June 20, 2013

Women in Foodservice

Menu Innovations

There’s nothing quite as revitalizing as a cold drink on a hot summer afternoon. These days, however, restaurant guests are looking for more than just refreshment from their cold beverages. They are seeking fewer calories, healthful options, or, perhaps, a jolt of energy. Cold beverages, particularly carbonated ones, have been...

Marc Halperin: Resident F&B Expert

While attending the Research Chefs Association’s annual conference in San Antonio this past March, I wandered into the Esquire Tavern, a historic downtown institution with a cocktail menu capable of tempting even the most ardent teetotaler.

Executive Insights

They say the only thing you can count on is change. That adage is especially true in the quick-service C-suite, where new career opportunities can leave a company without its top executive at any time. This year has already witnessed a slew of CEO shake-ups, perhaps none as significant as when Jim Skinner retired and turned...

Franchising

Eric Wright signed on with Kona Ice, a shaved-ice concept, in 2009. His Kansas City–based business is mostly mobile and outdoor-oriented, consisting of food trucks, carts, and kiosks, and has become increasingly profitable despite sometimes less-than-ideal weather conditions. Wright has focused on developing new stations that can...

Denise Lee Yohn: QSR’s Marketing Guru

Q: The corporate office and I often debate what an effective marketing program is. How should we evaluate marketing ideas, and what are realistic expectations from a marketing program? 

Emerging Concepts

Mike Liautaud, president and founder of Milio’s Sandwiches, says when it comes down to it, he and his sandwich competitors are all “just putting lunch meat on bread.” But something else helped grow his concept from a single sandwich shop near the University of Wisconsin campus in 1989 into a 47-unit chain with locations...

Consumer Trends

Consumers today have an abundance of restaurant choices, and to stay competitive, quick-service operators must develop innovative strategies to remain profitable. Some operators have found that they can attract more customers by operating as flex-casual concepts, offering quick service by day and table service by night. Austin,...

Competition

With economic and climate pressures forcing commodity costs upward, many quick-serve C-suites are facing the grim task of raising menu prices. But with fears that such increases could impact sales and customer loyalty, executives are left to figure out how to best introduce these higher prices.

A Wing Zone franchisee changed his cooking equipment to get better results.
The Transformational Franchisee

Army and Air Force foodservice provider The Exchange has been serving U.S. military families since 1895 with meals in cafeteria lines and snack bars. It wasn’t until 1985, however, that it first signed a license agreement with a name-brand food franchisee—at the time, Burger King.

The Low Down on High Chair Cleanliness

The high chairs you keep on hand for your youngest customers are a welcome convenience for their moms and dads. But ensuring that high chair surfaces are cleaned and sanitized is often overlooked even in quick-service restaurants that employ the most disciplined hygiene procedures.

Five to Seven will invest in healthy and sustainble fast food brands globally.
Good Food for All

Five to Seven, a new restaurant funding initiative launched in May by foodservice industry veterans Brad Blum and John Vincent, has goodness at its core and as its goal. “Good food for the planet” is the initiative’s tagline, as Blum and Vincent want “good food”...

Ensure Ice Safety by Cleaning Frequently, Handling Properly

When it comes to ice, the Food and Drug Administration is crystal clear: Ice is considered a food—and it must be as safe as drinking water. The rule applies whether the ice is to be consumed or placed in contact with food or beverages to cool them.

Operators must protect their quick serve business from credit card fraud.
How to Prevent Credit Card Fraud

Every merchant that accepts credit and debit cards is required to be compliant with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS), whose next set of standards will be released in October 2013. Yet despite these compliance requirements, the food and beverage industry had the...

New fast food brands like Live Basil first start as innovative business ideas.
Birth of a Brand

It always starts with a simple idea.

For Brian Bailey at Ichor Restaurant Group, it began with the idea that Ohioans needed better barbecue. Six years after that idea initially took hold, Old Carolina Barbecue opened the doors to its first unit, in Canton, Ohio. The company later opened...

McAlisters Deli franchisee says casual dining experience helps in quick service.
What You Can Learn from Casual Dining

David Blackburn has been in the foodservice business his entire adult life. Since 1979, the McAlister’s Deli franchisee has cataloged more than 25 years of experience in the casual-dining sector, spending 16 of those as regional vice president of operations at O’Charley’s....

The Boston Fire Department was treated to free meals at Firehouse Subs.
Nurturing Boston

As soon as he learned about the April 15th Boston bombings, Dave Tucci, the New England area representative for Firehouse Subs’ DMA, called the Firehouse franchisee closest to the bombings.

Tucci was relieved to find out that all employees at Firehouse’s Copley Square location...

Corner Bakery's new menu items use fresh ingredients to offer premium quality.
The Corner of Innovation

In a push to distinguish itself from growing competition in the fast-casual bakery-café space, Corner Bakery Café is doubling down on menu innovation.

The 22-year-old, Dallas-based chain recently leveraged its high-quality kitchen equipment and capabilities, as well as more than 40 fresh...