How Restaurants Attract Premium Customers Who Actually Pay What You Are Worth

It Took Me 5 Years to Realize I Was Selling to the Wrong People

For five years, I was focused on the wrong customers.

I was chasing volume. Trying to appeal to everyone. Pricing to be accessible. Competing on affordability. Wondering why growth felt so hard and why the clients I attracted were often the most difficult to work with.

Then something clicked.

I realized that the people who had the money—the actual money that my systems and services were worth—were not the people I was marketing to. I was speaking to people who could not afford what I offered, trying to convince them to stretch. And they resented me for the price even when they said yes.

The moment I shifted my focus to the people who already valued what I provided, everything changed. The sales became easier. The relationships became better. The results became bigger. And the stress? It dropped dramatically.

Today, I want to share this lesson with restaurant owners. Because most of you are making the same mistake I made. You are trying to fill tables with anyone who will come, instead of designing an experience that attracts the people who will pay what you are actually worth.

What Premium Actually Means

Let me start with someone who understands this better than almost anyone.

Will Guidara was the co-owner of Eleven Madison Park, which he helped elevate to the number one restaurant in the world. His philosophy is called Unreasonable Hospitality, and it reframes what being premium actually means.

Most people think premium is about high-quality products. Expensive ingredients. Formal service. Fancy decor.

Guidara argues that true luxury is about something deeper: the profound emotional impact you have on people.

Being premium requires investing as much—or more—in the guest experience and human connection as in the product itself. It is not about what you serve. It is about how you make people feel.

This distinction matters because it changes who you are trying to attract. You are not looking for people who want expensive food. You are looking for people who value exceptional experiences and are willing to pay for them.

Those are different customers. And they require a different approach.

How Rich People Buy Differently

Here is something I finally understood after years of getting it wrong.

Poor people see what is in front of them and make the decision right there. Price is the primary filter. They ask: can I afford this? And if the answer is uncertain, they hesitate, negotiate, or walk away.

Rich people look at what is worthy. What is valuable. What is fast. What is excellent. They ask: is this worth my time and money? And if the answer is yes, price becomes secondary.

This is not a judgment about people. It is an observation about buying behavior.

When you market to price-sensitive customers, you enter a race to the bottom. You compete on discounts. You attract people who will leave for a better deal. You work harder for less margin.

When you market to value-sensitive customers, you enter a different game entirely. You compete on excellence. You attract people who appreciate quality. You build relationships that last. And you get paid what your work is actually worth.

The question every restaurant owner needs to answer is: which game are you playing?

The Numbers Behind the Tiers

Let me show you the actual income distribution, because this makes the opportunity concrete.

In the United States, income breaks down roughly like this. About thirty percent of households are lower class, earning less than fifty-six thousand dollars annually. About fifty-one percent are middle class, with the median household income around eighty-three thousand dollars. About nineteen percent are upper class, typically earning above one hundred sixty-seven thousand dollars. And about one percent—the truly wealthy—earn approximately seven hundred eighty thousand dollars or more per year.

In Norway, where I live, the distribution looks different but the tiers are similar. The median after-tax household income is around six hundred seventy-six thousand kroner. High earners make over one and a half million kroner annually. And the top one percent earns above one point eight million kroner per year.

The specific numbers vary by country and city. But the pattern is universal.

Here is what matters for your restaurant: even though there are fewer people in the upper tiers, what those people pay is five to ten times larger than what the masses pay. They are less of a headache. Less price-sensitive. Less likely to complain about small things. And they want the best in everything they do.

If you position your restaurant to serve that tier, you need fewer customers to make more money. And the customers you do have will be better to work with.

The Strategic Choice

Every restaurant has to make a choice about which tier to serve.

If you want to serve the masses, you compete on price and volume. You need high traffic, low margins, and operational efficiency. You ignore the top one percent because they are not your customer. This is a valid business model—fast casual, quick service, high-volume operations.

If you want to serve the premium tier, you compete on experience and excellence. You need fewer customers, higher margins, and an obsessive focus on how you make people feel. You design everything for the upper class and the top one percent. This is a different business model—fine dining, luxury casual, destination experiences.

The mistake most restaurants make is trying to do both. They want premium prices but mass-market positioning. They want wealthy customers but discount-driven marketing. They end up in the middle, which is the worst place to be.

The middle is where you are too expensive for price-sensitive customers and not special enough for value-sensitive customers. You attract no one strongly and struggle to fill tables.

Pick a tier. Design for that tier. Market to that tier. Serve that tier excellently.

Being Different, Not a Proxy

Here is a test for whether you are truly premium or just expensive.

When a customer compares your restaurant to the one around the corner, what do they say?

If the conversation is about price—"this one is more expensive, that one is cheaper"—you are a commodity. A proxy. Interchangeable with alternatives. Customers will choose based on convenience and cost.

If the conversation is about experience—"this one makes me feel something different, I cannot get that anywhere else"—you are premium. You are not being compared on price because you are not comparable. You exist in a category of one.

The goal is to be so different that comparison becomes irrelevant.

This does not mean you have to be the most expensive restaurant in your city. It means you have to be the most memorable. The most intentional. The most committed to making people feel something they did not expect to feel.

That is what Will Guidara means by unreasonable hospitality. Going beyond what is reasonable. Surprising people. Creating moments. Making them feel seen and valued in ways that other restaurants simply do not attempt.

When you do this, price stops being the conversation. Value becomes the conversation. And the people who value experiences—who happen to be the people with money—will find you.

How We Find High-Value Customers

This is how we think about it for the restaurants we work with.

First, we help you identify who your high-value customer actually is. Not everyone with money is your customer. You need to understand who specifically would love what you offer—their demographics, their behaviors, their values, what they are looking for in a dining experience.

Second, we help you position your restaurant to attract them. This means your messaging, your content, your visuals, your online presence—all of it needs to signal quality and experience, not discounts and deals. Premium customers filter out anything that looks mass-market.

Third, we help you reach them. This is where distribution comes in. The channels, the targeting, the systems that put your restaurant in front of the right people at the right time. Not everyone—the right ones.

Fourth, we help you keep them. High-value customers become high-value regulars when the experience delivers on the promise. Retention systems, personalized communication, recognition that makes them feel valued. This is where the real revenue compounds.

The restaurants we work with do not need more customers. They need the right customers. Fewer people spending more, staying longer, returning often, and bringing others like them.

That is the premium game. And it is a fundamentally different business than chasing volume.

The Shift in Your Mind

Before you can attract premium customers, you have to believe your restaurant deserves them.

This is where most restaurant owners get stuck. They undervalue what they have built. They price based on fear rather than worth. They discount to fill tables instead of investing in the experience that would fill tables without discounts.

You have to see your restaurant the way a premium customer would see it. What makes it special? What cannot be replicated? What emotional experience do you create that is worth paying for?

If you cannot answer those questions, that is the work you need to do first. Build something worthy of premium prices. Then charge those prices confidently.

If you can answer those questions—if you know your food is exceptional, your hospitality is genuine, your experience is memorable—then the only thing missing is distribution. Getting in front of the people who would love you and can afford you.

That is what we help with.

The Invitation

If you are running a restaurant that deserves premium customers but is not attracting them, I have something for you.

I wrote a guide called The Premiumification Playbook. It goes deeper into everything I covered in this post—how to position your restaurant for high-value customers, how to communicate premium without saying "we are expensive," and how to attract the people who will pay what you are actually worth.

Download the free guide here: The Premiumification Playbook (PDF)

Read it. Apply it. See what shifts.

And if you want help implementing this—if you are ready for a team that understands premium positioning and can actually execute it for your restaurant—reach out.

Send an email to [email protected]

Tell me about your restaurant. Tell me what makes it special. Tell me who your ideal customer is—and who you have been attracting instead.

I will read every word. I will respond personally. And I will be honest about whether we can help you reach the premium tier you are aiming for.

Because here is the truth I learned the hard way: selling to the wrong people is exhausting. Selling to the right people is energizing.

Find the right people. Serve them excellently. And let the people who cannot afford you find restaurants more suited to their budget.

That is not arrogance. That is clarity.

And clarity is how you build a premium restaurant.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do you mean by premium customers?

Premium customers are people who buy based on value and experience rather than price. They have the income to pay for excellence and they actively seek it out. They are less price-sensitive, more loyal, and less likely to complain about small things. They want the best and they are willing to pay for it.

How do I know if my restaurant is ready for premium positioning?

Ask yourself: is my food genuinely excellent? Is my service genuinely memorable? Do customers leave feeling something special? If yes, you are ready. If not, fix those fundamentals first. Premium positioning only works when the experience delivers on the promise.

Does premium mean I have to be the most expensive restaurant in my area?

No. Premium is about experience, not price point. You can be moderately priced and still attract premium customers if your experience is exceptional. The key is being different enough that price comparison becomes irrelevant.

What if I am in a neighborhood that does not have wealthy residents?

Premium customers travel for experiences. If your restaurant is worth the trip, they will come. Your immediate neighborhood matters less than your positioning and your ability to reach the right people through marketing.

How do I attract premium customers without alienating my current ones?

You may need to let some current customers go. If your current customers are primarily price-sensitive, attracting premium customers will require changes that those customers do not appreciate. This is uncomfortable but necessary. You cannot serve everyone excellently.

What does Will Guidara mean by unreasonable hospitality?

It means going beyond what customers expect. Creating moments that surprise them. Making them feel seen as individuals, not transactions. It is hospitality that is unreasonably generous, unreasonably personal, unreasonably memorable. This is what separates premium from merely expensive.

How do the income tiers affect my pricing strategy?

If you want to serve the upper nineteen percent of households, your pricing and experience should reflect what that tier values. If you want to serve the top one percent, you need to be exceptional in ways that justify exceptional prices. Know your tier and design everything for it.

Why are premium customers less of a headache?

Because they are paying for excellence and they expect it. They are not looking for discounts or trying to negotiate. They appreciate quality and reward it with loyalty. The transaction is cleaner and the relationship is more enjoyable for both sides.

How do I shift from mass-market to premium positioning?

Start with experience. Elevate every touchpoint. Then adjust your messaging to signal quality instead of deals. Then target your marketing to reach higher-income customers. Finally, raise your prices to reflect your value. It is a process, not an overnight change.

How do you help restaurants find premium customers?

We help with positioning—making sure your restaurant signals quality in everything it does. We help with distribution—reaching the right people through the right channels. We help with retention—keeping premium customers coming back. We help with systems—making all of this run consistently without constant owner attention.

Jeffry Jonas is the founder of Anth Consulting, a restaurant growth team that helps restaurants attract high-value customers. After five years of learning who to sell to—and who not to—he now focuses on helping restaurants position themselves for the premium tier where fewer customers mean more revenue and less stress.