T-7 - Beverage (1 hour)

Description: This session will help participants gain an overview of different kinds of
beverages and when they are to be recommended.

Participant Learning Objectives:

By the end of the session, I will be able to:
● Identify and describe common types of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages offered
during breakfast, lunch and dinner.
● Demonstrate answering common questions and making recommendations about
beverages based on guest preferences.

Key points:
● Beverages are an important part of the offering to customers.
● Beverages can be categorized as alcoholic beverages and non-alcoholic beverages.
● Some beverages are more popular among guests. Familiarity with these beverages
could help you give stronger recommendations.
● Beverages can be further classified according to the meal time that best suits their
consumption (e.g. some drinks are had especially during breakfast, others during
lunch and some with dinner).

Behavioral ● Customer Mindsets ● Growth Mindset

skills Focus

Keywords ● Beverage Materials ● T-7 - Beverage Participant

● Alcohol Handout (1 per participant)
● Non-alcoholic ● Optional: If you can bring
● Stimulants pictures or actual bottles of
different types of beverages
to show participants, do.

Session ● This session builds upon information from T-7.

Sequencing

Performance ● d. Anticipate, identify and either independently or with the

Goals collaboration of teammates resolve guest needs as quickly as
possible (including refilling beverages, clearing away used cloths,
replacing silverware etc.)

Session ● Observe participants during practice as they categorize drinks in

Assessment each meal and as they answer common questions about pairing
beverages with food.

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Time Activity
5 minutes Opening

10 minutes Content: Beverages

● Alcoholic vs. non-alcoholic beverages
● Common Beverages for Meals
10 minutes Practice: Categorizing Beverages
10 minutes Content: Answering Questions and Making Recommendations

20 minutes Practice: Role Play

5 minutes Closing

PREPARATION
● Write the Learning Objective on the board and the following words randomly on the
board such that it looks like a word cloud:
○ Banana Milkshake
○ Tea
○ Lemon Tea
○ Cappuccino
○ Lemonade
○ Whiskey
○ Coca Cola
○ Orange Juice
○ Sangria
○ Martini
○ English Breakfast Tea
○ Pina Colada

OPENING (5 minutes)
Instructor note: During this session, participants are introduced to the learning objective
through a simple activity. This activity allows participants to display their prior knowledge on the
subject and will give you an understanding of their familiarity with the topic.

● Say: Take a look at the words on the board. Let’s read aloud the words one by one.
● Ask: What is the one thing that is common to all these items?
○ Answer: All of them are liquids. All of them are drinks.
● Say: Yes, that’s right! These are liquids which people drink. These are known as
beverages.
● Say: People visit hotels and restaurants not only to eat but also to drink. You must have
heard that meetings take place ‘over a coffee’ or ‘drinks’. Beverages also enhance the
experience of a meal. Hence, beverages are an important offering to guests.
● Say: That’s what this session is all about!

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 ○ Have a participant read the objectives of the session aloud

CONTENT: BEVERAGES (20 minutes)

Instructor note: The purpose of this section is to teach participants about different kinds of
beverages which are chosen during specific meals and dishes. Participants, in this section,
become familiar with the variety of beverages on offer to guests as well as the most popular
pairings of beverages with meals.

Alcoholic vs. non-alcoholic beverages

● Ask: Beyond beverages, the words written on the board can be divided into another two
categories. Turn and TalkFT about what your think the two categories might be.
○ Have participants Share OutFT.
○ Answer: Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
● Say: Alcoholic beverages and non-alcoholic beverages is an important difference in
beverages.
○ Say: Alcoholic beverages are those that are made by distilling or fermenting
certain types of grains, fruits or vegetables. Alcohol consists of ‘ethanol’ which
can result in one feeling relaxed, or other changes in mood, when consumed in
moderation. Alcoholic beverages also have a distinct flavor, which many guests
enjoy.
○ Say: Non-alcoholic beverages are those that do not have alcohol in it. Examples
of these could be tea, coffee, milkshakes, juices, and mocktails.
● Pause to answer any questions that participants might have.

Instructor note: Participants might have some biases regarding the consumption of alcohol,
which might become evident through some of their questions or their hesitation to show
familiarity with alcohol or through some conversation or comment you might overhear. Be
sensitive to these as some participants might have a personal story behind this bias; at the
same time, use the opportunity to tell participants that alcohol can be enjoyed responsibly.

Common Beverages for Meals

● Say: As you know, guests come in to have meals at different times. However, mealtimes
bring in most guests. Common meals are breakfast - commonly served before 11:00 am,
lunch - commonly served between 11:30 am - 2:30 pm, and dinner - commonly served
between 5:00 pm - 11:00 pm. These are times when guests might like to have a
beverage.

● Say: There are some beverages which are best had during breakfast, others while
having lunch and still others during dinner. A guest can choose to have any beverage as
they please, however, some pairs are most popular.
● Say: In the morning, guests generally want to wake up or start the day with
something healthy.
○ Say: Some beverages are called stimulants which means they wake you up
because of the caffeine in it. Common stimulants are different types of tea and
coffee. Healthy offerings are often milk based or fruit based. These might

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 include milk shakes, milk based drinks like complan and horlicks, and fresh or
canned juices.
● Say: At lunch time, some guests might prefer drinks in addition to water. They
might want to have alcoholic beverages as well as non-alcoholic beverages.
○ Say: Common alcoholic beverages served during lunch include wine or beer.
○ Say: Sometimes guests prefer a non-alcoholic beverages at lunch because they
have to go back to work or carry on with their day. In this case, they may ask for
carbonated beverages such as sparking water or soda, including coke, ginger
ale, etc.
● Say: Dinner times are when most guests want to relax at the of the end or
celebrate without having to go back to any work they need to attend to.
○ Say: Guests might show a preference for alcoholic beverages during this meal.
In addition to wine and beer, liquors such as whiskey, rum, vodka, gin, and
brandy are commonly served at dinner. Guests may choose to have these on
their own or as part of a mixed drink or cocktail (e.g. vodka tonic, whiskey and
ginger ale).
○ Say: Guests may also choose to have a tea. Green tea is a popular choice in
Asian restaurants during dinner time as green tea helps clear any excess oil or
fat in the digestive system. Calming herbal teas, such as chamomile are also
popular post-dinner beverages.

Instructor note: Be prepared to answer questions about different types of liquors. If you are
able to show participants what these drinks look like, do that so they can visually see.

Check for Understanding:

● Give Directions:
1. I will say the name of a beverage and you will have to decide whether this
beverage is typically had during breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
2. When I say “Go!” if you think it’s most common to have this beverage during
breakfast, you will raise 1 finger.
3. If you think it’s most common to have this beverage during lunch, you will raise
2 fingers.
4. If you think it’s most common to have this beverage during dinner, you will raise
3 fingers.
5. Are there any questions before we get started.

Instructor note: You will be using GesturesFT after reading each of the words listed below. Feel
free to ask Follow Up QuestionsFT (e.g. Why would that likely be consumed at dinner?)
between words so you can get a sense of why participants chose that meal. Note that some of
these beverages can be had during more than one meal. That’s okay.
● Fresh Coconut water
● Gin and Tonic
● Fresh Grape Juice

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 ● Solkadi
● Daiquiri
● Strawberry Mango Mocktail
● Coca cola
● Canned Cranberry Juice
● Cappuccino
● White Ceylon Tea

PRACTICE: Taboo (10 minutes)

Instructor note: In this section, participants will list and describe beverages based on the
meals they are likely served with - breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

● Say: We will now do an activity to practice identifying and describing different beverages
had during breakfast, lunch and dinner.

● Give Directions
1. Form groups of three.
2. Each member of the group will think of three beverages in your mind.
3. When I ask you to start, one person from the group will describe the beverage
without saying the name of the beverage nor mentioning at which meal
they are had.
4. For example, if you have chosen the drink red wine, you might say, “It is had with
meat, one sips it instead of gulping it down, it is served in fine dining restaurants,
it is generally made of grapes, etc.” Notice, I did not use the word wine nor did I
say lunch or dinner.
5. Try and list names of beverages which are not common, as it will help you help
your peers learn newer things.
6. The other people in the group will guess the beverage you are describing and
say which meal it is typically had.
7. Once, guessed correctly, the next person will describe. Thus we will have three
rounds.

Instructor note: Walk AroundFT and suggest uncommon beverages to participants to increase
the rigor of the activity. Some examples are:
1. Gin (dry, had with lemon, looks like water, GreyGoose is a popular brand)
2. Old Monk (looks like cola, it’s made in India, people have it with coke)
3. Brandy (It’s very good for cold and is sometimes considered to be medicinal)
4. Vodka (it looks like water, is made of potatoes, and originates from Russia, Absolut is a
popular brand)
5. Ginger Ale (it is made of a spice with some sugar)
6. Peach Iced Tea (it is a light drink, had cold, and has a fruity flavour, yet can keep you
awake)
7. Hot Chocolate (it is generally enjoyed by children, it looks like melted ice-cream and is
dark brown)

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 8. Latte (it has milk and coffee and can be enjoyed without having a huge caffeine rush)
9. Masala Chai (it is brown in colour had with milk and can have a variety of spices)
10. Sangria (It is best enjoyed chilled and has fruit pieces in it)
11. Martini (it is an alcoholic drink served in a special glass with an olive on the rim of the
glass)
12. Tomato Juice (It is red in color, made of a vegetable, generally has no added sugar)

Debrief
● Ask the following questions. Share Out.FT
○ Were there any beverages which you felt could be had during all meals?
■ Possible answer: lemonade, iced teas, light juices
○ Would you recommend vodka during breakfast? Why or Why not?
■ Possible answer: It might not be appropriate to suggest alcohol in the
morning to some guests hence, some probing might help you find out that
the guests indeed prefer an alcoholic beverage, which you could then
recommend.

CONTENT: Answering Questions and Making Recommendations (30 minutes)

Instructor note: This section aims to help participants answer common guest questions about
beverages. It is particularly important to reinforce growth mindset during this section as it may
initially seem daunting to participants.

● Say: As a steward, guests may ask you to recommend beverages that go well with their
meal. You may also be expected to offer beverages to guests as it is an added source of
revenue for the hotel.
● Ask: What are some questions that guests may ask you about beverages? Turn and
TalkFT and then Share Out.FT
○ Possible answers:
■ What would you suggest with this (name of the meal)?
■ Which different types of wines do you have?
■ What does (name of a mocktail/cocktail/drink) contain?
■ Are your juices fresh or canned? Do they have added sugar?
■ Is the milk used skimmed?
■ What flavors are available in this (brand)?
■ What does (beverage name) taste like?

Instructor note: Add any of the above questions that participants don’t share out on their own.

● Say: You will want to get to know guest preferences before making a recommendation
and it will help you to know basic pointers about what beverages pair well with dishes.
We are going to go over those. However, in some case, especially in the beginning
of your career, you will likely need to request the help of other stewards and
colleagues, like bartenders to provide the best support to guests.

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 ○ Say: In this case, you may simply tell the guest that to provide them with the best
service, you are going to request the support of your colleague and you will be
right back.
.
● Say: In other cases, you can start to answer their questions by better
understanding their preferences. One important way you can get information about
your guest preferences is to ask them questions.
○ Ask: What are some questions you might ask to get to know guest preferences?
■ Possible answers: Would you prefer an alcoholic or non-alcoholic
beverage? Would you prefer a caffeinated beverage or something decaf?

● Say: Additionally, it will benefit you to know that some beverages are commonly
paired with certain dishes or flavors.
○ Say: For example, sometimes people like a contrast in flavor. If a guest is
eating something that has a strong flavor of lemon, they may not want a
lemonade or any other drink that has a lemon flavor. However, in some cases,
people prefer to continue the flavor of the food they are having. Hence,
some people might like a sweetened tea with a french toast for example.
○ Say: Red wine tastes best with heavy meats, like beef or lamb, but it might be
better to avoid it with extremely spicy food. White wine is generally had with food
which is gently flavored such as seafood, salads, and white meat, like chicken.
○ Say: Fatty or oily foods generally go well with drinks that are carbonated. For
example, you might recall that beer is generally had with fried food. People often
also like to have coke or any other carbonated drink with pizza.
○ Say: Desserts might be often paired with a coffee, tea, or dessert wine.

● Say: Overall, you want to make sure you ask at least one, and in some cases more,
questions to understand guest preference. It will benefit you to make recommendations
that match with those preferences and with your knowledge of pairings. Finally, it is
beneficial to give guests a choice in your recommendations.

● Pause here and ask participants if they have any questions.

PRACTICE: ANSWERING QUESTIONS AND MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS (10

minutes)
Instructor note: In this section, participants will practice answering questions and making
recommendations based on guest preferences.

● Say: We will now do a role play to practice answering common questions and making
better recommendations to guests about beverages.

● Give Directions
1. Please stand and form groups of three.

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 2. In each group there will be one participant who is the steward and the other two
will play the role of guests wanting to have a beverage with their meal.
3. There are three scenarios and each participant will play steward once.
4. The handouts contain the information about the dish the guests want to order.
5. At the end of the role play, each steward will be given feedback by the guests on
how he/she has performed. Guests, use the feedback notes on your handout to
give feedback.
6. Each round will last three minutes, at the end of the three minutes, you will be
given two minutes to provide feedback and when I say “Change” you will start
with the next scenario.
7. Please decide who will be the steward first and let’s clarify any questions you
might have about the activity.

Instructor note: Walk AroundFT to check if participants as guests are asking the right
questions and if the steward is answering them correctly. Assess the stewards on the feedback
checklist provided in the handout. Play the role of a guest, if you can, to increase rigor.

● At the end of the activity, choose 1-2 groups to perform for the whole group and provide
feedback based on the criteria included on the handout.

CLOSING (5 minutes)
Instructor note: This section allows participants to reflect on what they have learnt in the
session.

● Say: We have come to the end of the session, does anyone have any questions?
● Ask the following questions. Have participants Turn and TalkFT
○ Why is it important to have a growth mindset when you are trying to pair the right
beverages and make the best recommendations?
■ Answer: It might seem daunting at first, to know the names of different
beverages, their ingredients, how they taste and how they are paired.
However, knowing that we will get better with practice will indeed help us
make the best recommendations for guests.
○ How does it help to focus on the customer while making these
recommendations? How did you do this during your role plays?
■ Answer: Beverages add to the experience of the food which might leave
the guest very satisfied or dissatisfied if the recommendation is not good.
Listening to the customer’s preference and providing them a choice can
help make a good suggestion and increase one’s own self esteem about
doing a great job.

● Review the learning objectives.

● Thank participants for their engagement.

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 -- End of Session --

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