Sunday lunch should be one of the easiest wins a golf club has...
It fits the member base, brings families into the club, drives food and drink spend, and helps position the club as more than just a place to play golf. Done well, it becomes part of people’s weekly routine. Done badly, it loses trust very quickly.
Too many clubs get excited, launch too big, get it wrong, then give up after a month and decide Sunday lunch “doesn’t work here.” Usually, it is not the idea that failed. It is the execution.
Consistency is everything. One poor experience is enough to put people off. That is why planning, preparation and leadership matter so much. Sunday lunch is not something you just put on and hope for the best. It needs structure, the right people in the right places, clear expectations and proper training from the start.
And the lack of pre-shift briefings in some clubs is still mental. You get one chance before service to align the team, talk through bookings, covers, allergens, roles, service standards and likely pressure points and some operations still skip it. Then wonder why service falls apart under pressure.
A simple tip for managers and board members: think about where you go for Sunday lunch yourself. Why do you go back? What does local pricing look like? What value do you get for your money? What is the quality like? What does the atmosphere feel like? That is your benchmark, because your members are making the same comparison.
Then be honest about your team’s capability. If your chef is not smashing current delivery, why throw another risk at them? If you do not have the capability to run Sunday lunch well, that is your warning sign. It is not a Sunday lunch issue. It is a people, structure or training issue.
My advice? Start with one a month. Do it properly. Build trust. Build consistency. Build reputation. Carvery style is often the smarter route early on too as it is easier to manage, easier to control, and usually far less damaging to the wage line than full plate service.
Get the quality right. Get the service right. Get the atmosphere right. Then grow it.
Do not go weekly because it sounds ambitious in a meeting. Go weekly when the operation has earned the right.
In hospitality, the idea gets people in once. Consistency brings them back.
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