, myself! Your customer tables, opposite the servers/counters, have tables at either end, which the servers cannot reach. If you watch, customers will sit there and the server will not respond. The customers at those two tables will sit there forever and never get served. That is exactly the type of thing to watch for, because it is so easy to do, plus it actually looks nice!

My layout is a little 'boring' but it really is efficient, and not too mind-boggling to get to work effectively. When my restaurant was smaller I just had other decorations to stop my servers from wandering out of their pen. ;-)

infinitelove19
02-12-15, 03:15 PM
I recall seeing a dev warning about a restaurant that had NO counters available for servers (and that restaurant somehow got the food to customers without servers), but I didn't take that to mean that ALL counters had to be available. If only some of them are available, your servers will "take" the food from there even if the counter that has that dish is not the one that they are standing at.

The attached photo (I hope) shows my restaurant, which takes that to a rather extreme end. It currently works fine -- more than fine, to be honest. If anything, I think it is more of an exploit that my servers don't have access to the front door. I hope my restaurant never catches fire! ;)

18334

Very neat layout! You have totally eliminated the time it would take servers to walk. The customers' routes and time to walk to tables is the only 'time delay' to selling food, which as far as I have seen is completely unavoidable! Nice!

queentina3
02-12-15, 03:22 PM
Thanks for adding me! As you discovered I am "Sparkles Cafe" level 49. I really like your layout, Appleblossom, but there is one flaw. I had this problem when I was low on space, myself! Your customer tables, opposite the servers/counters, have tables at either end, which the servers cannot reach. If you watch, customers will sit there and the server will not respond. The customers at those two tables will sit there forever and never get served. That is exactly the type of thing to watch for, because it is so easy to do, plus it actually looks nice!

My layout is a little 'boring' but it really is efficient, and not too mind-boggling to get to work effectively. When my restaurant was smaller I just had other decorations to stop my servers from wandering out of their pen. ;-)

Ohhh, good catch! I didn't notice that. I think I'll move the counters back into the kitchen a bit more and then I can put those on the end without inhibiting the 2 row space behind the chairs. If I only have one row then they start to bump and I get congestion again. LOL

ETA: I think my layout now will work and I totally stole your idea, sort of. What do you think, look better?

mcmug17
02-12-15, 11:57 PM
Oh and @MuMug, I've noticed there are patrons in your restaurant that is unreachable by your trapped server so that they just sit there forever? IDK, maybe I just visited while you were in the middle of reorganizing.

That's kinda normal... I have one counter facing the right way for each server. Now that I have 4 servers, I have 4 server-facing counters. So if one of my "stations" runs out of food, the server was kinda forced to "hang outt" at another station, assuming at hard reset. If I'm really running out of food to serve, I couldn't care less, right...? As long as I end up with empty counters every morning I wake up. ;-)

There's definitely a lot to tinker with! I don't know how to explain it... Down to the facing of the host! But I can tell you this, you got a crowd, it's a good thing!!!!!!! That means you're getting more inward flow of customers. Try to keep up. I had to pull the host further away from the door so the minions don't all get stuck there.

This was my restaurant: http://forums.storm8.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=17852&d=1422051024

Right now I'm working on my blood and flesh Valentine's Day. :o

tiggerhobbes
02-13-15, 03:25 AM
@McMug: Good point, I like how it self-balances and adjusts sales rate, very clever lol.

I actually had to move my podium closer to the door, give it any distance and I get a huge crowd/ queue which actually slows down sales rate (down from 65 dishes per counter per hour to 60 dishes per counter per hour.)

@enaid: I'm probably that guilty neighbour with blocked counter, haha. As you can see I do generate some sales rate so it probably does work. I keep hiring really immature staff with an attitude that keep annoying my customers so I went with automated service! Only self-serving people eat at my restaurant these days!

I did have problems if I even leave ONE counter 'exposed,' as long as I blocked every single counter then people will help themselves to the food.

tiggerhobbes
02-13-15, 03:32 AM
BTW, even though I '*****' and opted for an automated food delivery system, I LOVE the clever ways people entrap their servers.

I find it funny that developer tries to discourage automated system as 'unintentional' feature but at the same time don't bother to iron out the unrealistic ways servers behave (i.e. keep getting trapped in places where they could have entered in the first place, keep taking long detours or take walk path that's counter intuitive that also interrupt customer flows etc.)

infinitelove19
02-14-15, 04:44 AM
Ohhh, good catch! I didn't notice that. I think I'll move the counters back into the kitchen a bit more and then I can put those on the end without inhibiting the 2 row space behind the chairs. If I only have one row then they start to bump and I get congestion again. LOL

ETA: I think my layout now will work and I totally stole your idea, sort of. What do you think, look better?

The idea was not mine originally and you totally made it your own. VERY nice!
I feel like I can never use decorations as well as many others... Just wind up sticking things places,often things we are required to buy for some goal or other and never remove old items. Oh, well. :-)

queentina3
02-14-15, 11:37 AM
The idea was not mine originally and you totally made it your own. VERY nice!
I feel like I can never use decorations as well as many others... Just wind up sticking things places,often things we are required to buy for some goal or other and never remove old items. Oh, well. :-)

I'm not really good with that either and had to improvise as dead space just looked wrong with my layout. I decided to use that chalk-menu floor thing because when I tried to put a table and chair there, with nothing in front or behind, nobody would sit there. It drove me crazy!!! I changed my wallpaper back to red, removed the decor from above the chair and table and even moved the table so it was next to a counter and facing the space the servers walked, but still, nobody would sit in it. They kept walking out with a clock over their head.

It made no sense as there was NOTHING inhibiting them from sitting there and the servers could reach the table. I wanted to scream!

Needless to say, I threw a few things out there and stored the table and chair until I can expand again. Now at least when they walk out it is because there really ISN'T an available table for them to sit. They obviously didn't like the one I had out there so now they get NONE! :p

*huffs in annoyance*

tiggerhobbes
02-14-15, 01:17 PM
I had the same problem, you will notice I have that humiliatingly ugly green 'trophy' (more like badge of shame) on one side of my door. I used to have a table set there but nobody sits there ever even though it's the cloest one to the door and relatively close to the podium.

I think it has more to do with how close it is to the door though, maybe try moving the door somewhere else and see if someone will use that table just for experimentation?

(I moved my entire row of tables one square south into my kitchen area and people did end up using that table, but the increased walking time caused slower sale so I went back to the original narrow design.)

queentina3
02-14-15, 01:59 PM
The door is in the corner and the chair would've been 2 spots away, so I'd think that was far enough but....I can't move the door until I get to I think expansion 7, right? Expansion 6 has me lengthening the wall facing the garden/seafood market so I can only assume expansion 7 will be the wall facing the grocer and meat market. Until then I'm one table less is all, too bad so sad for those who can't find a seat. *chuckles evilly*

infinitelove19
02-14-15, 05:48 PM
I'm not really good with that either and had to improvise as dead space just looked wrong with my layout. I decided to use that chalk-menu floor thing because when I tried to put a table and chair there, with nothing in front or behind, nobody would sit there. It drove me crazy!!! I changed my wallpaper back to red, removed the decor from above the chair and table and even moved the table so it was next to a counter and facing the space the servers walked, but still, nobody would sit in it. They kept walking out with a clock over their head.

It made no sense as there was NOTHING inhibiting them from sitting there and the servers could reach the table. I wanted to scream!

Needless to say, I threw a few things out there and stored the table and chair until I can expand again. Now at least when they walk out it is because there really ISN'T an available table for them to sit. They obviously didn't like the one I had out there so now they get NONE! :p

*huffs in annoyance*

How bizarre! Not sure why being 'too close' to the door should be an issue, but if nobody would sit there, I guess the proof is in the pudding! I went and had a look and wonder if it is a disadvantage having your hostess tabke (to seat guests) far from yiur door is a disadvantage. It seems customers wait until the customer before them is seated before they come in, so if you are finding things slow, you have enough walkway space to just move her closer to the door. Just a thiughh, but I really do love what you've done with the decorations. It looks AWESOME!!

infinitelove19
02-14-15, 05:53 PM
Tiggerhobbes, what's your restaurant name? I tried adding this ID, but it was much lower level and clearly not the one you play most, so I want to look at your restaurant, but don't know where/how to find you. Or you could add me, if you want.

Any better sales for you these days?

queentina3
02-14-15, 06:31 PM
It's odd as when I look at your places it seems like the customers are trickling in slowly one-by-one, but I know they're not, they're probably flooding in, right? Even with my host far down the end, the line goes all the way to the door almost all the time. If I move it closer to the door then I get the congestion problem of those trying to get in and out at the same time and then nobody moves for a good 30 seconds.

I had the same problem with her place so she had to add me. *giggles*

tiggerhobbes
02-14-15, 07:53 PM
IKR, I get the same every time I visit someone else's restaurant and I always think to myself, 'wow, how do they get such moderate trickle with know logjam when everybody is tripping over everybody else in my place?' I think McMug or someone said the same thing in another thread. I think it's just how they try to make the grass greener on your own side :p

Sorry about my garbage account. That other account keeps jam-trapping me like you won't believe, there's no 'pause' between collecting all items from suppliers and 'spend gem,' gems just flew right off. I gave up playing on that account.

I've added you infinitelove19 ^__^

mcmug17
02-17-15, 09:38 AM
I actually had to move my podium closer to the door, give it any distance and I get a huge crowd/ queue which actually slows down sales rate (down from 65 dishes per counter per hour to 60 dishes per counter per hour.)

Using my previous floor plan version as an example... http://forums.storm8.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=17852&d=1422051024
You see where the water cart is? That's what I used to redirect guests so they don't run into each other and tie a knot lol.

I'm sustaining 28/29 guests per min now! Woohoo!

queentina3
02-17-15, 11:10 AM
Using my previous floor plan version as an example... http://forums.storm8.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=17852&d=1422051024
You see where the water cart is? That's what I used to redirect guests so they don't run into each other and tie a knot lol.

I'm sustaining 28/29 guests per min now! Woohoo!

You know, I tried to change my placed the other day to something similar to yours, where you have a server surrounded by counters and tables, but it wouldn't work! The game kept putting 2 servers in one spot and they were overlapping each other. It was the freakiest thing I've ever seen in a TL game so I immediately went back to my old set-up.

Congrats on being able to get only one server in one spot. :p

mcmug17
02-17-15, 11:40 AM
You know, I tried to change my placed the other day to something similar to yours, where you have a server surrounded by counters and tables, but it wouldn't work! The game kept putting 2 servers in one spot and they were overlapping each other. It was the freakiest thing I've ever seen in a TL game so I immediately went back to my old set-up.

Congrats on being able to get only one server in one spot. :p

It happens from time to time for me too. Here's what I've noticed so far regarding the positions of servers...
1) They stand in front of those counters where the handles point towards them.
2) They go to the ones with food.

I have 4 servers so I have 4 correct facing counters. I try to place equal number of counters for each "station" so they all run out of food evenly. Two servers jam into one station only when one of the stations run out of food, which is a good thing! You can put a few counters outside of the stations (facing the wall) so the servers are free to roam around when you're low on food.

mamareader02
02-17-15, 02:06 PM
Since I got the 12 th expansion this morn,coin count is slow and my customers are walking like extras on The Walking Dead!

WinnyWoos
02-17-15, 02:24 PM
walking like extras on The Walking Dead!

Bwhahaha!!!! Literally just "LOL" ;) That show is one of my favorite guilty pleasures:p

cquinn32
02-21-15, 08:11 PM
Is there a maximum rate at wich your customers can be seated? I can only ever seat about 12 to 14 maximum at any given time before someone else gets up.
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c42/cqsqaqwq/d68a4db6119f72dcd7ee512d8725fc45_zpsc02601c5.jpg

tiggerhobbes
02-22-15, 01:08 AM
I have the same thing, I always have a few tables unused (but there are still people walking in and waiting to be seated.)

I wonder if it's just a graphic rendering limitation though, I have noticed that adding tables and changing the seating layouts have affected the sales rate, so even though these tables don't look *like* they are being used, it's somehow affecting sales anyway.

cquinn32
02-22-15, 09:12 AM
Just don't see the point of buying more tables if I can't fill the ones I have, unless buying more will allow you to seat people faster. IDK

tiggerhobbes
02-23-15, 11:08 AM
Hey @McMug, just noticed you've fired all your wait staff and gone automated. How's that working out for you? Has it affected your sales rate? For the better or worse? Do tell!

fatbearsecondary
02-23-15, 02:29 PM
Just don't see the point of buying more tables if I can't fill the ones I have, unless buying more will allow you to seat people faster. IDK

I've fired my waitstaff as well; currently the most I've ever had seated/on their way to sit is 13. I'd be interested to see a layout if anyone manages to get more than this.

18582

WinnyWoos
02-23-15, 03:35 PM
I started to notice having empty tables as well so I thought I'd try firing my waitstaff to see if I could see a difference and it backfired on me...Saw a HUGE difference.... all my tables filled up but they were EMPTY tables and stayed empty?! My tables wouldn't magically get food like others are doing. I'm sure I was doing something wrong since it can obviously be done but I played with it for nearly an hour and couldn't, for the life of me, figure out how to do this:confused:

fatbearsecondary
02-23-15, 03:42 PM
I started to notice having empty tables as well so I thought I'd try firing my waitstaff to see if I could see a difference and it backfired on me...Saw a HUGE difference.... all my tables filled up but we're also EMPTY tables! My tables wouldn't magically get food like others were. I'm sure I was doing something wrong since it can obviously be done but I played with it for nearly an hour and couldn't, for the life of me, figure out how to do this:confused:

Do you have your waitstaff trapped somewhere or actually gone? If you leave an open square next to your counters, your waiter can get trapped there and then no food will get delivered. If there are no open squares, the waiters all disappear and then the food should appear automatically (like it does if your waiters are all "busy" either taking food to a customer or walking back). This is what you want - no open squares next to counters, no trapped waiters.

Maybe post a picture? It might also be a bug; TL has indicated you're not supposed to get rid of your waiters...

Hope this helps!

WinnyWoos
02-23-15, 03:57 PM
Do you have your waitstaff trapped somewhere or actually gone? If you leave an open square next to your counters, your waiter can get trapped there and then no food will get delivered. If there are no open squares, the waiters all disappear and then the food should appear automatically (like it does if your waiters are all "busy" either taking food to a customer or walking back). This is what you want - no open squares next to counters, no trapped waiters.

Maybe post a picture? It might also be a bug; TL has indicated you're not supposed to get rid of your waiters...

Hope this helps!

Thanks so much for your reply! Actually, you nailed it. At first I had them trapped in. I had my counters in rectangular shape with them in the middle, with the tables surrounding the counters but tables stayed empty. Then I tried filling the space with decor, taking waiters completely outta the picture but they still sat empty. I was also force closing the game with each change thinking maybe that would fix it. So I gave up and went back to my original layout. Then came on here to see what I was doing wrong, lol!

fatbearsecondary
02-23-15, 05:16 PM
Thanks so much for your reply! Actually, you nailed it. At first I had them trapped in. I had my counters in rectangular shape with them in the middle, with the tables surrounding the counters but tables stayed empty. Then I tried filling the space with decor, taking waiters completely outta the picture but they still sat empty. I was also force closing the game with each change thinking maybe that would fix it. So I gave up and went back to my original layout. Then came on here to see what I was doing wrong, lol!

Did you ever make it work?

mcmug17
02-23-15, 05:44 PM
Hey @McMug, just noticed you've fired all your wait staff and gone automated. How's that working out for you? Has it affected your sales rate? For the better or worse? Do tell!

It was weird at first? I wasn?t sure about not having any waiters. I think the guests stayed with the host longer by a hair. But then if they?re being served by waiters then it?ll be a hair longer before they start eating and leave? so it all balanced out. Plus I don?t have to think about waiters running out of food from each station and affect my sales rate while I sleep.

I?ve done another major change of plan today after you visited me? I absolutely cannot get more than 29 guests per minute. Sometimes my restaurant gets a little busier and people run into each other and slows things down a little. Sometimes I get less customers for no apparent reason.

I haven?t been able to get the last seat filled. I don?t know if I can get over 30/min, if that. There?s only so much I can maximize. I?ll do a full investigation when I have time to see if food runs out faster when the game is running in the background.

I?ll have to figure this out soon? All of the food is gone by the time I?m awake as of today. But if I maintain this rate and if I have more than 14000 servings (29x60x8 hours of sleep) on the countertop before I go to bed then I?ll start to accumulate food??

tiggerhobbes
02-24-15, 04:11 AM
Yeah please have a look at the sales rate and let us know which one sold faster?

I've tidied up my place a bit and had a look, out of 21 tables the best I've done is to have only 5 empty so that makes 16 being seated at a time, mean while 6 more patrons are queueing to be seated. So I have gone over 12 tables being used at a time, but not all tables are being used.

cquinn32
02-24-15, 07:59 AM
Found a new layout I'm happy with. I've been able to fill all of my 18 tables and my sales is higher than ever before. It may not look the best but it's working great!!http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c42/cqsqaqwq/D3BFFECD-C9F2-402D-9172-B34308E1BEBB.png_zpspli1mfla.jpeg

tiggerhobbes
02-24-15, 08:41 AM
I used to use a very similar layout, I've found that I sold dishes faster with a wider gap between the two rows of table. I sold even faster with the server moved farther away from the door allowing people to come in and queue somewhat. I actually timed/ counted number of dishes sold not the number of people walk in though.

From the picture it looks like only 15 were seated? I have 21 tables, there are always people walking towards them, but I usually only have about 16 seated.

mcmug17
02-25-15, 12:54 AM
Found a new layout I'm happy with. I've been able to fill all of my 18 tables and my sales is higher than ever before. It may not look the best but it's working great!!http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c42/cqsqaqwq/D3BFFECD-C9F2-402D-9172-B34308E1BEBB.png_zpspli1mfla.jpeg

Interesting! The distance between the last table and the host is quite long. I'm surprised that the closer tables don't open up earlier.

mcmug17
02-25-15, 01:01 AM
Yeah please have a look at the sales rate and let us know which one sold faster?

I've tidied up my place a bit and had a look, out of 21 tables the best I've done is to have only 5 empty so that makes 16 being seated at a time, mean while 6 more patrons are queueing to be seated. So I have gone over 12 tables being used at a time, but not all tables are being used.

I'm afraid to find out actually... What if in the end I'm selling at 2 times the number of tables per minute? Then I look like an idiot spending all this time analyzing and optimizing the floor plan lol!

tiggerhobbes
02-25-15, 01:11 AM
I'm afraid to find out actually... What if in the end I'm selling at 2 times the number of tables per minute? Then I look like an idiot spending all this time analyzing and optimizing the floor plan lol!

Exploration is part of the fun haha.

That said, I actually tried to explore and trap servers with well spaced counters to see if I sell faster/slower, but as soon as servers came into the picture, even with no walking (i.e. all trapped,) my game slowed to a zombie pace. I don't mean the walking of people, there's a lag in everything, from opening market to closing popups.

So I had to go back to automation. Anybody found a way around the zombie slow walk problem yet? (other than no server I mean.)

ellyse99
02-25-15, 08:01 AM
Exploration is part of the fun haha.

That said, I actually tried to explore and trap servers with well spaced counters to see if I sell faster/slower, but as soon as servers came into the picture, even with no walking (i.e. all trapped,) my game slowed to a zombie pace. I don't mean the walking of people, there's a lag in everything, from opening market to closing popups.

So I had to go back to automation. Anybody found a way around the zombie slow walk problem yet? (other than no server I mean.)

Restarting my iPad helped :p

ellyse99
02-25-15, 08:09 AM
BTW I just added a few of you folks today, do stop by and tell me what you think. :) I just changed my layout to eliminate servers, hoping to sell food faster, I never run out of food. But strangely now I think it's even worse, only half my tables seem to get occupied, the other half is always empty :(
Currently I have 101k of tuna casserole, 92k of steak and eggs, 82k of lobster bisque, 78k of baked potato, 61k of fajitas, 53k of ginger tea, 46k of veggie sushi, 45k of lobster thermidor, 32k of baked salmon, 31k of lox bagel, 12k of carrot cake, 12k of tuna sandwich, 7k of chicken salad, 4k of ginger snaps, 4k of cr?me brulee, 3k of antipasto platter, 1k of bruschetta, and some hundreds of apple ginger chicken, cobb salad etc. Enough to last me even if I don't cook for a whole week!

mcmug17
02-25-15, 11:41 AM
Tigger and Ellyse, do you remember since when you started accumulating food?

ellyse99
02-25-15, 01:00 PM
Not sure, sorry. Probably around the level when fajitas came in?
I used to have lots more of fajitas, but the goal for Quiche kicked in (and Quiche actually brings the least revenue per unit of peppers) so I looked for something else to use my onions for, and Lox Bagel was what I found, highest revenue per unit of salmon and onion, actually.
Now I'm stopping production of Carrot Cake and instead saving sugar for Cr?me Brulee and Ginger Snaps instead.

tiggerhobbes
02-26-15, 12:36 AM
I don't have the exact timing either. I think it's just a matter of upgrading and getting more and more resources (ingredients) to the point where certain dishes get so piled up you don't have the option to cook anything else. By the time you have 20 counters, dishes sell so slowly even mid-range dish-counts dishes like stew and baked salmon ended up selling too slowly to ever empty.

As for valuing dishes, I went through different phases:
Early game: cook whatever I have ingredients for
Expanded pantry = start hoarding: strategically focus on max profit per ingredient dishes
Expanded Street Market = more ingredients than I can use up: choose recipe that have short time and maximum flexibility (ie. only one key ingredient per dish) to use up whatever I find in the street market. Basically max coins per time unit because ingredients are no longer scarce, cooking capacity was what limited me.
Higher level = coin shortage: things in upper levels are so ridiculously coins expensive, I started to realize if I keep selling 3 coins dishes it will take forever for me to upgrade anything. Finally deleted my old stockpile and focus on 5 - 6 coins dishes. Have 2 stockpile counter as 'backup' in case if high coinage dishes sell out so I will always have something to sell. Have a few counters for throwaway items that I only use for mastering recipes that I don't intend to sell. Thats where I am now.

WinnyWoos
02-26-15, 09:37 PM
Did you ever make it work?

I'm so embarrassed to even admit this but no!!!! LOL! I tried several more times, so many different ways and still didn't get it to work. So I failed at firing my waitstaff, I decided to jus try out some different table/chair placements. I think the current one is actually seating more although I still have 1-2 tables that are always open but better than the 3-4, which was what I had previously. Should probably count my customers per minute (never tried this) just to see....