INtouch
PO Box 7577, Columbia, SC 29202
july 2021
From the mountains to the beach, make plans to attend our upcoming fall 2021 events! September 20 Hospitality Leaders Golf Tournament The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards
OCTOBER 4-5 Marketing & Operations Conference Kiawah Island Golf Resort
Visit scrla.org/events for more details!
SCRLA Event Spotlight Restaurant Week is back! Summer and Fall Restaurant Weeks are being planned for 2021!
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID COLUMBIA, SC PERMIT 168
Easy, Personal, Affordable, Health Insurance Options The South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association is pleased to offer hospitality workers access to a variety of health insurance solutions for individuals & families. Finding health insurance that fits your budget can be hard. The SCRLA wants to make that easier for you. Licensed insurance agents1 from HealthMarkets stand ready to walk you through your insurance choices. They can help you find the right plan at the right price that’s the right fit for you from a variety of top health insurance companies. The SCRLA knows licensed insurance agents from HealthMarkets can help you save time and find health coverage that fits your life and budget. Make just one call to get professional help comparing health insurance prices, plans and benefits from multiple companies today.
In addition to the winter campaign when all of the chapters celebrate Restaurant Week during the same time, chapters schedule individual campaigns that meet their local needs in the summer and fall. Restaurant Week is an 11-day celebration at participating restaurants. To ensure all Restaurant Week diners feel they can participate, we are continuing to encourage restaurants to offer a menu for takeout and delivery as well. This was highly successful during the January 2021 campaign as it was the best way for everyone to be able to celebrate the tastiest time of the year.
RESTAURANT WEEK GREENVILLE August 5-15
CHARLESTON RESTAURANT WEEK September 9-19
RESTAURANT WEEK COLUMBIA October 14-24
Call today for a free quote! 1-833-758-2001 Licensed agents are made available through HealthMarkets, a national health insurance marketplace.
Four Things Hoteliers Should Know About Grab-and-Go F&B Of all the disruptions the hotel industry has borne since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the biggest was the upending of how hotels approach their food and beverage (F&B) programs. One solution that many hotels have implemented is grab-and-go markets, which allow guests to purchase pre-packaged food or meals with limited risk of exposure. Grab-and-go F&B programs have taken off since the start of the pandemic, with many hotels putting their own unique spin on the concept. Don Falgoust, vice president of food and beverage strategy execution at third-party manager Remington Hotels, has overseen the rollouts of numerous grab-andgo programs since the start of the pandemic. He shares some tips for hoteliers looking to make the most of their grab-and-go setup. 1. Get the good stuff. “Always lead with quality,” is Falgoust’s number-one recommendation for hoteliers looking to kick up their grab-and-go concept. “There are a lot of inexpensive options out there, and if you’re really trying to elevate the experience for guests, you can’t be using secondary and tertiary products.” He adds, “I think that COVID has a lot of travelers stuck in a world where mediocrity has been the offering of the day and it’s beyond critical that your F&B offerings be held to a higher standard.” 2. Think beyond traditional snacks. Having options like mixed nuts and chips makes sense in a grab-and-go market, but Falgoust recommends including other options as well. “We actually found a source that lets us put together small charcuterie plates and cheese boards. We also have good quality sandwiches, salads, and even grain and quinoa bowls. Travelers want to have a nice meal, even if they can’t have it in your hotel’s restaurant.”
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3. Don’t forget the cocktails. While this may be more difficult for some hotels than others, Falgoust notes that having alcoholic beverages available through a grab-and-go setting has been a huge hit in the hotels where Remington made it an option. “Sometimes after a long day of work, people want a nice glass of wine or a cocktail. Luckily, over the past few years, we’ve seen the rise of the canned wine and canned cocktail market. It’s given us a lot of really great options, and we’re able to source high-quality beverages for guests who want an alcoholic option.” 4. Service culture rules. Even though hotel guests will be able to serve themselves in a grab-and-go environment, Falgoust cautions that hoteliers should not ignore the service component of a grab-and-go market. “At the end of the day, we’re in the hospitality business. We’re in this business because we really want to provide a heightened level of service to people and we want to take care of them.” Staffing is still required to ensure a grab-and-go space is well-maintained and guests are able to get what they’re looking for quickly and easily.
Hall Management Group Speaks at Summit on Tort Reform
AHLA Safe Stay Employee Mask Guidance
A Tort Reform Summit was held at Burr Forman Law Firm in Columbia on June 15. At the summit, individuals from a variety of backgrounds discussed tort reform legislation, the state of the insurance industry and judicial hellholes, liability insurance providers, and dram shop liability legislation.
AHLA, in partnership with industry leadership, including the Safe Stay Advisory Council, has released a statement that lifts the face mask requirement for vaccinated employees following the release of OSHA’s updated business guidance, Protecting Workers: Guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace. OSHA’s updated guidance states, “Unless otherwise required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, most employers no longer need to take steps to protect their fully vaccinated workers who are not otherwise at-risk from COVID-19 exposure. This guidance focuses only on protecting unvaccinated or otherwise at-risk workers in their workplaces.”
Tommy Hall, owner of Hall Management Group and chair of the Lowcountry Hospitality Association, spoke on dram shop liability legislation during the summit on behalf of the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association. Currently, South Carolina does not have a “Dram Shop Act,” although it is illegal to “knowingly” serve alcohol to any person who is intoxicated or underage. Dram shop insurance, more commonly known as liquor liability insurance, provides coverage for businesses that sell, distribute, manufacture and/or supply alcholic beverages. Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey introduced the Tortfeasers Act (S. 145) to amend sections 15-38-15, 15-38-40(B) and 15-38-50 of the 1976 Code to include persons or entities for the allocation of fault and to make conforming changes. The bill is currently sitting in Senate Judiciary until the second part of the legislative session reconvenes in January 2022.
Restaurant Sales Continue to Trend Higher According to Survey A new survey indicates consumers have yet to get their fill of restaurants, which means the positive sales trajectory has more room to run. Driven by the easing of capacity restrictions, rising vaccination numbers and healthy household balance sheets, consumer spending in restaurants trended steadily higher in recent months. Eating and drinking places* registered total sales of $67.3 billion on a seasonally-adjusted basis in May, according to preliminary data from the U.S. Census Bureau. In nominal terms, May’s eating and drinking place sales surpassed the February 2020 pre-pandemic sales volume of $66.2 billion. However, after adjusting for menu-price inflation, real eating and drinking place sales remain approximately 3% below pre-pandemic levels. This indicates that the restaurant industry’s recovery from the pandemic is not yet complete, in terms of a return to normal customer traffic levels. More room to run With on-premises dining restrictions being lifted across the country, consumers finally have the opportunity to burn off their accumulated pent-up demand for restaurants. Still, a new survey indicates consumers have yet to completely get their fill
OSHA’s announcement in combination with our industry’s ongoing commitment to employee vaccinations has resulted in our ability to lift the face mask requirements for employees while also assuring the safety of our guests and workforce.
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Total Eating and Drinking Place Sales (in billions of current dollars)
of restaurants, which means the current positive sales trajectory likely has more room to run. Fifty percent of adults say they are not eating on premises at restaurants as often as they would like, according to a survey fielded by the National Restaurant Association June 4-6, 2021. That was down significantly from the 83% who reported similarly during the early weeks of the pandemic, but still remained slightly above the January 2020 pre-pandemic level of 45%. Restaurants across every segment expanded their off-premises options during the pandemic, and consumers embraced these additional points of access. In an Association survey fielded in December 2020, 53% of adults said purchasing takeout or delivery food is essential to the way they live. As a result, it’s not surprising that only 28% of adults say they are currently not ordering takeout or delivery from restaurants as often as they would like. Increased usage of off-premises foodservice is baked into the cake for many consumers, and this trend is likely to continue well beyond the end of the pandemic.
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*Eating and drinking places are the primary component of the U.S. restaurant and foodservice industry, which prior to the coronavirus outbreak generated approximately 75 percent of total restaurant and foodservice sales. heartland.us/restaurant
July 2021 • SCRLA.org
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