It’s My Birthday

Well. Not today, but it was on 12th March. So, according to half the restaurants in my inbox, it is my birthday month.

And apparently, the way to celebrate is very clear. Every year, the same email arrives.

“It’s your birthday month. Book a table for two and enjoy a complimentary bottle of wine.”

Or a variation on the same theme.

“Celebrate your birthday with us, and we’ll treat you to a glass of Champagne.”

And every year I look at it and think the same thing.

What if you don’t drink?

Restaurants and hotels talk endlessly about personalised service. They pride themselves on attention to detail. Staff are trained to notice things. How you take your coffee. Which table do you prefer? What you ordered last time.

Yet when it comes to birthday offers, the thinking suddenly becomes very one-dimensional.

Wine.

Champagne.

Prosecco.

As if every person celebrating a birthday wants alcohol placed in front of them.

I don’t drink. I stopped years ago. So when these emails arrive, they feel oddly tone deaf and repetitive. I suppose the intention is kind. The gesture is generous enough. But it shows how little thought has gone into it or how little these companies realise that the world is changing, personal choices are changing.

And I know I’m not alone.

Plenty of people don’t drink. Some never have. Some stopped for health reasons. Some are pregnant. Some are training. Some simply don’t enjoy it. Increasingly, people are choosing alcohol free options because they want to sleep better, feel better and wake up without a headache.

Restaurants already know this. Most now offer alcohol-free beer, botanical spirits, and proper alcohol-free cocktails. The drinks lists have evolved. The birthday marketing has not.

The assumption still sits there quietly in the background and often it comes from those you think should know better like Cubitt House and Country Creatures.

A birthday equals a bottle of wine.

The strange thing is how easy it would be to get this right.

If you’re trying to tempt someone through the door during their birthday month, there are far better ideas.

A beautiful pudding brought to the table with a candle.

A carefully made alcohol free cocktail.

A glass of sparkling tea.

Coffee and handmade chocolates at the end of the meal.

A complimentary starter to share.

Even a small birthday cake boxed up to take home.

None of these excludes anyone. Everyone at the table feels part of the celebration.

More importantly, it shows thought.

The best hospitality experiences always come down to that. Someone has paid attention. Someone has thought about the person in front of them.

Some restaurants already do this well. When you book, they ask a simple question.

“Are you celebrating something special?”

From there, the small, important touches appear. A handwritten card. A candle. A favourite table. Nothing extravagant. Just a feeling that someone has noticed.

That is real hospitality.

A bottle of wine used to feel like a treat. Now it often feels like a default setting with no thought.

Birthdays deserve a little more imagination than that.