Alan Sheinwald | West Point Alumni, Business Professional, & Community Leader

Fine Dining Tips

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Throughout his professional career and education, Alan Sheinwald has had ample experience with fine dining situations. Over the years he has learned many valuable tips and tricks that will allow you to look like a natural in the fine dining environment.

 

Tips and Tricks for Fine Dining

Fine dining? Aren’t those the types of restaurants with a billion forks and fancy waiters? Well, yes and no. Upper scale restaurants can have all those things (though it’s not a billion), but they are not as difficult to navigate as you may think. In fact, they can offer an invaluable dining experience.

Classifying “fine” dining

Also known as “white tablecloth restaurants,” fine dining establishments have a more formal atmosphere than your usual bar and grill. They offer costlier menu items to cater to a high-class clientele and usually require a dress code. Many “fine” dining experiences that Alan Sheinwald has experienced throughout his professional career include important business meetings, interviews, company celebrations and events, and more.

When you arrive

While you may not be turned away from a reservation if you show up in jeans, such attire is generally discouraged and can be intensely embarrassing. You may not have to arrive in your old prom clothes, but you should count on more formal attire. Men usually wear collar shirts, ties, or jackets, while ladies are expected to wear skirts, dresses, or some other kind of nice clothing.

What to expect from the food

The portions are smaller than a family restaurant, but provide a higher quality of cuisine. The menu is also more exotic; you’re not likely to find a stadium burger and fries. Some of these food items include foie gras (liver) and escargot (snails). Alan Sheinwald advises to try something different but to also be a little conservative. You don’t want to close your eyes and guess at a menu item to end up with something on your plate that your not sure how to handle. Being surprised at your dish will not impress the guests you are with.

Basic etiquette

While some things are just common sense (don’t talk with your mouth full), other forms of etiquette can be harder to spot:

  • Don’t leave your phone or keys on the table. It can be distracting for your fellow diners, the waiters, and also just clutters up the dining area.
  • If you’re the host, make your role clear by letting your guest order first (for example, you might say, “my guest would like to order first” when the waiter arrives).
  • Set up payment ahead of time to avoid the awkward grab for the check at the end of the meal. If you’re hosting, pick up the bill. Generally, the person who invites is the one who pays.
  • Don’t tell the sommelier (or “wine steward”) what you can afford on the wine list. Simply point to the wine in your price range and they will know how to stick within your budget. Also, don’t try to act like a wine connoisseur; it’s okay to just taste the wine when it arrives without pretending you’ve done it a thousand times before.
  • If you get up during the meal, place your napkin on your chair, not the table. When the meal is finished, it goes on the left-hand side of where your plate used to be. Also, don’t put your utensils on the table. Arrange them on your plate at a 10:20 angle.

No matter what your budget may be, fine dining is definitely worth experiencing at least once. Next time you feel like a night on the town, be adventurous. You’re bound to have a meal you’ll never forget!

To learn more about Alan Sheinwald and his experiences in the professional world, connect with him on his About.me page: https://about.me/alansheinwald.

Tips on Being a Good Coach: Alan Sheinwald

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Throughout his life and professional career, Alan Sheinwald has always been a natural leader.

For many years, Alan Sheinwald has volunteered as a softball coach in his local community. Coaching has been a wonderful experience and he has learned many important coaching strategies along the way that he has shared down below:

Alan Sheinwald - Coaching

How to be a good coach

  • Love your sport

For Alan Sheinwald, this is a given. The best coaches are passionate about their sport: They live and breathe it! Having both practical and theoretical understanding of the sport means the coach will be better equipped to teach it well.

  • Understand and motivate players

A good coach understands the strengths and weaknesses of each player and supports individuals accordingly. All of us perform better when we set goals to improve skills, and we are further motivated when we meet these goals. In a team many skills are needed, like a fast runner, a good defender, and an agile mover. A great coach will find the people who fit these roles best, and motivate the players to get better at their skills.

  • Improve skills

It’s not just the players who need to know how to improve, a good coach also trains themselves better. Alan Sheinwald suggests getting feedback from team players about how they would like to see practices improved as well as how you yourself can improve in your coaching methods. 

  • Make training challenging

Learning happens when we are challenged. The best coaches make sure there is an element of challenge in each training session. But they also know to not make it too difficult so motivation wanes.

  • Build a team

A great coach listens to the whole team. Players are more driven when they feel that their opinions are considered. A great team is where respect is shown between team members and peer-pressure is used positively to spur each other on to do better.

  • Focus on ALL players

Players have different abilities, and therefore need differentiated coaching to improve and play to their best ability. Focusing merely on one or two players, is not effective coaching and the team will suffer in the long run.

  • Have fun!

Of course there is routine and hard work in training, but a quality coach also brings fun and games into the drudgery of exercise. Planning socials events outside of the field is also a good idea. Not only is it fun, but it also increases team spirit and team bonding.

To learn more about his leadership roles and strategies, connect with Alan Sheinwald on Expertfile.