Southeast Asian flavors and cuisines are becoming mainstream in the United States. Foods such as kimchi, bibimbap, and pho, are no longer foreign concepts and are now commonly found on restaurant menus. Additionally, many restaurants are putting Asian spins on familiar offerings.

 

 

According to restaurantbusinessonline.com, this increase in popularity stems from three main reasons:

• An increase in the Asian population in the United States
• Consumers are becoming more interested in bold flavor profiles
• Consumers favor street food for its convenience, affordability, and flavors

 

Get inspired by those who have already added Eastern influence to their menus. We recommend checking out  Shophouse, Pei Wei Asian Diner, Fusian, and Tom Yum District.

Source: http://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/menu-development/culinary-trends/articles/flavors-southeast-asia

As simple as employees snacking during shifts or as extreme as stealing cases of food right off of the delivery truck, theft has always been an issue for restaurant owners.  No matter the severity, these costs add up and hurt your bottom line and profitability. By implementing simple safeguards, you can protect your operation against theft and pilferage.

 

Prevent theft in your restaurant with these no-cost or low-cost suggestions:

• Perform pre-employment background checks on all new hires
• Keep the back door locked
• Use a meat cage to secure highly-valuable products and equipment
• Encourage employees to report questionable activity
• Do not allow employees to bring backpacks into the restaurant
• Keep the manager’s office door locked at all times
• Keep the freezer locked when not in use
• Conduct regular guest check audits to make sure servers are correctly ringing up all menu items
• Keep the dry storage area secure
• Limit access to cash drawers and the safe
• Keep all alcohol under lock and key
• Keep track of inventory on a regular basis
• Do not allow employees to share a cash draw as there will be no accountability for shortages

 

For more tips on improving your bottom line, or to learn more about restaurant management and recruitment best practices, visit SynergyConsultants.com

 

Greetings!

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Time to Make the Doughnuts

By Joan Lang

 

Krispy Kreme was just the beginning.

Doughnuts have been around for a long time (they’re variously credited to Dutch settlers in New Amsterdam and a New England sailing captain’s mother), but all of a sudden they’re having a moment, joining the ranks of such iconic American cult foods as the hamburger and the cupcake.

And it’s not just the social-media-fueled cronut craze that has caused all the hullabaloo, although the lines to try (a type of milkshake) certainly fanned the flames.

The public’s taste for affordable yet indulgent treats and a renewed interest in fried foods—not to mention the perennial appeal of something deliciously new yet still familiar—have given rise to some serious doughnut buzz. And dedicated doughnut shops are popping up like frozen-yogurt franchises after a cash infusion. Every city has its own special way with doughnuts:

• Federal Donuts, in Philadelphia, does the Brotherly Love thing selling just three things: P.T.’s Coffee, Korean-style twice-fried chicken, and handmade donuts, in flavors that range from honey (included with an order of “Fednut” chicken) to such one-off selections as Vanilla-Lavender, Banana Cream Pie, and Sticky Bun

• In Portland and Eugene, OR, 10-year-old Voodoo Doughnuts (“The Magic is in the Hole”) is famed for its unusual doughnuts, the eclectic decor of its three shops, and its iconic pink boxes, which feature the company’s logo and drawings of voodoo priests. Voodoo was one of the first donuterias to invent such formulations as the Bacon Maple Bar, Mango Tango and various ‘nuts topped with cereal, inspiring such a fiercely loyal following that fans ask to get married there

• The franchised Top Pot Doughnuts, based in the Seattle area, offers “hand-forged doughnuts” in a large array of traditional forms including old-fashioned, cake, Feather Boa (frosted and dusted with coconut) and apple fritters, as well as Top Pot cold-brewed coffee and ice cream

Tip: For a review of various doughnut styles, see this article from Serious Eats

• Doughnut Plant has grown from one wholesale location in Manhattan in the mid-‘90s to a branded presence in dozens of trendy retail outlets, including Stumptown Coffee and Dean & DeLuca, on the strength of baker Mark Isreal’s quality-driven recipes and rotating daily selections. Unusual flavors like Tres Leches and Coffee Cake (made with coffee in the dough, glaze, filling and crumble topping) Matcha Te a and signatures like Doughseeds (filled mini doughnuts, with creative glaze & filling combinations) keep the cognoscenti coming back

• In Highland Park, CA, Donut Friend promises custom-made donuts with the donut fiend’s choice of platform (yeast, chocolate or vanilla cake, and “gluten-free-ish), filling (ranging from jams and compotes to fresh fruit and even cheese), glaze, and toppings (bacon, nuts, balsamic reduction). Customers can easily stray into savory territory with creations like Jets to Basil, a $5 behemoth that includes goat cheese, or build their own with the likes of Manchego, quince and rosemary

Not to be outdone, chefs like Taylor McCreary of the Chicago gastropub Park Tavern are doing their own renditions of doughnuts, in this case the popular bacon doughnuts with bourbon-pecan glaze. Roxy, in Sacramento, offers a Bag of House-Made Doughnut Holes on its morning menu, consisting of a handful of sugar-dusted orbs served with chocolate, caramel and fruit dipping sauces. And The Wine Dive, in West Palm Beach, FL, features Hot Damn Doughnuts on its dessert menu: the Louisiana-style doughnuts known as beignets, served with Cinnamon Schnapps ice cream, spicy Hot Damn syrup and candied bacon.

Then there are the doughnut product extensions—not just the Cronut but also such over-the-top mashups as Doughnut Fries and a burger sandwiched between two glazed doughnuts, known as the Luther.

It’s doughnut history in the making.

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Can Tablets Replace Servers?

By Brad “Paco” Miller, Operations Consultant

Are we witnessing the end of human interaction in restaurants? As Chili’s Grill & Bar rolls out tabletop tablet computers in 823 units across the U.S., the industry must answer this question: Can tablets replace servers?
Chili’s is certainly not the first to venture into tabletop tablets. Applebee’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, Red Robin and Uno Chicago Grill have tested tablets, in one form or another, in selected stores. Even Umami Burger and California Pizza Kitchen are joining the trend.

According to the largest tablet vendors, Ziosk and E La Carte, maker of the Presto tablet, your appetizer sales should increase by 20%, dessert sales should jump 30% and servers should expect a 15% increase in tips! These vendors also tout faster ticket times, leading to more table turns, and huge increases in signups for loyalty and email programs.

Both the Ziosk and Presto tabletop tablets offer similar functionality: ordering (limited items or full menu); payment with credit card or prepaid account; games; jukebox features; loyalty club sign-ups; Facebook/social media access; and advertising/promotions.

Then there’s the iPad, which Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse uses for its wine lists and dessert menus only, but with no ordering ability. According to longtime Fleming’s server Thomas Martinez, “I’ve seen my dessert sales increase and it helps with wine pairings. There’s an educational (component). Once customers know how to use it, it’s a great sales tool.”

Tablet computers have already demonstrated their usefulness in streamlining ordering and the payment process. They’re also great marketing tools, with significant upside in such areas as real-time guest survey results, customer database building and connectivity to social media. But the ability to replace the human factor has yet to be seen; most operators view tablets as an experience enhancement, not an alternative to service.

The next question is always “How much will this cost me?” According to Ziosk and E La Carte, the systems can be relatively inexpensive through leases. If you opt to go the mobile app route, ETab International offers programming of a mobile application that can be downloaded on your smartphone or tablet. Although you won’t have to purchase the hardware, there will be a cost associated with programming and maintenance of the app.

Is this all really necessary? The future will tell. Until then, if you really are thinking about rolling out tablets in your restaurants, here are a few things to consider before you hop on board:

• Tablets are not server replacements, but experience enhancements
• Prior to purchase, reach a team consensus on your goals and strategy for the tablet’s use
• Using tablets requires regular training, IT, WiFi and support procedures
• Tablets should be compared based on durability, battery life, and POS-compatibility

And don’t forget to stock more desserts.

For more information on technology and your restaurant, contact Synergy Restaurant Consultants.

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The Evolution of Yelp

By Joan Lang 

In the nine years since it was launched as a user-generated review site, Yelp  has become a formidable social force—both the bane and potential ally of businesses everywhere, including restaurants. Why? More than half of all users make a decision to purchase (or not) based on what they see on the site.

Although Yelp gets criticism from disgruntled restaurants as well as the likes of Consumer Reports, the company claims that more than 100 million consumers checked its listings in 97 U.S. and international markets in just the first three months of this year alone. Search for a restaurant you’re interested in, in fact, and its Yelp profile is apt to appear second only to the restaurant’s own website.

Sites like Yelp have virtually obliterated the hegemony of the local newspaper review and other paid, professional criticism—not to mention services like Zagat Survey, the original crowd-sourced restaurant guide. Yelp’s brilliance lies in the fact that it allows any person who has an opinion to become a citizen reviewer, to the tune of some 42 million contributed reviews.

And Yelp’s influence is growing, not least with new features such as health-inspection scores, an online ordering platform, and mobile posting capability—with more than 10 million mobile apps in use, this will greatly increase the number of reviews. The company has also acquired the online reservation service SeatMe, which will enable users to make a reservation directly from a restaurant’s Yelp page.

But there are less positive issues. Fake reviews—including those posted by businesses themselves—have emerged as the preeminent threat to the trustworthiness of user-generated content. According to a recent Harvard study, 16% of restaurant reviews in the test city of Boston were fake, although Yelp says that its filters discard about 25% of its submissions.

Then, too, review sites have empowered diners in a way that no one could have foreseen as recently as five years ago, leading to some notable bad behavior on the part of customers who will hold the threat of a bad yelp review over a restaurateur’s head.

All of this has greatly increased the difficulty operators have in managing their online reputations. But there are many ways that restaurant management can maximize their engagement with Yelp and other public-forum reviews and use them in very positive ways.

• Claim your free Yelp business account and take advantage of the tools it offers, such as private and public messaging, which can be used to respond to users, correct misconceptions, and address specific complaints

• Use your profile proactively to make your restaurant as appealing as possible to your target audience and potential new customers, with information such as hours of operation and forms of payment, links to menu, photos and more. Update it when anything changes; a service like Single Platform can do this automatically across a variety of social sites

• Monitor your reviews regularly, both so you can respond professionally and appropriately to reviewers’ opinions, and as a source of free constructive criticism. Tales of owners who discover problems like a rude hostess or parking problems because of yelpers are legion (and so, too, are the instances of business owners who have gone postal on reviewers —don’t do it)

• Consider designating a trusted employee or even subscribing to a service to track and distill crowd-sourced comments, for the purpose of spotting and implementing the insights gained. Google Alerts is another valuable tool for monitoring all of your online reviews

• When it makes sense, address negative comments and concerns publicly, rather than privately, so that other readers can see that you care, and are taking active steps to correct problems and address commenters’ concerns. (You may want to email the critic privately first, to get more information and make sure you’re understanding the reason for the unfavorable comments.) This is how negative reviews can be turned into positive ones, and build sales

• Private responses are a tasteful and appropriately personal way to thank yelpers who have written nice reviews, particularly if you know them as regulars or local tastemakers, such as bloggers.

• Check carefully for false reviews, flag them and get them removed. If a review states that your brunch is overpriced but you don’t serve brunch, you’re dealing with hearsay, mistaken identity or disgruntlement

• Get the most out of the reach Yelp gives you by using resources such as Yelp Deals, partnerships and other events that will get more customers through the door—and, hopefully, boost your ratings, which can translate to greatly increased sales, according to at least one study

• Strengthen your reputation through other social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, in order to build your own community . Collectively, these tools give you what is known as social proof, which is a powerful source of new sales and customer engagement

• Never “hire” a review or make your employees seed your profile with good comments; it could backfire big-time, up to and including fines

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Tip of the Month

Want more information about Yelp and online-reputation management? For a detailed report on Yelp and other crowd-sourced review sites, see this article from Top Ten Reviews. Also of interest are the following links to qsrweb.com (how to control crowd-sourced content), Fox News (for ideas of fun ways to use Yelp reviews, both positive and negative) and Open Forum (with a two-part expose on advertising solicitation and more). The subject of Yelp marketing gets good coverage from SEO expert Jackson Lo and on Social Media Examiner.

In April, the IRS announced it’s looking at new ways to utilize technology to increase restaurant tip reporting.  This could include updating the voluntary tip-compliance agreements the agency currently offers restaurant companies, such as the TRAC (Tip Reporting Alternative Commitment) and TRDA (Tip Rate Determination Agreement).

 

Falling under the IRS responsibility of ‘Enforcement’, this measure is to ensure that restaurants provide employees with the proper information and tools needed to report all tips.  Historically, restaurants have complied by hanging posters, providing systematic education and informing employees about charged sales, charged tips and cash sales. All efforts are important components of protection from the threat of an IRS employer-only assessment.

 

Bottom line: Restaurants must provide employees with the proper information and tools to report all tips. For more information on tip reporting, visit the IRS online.

Have you seen this logo at any of your favorite restaurants?

If so, you were in a good place.  The green logo above is the mark of a REAL Certified restaurant and was created to serve as “a beacon to customers seeking healthier food.”

 

REAL Certification was developed by the United States Healthful Food Council, a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization dedicated to fighting obesity, diabetes, and other diet-related diseases by increasing the consumption of healthful and sustainable food and beverages.

 

REAL stands for Responsible Epicurean and Agricultural Leadership and the mission of the program is to help consumers easily find healthful and sustainable restaurant and foodservice menu items.  It’s similar to the widely known LEED certification used in buildings and uses a point-based model to recognize restaurants for their nutrition and sustainability practices.  Chefs and restaurant owners open their kitchens to the REAL Management team to conduct an audit of nutrition and sustainability practices and are also given recommendations for improvements.  The following are some of the Key Performance Indicators considered:

 

–          Use of whole grains, lean meats, cage-free eggs, plant-based cooking oils and healthy fats

–          Use of seasonal, organic and/or local ingredients

–          Food that is prepared from scratch or is minimally processed

–          Offering unsweetened beverages, healthy children’s options/portions and notification of healthful substitutions

–          Limited availability of fried foods

(Source: eatreal.org)

 

REAL Certification just signed a major deal with the state of Tennessee and also has campaigns in Washington D.C., Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Boston.  REAL Certification is currently the only nutrition and sustainability best practices program in the United States.

 

If this sounds interesting to you, consider opening your restaurant kitchen to a REAL Certification audit!  Learn more at www.eatreal.org.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

US Supreme Court ruled that an employee is a “supervisor” under Title VII only when empowered by the employer to take tangible employment action.

The question of who is a “supervisor” brings more to bear on the employer / owner than you may think. Remember it is those who supervise others who (a) are considered in their actions to be representing the company; ( b) speak on the company’s behalf; and (c) just by their actions can create liability for your company due to a hostile work environment in your restaurant. Hence, this designation is very important! We need to be sure that the employees who we identify to our staff as “supervisors” are in fact prepared for this job, are trained for the job, and understand their enhanced responsibilities.

An employee is a “supervisor” for the purposes of vicarious liability under Title VII only if he or she is empowered by the employer to take tangible employment actions against the alleged victim; i.e. the power to hire, fire, demote, promote, transfer, or discipline. The EEOC had argued that anyone who exercised “significant direction” over another’s daily work held supervisor status. The US Supreme Court clarified this definition – and it is greatly in our favor.

Consider this: a “part-time” manager in your restaurant makes inappropriate comments to a server. This part-timer has been cloaked by you with authority to discipline employees just so they will have sufficient clout to properly manage the other employees in your restaurant. Server quits and sues. During litigation proceedings you are asked for a complete list of training that has been provided to this “manager”. You don’t have training information for this individual who fills in sometimes for management because s/he is considered part-time. If this part-time manager otherwise fits the description outlined by the Supreme Court – you cannot use the defense of him/her being part-time. They are, in the courts’ eyes, a supervisor. Make sure that you have clearly identified who the supervisors are in your restaurant and then ensure that all necessary training is provided to those who are actually considered “supervisors”.

Something restaurants need to be aware of: The National Labor Relations Board is now complete!

Why is that important? For the last decade, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has not had a full panel and therefore called into question the legitimacy of its decisions. Remember the posters we thought that we were going to have to post in the restaurants that outlined the rights of our employees according to the NLRB? We ended up not having to post those posters because, among other reasons, it was ruled by a Federal Court that the posting rule and directive to literally every employer in the US could not be supported given the criteria for a quorum of Board Members before such decisions can become law. The National Labor Relations Act requires a quorum of not less than 3 Board members to make decisions legal. As of the second week of August 2013, they have a complete board.

Some of the restaurant practices that they may look into are:

• Employers’ responses to employees’ Facebook postings that are negative against the restaurant.
• Actions by employers against employees who choose to take photos or videos in the restaurants.
• Actions taken against an employee for complaining to others about wages or working conditions.
• Challenges by the employer on the employees’ right to organize.
• And lastly (again!) another poster to consider putting up in the restaurants.

For some interesting reading on the scope and focus of the National Labor Relations Act, see this link.

Our goal is inform companies of the practices/rules that are most practical for any operation, including restaurants. We will continue to keep you informed.

If you’ve dined at Chili’s Grill and Bar lately, you may have noticed a high-tech addition to the table.  The restaurant chain spent the last six months testing tablets that guests can use to order food, play games during the meal, or pay their check.  Chili’s has experienced great success and the company plans to install the tablets throughout the majority of their restaurants by the middle of 2014.

 

The devices have led to a huge increase in check amount and consumer satisfaction.  The tablets are available right when the guest sits down and allows a starving patron to immediately think about their meal decisions without having to wait for wait staff to make it to the table with a menu.  Additionally, photos of delicious-looking desserts scroll across the screen during the meal and encourage guests to consider a sweet ending to their meal.  Parents can also pay for games and entertainment to keep children busy while they enjoy their food.  These tablets also make life easier for wait staff by allowing the guest to pay whenever they finish and, in turn, turning the tables over quicker and increasing traffic in the restaurant.  Additionally, the machines suggest a 20% tip, which has led to an increase in the average tip amount.

 

We love this use of technology to improve the guest’s experience at the table.  It will be interesting to see which other chains follow Chili’s lead and implement similar devices.

 

More on this topic:

• That Tablet on the Restaurant Table Will Make You Spend More
• Chili’s To Install Tablets At Every Table: More Tips But A Cloudier Future For Servers
• Chili’s is Installing Touch Screen Tablets at Tables to Get You To Buy More Food

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.fastcompany.com/3017523/fast-feed/chilis-is-installing-touchscreen-tablets-at-tables-to-get-you-to-buy-more-food

Greetings!

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Start Kidding Yourself

Taco Bell’s recent announcement that it would stop serving kids’ meals spoke volumes about attitude toward children’s meals, in many restaurants, especially at a time when the industry is catching considerable flak from consumer groups.

Of course, not every restaurant is appropriate for kids—Taco Bell itself is the favorite of a core group of young adults who are barely out of childhood themselves—but for many operators, it pays to please the younger generation, and their parents. In fact, for lots of parents and kids, dining out means time together as a family.

And yet look at any 10 kids’ menus, and nine of them will likely offer fried chicken tenders and fries, with maybe an optional side of applesauce or fresh fruit.

Applying some creativity to your children’s menu can help build family loyalty; here are some ideas:

1. Alphabet Soup, loaded with lots of diced vegetables, with or without turkey or chicken meatballs and a bowl of grated cheese on the side—or make it Tomato Alphabet with cream of tomato soup

2. Chop! Chop! Salad, a kids’ version of chopped salad with fun veggies (corn on the cob cross-cuts, Baby Bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, etc.), torn lettuce, cubed chicken or turkey, crumbled turkey bacon, Swiss cheese (older kids can choose blue), chickpeas and hardboiled egg wedges or “roses”, served in an oversized bowl so they can mix it up to their heart’s content

3. Homemade fruit leather or fruit roll-ups

4. Healthy Finger Foods: deviled eggs; smoked turkey and pickle cornets; stuffed mushrooms

5. Skewered Fruit with Honey-Yogurt Dip; use a plastic straw for a safe alternative to an actual skewer

6. Yogurt Parfait with Berries and Granola, layered in an attractive tall clear glass and served with an extra-long spoon

7. Sweet Potato Fries or “Tots” with ketchup

8. Crudites with Dipping Sauces, incorporating easy-to-handle vegetables like baby carrots, celery sticks, grape tomatoes, sugar snap peas, and iceberg lettuce chunks with several different dips

9. Fruit Glazed Baked Chicken or Turkey Tenders, served with crispy potato wedges

10. Turkey Swedish Meatballs with Curly Noodles, made with low-fat sour cream

11. DIY Fish Tacos, pairing baked salmon or cod with tortillas and a caddy of garnishes including mild salsa, low-fat sour cream, shredded lettuce and cheese, etc.

12. Grilled Cheese, Tomato and Turkey Bacon Sandwich on whole wheat bread, or omit the turkey

13. Carrot-raisin Salad or Confetti Coleslaw (shredded cabbage with julienne carrots, red cabbage, sweet peppers, etc., mixed in)

14. Rice and Noodle Bowls, made with vegetables and chicken or tofu; experiment with different broths, like miso or sesame, or menu them as a mix-and-match option so kids can customize

15. Thanksgiving on a Bun sandwich with gravy, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce; a whole wheat bun is a nice better-for-them option

16. Banana Split Boat, made with soft serve or frozen yogurt, banana, citrus slices, berries, raisins, and/or grapes; top with granola, Graham crumbs or nuts for a crunchy finish

17. Loaded Pizza topped with kid-friendly veggies, reduced-fat cheese, and barbecued chicken or sliced turkey meatballs

18. Peanut-butter crackers or sandwiches made with sliced banana or fresh strawberries instead of sugary jelly

19. Roll-ups of all kinds, including wrap sandwiches, lettuce rolls, and sushi-type rolls

20. Fruit-laden smoothies and low-fat shakes

21. Ravioli and Tomato Sauce, or substitute tortellini or another fun stuffed pasta shape

22. Mac-and-Cheese Casserole with vegetables like peas, broccoli, spinach and/or tomatoes “snuck in”

23. Stuffed Baked Potato, or make them mini using a pair or trio of new potatoes with different fillings

24. Date and Nut Sandwiches with Cream Cheese, cut into triangles

25. Banana S’Mores (‘nuff said)

And remember that even simple presentation tricks like cutting sandwiches, pancakes and grilled chicken into fun shapes helps make kids’ menu items more appealing, fun and memorable.

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5 Strategies for Building Staff Performance

By J. Clyde Gilfillan, Synergy Operations Specialist

Top-flight management performance is the price of entry in today’s very competitive restaurant market—it’s simply a mandate at this point. Are you engendering peak performance with staff or are you inhibiting it? Are you positioning yourself and your staff to work at elite levels or just maintaining an adequate level of efficiency, production, and execution?

Today, all leadership must not only be incredibly consistent, capable, and competent, it must also be exceptional, creating that one-in-a-hundred team that outperforms and out-produces the competition.

Let’s look at five methodologies you can use to keep your business and your team working at peak efficiency and optimum performance levels, at all times.

1. Communicate Effectively

• Your team needs lots of positive feedback; give it to them.

• Similarly, never underestimate the power of praise and recognition for team members—in front of others.

• Never ignore or sugarcoat underperformance issues. Address them quickly, instructively, and with compassion.

• Conducting sincere one-on-ones with staff members, and considering them vital for growth is a hallmark of effective leadership.

• It is important that you listen to your people and not just hear them. We “hear” sounds, but we “listen” (and comprehend) people.

2. Train Effectively

• You must develop your staff. It is that simple. Each and every day work with them to be better at their core competency.

• Teach teamwork and not individualism; each member is “special,” but the team is most important.

• Be a mentor and set up a mentoring system in your business at all levels.

3. Create a Positive Work Environment

• Set your people up for success and not failure—allow them to flourish without your ego getting in the way; let them have the “glory,” so to speak.

• Give your people the proper tools to get the job done; it’s amazing how many leaders too often assume that people know what to do or have the tools to do their job.

• Give your employees a sense of self-worth, and that they are contributing to the big picture. Everyone needs to know they are important and valued, especially when they feel a sense of being part of something big.

• Creating a fun, safe, hassle-free, and clean environment to work in has been a hallmark of many top-flight companies; in fact, many have made this their rallying cry for years.

• Always ask the question: Would you want your child to work here? You know what the answer should be. Is this the reality in your work environment?

• Be the employer of choice in your community, the go-to place where everyone wants to work—and will tell their friends and family this.

4. Strive For and Achieve Consistency

• You must be firm but fair with all employees; deep down, people are looking for firm, fair, and consistent treatment. The key here is fairness, not favoritism; consistency, not ever-changing leadership behavior or action.

• Be clear about levels of standards, levels of expectations, and levels of performance for all team members. Clarity is Job One for leaders.

• Decisions should be consistent across all departments and all employees.

• All managers should be on the same page, have the same objectives, and work toward common goals.

• All managers must have the same vision of what they want the business to be and where it is to go; this must come from the leader.

• “The rules” apply to everyone, including yourself, and you must demonstrate this.

5. Opportunity and Growth

• If you and your organization are not growing, then you are losing ground to your competition—this means growth of spirit, growth of sales and profits, and growth of team members.

• You should always focus on self-improvement first.

• You should create a sense of upward mobility in your business

• You should always look to promote within first

Using these methodologies will help you and your business move forward diligently and with purpose. The cornerstones, however, are commitment and discipline to stay with these principles, incorporate them into your strategic and tactical plans, and “live” them everyday in order to make them habits within your organization.

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What’s Healthy Now

By Joan Lang 

 

Recent research from the NPD Group revealed what many of us already know implicitly: People like to indulge themselves when they eat in a restaurant. In fact, only 24% of U.S. consumers say they eat healthy when they dine out, compared to more than half of foodservice visitors who say they are healthy eaters at home.

After years of handwringing about obesity and legislation to require menu labelling, it’s still the consumer who’s driving the bus, and they don’t necessarily want to stop at the salad-and-club-soda station. And yet as an industry, we can’t ignore the USDA and Michelle Obama and the watchdog groups like the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI)—and we certainly can’t ignore that 24%.

The one word answer to the conundrum? Options. You can’t force customers to put down the french fries, but you can give them the choice of a side salad instead, without charging extra for it or making the thing a special request.

• Use “variety” and “customization” as a starting point – It’s a given that customers want lots of different choices and the ability to customize their own dining experience: That much has always been clear. A restaurant in my neighborhood that specializes in over-the-top sandwiches like pulled pork and Grilled Triple Cheese & Bacon also offers the option of ordering any “sandwich” served on salad greens, instead of bread. How smart is that?

• Cooperate with special requests – People are going to ask for sauce on the side, or double broccoli instead of broccoli and mashed. No staff eye-rolling, please. Let the servers be empowered to fulfill such requests, no big deal. And if you just can’t do it, maybe the manager could politely explain why, and offer up some kind of recompense.

• Offer lots of fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables – Many experts surmise that “fresh” equates to healthy in today’s marketplace; uber-successful concepts like Panera and Chipotle have demonstrated this. And nothing says fresh like the fruits and vegetables of the season. Use them throughout the menu. It’s very on-trend in this farmers’ market age, and it’s also a lot better for food costs than filling up the plate with protein.

• Make sure healthy food tastes good – This may seem like a big duh, but healthy does not mean flavorless or boring. Even food that meets some of the strictest dietary requirements, like low-sodium, can be enlivened with herbs, citrus, chilis and other bold ingredients. And don’t forget the role that appearance, texture, color, aroma and even temperature play in satiation. Think of a Vietnamese spring roll or a piece of hot, freshly grilled salmon on a bed of cool fruit salsa—nothing unappealing there.

• Pay attention to whole grains – Americans are starting to appreciate the flavor, texture and healthfulness of whole grains, from 12-grain sandwich bread to farro salads. In fact, grains are beginning to have a culinary moment, so be sure to build them into your selection of bread, sandwiches, side dishes and more.

• Consider smaller portions – Let’s face it: A lot of people eat more than they need to, or should. Even if your concept is known for big portions, you can offer half-portions of popular items for less money, facilitate sharing of items like appetizers and desserts, or even play around with reducing the size of the actual plate. Some customers will thank you for it.

• Answer demand for gluten-free and other food restrictions – If you haven’t gotten the requests, you’ve been living under a rock. For many customers, avoiding certain foods is what keeps them healthy, and the availability of selections that don’t include wheat, shellfish, dairy and other common triggers makes good business sense

• Add some vegetarian or even vegan selections – These aren’t just for hippies and Buddhists anymore. Lots of people eschew meat to save calories, money, boredom or because they like the sound of that grilled vegetable lasagna description. On a well-written menu, even the meat eaters should have to look twice to find the items that don’t have it.

• Focus on the kids menu – If the kids can eat healthy, their parents will be happy. And while kids can be even more demanding than adults, it certainly can’t hurt to put items like cut vegetables and dips, grilled or broiled chicken, fresh fruit, and low-fat dairy products on the children’s menu, especially if you have these ingredients on-hand anyway. They may not get ordered very frequently, but their very existence speak volumes about your commitment.

• Look at all the menu categories – There should be at least one better-for-you option in every single menu section, including soups, appetizers, salads, side dishes and desserts. Oftentimes, these can do double-duty as the vegetarian or vegan selection, so why not make the effort?

• Take a look at a good healthy menu – In the spirit of Steal this Idea, study the menus of successful healthy concepts and figure out what they’re doing right—and what strategies you can “borrow.” For starters, check out what’s on offer at LYFE Kitchen, Seasons 52, Hip CityVeg , Zoe’s Kitchen, and Dirt Candy.

Need help adding “healthy” to the selections on your menu? Contact Synergy Restaurant Consultants

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Tip of the Month

If you haven’t read this article in QSR yet but want a powerful source of potential new brand ambassadors, read “How to Tap into the Mom Network.” Quick-serves aren’t the only segment that can benefit from the authoritative voice of “mommy bloggers” who support and promote your family-friendly restaurant brand.

September is National Chicken Month. Although we love chicken in a variety of ways, our favorite kind is definitely fried!  Here are two fried chicken dishes we love!

 

Waffle and Chicken – Taste of Belgium (Cincinnati, Ohio)

At Taste of Belgium, the waffle comes first!  The Bistro is famous for their Liege-style waffles; made from dough rather than batter, these waffles are thick and sweet. Paired with a breaded chicken cutlet and covered in hot sauce and maple syrup, this is not your average chicken and waffle meal.  We recommend ordering with a side of the Belgian Frites!

 

Honey Butter Fried Chicken – Honey Butter Fried Chicken (Chicago, Illinois)

Although their restaurant just opened this past weekend, Josh Kulp and Christine Cikowski have been serving their honey-butter topped fried chicken via the underground-restaurant Sunday Dinner Club.  Their new brick-and-mortar restaurant features the namesake chicken, market-driven vegetable sides, biscuits, and desserts. The chicken is brined in salt, sugar, citrus, and spices, double-battered in buttermilk and seasoned flour, fried to perfection, topped with paprika salt, and finished with a dollop of sweet honey butter.

 

Looking for more? Here’s Bon Appetit’s list: The Top 10 Best Places for Fried Chicken. What’s your favorite restaurant for fried chicken?