FYI from MCI™

"We welcome tour groups" - Magic words that make mealtime easy

You think you have all the ingredients of a perfect tour: you've selected a great destination, your coach is in tip-top shape, and you have a nice big group of paying passengers.

Then comes lunch.

Nothing can throw off a restaurant quite like having 40 people all show up at once. And few things can disrupt your tour quite like a poorly chosen, disorganized or slow meal stop. Fortunately, many restaurants welcome large groups and go to great efforts to make the dining experience as easy as possible with convenient call-ahead service, advance-pay options, group discounts and free meals for drivers.

It pays to plan ahead

While most operators have relationships with local restaurants, finding a good spot out on the road takes some advance planning. Website search engines are a fine tool for finding restaurants that make a point of accommodating tour buses. Simply typing in terms like “restaurant” and “tour buses welcome” will offer up many hits, from roadside buffet spots to big-city steakhouses. Additionally, many restaurant chains and individual dining spots are members of the American Bus Association. A quick search at the ABA website (www.buses.org) is sure to reveal one that’s on your route.

Many larger restaurant chains even offer web pages outlining their coach-tour policy. Here are just a few:

• Cracker Barrel. Named the best restaurant chain for tour groups by the ABA's Destinations Magazine, the folksy restaurant is decidedly high-tech in its handling of tour groups nationwide. Its Tour Group Program allows for prearranged meal payment, advance arrival notification and a complimentary meal for the driver when accompanied by 15 or more passengers. Check out www.crackerbarrel.com for details.
  
• Ryan's. This national family restaurant chain features call-ahead service and free driver meal with 20 or more passengers. To find out more, visit www.ryansrg.com.
  
• Golden Corral. This nationwide roadside restaurant group's web page points out that staff greet every coach and escort the group to the dining area. With 500 locations nationwide, Golden Corral offers a website that allows searching by route, state or destination. Try it out at www.goldencorralsusa.com.
  
• Barnhill's. On its website, this southern buffet chain promises to "roll out the red carpet" for tour groups. It offers group discounts and, for the driver, a complimentary meal and filled beverage thermos. Visit www.barnhills.com.
  
• Piccadilly Cafeterias is a familiar name to most who travel the South. In addition to free driver's meals (with 20 passengers), it offers a group sales department that will look at tour group organizers' routes and figure out which restaurants are convenient and estimate how long it will take to feed the group based on size and arrival time. www.piccadilly.com.
  
• Old Country Buffet, Hometown Buffet. This nationwide chain offers advance meal vouchers and maintains a group sales office to smooth the way for tour operators. www.buffet.com.

Do you have a favorite coach-friendly restaurant? Tell us about it. If you're one of the first 10 to e-mail us your response at fyi@mcicoach.net, we'll send you a free limited edition MCI bar-b-que apron!

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