How Grind Transformed Group Bookings (and Ditched the Spreadsheets)
Group bookings sound simple on paper. Bigger tables, guaranteed revenue, better planning. In reality, they are often one of the most time-consuming parts of running a restaurant. For Grind, group bookings are not just important, they are essential to the business.
“In the current climate, they give us a guaranteed chunk of money,” explains Neil Rivington, Group Service Training Manager at Grind.
With busy sites across London and Manchester, that kind of predictability matters. Instead of relying on walk-ins, group bookings help lock in revenue, especially during peak periods like Christmas. That is when Grind first introduced Set Menu across sites like Greenwich, London Bridge, Liverpool Street and Manchester.
From spreadsheets to something workable
Before SetMenu, the process was far from smooth. In fact, “it was painfully difficult,” Neil says.
Everything ran through spreadsheets and email chains. Guests would send updates, teams would track changes manually, and things would quickly get messy.
In a busy restaurant environment, that quickly becomes unmanageable.
A simple shift that changed everything
What made the biggest difference was not just the tool itself, but the shift in responsibility.
“It puts the onus back on the guest to manage their own details.”
Instead of teams chasing information, guests now input their own pre-orders, dietary requirements and updates. That one change removes a huge amount of back and forth.
Now, when a booking comes in, everything is already there: “you’ve just got one clear sheet with everything. Dishes, allergens, all of it.”
It is the kind of clarity that makes a real difference during service.
Getting teams on board
Of course, any new process comes with some resistance. “People are used to Excel sheets, so there’s always a bit of resistance at first,” Neil explains.
But the shift didn’t not take long. Once people saw how much easier it was, they got on board pretty quickly.
Why Grind chose Set Menu
“It’s a collaborative working relationship.”
A rollout that actually felt easy
Implementation is often where things become complicated. Here, it was the opposite and it actually felt “super easy” in Neil’s words.
With ongoing support and regular check-ins, the team got up and running quickly.
The real impact on the floor
The real litmus test always comes down to the team using it day to day. And the feedback has been consistently great.
“Chefs love it because there’s no back and forth,” and “the floor teams love having everything clearly laid out.”
There are also small touches that make a difference, like place cards showing guest names and allergens.
“The place cards are great. Having names and allergens on them is really useful.”
A rollout that actually felt easy
Implementation is often where things become complicated. Here, it was the opposite and it actually felt “super easy” in Neil’s words.
With ongoing support and regular check-ins, the team got up and running quickly.
Saving time and simplifying operations
From an operational perspective “it saves so much time and effort,” streamlining processes that would otherwise be manual and time-consuming. But impact goes beyond day-to-day convenience too, with the added benefit that it could even remove the need to hire a dedicated events person altogether, freeing up both time and resources for the wider team.
“It could potentially stop us needing to hire a dedicated events person.”
Grind are already recommending it
The results have been strong enough that Grind is already telling other operators about SetMenu.
For Grind, SetMenu has not just improved group bookings, it has fundamentally changed how they approach them. What was once a source of friction, admin and uncertainty is now a streamlined, predictable part of the operation.
In an industry where margins are tight and time is everything, that shift matters. It means less firefighting, more control, and teams that can focus on delivering great service rather than chasing spreadsheets.
As Neil puts it:
“It just makes life easier.”