ISO 21621:2021

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 21621
First edition
2021-11
Tourism and related services —
Traditional restaurants — Visual
aspects, decoration and services
Tourisme et services connexes — Restaurants traditionnels — Aspects
visuels, décoration et services
Reference number
© ISO 2021
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ii
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Features of the traditional restaurant . 2
4.1 General . 2
4.2 General features . 3
4.3 Entrance . 3
4.4 Main hall . 3
4.5 Annex spaces . 4
4.6 Station and parking lots . 5
4.7 Indoor and outdoor areas . 5
5 Mise en place — table setting . 5
6 Staff . 6
6.1 General requirements of the staff . 6
6.2 Staff qualifications . 6
7 Features of service . 7
7.1 Service requirements and recommendations . 7
7.2 Menu requirements . 7
8 Safety and security .8
9 Management . 8
10 Training . 9
Annex A (informative) Examples of cuisines from different countries .10
Bibliography .18
iii
Foreword
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iv
Introduction
Nowadays, national and ethnic restaurants providing both traditional and regional cuisines are located
everywhere, especially in tourist destinations.
Guests of these restaurants include tourists and local citizens taking advantage of the opportunity to
taste and experience other nationalities’ cuisines, even in their own country.
Feedback from guests of traditional restaurants indicates that the most important elements in
satisfying guests’ expectations are physical appearance, the harmonic combination of cultural factors
and the provision of services.
Hence, in order to ensure guest satisfaction, these restaurants can provide an ambience or desired
atmosphere, suitable space, equipment, table settings, menu design and other service characteristics.
Regardless of variations based on differences of nationality and culture, this document emphasizes
the cultural elements while rendering services and prioritizes a favourable environment and
authentic experience of customs and lifestyle related to the eating habits of other populations. Thus,
it will determine criteria regarding cuisines (e.g. food, beverages and supplements), living cultural
elements (e.g. dialects, costume) and catering arrangements (e.g. equipment, fixtures and accessories
all in synchronization with a given historical period), which can help promote the quality of services.
Therefore, visitors, both domestic and international, can choose their favourite place to eat and pay for
the service that they expect.
v
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 21621:2021(E)
Tourism and related services — Traditional restaurants —
Visual aspects, decoration and services
1 Scope
This document establishes requirements and recommendations related to the environment and the
service provision of traditional restaurants, which belong to a specific cuisine and custom of a specific
country or area.
This document specifies physical features of traditional restaurants (visual specifications for buildings,
furniture and decoration), elements related to the specific cuisine and customs of serving food as well
as staff requirements (clothing, behaviour, language) that affect the traditional style and quality of the
service.
Requirements related to the technical characteristics of the buildings and general requirements of
preparation and cooking in the kitchen and other back office spaces are not included in this document.
2 Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
traditional restaurant
public restaurant providing traditional food (3.2) and traditional beverages (3.3) in a specific style
specially aimed at ethnic cuisine
3.2
traditional food
foods and dishes passed through generations (or which have been consumed locally, regionally or both
for an extended time period) that play a major role in the traditions, identity and heritage of different
cultures
Note 1 to entry: Traditional food is generally prepared using traditional ingredients (raw material of primary
products), traditional composition or traditional types of production and/or processing methods.
3.3
traditional beverage
common beverage belonging to the local population of a city, area or country, or prepared by the
population’s ancestors
3.4
corrective action
action to eliminate the cause of a non-conformity (3.5) and to prevent recurrence
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.12.2, modified — Notes to entry removed.]
3.5
non-conformity
non-fulfilment of a requirement (3.6)
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.6.9, modified — Notes to entry removed.]
3.6
requirement
need or expectation that is stated, generally implied or obligatory
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.6.4, modified — Notes to entry removed.]
3.7
sustainability policy
intentions and direction of an organization, related to sustainability, as formally expressed by its top
management
[SOURCE: ISO 21401:2018, 3.41]
3.8
guest satisfaction
guest’s perception of the degree to which the guest’s requirements have been fulfilled
Note 1 to entry: Guest complaints are a common indicator of low guest satisfaction but their absence does not
necessarily imply high guest satisfaction.
Note 2 to entry: Even when the guest's requirements have been agreed with the guest and fulfilled, this does not
necessarily ensure high guest satisfaction.
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.9.2, modified — Note 3 to entry removed]
3.9
converted building
building with considerable artistic heritage value, used as a traditional restaurant (3.1) after having
implemented the necessary changes
Note 1 to entry: There are some procedures and instructions for these changes in each country in order to
maximize the conservation of the heritage value of such buildings.
3.10
carrying capacity
measure that addresses the question of how many visitors can be permitted into an area at any specific
time, taking into account at least the risk of degrading the site, its physical capacity and the visitors’
experience, safety and security
Note 1 to entry: These desirable limits measure the types and levels of sustainable use.
[SOURCE: ISO 18065:2015, 3.1, modified — "safety and security" added to definition.]
4 Features of the traditional restaurant
4.1 General
Regarding physical features and operation, traditional restaurants work under the disciplines of
catering establishments. The following subclauses detail the features of static appearance (e.g.
gardening, building, entrances, furniture, decoration, table setting) which contain the theatrical
aspects and cultural factors.
4.2 General features
4.2.1 Buildings used for traditional restaurants shall have architectural and decorat
...