FOOD INDUSTRY NEWS october 2013
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FOOD
INDUSTRY NEWS Three Decades of Serving the Foodservice Industry
FOUNDED 1982
october 2013
Publisher’s insight ............................... 4 Chef Profile: Klaus Mandl..................... 6 Michael Matthews.............. 13
around chicago: Table fifty-two .............8 people selling the industry................... 10 national news..................................... 11 travel: dollywood............................... 14 Dining with ms. x................................. 22
Who could have predicted that this 6’ X 12’ trailer with no running water or washroom would grow into a franchise five decades later?
Business Truths That Aren’t true........... 33 essentials Before disaster strikes........ 36 directory........................................... 41 classifieds......................................... 44
Chicago Area Food establishments At 5o: A Half Century of Excellence ....................... 28
Spotlight on chicagoland’s traditional time-tEsted favorite restaurants The Walnut Room Erie Street Cafe Twin Anchors Restaurant & Tavern The Italian Village RJ Grunts The Cape Cod Room Miller’s Pub Gale Street Inn
oct 1-8.indd 1
Lou Malnati’s Morton’s Gibsons Heaven on Seven Lawry’s Lou Mitchell’s The BerghoFF Pompei Bakery Gene and Ge0rgetti’s
Portillo’s 50 Years of Hard-Fought 2005, Indiana in 2006 and to Arizona in 2013. Success The Barnelli’s Pasta Bowl concept was introduced
Celebrating a half century of success didn’t come easy for Dick Portillo. Humble roots made for innovative thinking and lots of hard work. The first Portillo’s hot dog stand known as “The Dog House” opened in 1963 on North Avenue in Villa Park. Owner and founder Dick Portillo invested $1,100 into a 6’ x 12’ trailer without a bathroom or running water. To get the water he needed, he ran 250 feet of garden hose from a nearby building into the trailer. By 1967, “The Dog House” was a success and was ready for a new look. After it was remodeled, it was renamed “Portillo’s” and over the years has grown into a successful multi-state operation. Portillo’s expanded to Southern California in
in 1993, and features a variety of pastas with homemade sauces, gourmet salads, and handtossed pizza. Barnelli’s first opened in Schaumburg and has additional locations in Naperville, Vernon Hills, Glendale Heights, Niles, Summit, Crystal Lake, Chicago and Willowbrook, IL. Today, the Portillo Restaurant Group is the largest privately-owned restaurant company in the Midwest without franchising, partners or investors. There are 51 restaurants in four states including 38 Portillo’s Hot Dogs, nine Barnelli’s Pasta Bowls, three Honey-Jam Cafes, one Luigi’s House and Julian’s Piano Bar, a catering and shipping division and two shopping plazas. Combined, the concepts have over 4,600 employees. There’s a lot more to the Portillo’s story; to see how Dick Portillo built it all, turn to page 34
9/13/13 10:03 AM