PZ - September - October 2018

STRIKES, SPARES AND SLICES Savvy businesses turn a pizza/bowling split to their advantage

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Volume 24 Issue 5 September/October 2018

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12 TRANSPARENCY RULES

Protect your business by making it a priority to protect your European customers’ information

8

SPARES AND SLICES! 16 STRIKES, We reflect on the connection between pizza and

ABOVE: Pizza and bowling just seem to go together. Learn about two business partnerships that successfully play up that synergy.

See page 16.

bowling, and learn how two savvy businesses have turned a pizza/bowling split to their advantage

19 CANADIAN PIZZA SUMMIT ATTENDEE GUIDE Here you’ll find details about the program, the product and service suppliers, and the pizza making!

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26 CREATING YOUR KITCHEN LAYOUT

ONLINE

Whether you hire a designer or DIY, these insights into the design process will help get the work flowing in your kitchen

DEPARTMENTS 6

editor’s desk

8

pizza bites

10

the pizza chef

11

recipe

24

making dough

FIVE HALLOWEEN PIZZA TREAT IDEAS Giorgio Taverniti, owner of Frank’s Pizza House in Toronto, gets creative with seasonal ingredients like pumpkin seeds and sweet potatoes to set his creepy Halloween menu items apart. Get into the spooky spirit by visiting canadianpizzamag.com!

CANADIAN PIZZA EXTRAS | Labour shortages are No. 2 operator concern says report; Nestlé using DNA to create personal diets; Credit card firms agree to cut merchant fees; Vancouver restaurants bans straws …plus, the latest industry news and new products.

canadianpizzamag.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 3

from the editor’s desk

Fresh eyes n the first day of my summer job at Andy’s Drive-In restaurant, several things were burned into my 14-year-old brain: Ketchup, mustard, relish, onions on the bun, then tomato and lettuce on top. Dip the ice cream scoop in water before scooping.

Always set the original cash payment aside while counting out change. Keep your hair tied back. Never touch your face in front of customers.

That last one stuck with me because it made me aware of something people do naturally that can make a big impression on others. It also taught me that even the most seemingly simple habits require training and deliberate practice.

My mind shot back to that instruction this summer when I learned of a study out of the University of Missouri. Researchers there found that the cleanliness of restaurant employees is incredibly important to customers’ perceptions of food safety, as important as a clean restaurant and washrooms, and hygienic food preparation.

The researchers organized food safety factors into three categories or “cleanliness clues:” the appearance and behaviour of employees, food temperature and freshness, and the appearance of the dining room and other visual aspects of the restaurant. The three categories were found to be equally important for customer satisfaction.

The researchers were most surprised by the high value customers place on staff having a clean appearance.

For the study, 300 people listed factors they felt were important to food safety and ranked them in order of importance. Then they graded the eateries they visited.

Three of these factors – employees keeping fingernails clean, wearing clean uniforms and wearing gloves while handling food – were ranked as highly important but received low performance ratings in many restaurants, There was definitely room for improvement.

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September/October 2018, Vol. 24, No. 5 Editor Colleen Cross ccross@annexbusinessmedia.com 519-428-3471 ext. 261

An earlier study looked at seven aspects of cleanliness: interior appearance of restaurant, server’s appearance, restroom appearance, server’s behaviour, restroom personal hygiene, food condition and signage. The most important elements were server’s behaviour, restroom appearance and signage.

These results may not be surprising to you, but if they are, consider investing extra time (and time of course is money) to train your staff and to follow up on that training. Make sure you have a manual – all the chains do – update it as needed and train to it. It will help build consistency in your service and give your employees a boost of confidence.

The cleanliness and the clean appearance (note the difference) of your pizzeria are important. It may be helpful to ask friends, co-workers and acquaintances to give you their honest impressions. It’s also useful to develop the habit of viewing things through fresh eyes. It’s something we often do after redecorating a room. Once you’ve finished, leave the room, turn around and re-enter. It’s almost guaranteed you’ll see things differently and find something that needs changing.

The truth is, no matter how immaculate your kitchen, how scrubbed-clean your employees’ hands, how carefully maintained your bathrooms, and, more to the point, how delicious your pizza, it all means little if customers get the impression things are not clean.

Try to see your business through fresh eyes – your customers’ eyes – and you’ll be guided to better service. •

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Publisher Christine Livingstone clivingstone@annexbusinessmedia.com 519-429-5173 888-599-2228 ext. 239 Account Coordinator Shannon Drumm sdrumm@annexbusinessmedia.com 888-599-2228, ext. 219 Media Designer Brooke Shaw Circulation Manager Anita Madden amadden@annexbusinessmedia.com 416-442-5600 ext 3596 Group Publisher Martin McAnulty mmcanulty@annexbusinessmedia.com President & CEO Mike Fredericks Mailing Address P.O. Box 530, 105 Donly Dr. S., Simcoe, ON N3Y 4N5 PUBLICATION MAIL AGREEMENT #40065710 Printed in Canada ISSN 1203-6838 Published seven times per year (Jan/Feb, Apr/May, Jun, Jul/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov, Dec) y Annex Business Media Circulation email: lmalicdem@annexbizmedia.com Tel: 416-510-5187 • Fax: 416-510-6875 or 416442-2191 Mail: 111 Gordon Baker Rd., Suite 400, Toronto ON M2H 3R1 Subscription Rates Canada – 1 Year $ 26.00 (+ applicable tax) Best pricing (Can/USA/foreign) available online at www.canadianpizzamag.com Occasionally, Canadian Pizza Magazine will mail information on behalf of industry-related groups whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you prefer not to receive this information, please contact our circulation department in any of the four ways listed above.

Annex Privacy Officer privacy@annexbusinessmedia.com Tel: 800-668-2374 No part of the editorial content of this publication may be reprinted without the publisher’s written permission. ©2018 Annex Publishing and Printing Inc. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher. No liability is assumed for errors or omissions. All advertising is subject to the publisher’s approval. Such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised. Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication. www.canadianpizzamag.com

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pizzabites BRIEFLY | Labour shortages are No. 2 operator concern; Nestlé using DNA to create personal diets; Credit card firms agree to cut merchant fees | FOR MORE pizza news, check out our website, www.canadianpizzamag.com

Guide to creating inclusive workplaces released estaurants Canada and Centennial College together have developed a guide to help foodservice employers foster a better and more respectful work environment.

The guide, entitled How to Create a Positive and Inclusive Workplace, is designed to help operators recognize opportunities within their workplaces to make positive change, with practical tips and examples from some of the industry’s leaders, the association said in a news release.

“Creating a positive and inclusive workplace isn’t just the right thing,” said Shanna Munro, president and chief executive officer of Restaurants Canada. “It creates a culture of trust, transparency and establishes a positive and engaging workplace, which is a great way to attract and retain talent. In today’s market, positive word of mouth is crucial to business growth and success.”

Studies show inclusivity is linked to lower staff turnover and higher sales, according to a news release from the association. By learning about regulations, laws and best practices for their employees, foodservice owners and operators can create work environments that can lead to better employee engagement and retention, increased innovation and flexibility, better quality employees, and improved sales and reduced costs at the unit level.

Restaurants Canada will also be hosting in-class sessions in the fall providing an overview of the principles and practices contained within the guide. The guide, which is available to members of Restaurants Canada, was developed by Centennial College’s Centre for Global Citizenship, Education and Inclusion and the School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Arts, in partnership with the association.

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Physicists investigate process of baking pizza hysicists in Rome and the U.S. have analyzed pizza making have weighed in to the great oven debate and concluded that wood ovens are ideal for baking pizza because they give the perfect balance of wellcooked base and browned toppings.

Andrey Varlamov of the Viale del Politecnico in Rome, Andreas Glatz of the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois and Northern Illinois University, and Sergio Grasso, a food anthropologist in Rome, explored the specific process of baking pizzas, looking at the baking times for two different situations: baking in a brick oven in a pizzeria and baking in a modern metallic oven at home.

Their study is based on basic thermodynamic principles relevant to the cooking process and is accessible to undergraduate students, the paper states.

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The authors conclude, “It is difficult to build a classic brick oven, and many customers do not appreciate the difference between an excellent and decent pizza. These are the reasons why engineers invent all sorts of innovations: for example, inserting a ceramic bottom made of special ceramics to imitate the bottom of brick ovens in a modern professional electric oven. To bake a pizza evenly, rotating baking surfaces are available – convection ovens emulate the gas flows in brick ovens, and many other things. But, the dry heat and the smell of wood in traditional firebrick ovens remain the ideal way to bake the perfect pizza.”

To review “The Physics of baking good Pizza,” published through Cornell University, visit the university’s arxiv.org website where it is awaiting peer review.

pizzabites

Report looks at Share your stories of opportunities in takeout pizza and community! and delivery I T

akeout and delivery could drive restaurant sales rather than cannibalize dine-in occasions if restaurant operators are willing to adapt to shifting demands and meet customers’ expectations for convenience and food quality, suggests a new report from research firm Technomic.

“Consumers typically have different needs when ordering to-go than when dining in, creating opportunities for brands to broaden their reach by adding or expanding takeout and delivery service,” said Anne Mills, senior manager of consumer insights at Technomic, in a news release. “To maximize sales potential and ensure consistent execution across dine-in, takeout and delivery, operators will invest in packaging, add items geared toward on-the-go consumers and redistribute labour and workspaces to fulfill off-premise orders.”

According to Technomic’s “2018 Canadian Takeout & Off-Premise Consumer Trend Report”: • 41 per cent of consumers order food either for takeout or delivery at least once a week • 46 per cent of 18- to 34-year-olds agree to some extent that they’re ordering delivery from a wider variety of restaurants now than two years ago • 55 per cent of consumers agree to some extent that they’re concerned about the quality and freshness of food delivered through third-party delivery services

f you’re a pizzeria in Canada, it’s a safe bet you are helping out your community – whether it be through financial donations to charities, sponsorship of teams, taking your pizza to the masses at community events, or any other action demonstrating goodwill.

Operators have impressed us over the years with their big hearts, creative ways of reaching out to those in need and efforts to get to know their customers.

Their efforts are documented in profiles of fine folks like TJ’s Pizza in Melfort, Sask.; The Pizza Mill in Salisbury, N.B.; Zolas Restaurant in Ottawa; and Amadio’s Pizza in Port Credit, Ont. Let us know what you’re up to in your community these days and we’ll share ideas during Pizza Community Week, an online charity roundup, the week of Nov. 13.

We hope your business is doing well – but we know you’re out there doing good. We can’t wait to hear all about it!

Contact editor Colleen Cross at 519-428-3471, ccross@annexbusinessmedia.com or via message on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

Food market opens in Newmarket, Ont., mall food market featuring an artisanal merchants and fresh, local food, officially opened in September at the Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket, Ont. Market & Co., owned by Oxford Properties, is a 40,000-square-foot space that brings together 20 merchants, including MidiCi The Neapolitan Pizza Company, Pier 87 Fish Market & Grill’s raw bar, Amadeus Patisserie, Amano Kitchen, Bake Three Fifty, First Batch, FloralEscence, Humble Roots Organic, Ma’s Best Quality Soups, Newmarket Olive Oil Co., Our Farm Organic Bakery, Ray Woodey’s Craft Chippery, Seed to Sausage Meatery, Starbucks with Reserve Offerings, Sugar King Factory, Sweet Jesus, The Wine Shop and Tasting Room, Union Chicken, Village Juicery, and Vince’s Market.

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For more news updated daily, visit canadianpizzamag.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 9

the pizza chef

Who’s the boss?

Diana Cline

ack in the ’80s there was a popular sitcom starring Tony Danza and Judith Light called “Who’s The Boss?” If you’re old enough to remember the show, then you know it was popular during a time when it was unusual, but not unheard of, for the woman to be both the main breadwinner and the head of the household.

Over the two-and-a-half decades I’ve been in the pizza industry, I can say that I’ve met a great number of people who got into the pizza business because they didn’t like having a boss, or they didn’t like the boss they had at their last job.

They wanted to be their own boss.

I can empathize with this mentality.

Before opening my own concept, my then-husband and I worked at a pizza chain, under the lure of becoming successful franchisees. We each worked 90 plus hours a week for very little money; our salaries actually worked out to less than minimum wage, given the hours we were putting in. After yet another delay from the franchisor, we started talking about the idea of opening our own pizzeria, and working for ourselves. I can remember my then-husband saying, “If I’m going to work a hundred hours a week and make no money, I might as well work for myself.”

The idea caught on like a wildfire, and in a few short months we were doing just that: working 100 hours a week for no money. It’s interesting how our thoughts become our reality. We had done it – we had realized our dream of owning our own business. Only at this stage of our dream we had all the woes of the pizzeria owner: equipment breakdowns, staff shortages, supplier delivery issues, not to mention deal-

B

ing directly with all the company legal where the owner is “such a nice guy,” requirements and business day to day. and because he is not comfortable with Some days it definitely seemed like a conflict, the staff are running rampant, waking nightmare rather than living akin to the inmates running the asylum. our dream. I know many of you can One well-meaning owner/operator had empathize. a server who was dictating their own I also see this with many of my con- schedule and pay, and even convinced sulting clients. They got into this busi- him to pay them in cash. As time went ness because they wanted to escape the on, their demands became even crazier. corporate life. They hated the boss. When he contacted me for coaching, he Unfortunately, at some was burnt out, fed up and point there is a realizaready for change. Within tion that someone has to a few short weeks, we’d Someone has be the boss. Someone has set up support systems to be the one to be the one who hanfor him and a plan where dles those difficult situahe took back command who handles tions, like giving an awkof his business. those difficult ward employee review, It takes a great deal of hoping the staff member skill to manage both the situations. “steps up,” so you don’t numbers and the staff of have to let them go, or a restaurant. There are demanding a credit from hundreds of moving parts your vendor rep for a damaged deliv- that are in a constant state of change. ered product. These situations of con- Some owners are pretty good at one flict are ever present in the day-to-day area, but lacking in another. It’s OK: I life of any business owner, and they’re believe we’re all capable of learning and very uncomfortable if you’ve not had growing, and gaining new skills. a lot of experience with them. Heck, But when you’re the boss, it’s someeven when you have had a lot of expe- times difficult to know where you can rience, like me, it’s still not bound to be go for help. Good news, if you’ve read your favourite thing. this entire article, you’re already in the And I don’t know about you, but I right place. • can’t help but be fond of my team members, even the ones that aren’t my aces. Diana Cline is a two-time Canadian Pizza magazine Chef of the Year, three-time winner of “Canada’s Best Even the ones who bellyache that they Pizza Chef” at international pizza competitions, a judge have no money, and need a ton of hours, for international pizza culinary competitions in Las so you stack the schedule with hours for Vegas, Italy and France, and a partner with Diana’s Cucina & Lounge in Winnipeg. In addition to creating them, only to watch them give away all award-winning recipes, Diana is a consultant to other but two shifts. pizzeria owner/operators in menu development, creating The issues can become mountains systems to run a pizzeria on autopilot, along with marketing and positioning to help operators grow their if you’re the boss but are in a state of business effectively and strategically. She is available avoiding these uncomfortable situations for consulting on a limited basis. For more information with mild conflict. I’ve seen restaurants contact her at diana@dianascucinaandlounge.com

10 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018

recipe

The Covent Garden

By Giuseppe Cortinovis

Giuseppe Cortinovis’ Covent Garden pizza was a hit with judges at last year’s Chef of the Year competition.

To make his sweet pie, Cortinovis, who finished as runnerup in the competition, used a housemade conserva (jam) topping that he prepared while living in London, England, and toiling at his then-company, the Covent Garden Jam Company.

“The dough is handmade and a combination of my housemade sourdough and young poolish, with 70 per cent hydration, 48 hours fermented and triple rolled,” he says of his technique.

Generally speaking, Cortinovis is a proponent of using a biga in pizza dough to increase the shelf life of your pizza. He recalls the traditional Italian way of making biga every day and putting it outside to ferment.

“Italians invented the biga to have fewer problems with the mother dough,” he tells Canadian Pizza.

DOUGH • Two-year-old sourdough featuring an heirloom, ancient grain from Alberta • Combination of 00 flour with 10% semolina • Salt • Yeast • Water • Organic extra virgin olive oil TOPPINGS • Plum prosecco lime and chilli conserva • Gorgonzola dolce (sweet) • Burrata • Arugula • Speck (smoked prosciutto) • Smoked sea salt • Extra virgin olive oil

Giuseppe Cortinovis is pizza chef at Ignite Pizzeria in in Vancouver. Competing for Nightingale Restaurant in Vancouver last year at the Chef of the Year competition, Cortinovis was runnerup for the second time (the first was in 2016). He has cofounded restaurants in Australia and Italy, including a bakery his family continues to run in Italy.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 11

feature

Transparency rules Protect your business by making it a priority to protect your European customers’ information

BY MICHELLE BRISEBOIS

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o you do business with residents of the European Union?

Does anyone from the EU come to your restaurant, follow you on social media or visit your website? If the answer is yes, the recent sweeping data collection and management regulations from Europe apply to your business too. You see, in the digital world, there are no borders.

The European Union officially implemented GDPR, which stands for General Data Protection Regulations, on May 25, 2018.

The European Union is made up of 28 countries and so the new regulations are intended to harmonize standards across all EU members. If you get email from businesses based in the EU, you likely got messages asking you to give express permission once again to receive correspondence. That’s to comply with the GDPR. Canadians might assume this doesn’t apply to us but we’d be wrong to make that case. The GDPR apply to anyone doing business with someone in the EU or holding data belonging to someone in the EU. If a person visits a Canadian relative from the EU and takes them to dinner at your restaurant, everything from their phone number for the reservation to their credit card information taken to pay the bill is considered data that falls under the protection of GDPR standards.

The customer doesn’t even have to leave the EU to give you their data. If they visit your website and you have web analytics that capture http addresses or they sign up for your enewsletter and leave you their email address, you’re on the hook to follow GDPR. The fines for not following GDPR are hefty: the maximum penalty has been set at $30 million but the penalty will generally be set at two to four per cent of your international revenue. A business that makes $100,000 per year could potentially pay $4,000 in penalties using that calculation. It’s still a big “ouch” for an industry such as hospitality where profit margins are so thin.

The care and feeding of customer data also has brand implications.

Research by PricewaterhouseCoopers suggests only 25 per cent of respondents agree that most companies handle their sensitive personal data responsibly. When asked if they think the companies will use the data they collect to improve customers’ lives…only 15 per cent say yes. An ineffective or unclear data-handling policy can mean you will scare off customers even before they agree to do business with you. The same PricewaterhouseCoopers study says 88 per cent of consumers agree that how much data they’re willing to give a company is based on how much they trust that company.

Does all of this sound like you need a team of lawyers, IT

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Europe’s General Data Protection Regulations apply to anyone doing business with or holding data belonging to someone in the European Union.

specialists and RCMP officers to protect your business? Have no fear, there are some very basic and inexpensive things you can do.

The spirit of GDPR intends to give consumers transparency around what information is being collected and for what purpose. The regulations mean to also give people assurance that their information is being protected and to give them the ability to deny or withdraw permission to have their information collected and used. It’s really a matter of good digital hygiene and communication.

DOCUMENT YOUR CUSTOMER DATA POINTS It may surprise you to discover just how many pieces of data you are collecting from customers. Credit card numbers, phone numbers, addresses, email addresses, purchase history, web-browsing activities, food allergies and birthdates are all examples of personal data. Document for each piece of data why you have it, where it will be stored, who will have access to it, how it will be protected and when you will delete it. Under the GDPR regulations, a European citizen can request to see all activity connected to their data and assurance of its protection. If you can’t respond to this request, it could be an issue.

DATA HANDLING . . . WITH CARE Decide who needs to have access to certain data and for what purpose. If you have a customer relationship management system for tracking purchases, birthdays, food allergies, your host, hostess, manager, servers and perhaps marketing department will need to see it to do their jobs. If the accounts payable person doesn’t need this information to do their job, make sure they don’t have access. If you have data stored on the Cloud or in apps, you’ll need to consider that part of the equation also. Make sure it’s safe from being accessed by hackers and have a policy for deleting the information after a period of non-use. If you have the credit card of a customer and they’ve not ordered from you in a year, perhaps it’s time to just delete the information?

MAKE IT EASY FOR THEM TO SAY NO Send electronic marketing messages only to those customers who’ve given express permission for you to do so. You want a list of people who are keen to get your communication anyway. Your open rates and conversion rates will be higher when marketing to those truly interested. Always have an “unsubscribe” button clearly indicated on your communications so people can opt out easily.

Canada’s CASL (Canadian Anti Spam Legislation) has been in place since 2014 but it differs from GDPR in that its focus is mainly on communications and who we can send marketing messages to.

GDPR focuses on the collection of all kinds of data points, including

our email addresses, and how we use and protect that information.

For a comparison of the two sets of rules, visit openprisetech.com/ gdpr-and-casl-theyre-not-the-same-thing-2/.

LAY IT ALL OUT Write a policy and display it on your website and in your restaurant.

If you have a traffic counter that captures other things like gender and age (traffic counters these days are capable of this) you need to let people know that you are doing this and why. The GDPR have rules around age – you can’t market to anyone under age 16 without parental consent so state that in your policy to avoid concern. Detail everything and be transparent. If you wind up in the crosshairs because a customer questions how you handle their data, you may win points with investigators if you have tried to be clear up front.

Technology lets us do business with a foreign company as easily as one around the corner and therefore, rules of engagement become entangled. Manage your data as you would the Queen’s jewels. It’s a gift your customers give you as they connect with your business.

For more information on the General Data Protection Regulations, visit eugdpr.org. • Michelle Brisebois is a marketing consultant specializing in e-commerce and digital content strategy and retail/in-store activation. Michelle has worked in the food, pharmaceutical, financial services and wine industries. She can be reached at michelle@textrixconsulting.com.

TASTE THE

TRADITION

Manufacturers and Distributors of Italian Specialty Cheeses and Food Products

gaylea.com • 1-800-268-0508 • salernodairy.com SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 13 PZ_AprMay16_Salerno_CSA.indd 1

2016-03-22 7:32 AM

PHOTO BY CHRIS THOMAS

Strikes, spares and slices

Savvy businesses turn a pizza/bowling split to their advantage

BY COLLEEN CROSS

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izza and bowling seem to go together. They are both fun, shareable experiences that are easily customizable. Bowlers can take their families, friends can join a league, folks young and old can enjoy a date night at the local lanes. Families can share a pizza, build their own, have it customized to suit their dietary restrictions, have it delivered to the lanes or pick it up at a shop.

Here we take a look at two business models that have successfully combined a sport and pastime everyone can enjoy with the food everyone loves.

PIZZA PROJEKT/FLEETWAY BOWLING Jake Allison was approached by the Harvey Katz, owner of Fleetway Bowling in London, Ont., to build a pizzeria that would then supply the bowling centre with pizza.

Allison did something not many owner-operators can lay claim to: he literally built his pizzeria from the ground up. It now generates a healthy business for itself and for the bowling centre near the corner of Oxford Street and Wonderland Road not far from Western University.

Fleetway, which has been in business for more than 30 years, offers five- and 10-pin bowling, league bowling, indoor glow-in-thedark mini-golf, a kids’ play area, a Playdium Lite arcade and billiards.

The job involved removing walls from a Canada Post depot that separated the pizzeria site from Fleetway, to make way for an entrance/exit between the two businesses, Allison says. This way, customers also can access the pizzeria from either the front or the

inside entrance.

The bowling centre is a family-oriented facility that limits its alcohol offerings to wine and beer. Any food or beverage items purchased from the onsite Pizza Projekt and Dairy Queen restaurants can be brought to the lanes for customers to enjoy while bowling.

Allison’s concept has been in business for three years, and he says he lived at the pizzeria for two years. It turns out Allison, a trained certified engineering technologist by trade and former construction manager, literally built Pizza Projekt himself!

“I was building a new store for my mom, who is a Wendy’s franchisee,” Allison says. “Fleetway’s owner, a fellow franchisee, suggested I build a complementary pizzeria. It was a two-year process from conception to completion,” he says.

The pizzeria seats about 88 people with room for 24 more on the patio. Customers can order in house or from the bowling lanes.

With a diverse menu, his goal is to cater to everyone. They specialize in what Allison calls premium pizza. They refrigerate the dough for two days – three at the most – and it goes directly into the oven with no warming-up period. Customers can choose from a dozen signature pizzas, five deep-dish pies, or build-your-own creations with their choice of traditional, thin-crust, whole wheat or gluten-free crusts. About 75 per cent of customers choose to build their own pizza, Allison estimates.

“We make a unique pizza,” Allison says. “We make our own sauce, refrigeration creates a crust like Neapolitan but we use a conveyor oven.” They also provide vegan and vegetarian options and

TOP: Thunderbird Bowl’s thriving cluster of businesses in Brandon, Man., includes the iconic Pizza Place, whose signature pepperoni pizza is curled and lightly burned at the edges.

16 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018

feature Summers can be a bit slow compared to the rest of the year, he says. Christmas parties, corporate events keep them busy in the colder months, and sales jump by about 60-70 per cent during March break and on Family Day. All three businesses are benefiting from the partnership. Despite competition from the recently opened Rec Room complex up the road, business at the bowling centre is up about 30 per cent since Pizza Projekt opened. Dairy Queen’s sales also are up, he adds.

“If the bowling alley is busy, we’re busy. If it’s not, we’re not. It’s as simple as that,” he says. “It’s a direct correlation.”

Pizza and bowling complement each other because bowlers almost always come in groups of at least four, Allison says. “It’s a shared experience. Just like pizza.”

Though a successful fit, meshing the two businesses has its challenges. “It takes a tremendous amount of co-ordination when you have two owners, two managers, two sets of staff,” he says. “You absolutely have to work with them to succeed. It works both ways and it’s challenging. You have to be one cohesive unit.”

PIZZA PLACE/THUNDERBIRD BOWL Thunderbird Bowl in Brandon, Man., represents a different model of operation. It’s a cluster of restaurants built around a bowling hub.

Brother-and-sister team Trevor Peters and Debbie Nadon are coowners of the 28,500-square-foot recreation centre, which houses five- and 10-pin bowling for both leagues and individuals, the 130-seat lower-level Huggy’s Family Restaurant, a 99-seat Huggy’s Neighbourhood Sports Bar and Grill on the second floor.

The Thunderbird Bowl, which opened in 1962, was previously operated by their parents, Alex and Susan Peters, who took over from the original owners in 1973.

The bowling and entertainment centre fits into the current trend of family entertainment centres, or FECs, Trevor Peters says. “You used to have the typical ‘pizza box’ that sold pizza. Then in the 1980s alcohol was added,” he says. Menus got reworked and people were looking for new options. Soon there was table service and point-ofsale ordering capabilities.

To complement the bowling centre, they brought in Manitoba institution Pizza Place to help them feed hungry bowlers. “We were

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PIZZA PROJEKT

have seen sales from their vegan menu almost eclipse sales of other pizza. Popular sides include the apple pecan pear goat cheese salad, wings and batter-dipped mozzarella.

Because Fleetway is a family entertainment complex, Pizza Projekt sees heavy use by families. They appeal to young people, regulars in the over-40 age group and “pizza fanatics,” Allison says.

They get a lot of university students as customers but would like to have more. “It’s a destination for date nights,” he says.

On the hiring side, they have 22 staff. High school students regularly approach them for jobs. “Hiring is never a problem,” Allison says. A typical shift he gives to students is 4 to 10 p.m. Daytime core staff includes a kitchen manager, closing staff and a quick-service general manager.

He recently finished training a manager and these days is stepping back – or trying to. He still works two shifts a week to keep his hand in. “It’s not that easy to keep your hands off,” he says. “I still do the numbers but the manager now is trained to do the books.”

There is cross-promotion between the pizzeria and bowling centre. They offer daily in-house specials and a popular bundled package on Tuesdays and Sundays, which Fleetway promotes: one large three-topping pizza, one hour of bowling, one pitcher of beer for $50 “*Shoes not included in price.” Allison prints out cards for tables advertising their pizzas. Bowling leagues, which run from September through April, receive discounts at the pizzeria, and his staff get free bowling passes.

His best marketing involves posting photos and messages on Facebook and Instagram. Referring to the early days of marketing, he says, “It was hard. We tried everything: Western University’s magazine, the London Free Press, the Yellow Pages, Eat and Drink magazine. At about the two-year mark, things clicked. I found that if you stay on top of your social media, it’s all you need. I go for mouthwatering photos that make people want to come in.”

The split between those who come for the bowling and those who come first and foremost for the pizza, is hard to calculate, he says. He provides a very rough estimate of 80 per cent bowling, 20 per cent pizza. His own split between dine-in and delivery is more pronounced and easier to assess: about 90 per cent of their customers eat in the pizzeria and about 10 per cent prefer their pizzas delivered.

LEFT: Pizza Projekt was custom built by owner Jake Allison to feed hungry bowlers at Fleetway Bowling in London, Ont. RIGHT: Kahuna Pizza, Pizza Projekt’s white-sauce take on Hawaiian pizza, is one of its bestsellers.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 17

feature looking for the eighth day of revenue,” he says of the decision to follow the franchise playbook.

Peters, a bowler since age 6 and member of the board of industry association Bowl Canada, said they bought into the nearly 60-yearold franchise in 2003, to have a turnkey operation to supplement their existing business.

As for marketing the business, he says they are selling an experience. On the website they play up league bowling, company parties, school outings, birthday parties and fundraisers. The foodservice part of the business represents roughly 60 per cent of sales, and the bowling represents about 40, Peters estimates. “Food is a very important cog in the wheel.”

The complex contains a kids’ play structure, glow-in-the-dark bowling and space for private meetings for organizations.

Pizza Place, a franchise owned by Steve Logan with several locations in Manitoba, boasts a history going back to the 1960s. Its catchy jingle and logo featuring the Leaning Tower of Pisa are well known to Manitobans. On reopening in 2003 after being closed for about a decade, Peters says they put a lot of money into the relaunch.

That Italian-style jingle really resonated with customers, he says.

Their signature pizza is the pepperoni, which features pepperoni from Old County Sausage in Winnipeg. “The pepperoni is on top and it’s curled and lightly burned at the edges,” he says.

They cross-promote with Dash Delivers, a local business they contract to handle off-premise delivery. They have had success

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combining food with bowling packages – bundling.

“We’re fortunate because we can bundle things together differently than what a lot of other places can. We can throw free games of bowling on a pizza box or offer a special where you get a half-hour of bowling free and try to drive that customer and make them a bowling customer and vice versa.” For example, the “No Brainer Bundle” includes an hour-and-a-half of bowling, two medium two-topping pizzas and pop for up to five people. The regular price is $89.95 per lane, shoes and taxes included, but customers can reserve and prepay online to save $10 per package.

“We do a lot of things the typical ‘pizza box’ can’t do.”

“When we opened it in 2003 we dedicated kitchen space, bought ovens and did what we had to do to make it happen. But really it was just an inclusion of the existing staff that we had here in the back of the house. We have a couple of kitchen managers and a team of about 13 cooks and prep cooks in the kitchen.”

Their head kitchen chef and manager has been with them for 10 years. “You’ve got to try to keep good staff just for synergy and to keep the train on the tracks,” he says.

Peters’ secret to doing that? “Treat them right. Try to meet their needs. They are human people too – they have lives. What we’re finding is that money isn’t always the answer – their time is very important to them and time with their families. We try to be as accommodating as we can.” Although they can’t always loosen the purse strings – “I don’t know too many people who can do that” – he says they try to pay attention and provide perks like dental and health plans that employees can’t get everywhere else.

“My message to a franchise that has a pizzeria and to a bowling centre that’s looking to offer better food options: Partner up. Let the pros do what they do best.”

Partnering with a franchise has suited his business well. “I would gladly give up five or six per cent in royalties to seek out that next thing that can take my food and business to the next level and have all the systems in place,” he says.

“A friend in the restaurant business once told me, if you are an absolute god in the food and beverage business, you might get seven to 10 per cent to stick to your fingers. And that’s not a very big return for the amount of effort that you’re going to make. He wasn’t far off.”

Peters suggests it makes sense for independent pizzerias to team up with bowling centres in smaller markets. As a board member for Bowl Canada, he sometimes hears of these partnerships.

“A lot of little bowling centres are in small markets where the big guys aren’t,” he says. “Maybe the relationship is already there and it makes sense to buddy up.”

Pizza and bowling go together, says Peters. “I’m not going to say bowling is recession-proof,” he adds, noting that the bowling business is shrinking because with the real estate owned, it’s becoming more lucrative to sell out. “But the ones that are surviving are doing very well.”

“It’s just one of those pastimes that everyone can do, whether they’re 3 or 93. It’s that comfort game where you don’t have to be an athlete but you can go out, have fun and be able to participate with Grandma and Grandpa and the kids. Pizza is one of those comfort foods that are universal – it accommodates everybody. It’s just a good fit and a good combo.” •

WELCOME

WELCOME TO THE SUMMIT! New location, informative sessions, two Chefs of the Year!

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ou may have noticed this year our annual show has a new name. It’s been dubbed the Canadian Pizza Summit to recognize our change in location to Faema Canada’s sparkling showroom. The name change also is meant to highlight that this is a central place where the hardworking pizza industry comes together to take stock and look toward the future.

To help us do that, we’ll share results of our exclusive survey of pizzeria operators and keynote speaker David Coletto, of millennial research company, Abacus Research, will share results of a special survey he posed to young pizza lovers in partnership with Canadian Pizza.

We extend a special thank-you to our generous and active sponsors, exhibitors, speakers and judges for their participation, their enthusiasm and, above all, their support. You help make this show an event like no other with value for all attendees.

And we thank you, our pizzerias, for

giving up a day out of one of your busiest months to come together. This show is for you, but we couldn’t put it on without you! Our setting this year is our Platinum Sponsor Faema Canada’s sleek, modern showroom in Toronto, which is home to the Faema Culinary Academy pizza, gelato and barista training. It’s also the site of the former Ford plant and some very cool auto history. Enjoy an espresso while networking, checking out equipment and products.

We think there is something here for the whole team and it’s something special that you won’t find anywhere else – an atmosphere of learning and sharing within the Canadian market. Enjoy!

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS Special thank you to our Platinum sponsor, Faema Canada & Moretti Forni Ovens for their generosity in hosting the event this year at their fabulous Toronto showroom!

20 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018

MEET OUR SPEAKERS DALE WILLERTON Lease Renewal Do’s and Don’ts Learn the 13 costly mistakes pizzeria tenants make negotiating a new commercial lease or renewal. This session will prove invaluable to both existing and first-time pizzeria tenants.

Learn how to negotiate a rent reduction on your lease renewal; negotiate for free rent, a tenant allowance and/or your deposit returned; eliminate personal guarantees (on new leases and renewals); negotiate a mid-term rent reduction now – no matter how many years you have left on your lease term; and understand how to manage the real estate agent’s role in your site selection or lease negotiations.

Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield, working together as The Lease Coach, have been negotiating leases for pizzeria tenants since 1993. The Lease Coach exclusively represents tenants with one-onone coaching and consulting, new and lease-renewal negotiations, site selections, lease document reviews and mid-term rent reductions. Willerton is author of the book Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies.

DAVID COLETTO What Millennials Want: Generational Change and the Changing Consumer Market Through an engaging and interactive presentation, David will share insights on how Canadian millennials (those born between 1980 and 2000) are reshaping the world they interact with and forcing a rethink of how to market to the largest consumer group in Canada.

Having conducted research on Canadian millennials for the past eight years, David’s insights are research-based, balanced, and respectful. He will take us on a journey to understand why and how millennials are disrupting markets, forcing us to rethink how we work and to assess the role food plays in the typical millennial’s life.

You won’t want to miss it!

David Coletto is CEO and a founding partner of Abacus Data, a

full-service data science and public opinion research firm based in Ottawa. With almost a decade of experience in the industry, David and his partners founded Abacus eight years ago, and since then it has grown into one of Canada’s most respected research firms.

He has a doctorate in political science from the University of Calgary and is also an adjunct professor at the Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs at Carleton University where he teaches courses on public affairs strategies, polling and political marketing.

MEGAN GRETTON THOMAS MOORCROFT Applying for a Labour Market Impact Assessment Megan Gretton and Thomas Moorcroft, Senior Program Development Officers with Service Canada, will explain how to apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment. An assessment is the first step toward applying to hire a Temporary Foreign Worker.

MIKE VON MASSOW Focus on Delivery This session will look at delivery challenges and opportunities. Learn which delivery models – delivery-only, direct delivery, third-party services, take ’n’ bake – are working for operators. Find out about delivery best practices, including how to maintain quality with direct delivery and stand out in a sea of outside delivery services.

Mike von Massow is an associate professor in Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Guelph. He is also the Ontario Agricultural College Chair in Food Systems Leadership. Mike studies how people make decisions about food in both retail and foodservice contexts. He has received funding from the Tim Hortons Sustainable Food Management Fund, the Walmart Foundation, Longo’s markets and others. He is co-director of the University of Guelph Sustainable Restaurant Project, which undertakes research and educational activities in support of improving the restaurant industry.

The Great Pizza Box Fold-Off: Get in on the fun!

Are you a fast folder? Let’s see how long it takes you to fold 10 large boxes. Register online ahead of the Summit to compete in the Fold-Off online at www.canadianpizzashow.com. Bring your boxes to the show!

All competitors should be at the competition stage 10 minutes prior to the competition start time. The Great Pizza Box Fold-Off will be held at 3:30 p.m., immediately following the Open division competition. An award will be given out with other awards at 4:00 p.m.

RULES • • • • • •

The Great Pizza Box Fold-Off is open to Canadian owners and employees of pizzerias and restaurants focusing on pizza who are 14 years and older.

The Canadian Pizza Show will supply the person with the stopwatch.

Competitors need to bring 10 large pizza boxes.

Competitors will compete one at a time.

The maximum number of entrants is 10.

Timed decisions are final.

Get in on the fun!

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 21

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 8:30 A.M.

1:00-2:45 P.M.

Registration open

Chef of the Year (Open) Kitchen Pizza makers present their best pizzas for the title of Canadian Pizza Chef of the Year (Open) and to win a trip to compete at the

9:00 A.M.- 4:00 P.M.

Trade show exhibitors available

Trade Show Floor

9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M.

Talk Renewing Your Commercial Lease Seminar Space Dale Willerton of The Lease Coach will arm you with knowledge and questions to ask your landlord when it’s time to renew your lease agreement.

10:00-11:45 A.M.

Chef of the Year (Traditional) Kitchen Pizza makers present their best pizzas to compete for the title of Canadian Pizza Chef of the Year (Traditional) and to win a trip to compete at the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas.

Definition of Traditional:Competitors provide the dough, cheese/ cheese blend and spices. They must use a red sauce. No more than two of the following toppings may be added: pepperoni, sausage, bacon, ham, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, onions and olives.

Please note that different varieties of these toppings will constitute only one topping. Basil leaves and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil after baking are acceptable; no other drizzles are allowed. A competitor’s pizza will be disqualified if the judges decide it contains too many toppings or impermissible toppings.

NEW THIS YEAR:Two Chefs of the Year – a Traditional and an Open – will be crowned. The winning chefs will be featured on the cover of Canadian Pizza, and each chef wins a trip to compete at the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas in March 2019 plus $500 to spend in Vegas!

11:00 A.M.-12:00 NOON

What Millennials Want Seminar Space David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data, will share his insights into the millennial age group to help your shop draw and retain millennial customers as well as motivated young workers.

Location: Seminar Space

12:00 NOON-1:00 P.M. Complimentary Buffet Lunch

Trade Show Floor

12:00 P.M.-1:00 P.M.

Galbani Professionale product demonstration Kitchen Company chef Julia Wycliffe will bake pizzas using Galbani cheeses and discuss the products.

International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas.

Definition of Open: Competitors may enter a pizza with any combination and number of toppings they choose.

NEW THIS YEAR: Two Chefs of the Year – a Traditional and an Open – will be crowned. The winning chefs will be featured on the cover of Canadian Pizza, and each chef wins a trip to compete at the International Pizza Challenge in Las Vegas in March 2019 plus $500 to spend in Vegas!

1:00 P.M.-2 P.M.

Applying for a Labour Market Impact Assessment Seminar Space Service Canada representatives will provide a program overview to review eligibility requirements and the application process.

2:00-2:45 P.M.

Focus on Delivery Seminar Space Are you bewildered by the explosion of delivery services an options? Wondering what it all means for the pizza business, which has always been a leader in delivery? This year we will look at delivery challenges and opportunities. Learn which delivery models – delivery-only, direct delivery, third-party services, take ’n’ bake – are working for operators. Find out about delivery best practices, including how to maintain quality with direct delivery and stand out in a sea of outside delivery services.

Mike Von Massow, an associate professor in the Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics department at the University of Guelph, spends much of his time thinking about how people think about food. Mike will share feedback from restaurants on delivery models and help us find perspective in this changing delivery landscape.

3:30 P.M.

The Great Pizza Box Fold-Off Trade Show Floor Fast folders will compete by folding 10 large boxes (BYOB). The folder with the best time for 10 boxes will be deemed the winner. Competitors should be on the trade show floor near the café counter 10 minutes prior to the competition start time.

4:00 P.M.

Chef of the Year winners announced Traditional Division: • Third place • Second place • Chef of the Year (Traditional) Open Division: • Third place • Second place • Chef of the Year (Open)

4:30 P.M.

Canadian Pizza Summit closes

22 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018

Trade Show Floor

EXHIBITORS AND SPONSORS PLATINUM SPONSOR

Moretti Forni Canada/Faema Canada morettiforni.ca faema.ca

Canada distributed by

Canada

GOLD SPONSORS

Ardent Mills ardentmills.ca

SILVER SPONSORS

Parmalat Foodservice parmalat-foodservice.ca/en

Burke Corporation burkecorp.com

Lallemand lallemand.com

Escalon Premier Foods/Heinz escalon.net

Lesaffre Yeast Corporation lesaffre.com

E q u i p m e n t a n d Te c h n o l o g y f o r t h e B a k e r y I n d u s t r y

Mealsy Mealsy.ca

On Green Go Solutions Ongreengosolutions.com

Reiser reiser.com

Salamina Foods salamina.ca

Sugardale sugardale.com

Supremex Supremex.com

Tony’s Cheese/Jesse Tree Fine Foods Jessetreefinefoods.com

Uber Eats Ubereats.com

U Eat ueat.io

LES ALIMENTS

FOODS

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 23

making dough with Diane

Five ways to delight and win customers Diane Chiasson

izza shops are popping up all over the country. With the constant growth of the pizza industry and revenue opportunities, you need to set yourself apart from your competition. But how can your small pizzeria distinguish itself beyond making the best pizza in your hometown?

You should ask yourself if your customers are happy. Delivery of great customer service means all of your customers are treated with respect. Take a look at these five ideas for delighting your current customers and winning over new customers.

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1. BE KIND, BE FRIENDLY AND GENUINELY WELCOME EACH GUEST TO YOUR PLACE As a pizzeria owner, you know that being kind to your customers has lasting effects.

As well, you surely know by now that to succeed in the marketplace you need to have that personal touch. It goes without saying that you should always greet your customers with a big smile when they come through your door. You can help clear the path for the personal touch by using your customer’s name. In a study published in Brain Research magazine, certain parts of our brain light up when we hear our own name. It’s been proven over and over again that there is no word we love to hear more than our own name. You should consistently use your customer’s name throughout the conversation. It will make your interaction more personal and it will be interpreted as being caring, thoughtful and empathic. Tell you staff to always be attentive by listening to feedback and by taking notes to make sure that they understand what their customers want.

Getting to know your customers and recommending menu items are great ways to keep fans of your pizzeria coming back.

Respectful and kind employees will always make customers feel welcome and will create the foundation for a longterm relationship. Always listen and understand your customers’ needs, never raise your voice, even under pressure, and have a big smile when serving them.

How about training your staff to offer a real, genuine welcome they would offer to their own guests in their own home.

2. EXPRESS A TRUE INTEREST AND GET PERSONAL Great customer service involves more than just checking in with customers and solving their issues. You should always try to go above and beyond by creating or offering something awesome to remind your guests why they love your pizzeria, and a little personal attention goes a long way. I suggest you train your staff to engage customers in meaningful conversation about what they are seeking so they can offer strong and effective recommendations. Are they looking for something

24 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018

for a future party, a birthday or a special celebration? Customer service involves more than just speaking with your customers, and you will quickly find out that a little personal attention goes a long way.

Don’t just leave them with an oversized menu: make suggestions and recommendations, and point out what they might want.

3. MAKE YOUR EMPLOYEES EXPERTS Your staff should be able to remember more than just a list of pizza names. They should talk about the history of your pizzeria, the flavours of each pizza, the preparation, taste, unique ingredients, special room decorations, and exceptional celebration themes. As a pizzeria owner, you need to take on the role of the friendly, neighbourhood shop where customers always feel welcome. Try to go above and beyond by creating something awesome to remind your customers why they love your place so much.

4. KEEP CONSISTENCY KING If you want to keep your customers happy, you need to be consistent in providing quality services. If you want to succeed all the time, consistency matters. It’s not just from one pizza to the next but also from one store location to the next.

When your customers like your pizza pies, they want to be able to get the same exact thing again and again. And they want it to taste and look the same as it did last time. I mean that – exactly the same. Scales and recipes are your best friends.

As you know, staff turnover is a major challenge for pizza operators. Serving good-quality pizzas is a highly technical skill that takes a lot of training, and it’s always challenging to ensure the consistency of product when staff members are changing. Investing in staff training on whatever equipment system you use and monitoring the quality of your products is essential. You need to have regularly scheduled meetings with your

team members in order to share any new Pinterest. This is an excellent way to get ideas or receive feedback that might help them involved. It’s also easy to increase to increase customer satisyour sales when you find faction. Don’t forget that out what your customers when your team works want in the first place.

Train your together, they provide You could even have a consistently good quality staff to engage contest and name your served in the same way next pizzas after your customers in every single time. Learncustomers’ suggestions. ing how to make and keep You can be sure it will meaningful your customers happy is bring them back along conversation critical to ensuring the with their friends. Ask success and longevity of about what they your customers to write your pizza business. reviews and give ratings are seeking. on your service and your 5. INVOLVE YOUR pizzeria products. • CUSTOMERS IN NEW Diane Chiasson, FCSI, president PIZZA OFFERINGS of Chiasson Consultants Inc., has been helping food Perhaps you are thinking of adding or service, hospitality and retail operators increase sales changing out a few of your pizzas. Use for over 30 years by providing innovative and reveyour social media pages to interact with nue-increasing food service and retail merchandising programs, interior design, branding, menu engineeryour customers and get information ing, marketing and promotional campaigns. Contact from them. Why not ask your custom- her at 416-926-1338, toll-free at 1-888-926-6655 ers what they want by posting questions or chiasson@chiassonconsultants.com, or visit www. chiassonconsultants.com on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and

PIZZA DELIVERY BAGS

(K]LY[PZLYZ 0UKL_ Company

Page #

Annex Bookstore ..................................................................................27 Ardent Mills ............................................................................................ 2 Canadian Pizza Summit.................................................................. 14-15 Finica Foods .........................................................................................11 Middleby Marshall.................................................................................. 7 Moretti Forni/Faema ..............................................................................28 Pizza Power Page .................................................................................25 Ricco Food Distributor ..........................................................................13 Salerno ..................................................................................................13 Show Guide..................................................................................... 19-23 Springer’s Meats ...................................................................................18 Stanislaus ........................................................................................4 & 5 Use these advertiser contact numbers to find out more about a product advertised in this issue or to place an order. This index is provided as a service. Canadian Pizza Magazine is not liable for errors or omissions.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018 pizza 25

guest column

Creating your kitchen layout Maurizio Mascioli

our pizzeria layout begins with your vision.

You’re a pizzeria entrepreneur embarking on the adventure of your life.

You have the vision, the product ideas, the menu and the location. Now you need the design layout to pull it all together.

How do you do that? This was my exact same question five years ago. There are two approaches to answer this question: 1. Hire a designer. 2. Design it yourself.

With either approach, you’re going to need a certified designer to give you final approval. However, the more time you invest, versus hiring someone, the more cost effective the process becomes. Being a new entrepreneur with a limited budget and previous general construction and computer software knowledge, I opted for solution number 2.

After many hours of research on the topic, I realized a venue layout is a living, breathing element in a revenue-generating operation. By creating a layout incorrectly you may create unnecessary walking steps for your staff during a work shift that will lead to exhausted staff by day’s end, poor employee performance, greater chance of accidents, workflow delays resulting in lost revenue over time and wasted money.

Think of the sections of your pizzeria as flowing into one another: entrance of venue to ordering area, kitchen to dining area, kitchen to storage and receiving, and back again.

In this article we’ll focus on the kitchen.

Before designing your layout, you must visit with the local health unit office. They will tell you what is needed for a commercial kitchen, placements of hand-washing basins, washing stations, type of walls, etc.

Example: hand-washing basins have a maximum distance from working areas. These must be included in your drawings with measurements of distances.

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To assist in creating a fluidic layout, try during peak times should be within few these tips. Jot down your menu in point short steps of access. Pizza prep tables and form. Next to each menu item write down pizza ovens should always be perpendicular the equipment needed to create the final and never opposite to one another. product. Example: Pizza – oven, Fries – Perpendicular location allows the staff deep fryer. (For anything with grease-laden peripheral vision of the oven contents while vapours, you will require a fire suppression stretching and dressing pizzas. If the oven exhaust system.) This will give you an idea of is behind them, they cannot see the pizza what equipment you’ll need is overcooking. This creates in your kitchen. Once you havoc during peak business have your equipment list, times, loss in revenue and The more time find the exact measurements upset customers. As well, you invest, to each piece of equipment: every pizza oven must have height, depth and width. Buy a staging area for pizza to be versus hiring yourself designing software. cooked and an offloading someone, Within the software you can area for baked pizzas to be create custom objects that plated and served. The pizthe more represent your equipment za prep table should always to the exact dimensions. Visbe ready to create pizza: this cost effective it your new venue location, enhances productivity. the process bringing a laser measuring Spacing is important. Ustool, notepad, digital camera ing the measuring tool withbecomes. and pens. Make an afternoon in your design software you of it; don’t rush. Draw out can place your pizza chef your layout, use your laser and measure out their reach tool for exact measurements and take many to the pizza oven and other important acphotos for later reference. cess points. This bird’s eye view of the layout From this file start designing your layout. helps you visualize good or bad workflows.

Save it as “Pizzeria Layout 2018 001.” After Some new location spaces we’ve looked at every major change you make to that file, for expansion looked perfect, but once I saw save it as a new file name: “Pizzeria Layout the layout drawn to specification on paper, I 2018 002” and so on. This file structure al- realized the space was not ideal. lows you to reference back to previous deWith your venue layout designed, everysign changes or ideas that you liked or were thing works out on paper. You can’t help but on the fence about. feel your vision coming to life, and you’re Keep in mind your workflow. Location of one step closer to your dream. • equipment is essential for creating the most productive workflow. Some tips to keep in Chef Maurizio Mascioli is owner and operator of Maurizio’s Pizzeria Inc. in Parry Sound, Ont. He is a two-time mind: long-term storage areas and coolers International Pizza Championship gold medal recipient not typically accessed during peak times and 2018 Master Chef recipient. He has received awards should stay outside high-traffic areas. Reach- for outstanding customer service, entrepreneur of the year and business of the year from the Parry Sound Chamber in coolers, freezers, ingredients storage and of Commerce, and is an instructor for the School of Italian beverage coolers that are often accessed Pizza in Toronto.

26 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018