Foodify Winter 2023/2024 Issue

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN HOT CHICKEN SANDWICH

WHAT IS FOODIFY?

We firmly believe that achieving exceptional quality shouldn’t be an uphill battle. Our mission is to empower business owners like you to elevate their enterprises.

At our core, we live and breathe hospitality. We understand that the heart of any dining experience lies in outstanding food, impeccable service, and unforgettable moments. Our dedication stems from a deep-seated desire to support and educate the entire spectrum of the hospitality industry, from restauranteurs to chefs, servers, and bartenders.

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F Your Business Podcast

Empowering the hospitality industry with expertise, our goal is to establish a new standard of excellence in food, service, and dining experience for all

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A NOTE FROM ANNE

Many may not realize this, but the idea behind the Foodify movement started in Nashville less than a year ago In May 2023, Scott Fisher, Chris D’Agostino and I were sitting in the Nashville convention center, between sessions at the annual Craft Brewers Conference & BrewExpo America, when it suddenly hit us.

Things have changed in the hospitality industry over the last five years. And yet, in many ways the core reason of why we do what we do remains the same

There is no denying that software and technology have drastically changed the way we do what we do on a daily basis But as much as software and technology have helped, in many ways they have allowed us to take our eyes off the ball. At the end of the day, it is still all about the food.

Our Foodify movement is a mission to return our focus to being passionate about serving quality food to our guests It’s a movement to show that, regardless of your size or concept, it is possible to make the margins work with quality products served That’s why it was exciting to return to Nashville not even a year later to explore the way a reinvented food scene has transformed this city into a destination.

From the Hot Chicken Sandwich to BBQ, unique food offerings are everywhere! And exploring it with our Foodify experts was definitely a treat!

What we learned during our visit is that, beyond just delicious meals, Nashville also represents a city that isn’t afraid of change They haven’t just adapted to the changing consumer; they have embraced all that there is to love about the next generation of patrons. From sustainable hotel offerings to unique Airbnb’s and instagrammable photo opportunities, Nashville is a beloved gathering spot for the 20 somethings

But it wasn’t always this way. Which makes the story of Nashville something we can all pay attention to.

Is there a way to reinvent our concept to appeal to the 2024 consumer? We believe it starts with turning OFF your computer, and getting real about your operations And there is no better place to start than digging into a great Hot Chicken Sandwich in Nashville!

Let’s go!

AnneGannon

FOUNDER AND CEO

OUR FOODIFY JOURNEY TO NASHVILLE

In spring of 2023, while attending the Craft Brewer’s Convention in Nashville, we realized that there was a missed opportunity for independent restaurants and breweries to have profitable food on their menu We needed a way to show them how to use fresh, highquality ingredients that translated into top-line sales and bottom-line profits The Foodify Your Business movement was born.

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This year, we returned to Nashville We knew we needed to take a closer look at the rich history of its food and beverage scene

Nashville's vibrant food and beverage scene offered a wide variety of restaurants and breweries with a unique atmosphere From the iconic hot chicken to the smooth sounds of live music drifting through the air, Nashville exuded a unique charm that inspired creativity and innovation.

As we toured the busy streets, we witnessed the magic that happened when a perfectly paired dish was complemented by a thoughtfully crafted drink

At the end of our journey, we carried with us a newfound appreciation for the power of food and beverage to bring people together, create unforgettable experiences, and drive prosperity The trip left us with renewed vision to spread the word that ��➕��=�� : a formula for success that ensures profitability and sustainability for your business

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE!

Shotmaker Podcast

Empowering the hospitality industry with expertise, our goal is to establish a new standard of excellence in food, service, and dining experience for all

Shotmaker Podcast is all about you and your mindset There are so many things that we can't control This podcast is about digging into what we can control and learning from operators, business owners, and thought leaders about mindset

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Accelerator Method

Expand your business, systematize your finances, & set your brand up for long term sustainable growth

Are you overwhelmed by trying to get your finances in order and expand your business?

The stress and pressure of running your own finances with limited resources can keep you from making real-time decisions that will benefit your business. If you aren’t looking over your finances frequently enough, you’re not giving yourself the opportunity to improve.

Anne Gannon’s Accelerator Method will teach you how to systemize your finances while helping you with a plan to expand your business Anne’s step-by-step, actionable system will help you get your existing business on rock-solid ground while setting yourself up for franchising success in the future.

THE HISTORY OF THE NASHVILLE HOT CHICKEN SANDWICH

Spicy fried chicken has been served in the African-American communities of Nashville for generations, with variations of it dating back to at least the 1930s Typically, the dish is served on white bread or a bun with pickles, which help cool the heat from the spicy protein The chicken is first dry rubbed or marinated, then floured and fried, and finally smothered in a paste, sauce, or sometimes oil that is spiced with cayenne and other flavors. Modern variations of the sandwich include additional toppings such as coleslaw, lettuce, or a zesty mayo like Mississippi Comeback Sauce.

The legend of the sandwich is almost as spicy as the sandwich itself. Thornton Prince III, who had a reputation as a philanderer, was out all night one Saturday Prince returned home early the next morning to a very angry and vengeful girlfriend and went to sleep, only to wake up to the smell of freshly fried chicken

Unbeknownst to Thornton, his girlfriend had added all the spiciest things she could find in her kitchen Her revenge never worked out, though. Thornton liked it so much he immediately ran out and shared it with his two brothers. Shortly thereafter, in the 1940s, they started the

“BBQ Chicken Shack,” now run by Prince’s niece, Andre Prince Jeffries. After taking over, she changed the name to “Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack,'' and a new Nashville landmark was born

Hot Chicken has become synonymous with the city of Nashville, taking its place next to Country Music and Dolly Parton. Today there are dozens of restaurants in Nashville that serve hot chicken There is even an annual Music City Hot Chicken Festival that was started by former Mayor Bill Purcell, who famously called his table at Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack his “second office”

The spicy chicken dish can be found in every major American city, and as far away internationally as Seoul, South Korea or Melbourne, Australia. Even major chains like Buffalo Wild Wings, KFC, and Popeyes have begun offering it on their menus. This classic southern sandwich is poised to dominate the fried chicken space for years to come 6

HOW TO MAKE THE NASHVILLE HOT CHICKEN SANDWICH THE NEXT FOODIFY WIN ON YOUR MENU

START WITH GREAT INGREDIENTS

Chris’s Nashville Hot Sandwich recipe will guide you through making this amazing southern staple, and set you up to make your own unique variations and spice levels

Ingredients for the Marinade & Dredge:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs

1 cup buttermilk

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper (adjust for desired heat level)

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

Salt and black pepper to taste

Vegetable oil for frying

Ingredients for the Spicy Paste:

1/2 cup hot sauce (Louisiana hot sauce or your favorite)

2 tablespoons cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Salt and black pepper to taste

Additional Ingredients:

Buns (preferably soft and slightly sweet)

Sliced pickles

Coleslaw (optional)

Mayonnaise (optional)

Lettuce (optional)

Instructions:

Marinate the Chicken:

In a bowl, combine the buttermilk, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of black pepper

Add the chicken breasts or thighs to the buttermilk mixture, ensuring they are fully coated

Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight to really pack it full of flavor

Prepare the Dredge:

In a bowl, combine the flour, paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper to create the dry dredging mixture

Prepare the Spicy Paste:

In a separate bowl, mix together the hot sauce, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper to create the spicy coating sauce

Fry the Chicken:

Heat vegetable oil in a deep frying pan or castiron skillet to 350-375°F (175-190°C)

Remove the marinated chicken from the buttermilk and allow excess liquid to drip off.

Dredge the chicken pieces in the dry flour mixture, ensuring they are well-coated

Carefully place the coated chicken pieces into the hot oil and fry until they are golden brown and cooked through (internal temperature should reach 165°F or 74°C). This usually takes about 12-15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken Experiment with tenderizing or butterflying the chicken if you need to reduce cooking time

Coat with Spicy Sauce:

Once the chicken is fried, remove it from the oil and place it on a wire rack to drain excess oil While the chicken is still hot, brush or drizzle the spicy paste over each piece, ensuring they are evenly coated You can brush on more paste for extra heat

Assemble the Sandwich:

To make the sandwich, place a piece of hot chicken on the bottom half of a bun.

Add sliced pickles and any other desired toppings like coleslaw, lettuce, or mayonnaise. Top with the other half of the bun

Serve immediately, and enjoy your homemade Nashville hot chicken sandwich!

Remember to adjust the level of spiciness to your preference by altering the amount of cayenne pepper in both the coating sauce and the dry dredging mixture

FIND THE PRICE THAT WINS ON YOUR MENU

How is your menu priced?

We believe that a successful strategy for menu pricing is to price your menu items in a way that reflects their perceived value to customers.

Food Cost Calculation

Menu pricing should reflect your type of restaurant and your target demographics. Identify your local competitors and check their pricing The prices on their menus help inform your guests as to the perceived value of your menu items

Draw attention to high-profit menu items Guests are more likely to order one of the first three items they see on your menu Top left and top right corners, along with the center of the menu, make up what psychologists call “The Golden Triangle” What are your ‘golden triangle’ items currently and do they make sense for your business? If your menu is a simple list, your higher profit items should be first and last. Studies have shown that people notice the top two or final items in a list first, and are more likely to order those

Identify your ideal food cost percentage

This strategy can justify higher prices for premium offerings, as well as for limited time offer (LTO) items such as the Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich.

Why are Limit-time offerings (LTOs) important?

We believe you should introduce LTOs with special, exclusive menu items or promotions. Create FOMO; if potential customers see an item is only available for a day, week, or certain time period, they’re more motivated to order it

Price these items attractively to create urgency and drive sales during promotional periods. A few aggressively priced specials and basic online marketing on Instagram or Facebook can attract tons of guests on what is usually a slower day

Have you thought about Menu Tiers?

We find that by creating menu tiers with different pricing levels (e g , basic, standard, premium) for each dish, customers can feel like they are more in control of their ordering decisions

Younger generations have gotten used to personalized experiences due to their use of digital media According to a recent study, onesize-fits-all dining options cause decision fatigue and anxiety in 86% of Gen Z adults Something as simple as allowing guests to pick their sides for an entrée can go a long way in building a relationship with a new generation of diners

Continuously monitor your menu prices and their impact on sales and profit.

Adjust prices as needed based on performance, cost changes, and market conditions.

Customer Feedback

Be transparent about any additional charges, such as taxes, service fees, or gratuity, to avoid unpleasant surprises for customers

Talk to your Team

Your servers and bartenders will have a good idea of the most requested items that you don’t have on your menu.

BE CONSISTENT

When bringing on new menu items, it can be a great way to monitor your team’s commitment to following a process

How do you add a new menu item?

New menu items need to be tested. Cooks must learn how to prepare it, servers must know how to answer questions about it

Free samples of new items during your busiest hours or when wait times are long is a great way to drive sales and make your guests feel special at the same time

Know your menu hot spots A guest’s attention is naturally drawn to certain areas of a menu Keep this in mind when laying out a menu with new additions. Adding a special icon to new menu items or a new item location on menu is a great way to advertise new offerings Changing the font or text color of new items makes them more obvious to the guest.

Simple marketing on social media to promote your new items or limited time offerings Don’t forget about your website or your 3rd party online ordering system These can be great tools to drive sales for new items.

How do you train your team?

Create a cheat sheet. Use it to define unfamiliar terms or ingredients, keeping in mind the way you would prefer your servers and bartenders to describe certain dishes or ingredients

Having your team try new or limited time offerings is a great way to get them more comfortable describing an item to a guest, and gives your kitchen extra practice before you go live.

How do you monitor your food on a daily basis?

Check your Product Mix daily to see what is and is not selling.

Use an analytical approach Track sales over periods of time Do you have a menu item that sells on the weekends and not on Mondays and Tuesdays? Why?

KEEP THEM COMING BACK FOR MORE

We believe the best way to increase sales is to keep them coming back for more. A new LTO monthly can be a great addition to sales targets, keeps your menu offerings fresh and exciting, and turns new customers into repeat monthly guests

OLD FASHIONED

Originally dubbed “The Whiskey Cocktail”, the old fashioned dates back to the early 1800s and was included by Jerry Thomas in the world’s first cocktail book The Bar-Tender’s Guide.

Ingredients:

2 oz Jack Daniels

5 oz Demerara simple syrup

3-5 dashes angostura bitters

Combine ingredients in a cocktail tin with ice, stir with a long bar spoon (about 5-10 rotations depending on ice cube size), strain into rocks glass with fresh ice Garnish with a Luxardo or Amarena cherry and an orange twist. Use 1 large ice cube or sphere or a clear ice cube

Demerara: measure out a half liter of demerara or turbinado sugar into a large pitcher, add in the peels of 3 oranges and cover with plastic wrap, shake vigorously until peels are mixed in, let rest 1-3 hours as the sugar pulls the oil out of the peels Add half liter of boiling water, stir, strain out orange peels and let cool. Add one shot vodka to extend shelf life

LTO: Easy to prep seasonal flavored simple syrups and/or different bitters flavors. Example: sub cucumber simple syrup and Peychaud’s bitters for a refreshing summer LTO.

LYNCHBURG LEMONADE

2oz Tennessee Whiskey

1oz Lemon Juice

1oz Orange Liqueur (Triple Sec)

Topped with Lemon-Lime Soda

Garnished with Lemon

Shake whiskey, lemon, and triple sec and strain into a high ball glass filled with ice Top with Sprite or 7up

Upsell Opportunity: ½ oz of Chambord drizzled over top of drink to increase price and add a WOW factor

SEASONAL BOURBON SMASH

Usually consists of bourbon or whiskey, a fruit or berry, citrus, and/or a herb Recipe and price can be easily adjusted seasonally (or monthly!) to take advantage of fresh, in season ingredients. Plenty of LTO opportunities with these drinks, and the recipe and technique stays essentially the same, making it easy to teach to your staff

White Christmas Bourbon Smash

2oz bourbon or whiskey

1oz Lime juice

1oz Simple Syrup

4-5 Mint leaves

1 sprig Rosemary

Combine lime, simple, mint leaves, and rosemary in a cocktail shaker Muddle, then add bourbon and ice. Stir, strain into short rocks glass with 1 large ice cube or small cubes Top with a splash of club soda, and garnish with a sprig of rosemary and fresh cranberries

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MEET SCOTT FISHER, VICE PRESIDENT, THE LARGO GROUP

Scott grew up in Bucks County, Pa and fell in love with the restaurant business at an early age He grew up working for his family's restaurant in Warrington, PA that was started by his great-grandparents While his first job in the restaurant was handing out menus around the age of 3 (and getting paid a penny from his grandfather for each menu), he held many positions in the family restaurant, including busboy, prep cook, server, bartender, and manager.

Upon graduating high school, Scott attended Penn State University and majored in Hotel, Restaurant, & Institutional Management with a minor in Information Systems & Statistical Analysis He really enjoyed the customer experience part of the restaurant business, along with the financial and technology side After graduation, Scott was hired as a manager for Darden’s Restaurant’s newest concept: Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill For the next 2 years, he worked as a Bar Manager, Service Manager and Kitchen Manager for one of the most successful restaurant companies in the world. He did multiple new restaurant openings for the company and supported restaurants in their operations This was his first taste of a corporate structure, where he learned the importance of having systems in place for training, recipe adherence, food safety and sanitation, and overall restaurant operation

From there, he worked for The Cheesecake Factory for over 16 years, the last 10 as the General Manager in both Willow Grove and King of Prussia locations During his time at The Cheesecake Factory, Scott supported many restaurants around the country and was part of many new restaurant openings As General Manager, Scott oversaw restaurants with teams of up to 12 managers and over 200 staff members with annual sales volumes over $15 million. He was mentored by some of the top operators in the business and learned the importance of developing teams and financial results He was a mentor for many managers and staff members, taking great pride in helping his mentees get promoted. He was part of a King of Prussia management team that was honored to be named Restaurant of the Year by the entire company. Scott was the General Manager of Willow Grove when it was awarded that same honor a few years later

After leaving The Cheesecake Factory, Scott spent 2 years with Dynasty Sports & Framing as their Senior Executive Vice President of Operations He introduced new sales initiatives, developed new staff training systems, and added different product lines to increase both top-line sales and bottom-line profit

Scott started with The Largo Group in February 2023 as the Experience Manager and was quickly promoted to Vice President He focuses on building great relationships with current and potential clients Scott enjoys helping independent restaurant owners get the most out of their business He does this by combining what he has learned working in both the independent space and corporate space and translating that to each individual client.

WHETHER IT IS WRITING YEARLY BUDGETS, DEVELOPING BONUS PLANS, DRIVING TOP-LINE SALES, OR MANAGING LABOR COSTS, HE MAKES A DIFFERENCE TO COUNTLESS RESTAURANTS.

FOODIFY YOUR BUSINESS IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE LARGO GROUP

We keep restaurants running Never again worry about your finances, your staff, or your daily operations. The Largo Group’s proprietary Ops-Keeping Services allow you to stay ahead of your expenses, better understand your revenue, attract and retain top employees, and organize daily operations so your frontof-house and back-of-house work seamlessly together We give you the tools and resources to grow your business in ways you never thought possible.

617-202-6674

www.thelargogroup.com

321 Morris Road, Suite 2 Fort Washington, PA 19034

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2024LTO 2024LTO CALENDAR CALENDAR

Limited-time offerings (LTOs) have the ability to boost business and profits as customers eagerly seek out these exclusive menu offerings. Take advantage of the following upcoming dates.

April 2024

6. International Carbonara Day

7. National Beer Day

8. National

12.

16

17.

May

June 2024

2. National Rotisserie Chicken Day

4. National Cheese Day

7 National Ice Cream Day

12. International Falafel Day

15. National Lobster Day

16.

19. National Martini Day