What do you think of this project?

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IanO said:
I'm not disputing that; simply relating my experience as I have been invited to many of these 'soft' openings. It is very common to do a soft (as you well know) and a really poor decision to not do something like that prior to a very, very busy night.
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Likely there was no time. Let's not get too upset over the small stuff. Point is that this large restaurant and entertainment venue is now open which is fantastic for the area. Hope it goes well.
 
One last comment in regards to opening -- it is my understanding that the ICE House venue was still "under construction" up until the very last minute and since "openings" are planned weeks in advance, it may well have been impossible to have an onsite run before the day of opening -- and that is unfortunate -- but I have also been involved in similar circumstances and the "huddle" helps staff get through it. On the soft opening side (when circumstances allow) I, too, have attended over 100 (and I have the belly to prove it). At the time of this writing our group is working on the design of 8 new restaurants and one renovation, all in the County of Ventura in SoCal.
 
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I think the managers will add more staff than usual to pick up the slack. If you are a good server and cook it won't take you long to adjust to a new layout.
 
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CplKlinger said:
It'll be interesting to see how the Icehouse's launch goes today. I know someone who works at the location where the staff trained and worked while waiting for construction here to wrap up, and this person says they'll have a rotten time today for two key reasons. First, because they haven't actually been able to go inside and familiarize themselves with their work areas. You can train all you want, but each restaurant will have its own unique layout, quirks, etc. Second, it's Battle of Alberta day, which will just put that much more pressure on them while they're already trying to work in an unfamiliar environment.

That being said, they've had a while to prepare themselves for this. So hopefully most things go well today, and the staff are able to meet this challenge. I'm certainly not writing them off, I just feel sympathy for them.
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All I have to say is that this isn't their first rodeo, so hearsay is just that.
 
ICE District Plaza Grand Opening

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Didn’t get any great photos, but checked out the ice house and Banquet last night. Ice House is massive and quite nice, but Banquet really shines. So many people having fun, playing arcade games, bowling, etc. seems it will be a really happening place. All around quite impressed
 
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Dubas said:
Didn’t get any great photos, but checked out the ice house and Banquet last night Ice House is massive and quite nice, bur Banquet really shines. So many people having fun, playing arcade games, bowling, etc. seems it will be a really happening place. All around quite impressed
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Looking forward to checking it out and reporting back in the very near future.
 
cmd uw said:
All I have to say is that this isn't their first rodeo, so hearsay is just that.
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Thar she blows, more hearsay incoming.

Some of the person's coworkers went there to drink yesterday, and said the staff seemed to be doing very well. This person's store had a very busy night by their standards, and made over $20,000 yesterday. Meanwhile, the Icehouse made over $60,000. I'm impressed by how the staff rose to the challenge, and am very excited to see how these two new places help change the dynamic in that area—both on game nights and on regular nights.

And yes, I completely understand that what I said before was just hearsay, and I wasn't trying to imply that I was expecting them to fail. I just thought folks would be interested to hear from someone who was on the inside.
 
Worked in restaurants from 15 years old to 34(ish) and any openings I was ever involved with always had a soft opening or family/friends night. Issue was never usually service staff basics, but rather getting a large volume of people in and out quickly. I was also shocked they chose Saturday night battle of Alberta for the opening. Wonder how many people were late for puck drop lol.

I was one of maybe 2 or 3 male servers around when Hundred opened on rice Howard . Another large and anticipated downtown restaurant. We had two family/friend nights if I remember correctly. I wonder if icehouse and banquet are following that old fashion female only server ”rule”.
 
Yesterday we headed over to the Icehouse for a pre-game:

1. Tons of staff, many still learning the system (and basics), but were friendly enough
2. The entrance, reservations vs. walk-ins and efficiency need to be fine tuned as there was confusion, a demarcated line-up area and was quite slow
3. The place is huge, a bit hard to navigate and odd circulation; cavernous to say the least
4. Burger and fries were ok, maybe a bit above average fare and the beer was cold and decently priced
5. It's really nice to have a large sports bar there
6. Disappointing to be a pre-Oilers game and they turned off the NHL game in favour of UFC
 
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