Danielle Casilio

Founder

Danielle started waitressing when she was a teenager living on the east coast. Since then, she has worked to bring simplicity to venues across the country. She currently lives in Los Angeles and works as the CEO and CTO of Yelli, which she founded in 2019.

Written By Danielle Casilio,

Restaurant Lingo: 10 Most Commonly Used Terms

Danielle Casilio

A guide to the 10 most commonly used restaurant terms.

Navigating the Divide: Front of House vs. Back of House in Restaurants

Danielle Casilio

Why effective communication and collaboration between FOH and BOH is essential.

Server Tips: Table Setting and Clearing

Danielle Casilio

Table setting, course setting, pre-bussing and clearing are all important factors that influence guests' experience and help you to be more efficient during service.

Top 3 Benefits of Implementing a Digital Training Platform in Your Restaurant

Danielle Casilio

While there are many benefits to using training software, these are the top 3 most common that our clients experience.

How-To-Yelli: Getting Started

Danielle Casilio

How to set up Yelli for your restaurant in 6 simple steps.

3 Tips for Keeping Service Stations Organized

Danielle Casilio

The service stations are crucial for your team's success.

Server Tips: Working in a Pooled House

Danielle Casilio

How to make the most of working in a tip-pool system

Manager Huddle: Why It’s Important to Get (And Keep) Your Management Team On The Same Page

Danielle Casilio

We’re taking a step back and making sure that the root of where decisions are coming from (your management team) is organized and aligned.

How-To-Yelli: Creating Training Schedules

Danielle Casilio

How to use Yelli to create custom training schedules for new hires to follow during on-the-job training in 3 easy steps.

Server Tips: The Importance of Pre-Bussing

Danielle Casilio

Understanding what pre-bussing is, how to do it correctly, and how it can make or break service for both the guests and your team.

3 Ways To Keep Your Team (and Yourself) Motivated

Danielle Casilio

Use these tips to keep yourself and your team motivated, uplifted, and ready to perform!

Server Tips: Mastering Menu Knowledge

Danielle Casilio

Help yourself and the rest of your team to make more money, reduce stress, and improve the guest experience by really mastering the menu.

Keeping Your Training Material Up To Date

Danielle Casilio

Once you’ve taken the steps to create a solid training program, you’ll need to be able to easily keep it up to date.

Server Tips: How To Anticipate Guest Needs, Keeping You Out Of The Weeds

Danielle Casilio

It took me a long time to learn how to anticipate guest needs, but once I did, serving became easier and I was able to relax and trust my instincts.

How-To-Yelli: Building Menus

Danielle Casilio

Step-by-step guide on building food and drink menus in Yelli and how to keep them updated in real-time.

Creating Culture: Tips for Hiring The Best Restaurant Team

Danielle Casilio

4 Tips to help improve your hiring process, create a great workplace culture, and build a team of rockstars.

How-To-Yelli: Roster and Team Onboarding

Danielle Casilio

How to navigate the roster screen and onboard new team members to your Yelli account

Writing Manuals and Procedures For Restaurant Teams Without Templates

Danielle Casilio

How to write effective manuals and procedures for your team, and why templates can be more counterproductive than helpful.‍

Technology In Restaurants: Paper to Digital and The Learning Curve Managers Are Facing

Danielle Casilio

How should we be adapting to the wave of tech that’s currently taking over our industry?

For The Newbies: Best Practices When Training Green Restaurant Employees

Danielle Casilio

Training someone to work in a restaurant even if they never have before doesn’t have to be difficult, but it’s helpful to keep a few things in mind when doing so.

4 Key Elements That Your Testing Program Should Focus On

Danielle Casilio

Managers who thoroughly test their new hires are really doing them a favor, ultimately keeping them from falling behind in service.

3 Ways To Improve Table and Seat Number Systems

Danielle Casilio

Let’s take a look at 3 ways to improve the table and seat number system in your restaurant, along with the most common mistakes most restaurants make in this area.

Server Tips: 3 Tips To Help You Crush It On Valentines Day

Danielle Casilio

For all of us working in the restaurant industry, this is one of our busiest days of the year. Here's how to crush it.

Top 3 Most Common Mistakes Restaurant Managers Make When Testing Employees

Danielle Casilio

Building a test and quiz program for your restaurant is important if you want to be able to effectively train new employees and gauge their product knowledge and performance levels.

Building An Effective Training Program For New Restaurant Employees

Danielle Casilio

How to outline an effective training program, keep it up to date, and how to execute it consistently.

Server Tips: 3 Best Practices for Dealing With Difficult Customers

Danielle Casilio

Dealing with difficult customers is just something that you have to accept will happen, so why not be prepared for it when it does?

Best Practices For Training Your Team On Bar Knowledge

Danielle Casilio

Tips for getting your bar program organized, training employees, and increasing drink sales.

How Guest Experience Improves When Restaurant Managers Communicate Expectations Clearly With Their Team

Danielle Casilio

Improve your guests overall experience, reduce staff errors that cost you money, and enjoy a more positive workplace culture by making communication a priority for your venue.

Why Traditional Training Methods Don’t Work For Restaurant Teams

Danielle Casilio

Staying organized and simplifying information should be the basis of good restaurant training.

Organization: The Key To Restaurant Success That Most Overlook

Danielle Casilio

Managers and team leaders can often overlook disorganization in the workplace once it becomes a challenge that no one seems willing to work with them on

Server Tips: A Beginners Guide To Perfect Wine Service

Danielle Casilio

A beginners guide to perfect wine service

3 Red Flags That Make Restaurant Workers Leave A New Job

Danielle Casilio

To make sure you attract (and keep!) the best of the best, get organized, improve your communication, and elevate your culture.

Ditch the Paper Handouts: How Restaurants Should Be Modernizing Their Staff Training

Danielle Casilio

Let’s talk about how to get rid of paper packets and how to modernize staff training in your restaurant.

Menu Matrix: Why Every Restaurant Needs One + Free Template Download!

Danielle Casilio

Have you developed a detailed menu matrix for your team?

Server Tips: 3 Best Practices for Upselling in Food and Beverage

Danielle Casilio

Upselling as a server or bartender is a great way to boost check averages, build rapport with guests, and grow within your restaurant.

Server Tips: 5 Items To Always Keep in Your Apron

Danielle Casilio

Smooth and seamless service is our goal, and these tools are the only way we get there.

The Pros and Cons of Tip-Pooling: From A Server’s Perspective

Danielle Casilio

Pros and cons of a tip-pool structure from the perspective of a waitress.

How Do I Do The Job? How To Write An Honest Job Description For Restaurant Workers: Part 4

Danielle Casilio

In this fourth and final part of our job description series, we are going to go over how to outline specific job responsibilities for new hires.

What is Your Workplace Culture? How To Write An Honest Job Description For Restaurant Workers: Part 3

Danielle Casilio

What is workplace culture and why is it important in your hiring process?

What Does It Feel Like? How To Write An Honest Job Description For Restaurant Workers: Part 2

Danielle Casilio

Tell a story...Once I clock in and my shift begins, what does that 6-8 hours look and feel like?

How To Write An Honest Job Description For Restaurant Workers: Part 1

Danielle Casilio

In today’s restaurant industry, managers need every edge they can get to hire good staff and keep them.

5 Reasons to Use Technology In Your Restaurant

Danielle Casilio

Our industry is in the midst of a technological revolution. Here are 5 reasons why.

“I Don’t Want To Work...For You” How Successful Restaurant Managers Are Navigating The Labor Crisis

Danielle Casilio

Creating a positive workplace culture is no small feat. Especially in restaurants, and especially during a global pandemic.

Server Tips: The Difference Between Comps and Voids

Danielle Casilio

Defining these terms and making sure your team members understand them will help you reduce comps and voids, and improve the accuracy of your P&L reports.

3 Reasons To Fire Toxic Restaurant Workers

Danielle Casilio

While keeping staff turnover low and guest satisfaction high, you need to be willing to let go of employees that don’t work out.

Effective Leadership in Restaurants: How Changing Your Message Changes The Game

Danielle Casilio

A good leader communicates in a way that makes people want to do what they say, but what does that look like?

Uniform Guidelines: Why the Details Matter

Danielle Casilio

Wrap it all up and make it look good, just like your staff!

Pros and Cons of Pre-Shift: Are Daily Meetings Necessary?

Danielle Casilio

If a pre-shift meeting is part of your restaurant, this article will help you see if your pre-shifts are serving their purpose.

3 Steps To Make Your Restaurant More Productive

Danielle Casilio

Cut out what isn’t working, what you don’t really need, and what complicates service for you and your team.

4 Ways To Write A Better Menu

Danielle Casilio

The time and effort you put into creating a menu that works for everyone will pay off in the long run.

Investing in Your Best Assets: How Training and Organization Improve the Employee Experience

Danielle Casilio

The truth is that at the root of all good service is knowledge combined with an attentive team member.

Simplify Your Restaurant: Why Your Team Will Thank You

Danielle Casilio

Do our team members really have access to everything they need to perform at the level we want them to?

The Story of One Server: Why Communication Is Key

Danielle Casilio

I started to notice that poor communication is what could (and would) very quickly lead us to a chaotic service.