April 2017 - Total Food Service by Total Food Service

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NEWS AWARDS NYC’s Culinary Community Dominates 2017 Beard Nominations

he food world has whittled down the list of restaurants and chefs nominated for its version of the Oscars. The James Beard Foundation released its list of finalists last month for national and regional chef and restaurant awards and, as expected, many giants of the New York City food scene are up for awards this year. The list of finalists announced was created by a panel of more than 600 judges made up mainly of restaurant critics, food and wine editors, culinary educators and past James Beard

This year New York City racked up 10 finalists in national restaurant awards categories such as outstanding baker, best new restaurant and rising star chef of the year. Five chefs were also named finalists. Foundation Restaurant and Chef Award winners which took dozens of qualified restaurants and singled out

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the five best. The winners will be announced May 2 in Chicago, according to the James Beard Foundation.

This year New York City racked up 10 finalists in national restaurant awards categories such as outstanding baker, best new restaurant and rising star chef of the year. Five chefs were also named finalists for the best chef in the city. It’s a strong showing for New York, which was able to boast 22 semifinalists. New York City’s closest challengers were New Orleans (8 finalists), San Francisco (6) Chicago and Philadelphia (4).

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NEWS

HOTEL RENOVATIONS

Hard Rock Set To Enter Atlantic City With Trump Taj Mahal Purchase

ard Rock International recently unveiled plans to purchase the former Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City and open the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City in its place. Hard Rock and its partners recently announced that they had reached a definitive agreement to purchase the property with a subsidiary of investor Carl Icahn. Hard Rock International will be majority owner of the rebranded Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City in partnership with the Morris and Jingoli families. The group said it will invest more than $300 million to purchase, substantially renovate and reopen the casino, located on 17-acres of boardwalk real estate. “We are excited to be part of this revitalization of Atlantic City creating thousands of jobs to help local employment,” said Jim Allen, chairman of Hard Rock International. “We are 100 percent convinced Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City will be a success.” The partnership will transform the existing Taj Mahal with a complete remodel and rebrand of the property, offering guest rooms with views of the city and ocean in the iconic Atlantic City building. From renovation to completion, it is expected that the new Hard Rock Hotel & Casino will create over 3,000 jobs for Atlantic City and provide an ongoing and significant impact to the local economy.

Main Office 282 Railroad Avenue Greenwich, CT 06830 Publishers Leslie & Fred Klashman Advertising Director Michael Scinto Art Director Mark Sahm

We are 100 percent convinced Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City will be a success.”

Contributing Writers Warren Bobrow Faith Hope Consolo Morgan Tucker Fred Sampson Staff Writers Deborah Hirsch Alex Rubin Phone: 203.661.9090 Fax: 203.661.9325 Email: tfs@totalfood.com Web: www.totalfood.com

Total Food Service ISSN No. 1060-8966 is published monthly by IDA Publishing, Inc., 282 Railroad Avenue, Greenwich, CT 06830. Phone: 203.661.9090. This issue copyright 2017 by IDA Publishing Inc. Contents in full or part may not be reproduced without permission. Not responsible for advertisers claims or statements. Periodicals Postage paid at the post office, Greenwich, CT and additional mailing offices. Additional entry at the post office in Pittsburgh, PA. Subscription rate in USA is $36 per year; single copy; $3.00. Postmaster: Send address changes to Total Food Service, P.O. Box 2507, Greenwich, CT 06836

The rebranded Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City will be possible by a $300 million investment from Hard Rock International (as majority owner) in partnership with the Morris and Jingoli families. After the purchase is complete, the group will do a major renovatation before re-opening the casino.

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C-CAP TRADE TALK

WITH JOYCE APPELMAN

C-CAP’s Annual Benefit Raises Nearly $1,000,000 For Culinary Scholarships and Educational Programs

Joyce Appelman, is the National Communications Director for CCAP, Careers through Culinary Arts Program in New York, NY. She has

ast month, Chef Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern and Untitled and Studio Café at the Whitney Museum of American Art was honored in front of 700 guests at the 18th annual Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) Benefit. Anthony was presented with the C-CAP Honors Award and was recognized for his achievements and contributions to the culinary industry as well as his commitment to nurturing the next generation of chefs. This Grand Tasting raised nearly

been instrumental in opening career

$1,000,000 to support scholarships as well as educational and career opportunities for disadvantaged youth pursuing careers in the restaurant and foodservice industry. The event showcased cuisine from an all-star lineup of New York City’s hottest chefs and restaurateurs, including Michael Anthony, C-CAP Board Co-Chair and chef Marcus Samuelsson, C-CAP Board Member and restaurateur Michael Stillman, 2016 Michelin Star Chefs, Abram Bissell, Daniel Boulud and Aaron Bludorn, John Fraser, Markus Glock-

(L-R) Richard Grausman, Michael Anthony, Karen Brosius

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er, Alfred Portale, Michael White; and Javi Estévez of La Tasquería de Javier Estévez (Madrid); as well as C-CAP alumni Giovanna Delli Compagni of Asiate, Cesar Gutierrez of Café Boulud, Betty Peña of Pig and Khao, Swainson Brown of The Writing Room, and Yvan Lemoine of Union Fare. More than 60 New York City C-CAP high school students and alumni, eager to put their mark on the culinary world, assisted the chefs. Topping the savory dishes were Marcus Samuelsson’s Spiced salm-

opportunities for many young people in the foodservice industry. Email her at joyceappelman@gmail.com

on with apple dashi and chicken rice salad; Michael Anthony’s Citrus and burrata - citrus, burrata cheese, green olives, radicchio, on rice cracker; Duck liver mousse parfait, madeira gelée, brioche from Daniel Boulud, Aaron Bludorn, and C-CAP Grad Cesar Gutierrez; and

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(L-R) Giovanna Delli Compagni, Marcus Samuelsson, Richard Grausman, Michael Anthony, Mark Weiss, Karen Brosius, Maurice DuBois

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LITTLE M. TUCKER

WITH MORGAN TUCKER

Back In The New York Groove…

s you probably know from reading my monthly column or following me on social media, I travel the country and the globe in my search for table top greatness. I will go just about anywhere to find quintessential products to satisfy and exceed the expectations of my customers’ unique needs and requests. I began this month by visiting The Dewberry Hotel and attending the Charleston Wine and Food Festival as a guest of Verterra. For three days, I awoke in “southern luxury” and was treated to “good old southern hospitality.” I devoured deep flavors on sustainable single-use dinnerware and witnessed a commitment of chefs to consider the largest implications of their craft. If you’re thinking about planning an affordable culinary driven vacation for 2018, book #CHSWFF immediately! I also attended Catersource a few weeks ago, making its first and last appearance in New Orleans. Truly

disenchanted by the limited number of exhibitors, it is still satisfying to return to a city that has become my second home this last year. If I could only eat in one town for the remainder of my days on this planet, it would undoubtedly be NOLA. And I currently write these words while watching a magenta sky fade into auburn mountains in Scottsdale, Arizona. Previewing the latest collections from Steelite International and their ever growing list of expansive factory partners at their annual sales conference affords me a glimpse into the starred future of tabletop. If you’re just begin-

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Morgan Tucker is Director of Business Development at M. Tucker, a division of Singer Equipment Company. Ms. Tucker works with a wide diversity of acclaimed restaurateurs, celebrated chefs, and industry leaders across the U.S. Her website littlemtucker.com is an exceptional resource for equipment and supplies solutions. Morgan is based in NYC and can be reached at

ning to retain everything you saw in their booth at NAFEM, you’re going to have a hard time keeping up with additional new collections from every one of their 25 factories at NRA. Tomorrow I’ll brush the Hoover Dam on my way to Las Vegas with one of these partners. Plastic drinkware innovator Drinique is set to debut their latest Caliber collection at the annual Nightclub and Bar Show. However, for the first time in a long time, I can profess that some of my most valuable days were spent in New York City. Scroll through the pages of this month’s publication and you are going to see images and toasts to the IRFSNY. The dining scene in New York is still as pioneering and cavernous as ever before and we once again have a trade show reflective of that. Sometimes bigger is better… in the largest booth on the show floor, M Tucker and The Singer Equipment Companies introduced more new tabletop vendors than every other

mptucker@mtucker.com.

booth combined, and we still had space for an automated soft serve ice cream machine! It’s extremely gratifying to share these images with you if you happened to miss us at The International Restaurant and Foodservice Show of New York. We live a bustling, non-stop life in the New York City foodservice industry. The effort needed to make the IRFSNY show a huge extravaganza was worth all the time and energy. In the most distracted city, in the most distracted time, it’s always exciting to see our partners and customers come together for three successful exciting and productive days. New York, it’s good to let you back in my heart.

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NEWS

SUPPLY CHAIN SOLUTIONS

Foodservice Distributors Overcoming Challenges With Technology

he foodservice distribution industry is a highly competitive and challenging one. Success is measured by the ability to keep the items customers need in stock, deliver accurate and complete orders multiple times each week, and deliver food safely, on time and at the peak of freshness. This is no simple task, but today, technology is helping foodservice distributors find ways to serve customers more efficiently and operate more profitably. What are the challenges that foodservice distributors face, and how is technology supporting them? Challenges Facing Foodservice Distributors Challenge #1: Consolidation in Broadline Industry consolidation and competition are big challenges for broadline foodservice distributors. Why are the big getting bigger? One of the major reasons behind the consolidation in broadline is the drive to achieve broader market coverage while at the same time reducing the costs associated with servicing those markets. As part of this, distributors are reducing the size of their sales teams and moving toward technology-based solutions, such as online sales order management, to service their customer base more profitably. Other opportunities for technology to deliver greater efficiencies in foodservice distribution include enhanced warehouse management functionality to optimize inventory selection and

space utilization. Mobile inventory and ordering can also provide better insight for customers, delivering better customer satisfaction at lower costs. Challenge #2: Growth of Specialty Distributors For smaller distributors, the highly competitive broadline environment means that they must either find ways to operate more cost-effectively to compete with the “big dogs,” or focus on product niches that can set them apart. Fortunately for smaller operators, changing tastes in food and the consolidation of broadline are opening up growth opportunities for specialty distributors. Demographic changes play a role in this growth. Millennials and previous generations have very different tastes in food, and meeting these changing needs cost effectively is an opportunity for smaller distributors. Millennial preferences for organic, small-batch,

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locally sourced or craft products creates demand for specialty products often not carried by broadline distributors, whose business model centers around higher volume, lower margin products. Technology is playing an important role here too. Mobile sales order management allows smaller distributors to operate more profitably, reducing the time it takes for delivery drivers to service a growing customer base. Mobile track and trace capabilities help provide better assurances about the origins, freshness and prior handling of food. These combine to allow specialty operators to service more customers at lower cost, and higher levels of customer satisfaction. Challenge #3: Doing More With Less These two opposing trends – consolidation and specialization – are two different responses to the same challenge faced by all foodservice distrib-

utors: the drive to do more with less. Broadline distributors are consolidating to reduce costs, while specialty distributors are seeking to expand their ability to profitably deliver products to new customers and markets. Technology allows foodservice distributors to meet these challenges, regardless of whether their ultimate goal is to drive down margins or to meet growing demand for specialty goods. Broadline foodservice distributors and specialty distributors alike seek greater efficiencies and the ability to service as many customers as possible without the overhead of a large sales team. However, they must do so without negatively impacting customer service. Mobile and online ordering technology allows foodservice distributors to do this by delivering improved order accuracy and putting the customer in the driver’s seat. Customers can use familiar mobile technologies, including their own tablets and smartphones, to enter their orders on the fly as ingredients and products run low, leaving reps free to focus their time on higher value, more strategic activities. This same technology allows a smaller sales force to manage more customers as the company grows. How Technology Is Helping How does technology help foodservice distributors meet these goals? According to “Food Industry Logistics: Trends That Matter,” a white paper by Technomics and Deloitte and Touche,

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NEWS

HOSPITALITY SOLUTIONS

HMG+ Combines Personal Touch And State Of The Industry Technology To Provide Unmatched Service

hen it comes to professional event staffing, it’s a lot harder than hiring from a database and hoping they can work well together to pull off the event. “We eat, drink and sleep hospitality,” said Karen DiPeri, President of HMG Plus, a quality-focused hospitality event solutions provider with deep experience in a wide variety of hospitality disciplines. “We believe that both professional and personal excellence is achieved through passionate service of our clients.” “The success of any private, promotional, culinary or corporate event hinges on the level of service offered,” noted DiPeri. “Our goal is to build relationships between our talented team of captains and to exude passionate hospitality. Good food and wine are all about passion, so why should serving it be any different? Passion and energy are necessary for success.” HMG’s success has come from its ability to combine personal touch with proprietary technology. HMG’s giggo® platform, a proprietary enterprise-level provides seamless information. HMG’s 3P’s® pro performance indicators, provides an event management/performance monitoring system used to ensure that the quality of service is always at its peak of excellence.

But satisfying clients is what HMG Plus is really all about. “Hospitality is our passion. We’re happiest making others happy.” “Our easy-to-use online booking system provides a bird’s eye view of your order and allows you to track, manage, and communicate throughout the entire booking process,” DiPeri, explained. “Instant online access is an efficient and cost-effective method of organizing events and staff assignments. “We have an extensive on-boarding process. We spend a tremendous amount of resources and energy honing our systems and our processes to ensure that we’re attracting and maintaining the best possible candidates for us. We’re really looking for people who have the right personality. We feel as though we can really train on the skill set but what we’re really looking for is someone who’s friendly, warm,

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hospitable, smiles, extremely wellgroomed, professional but friendly. Once they’re on board, we have a full training program, depending on the skill level they need. Somebody might have worked in a restaurant for years but may not know how to do certain catering functions like box a table, or even pop open a table. HMG also carefully reads trends impacting the industry. HMG brings a unique approach to marketing her firm. “We’re a member of the Society for Hospitality and Foodservice Management and we hosted a networking event to encourage people to get to know the organization and come in a fun setting. We had a DJ, we had a chef prepare food, we had all different types of spirits because we really just wanted it to be a fun networking event that people would remember,” she said. DiPeri noted that the trend today is toward a more casual approach to fine dining and events. “People are definitely being a little bit

Karen DiPeri, President, HMG Plus

more conservative when they host events – maybe instead of a served lunch, they might do a boxed lunch. Grab and go. They might end the meeting at lunch and have a boxed lunch available for people to take with them, changing from a seated, plated service to a more casual buffet,” she stated. HMG is continuing its growth pattern in 2017. The company recently expanded to Nassau County all the way out to the east end of Long Island, looking to recruit staff. “We see many of our clients wanting to share their workspace with their customers. And that’s where we come in with our Long Island expansion.” But satisfying clients is what HMG Plus is really all about. “Hospitality is our passion. We’re happiest making others happy,” she concluded.

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RESTAURANT HEALTH

WITH DR. KARENA WU

Celebrity Chef Job Hazards

e always go into a profession looking to succeed and get to the top. The restaurant industry is no different. It can be grueling. It can be strenuous. It is not for the faint of heart. We now know somewhat of what is involved, especially due to the serious influx of cooking shows that show the audience how much work is required in the back of the house. We know what the end-product is: delicious savory and sweet delights that people will pay lots of money for and will wait forever in a line for. But do we really know what being a chef means, especially when you become a celebrity chef? My longtime friend and client, Chef Wylie Dufresne knows exactly what it takes to get to the top. The long hours, the hard work, the continuous grind, and now… the ‘other job’s’ demands…the sedentary hours in front of the camera. Chef Dufresne was asked to judge another cooking competition on TV this past season. What he did not know was where he was going to sit amongst the other judges. What he did find out was that the job required sitting at a long table in line with two other chefs. Chef Dufresne ended up being the farthest from the show’s host which meant he had to keep his head turned to one side to engage in any conversation as well as to stay in the scene when the camera pulled back to watch the whole group interact. This occupational hazard created a bit of a problem, for someone who already had some neck discomfort

Dr. Karena Wu is owner and Clinical Director of ActiveCare Physical Therapy. She has been practicing physical therapy for 16 years in NYC and is a Certified Orthopedic Manual Therapist, Strength and Conditioning Specialist, Kinesiology Tape PractiWylie Dufresne, chef/owner of wd~50 and Du’s Donuts & Coffee (opening soon). Photo by Eric Medsker Photography.

tioner and Pilates Instructor. Karena is a dedicated practitioner who takes a holistic approach to her practice.

from general stiffness. By the time I was able to see Wylie, he had tried to self-diagnose and self-treat his condition. He had done a lot of rolling out on an exercise ball and digging into his own tissues. He did this to

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try to relieve the muscle tension and the pain since he thought it was just his muscles being tight. What he did not know was that his muscles had created a condition where his neck pain was caused by a specific bone being pulled out of place, his first rib. The first rib sits at the base of the neck, just behind and below the collarbone. It really is hidden deep down at the base of the neck, pretty much at the top of the ribcage. You would only really notice it when it is elevated, which means symptoms of neck pain, shoulder pain, headaches, stiffness, and numbness and tingling in the arm. When it elevates, it can get stuck in this position, which then makes it hypomobile or immobile. There are many muscles that connect to the neck (cervical spine) and

Her patient population consists of professional athletes, dancers, celebrity chefs, TV media stars, high end business professionals, and NYPD/ FDNY. Visit her website at activecarephysicaltherapy.com.

the first rib. The scalene muscles sit on the front and side of the neck and the first rib. The intercostals are muscles that connect between the ribs. The scalenes can pull the rib up; the intercostals can pull the rib down. There needs to be a harmonious balance for the first rib to sit in the appropriate position. How you use your body and how you position your body can affect how this bone sits, which we learned from Wylie’s case.

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ASK ANDREW

FROM THE NYC HOSPITALITY ALLIANCE

The Alliance Partners With Host Milano 2017

hy did you choose to partner with HostMilano? NYC is an international city and the influence of Italy and Europe in our city’s restaurants is found throughout the five boroughs. HostMilano has an impressive history of showcasing incredible products sought after by NYC restaurants, so our partnership makes perfect sense. We’re excited to help strengthen existing relationships and build new ones between the NYC hospitality industry and our friends in the international market. Can you tell us what is your project for Host2017? The Alliance is coordinating a

group of leading NYC restaurant industry professionals to attend the 2017 HostMilano show. At the show we’ll meet with vendors, learn about their products and services, and forge business relationships. I’m sure we’ll also enjoy a lot of amazing Italian cuisine and wine. What sort of professionals will you bring to Host and what are they looking for? The group consists of multi-unit restaurateurs who have been carefully selected based on their restaurant concepts and interest in exploring the international marketplace. They are looking for the highest quality products and want to better familiarize themselves with everything that’s offered at HostMilano.

What do you expect from your attendance? I have no doubt we’ll have a wonderful experience, find amazing products and form strong, long lasting business relationships. Can you provide us some data on the NYC restaurant industry? In NYC there’s more than 24,000 eating and drinking establishments, employing approximately a quarter of a million people. We have one of the most diverse and vibrant restaurant industries in the world serving all types of cuisines, in all types of settings. We are a city of foodies and our industry helps attracts more than 50 million tourists from around the world every year.

tor of the New York City Hospitality Alliance, a trade association formed in 2012 to foster the growth and vitality of the industry that has made New York City the Hospitality Capital of the World.

business and attract customers. What are popular trends in the NYC restaurant industry? More and more full service restaurateurs are opening fast casual restaurants. The costs are lower and it’s easier to make a profit. Fast causal restaurants that serve great food, using high quality ingredients, in attractive settings, served by a professional staff are very popular among the dining public right now. Social media also continues to be a force to build and promote a restaurant’s brand. Creating dishes that are Instagram worthy is a sure fire way to bolster

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Andrew Rigie is the Executive Direc-

How do you see restaurants in 5 years’ time? Unfortunately I think more mom and pop restaurants will close due to high rents, high labor costs, intense competition and other pressures. I think independent restaurant groups will continue to grow and bring us even more exciting new concepts, especially in the fast casual sector. Technology will continue to evolve the efficiency and operations of restaurants and help to customize the guest experience. For more information online, visit NYC Hospitality Alliance at thenycalliance.org, and visit HostMilano at host.fieramilano.it/en.

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NEWS

CATERING SOLUTIONS

CateringStone, A Caterers Best Friend

hen Don McNeill, CEO of CateringStone took over business development for the company HemoStable he had no idea he would be on the verge of creating an industry-changing product. As caterers know, when you are trying to keep food hot or cold in safe range there are not many options and not much has changed in the past 100 years. Whether you are storing food for a long ride or need to keep your food hot for an extended period of service, the solutions caterers have are expensive, relatively ineffective and can even be dangerous. Don McNeill was brought in with HemoStable after his longtime friend, former Chief Computer Scientist at Dupont, Dr. David Pensak asked him to take over his business development. HemoStable had the ability to keep blood in the safe range of 1-6°Celsius for up to 50 hours! It did not take long before Don saw the potential this product could have in a different market. “I looked at that same technology and thought, if we have the ability to keep blood safe for 50 hours without ice, what can we

do to help save some of the 100 billion pounds of nutritious food that gets thrown out in this country every year?” McNeill asked. After the company had perfected cold with their -9°F below zero Stone and essentially solved a major issue caterers have at the end of the night with their excess foods, the company shifted in the other direction. The CateringStone team was told that they’ve conquered cold, now conquer hot and you will conquer the world. After that point the wheels were in motion. McNeill and his team set out to do just that, and started with a 154°F stone. While it was certainly in the safe zone, over 140°F, it was not palate pleasing hot. The CateringStone team went on to make a second stone, this time at 190°F; while this was certainly palate pleasing hot it also continued to cook the food and chefs don’t like that! The third time was the charm for CateringStone, they created a perfect palate pleasing stone at 176 degrees Fahrenheit that will stay hot for twothree hours in direct food service or up to six hours in transportation. So how does it all work? “The stones are actually high-density polyethyl-

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ene bottles and they’re filled with a specialty chemical that’s set to a specific temperature, with proprietary ingredients,” McNeill said. The aspect of the CateringStone that people don’t seem to get is that there are two parts to the product that make it great. The CateringStone has its obvious ability to keep things cold and hot for extended periods, but it saves money over existing methods by being reusable hundreds of times. Another aspect of the product line is it’s clear pleasing aesthetic. CateringStone offers its clients a plethora of very aesthetically pleasing thermal conductive servers: Stainless steel covers, oval passed platter trays, pizza trays, tempered glass tops, slate tops, their iconic soapstone tops and their beautiful American Black Walnut bases. They also offer completely custom units where you can get any design laser engraved on the wood, or get glass tops with your images and logos offering completely new branding solutions. You can even customize your box with LED lighting that backlights your food presentation for a stunning display that has never been done before.

So what makes CateringStone such a solid investment? The biggest and most important aspect of CateringStone is that it is reusable. The fact that it is made from sustainable material and is eco-friendly is just an added plus. A caterer can spend as little as $0.58 a can for two hours of canned heat. But even at that low price CateringStone will save you around $1,300 over the life of the Stone. On the cold side of things you will save over the cost of bagged ice and on the clean up time and mess associated with ice melt. The Wilmington, Delaware based company stumbled on to this amazing product for warming and cooling catering solutions. McNeill and his team are proud that their company is an eco-friendly sustainable company that have been able to launch The CateringStone while working with local businesses as close as 5 minutes away. This elegant product has the ability to truly innovate an industry that has not seen much change. If you are a caterer looking for a new and exciting way to innovate and save money, go to www.cateringstone.com and learn more.

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 21

NEWS

EXPANSION

Chicago’s Successful The Aviary Is Set For NYC Summer Opening

linea Group is a group of restaurants, which include ALINEA, Next, Roister and now The Aviary NYC. After the success of the Aviary in Chicago another restaurant is due to open in New York City in summer 2017. New York, Chicago and Mandarin Oriental based owners of the widely praised Alinea Group: Chef Grant Achatz and Nick Kokonas have announced The Aviary NYC will offer a unique approach to cuisine and cocktails. At the restaurant, guests will be fully interactive with their experience. The restaurant will feature an open kitchen and guests will be able to watch food prepared to ac-

The main driving force from the restaurant will be with the chefs and bartenders to think up creative new drinks that accompanying food. company the cocktails provided. The main driving force from the restaurant will be with the chefs and bartenders to think up creative new drinks that accompanying food. The Chicago flagship restaurant promotes an attention to detail that a high-class restaurant provides to turn the visit to the establishment into an experience. In the Chicago

Chef Grant Achatz

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restaurant, the bartenders were trained to be chefs as well in order to provide the most complimentary food for their cocktails. Food at Aviary Chicago is made fresh daily, and the ingredients for the drinks are based on flavor as opposed to branding. The Aviary in New York will use the same business model in order to provide the same

service experienced by the Chicago customers. The Aviary in New York City will have a capacity of 90, and will also include sweeping views of Central Park as well as the New York City skyline. Another acquirement by the group will be The Office. Adjacent to The Aviary this restaurant will provide a more hushed private style of environment in order to provide a speakeasy environment. The Office will have the intimate capacity of 40 seats and will hold a rare spirit collection that will be of world class standard. There will also be classic cocktails on offer as well as food that will be a different menu to the one served at The Aviary.

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 23

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

WITH FRED SAMPSON

A Reminder To Those Who Legislate… At Any Level

henever any legislative body—be it city, county, state, or federal—passes a bill affecting an industry, it can take the regulators months or even as long as three years to write the rules which govern the law. That’s exactly how long our industry has been waiting for the FDA to finalize the rules covering the calorie-posting requirements for foodservice operators with 20 or more locations. The law is scheduled to take effect this May. One of the reasons for the delay is

that this version requires supermarkets and convenience store chains to start posting calories for their foods. These groups opposed inclusion on the basis that they did not offer the same environments as restaurants. The counterargument raised by the National Restaurant Association was that the law covered the selling of food already prepared to eat—not where you eat it—and it obviously prevailed. I will now digress to explain why their inclusion was so important. I have been saying that supermarkets and convenience stores have been

and will be a growing and ongoing competitive threat. A recent article in FastCasual.com confirms that fact and I quote: “Also this week, onethird of U.S. adults responding to a Reuters/Ipsos poll said they are eating out less than they did just three months ago because of the cost. “The poll surveyed 4,200 U.S. adults in late January and found that 62 percent of those eating out less frequently said cost was keeping them away. In fact, two-thirds of the poll’s respondents said they found eating at home now to be very or somewhat cheap.

Fred G. Sampson is the retired President Emeritus of the New York State Restaurant Association. He began working with NYSRA in 1961. Within the next four years the NYSRA more than tripled its membership and expanded from one regional chapter to eight. Sampson played roles in representing restaurants on issues including paid sick leave, minimum wage, liquor laws, a statewide alcohol training program and insurance plans. Comments may be sent to fredgsampson@juno.com

A DIVISION OF TMI INTERNATIONAL, LLC

24 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

“The Reuters/Ipsos poll also found that 55 percent of those surveyed— all strictly in the U.S.—said when and if they do eat out, they most often do so for the convenience it offers. But with increasing competition from lower-priced groceries and the increased competition in that arena from online services and meal kit businesses, it appears groceries are winning back some customers who are willing to sacrifice some convenience for some spare change. “Following the release of the poll and NPD analysis, the Chicago Tribune reported that McDonald’s would soon begin an LTO [limitedtime offer] to cut the price of some of its beverages. The gap between restaurant menu prices and the costs consumers pay for groceries eaten at home is at an all-time high, according to the consumer price in-

dex showing food purchased away from home is now nearly 2.5 percent more than it was just last year at this time, while the price of food purchased to be eaten at home dropped nearly 2 percent over the same period.” In addition to all of the above, grocers and convenience stores have another advantage. They can and do change their prices every day, to adjust to any commodity changes they receive overnight. I have never heard of a restaurant that could do that and stay in business. Their purchasing power dwarfs most foodservice establishments and that, my friends, is why I was so pleased to know that both supermarkets and convenience stores are included under this law. It creates a level playing field. If you will recall, I suggested you remember the word “grocerant”; that’s them, and they are growing rapidly.

I’m sure that many of you reading this take solace in the fact that this law involves only operators with 20 or more units. While the general public has no way of knowing that, you can be sure the press will announce it on its effective date and, as a result, you should be prepared to respond when asked why you are not complying. To give you some idea of the burden you would be facing, here is one of the questions most affected operators want to know: “How should the calories be determined?” Answer: The FDA says food sellers need to use a “reasonable basis for determining the calorie information.” Lab analysis is one option, but businesses should also get the information from databases, cookbooks, recipes, manufacturers, nutrition labels, or a combination of those options. Developing this information

won’t come cheap, and its application covers all foods and portion sizes. I will leave the pizza servings for another time! There still are many unanswered questions, such as: Who will enforce these regulations? Will there be a series of warnings prior to being cited? Will violators’ names be published? We have become one of the country’s leading economic engines, one of the few to have provided more employment than any other. We operate with very close profit margins. We also face this reality: When the price of a restaurant meal is no longer acceptable, the consumer can and will eat at home. We can’t compete with that. It would be helpful if regulators at all levels of government would keep that in mind when advocating legislation for our industry.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 25

MIXOLOGY

WITH WARREN BOBROW

Fruit Puree And Sweet Rice Wine Vinegar

es vergers Boiron are the global leader in chef crafted: frozen fruit, vegetable purees and coulis for the high-end, food industry. They are made in France using flavors that speak of places far away, unlocking dreams and making new memories in each shake of the cocktail artists wrist. I’ve been the grateful recipient of their tasty, high end products for several years now during Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans. I’m honored to share with you my thoughts because these ingredients are the reason why my cocktails are so memorable, every single time. They make it easy for me to do a great job and to make me shine like a pro. The elements in each taste are thoughtfully prepared using the best ingredients in the world in France. There is a flavor of Old World elegance meeting ultra-modern technology driven metrics, that is beyond anything that I’ve experienced to date. I’m proud to put my insignia upon them as one of my very favorite- and those who know me- know that I don’t give scores or ratings. Blood Peaches are the basis for a cocktail that I find irresistible in the spring. Peaches are the first of the fruits that signal the coming warm months. Most people have never had a blood peach, much less imagine a more sumptuous way to swal-

Warren Bobrow is the creator of the popular blog The Cocktail Whis-

low down the early harvest of this sun-ripened goodness. Each sip is packed full of the stone fruit essence, dry at the start, leading into a voluptuous creaminess across the tongue and lips- leading to a thirst inducing slurp across the palateessential in a craft cocktail that includes both the Few Navy Strength Gin and a healthy dose of Classic Massachusetts Rum. I used Privateer Queen’s Share. The combination of these two liquors couldn’t be further apart on the flavor scale, but married together with the Blood Peach and a dollop of the Les vergers Boiron: Lemongrass puree... I’m bringing the day of the sea back to the world of the voyageur and thrusting it upon the Rhumb Line-

26 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

that imaginary line that runs around the circumference of the globe. The Lemongrass puree evokes the exotic nature of travel to places like Vietnam where a healthy splash of sweetened vinegar would do more than enliven a craft cocktail in a land without great refrigeration. It would heal the gut when compromised by uncertain oils and fat consumption. A dose of vinegar per day will definitely (stave off ) the doctor today. (I’m not a doctor, but I did write Apothecary Cocktails- so you see where this is going...) At any rate that mystical line that has my attention surrounds the center of the globe. By sea, the sailors have already weathered the doldrums, a place where the wind seems to be sucked out of your lungs and replaced with dank, cold and salty. A sailor could pour a gallon of brackish bilge scented water down his gullet and still be left with the stink of the sea. Enter the Navy Strength gin. This is hardy stuff. It lasts for months in a wooden barrel, gaining prestige with each roll of the stern. Like Madeira, which was reserved for the landed gentry and the officers, a well-aged barreled gin was a thing that sailors enjoyed. And why not? Anything to take the edge off of listing slightly and then not again for a week. It gives a man something to do other than go berserk. Working in a bar can do the

perer and the author of nearly half a dozen books, including Apothecary Cocktails, Whiskey Cocktails, Bitters and Shrub Syrup Cocktails, and his most recent book Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails, & Tonics.

same thing. That’s why a drink program can feel like being stuck in the doldrums. No inspiration. No fun. That’s why I recommend using the Les vergers Boiron to your cocktail program. Why? Because it’s historic, that’s why. The sailors would have added anything to their rum, be it gin, citrus, water, sugar, caramel, molasses... What have you... It all would become punch of sorts. And punch is what you should be making every day in your establishment. It’s easy and it’s fun. It’s just not possible to pour every single bottle right down to the bottom. I know, having started as a bar-back so there is much shrink and waste that you can do something about that puts money in your pocket. You cannot permit every last drop to go down the drain. There must be someone out there who is creative, a person who seeks to raise the bar. I’m not looking for the next ‘world’s best bartender’, but I am looking for passion! Les vergers Boiron make it easy to have that passion in every carefully made cocktail. Adding Navy Strength gin to pot-still distilled rum is that passion! And that splash of vinegar? To heal the gut. After all that side-to-side out at sea

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 27

SEDERHOLT ON RESTAURANT FINANCE

Closing A Restaurant And Walking Away - Why?

ver the past year I have been puzzled by a number of restaurant owners who despite appearing to have good businesses, locked the doors and walked away. This wasn’t just viewing these restaurants from the outside, we had access to their financial information and I was left scratching my head. There are very few circumstances where a restaurant cannot be sold, refinanced or transferred to another owner so that some value is preserved from them. Instead, these owners closed the doors and killed most or all of the value they built. In Case #1, an owner with over 35 years invested in three casual pub type restaurants closed up because he felt the rents were too high and he had $600,000 in combined debt. Not a crazy number! He feared the minimum wage going up and the specter of mandated health insurance which he really didn’t understand. He was behind two months on the rent in two places, owed vendors about $100,000 but his taxes were current. A manageable situation for sure. His restaurants did a combined $4.0 Million in sales giving him a nice income of about $300,000 a year. Case #2 was a real mind blower. The owner of a 20+ year old family style pasta and pizza chain of 18 restaurants with clean financials, $38 Million in sales, current on rent,

...We all agreed that with planning and thought that these operators could have handled it differently and actually had a happy ending. They left money on the table or worse – walked away with creditors and the taxman in hot pursuit.

David Sederholt is the Chief Operating Officer of Strategic Funding, a leader in small business financing since 2006. Before this, David spent 30 years in the restaurant business

no apparent tax issues, texted its 300 employees and told them not to come to work the next day as he was closing the restaurants. He filed for a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy dissolution, which is typically used in cases where the debt exceeds ones ability to restructure. His total debt was only $760,000 – relatively low for that many restaurants. Landlords were stunned and employees devastated. Upon inspection we found an eerie scene with well-cleaned, tidy restaurants with neat storage and product on the shelves. Like one of those “end of the world” movies, the only thing missing was the people. We could have turned on the lights, started cooking and serving lunch. Case #3 was a young man who spent a few years as a hedge fund analyst who decided it would be cool to own a restaurant. He opened up a casual Italian restaurant in a

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middle class, blue-collar town and it was successful for a few years doing sales of about $1.3 Million. Having had enough of the long days and stress, he sold the restaurant to his manager and provided him with seller financing. Within a few months, payments were spotty and vendors started to call him saying they weren’t getting paid. Eventually the buyer defaulted after a few months rent was missed and the original owner ended up having to take the place back as he was still on the lease. He negotiated a payment plan with the landlord to cover the missing rent and decided to get creative and change the concept into a contemporary fusion cuisine combining eclectic flavors from the Pacific Rim. He invested serious money, the place looked great, the food was awesome but he couldn’t manage to break $18,000 per week.

and has owned and operated more than a dozen restaurants. As a direct lender, the company offers a variety of financing options and has provided over $1.25 Billion to approximately 20,000 businesses across the United States and Australia.

He misread the market as his bluecollar customers were not interested in hipster urban food. He kept the place staffed for twice that volume burning labor dollars and ended up locking the doors owing about $100,000 in financing, vendors and landlord. His heart wasn’t in it and if you aren’t fully committed, you will never turn it around. In each case, the owners lacked foresight and could have done a variety of things before committing

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 29

Q&A

EXCLUSIVE FOODSERVICE INTERVIEW

Herb Karlitz Founder, Karlitz & Company, Inc., and Harlem EatUp!, New York City

hroughout his career, Herb Karlitz has always found himself surrounded by the culinary world. From when he was young hanging out at his parents New York City restaurants to now where he produces one of the coolest food and wine festivals in the country. Herb had his start working in PR and eventually made a name for himself through his dedication to create positive, unique, and most importantly memorable experiences. His dedication to the industry has given him the credit of being the mastermind behind the celebrity chef. Karlitz decided to step out on to his own with Karlitz & Company in order to help pursue his passions, today Karlitz & Company have helped to produce culinary events and festivals like Flavor! Napa Valley, The Chocolate Show, The Breeders’ Cup, The New York City Wine & Food Festival, The Atlantic City Food & Wine Festival, Vegas Uncork’d and of course Harlem EatUp! Now when a chef can be bigger than a rock star, Herb continues to push to industry in a more definitive and socially conscious way. How did you find yourself in the industry? When I was a kid my parents owned restaurants in New York City. I think it’s from there that I got my love for cooking, hospitality, entertaining and truly making people happy. It is what I always had a calling for. I even went to law school as a back up. When I first

(L-R) Chefs Marcus Samuelsson and Scott Conant with Herb Karlitz at The Harlem Stroll: Ultimate Grand Tasting at last year’s Harlem EatUp!

got out of college I fully believed I was going to have a career in the entertainment industry, and I did. I worked at a large PR agency right out of college and created their entertainment division. It was not until the early 90s when I had a bit of an epiphany, which I ar-

30 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

rived at with a dear friend of mine, Shep Gordon. Shep Gordon was on the West Coast and I was on the East and together we produced the very first South Beach Wine and Food Festival before there was a South Beach Festival. We had 35-world class chefs like Roger Vergé next to Emeril La-

gasse before anyone knew who Emeril was. This was before there were celebrity chefs, it was so ahead of his time that the person with the largest line was some guy in a rib truck that had driven down from Atlanta. He had lines bigger than Charlie Trotter! My passions were food and wine

driven but what really helped me to find my niche in the industry is that I saw chefs as artists. They made people happy by what they put on the plate and that effective marketing could be done to help people get together over food and wine. It didn’t have to be fancy; it just has to be memorable and special. At what point did Karlitz & Company find itself primarily focused on the culinary industry? I consider myself very grateful that my passions of food, wine and cooking get intertwined with my career. When I started my company it was really through gradual evolution of what I was doing. I formed Karlitz & Company in 1990, and am lucky that its sweet spot is able to do so much in the culinary space. By design, you would think we handle marketing for chefs and restaurateurs but that is far from the truth. We don’t represent a single chef, personally because I don’t want to take money from friends. There are two buckets of what we do in our agency. We do corporate consulting for American Express, Chase, and Merrill Lynch to a degree in helping them entertain their clients. It’s a lot of B2B initiatives where we help corporations figure out a culinary marketing program for their marketing plan for acquisition of new customers, retention of existing customers or introducing a new product. Along with helping our clients remind their customers with Centurion and Platinum cards that they have special access to restaurants and events with specific chefs. The second aspect is that since we are so ingrained in the space with chefs that trust us and understand that we share their sensitivity, we understand them, and get what their

needs are. We were trusted by chefs and were brought into the culinary festival scene. We were the agency to help Lee Schrager and Southern Wine and Spirits to create the first New York Wine and Food Festival and produced it for the first five years right out of my office. If we were not helping producing the event we would work on the marketing side. For the Aspen Wine and Food festival we brought in American Express as a marketing partner. Creating an overlay where card members could attend the festival with special access, and set up special dinners with outside chefs like Nobu Matsuhisa. We are now doing projects all over the world from consulting projects in British Virgin Islands to Israel to a top secret project in the Middle East. Let’s talk about Harlem EatUp and how that festival came together. What we have created that always puts a smile on my face is Harlem EatUp. This festival was created about four years ago at 2:00 in the morning at a chef after party at South Beach with my dear friend Marcus Samuelsson. We were sitting, chatting about Harlem and how it is being transformed and how it’s such an incredible neighborhood that is evolving with such amazing restaurants. I grew up in Brooklyn, and I said to Marcus that I think Harlem is ten years behind Brooklyn. We looked at each other and we said yes, let’s do this with us both knowing what each other meant. Harlem has a ton of events that happen throughout the year like Harlem Week but they all focus on the people that are in Harlem and we wanted to shine a spotlight for people outside of Harlem and even outside of New York. We did this through bringing in celebrity chefs to come up to Harlem to be hosted by local chefs.

Another strategy we implement is to bring in media partners who work outside of Harlem. We brought in USA Today, ABC TV, National Cinema Media, and partners you would not normally see like Ernst &Young, Aetna

Insurance, and Citi as our founding partners. Another interesting sponsor is the Bordeaux Wine Council, where I was called out of the blue from a

continued on page 32

Herb Karlitz with Michael Douglas, who was a special guest at the Roger Vergé Tribute dinner that took place last September at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers.

Herb Karlitz with Neal Patrick Harris at last year’s Harlem EatUp! April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 31

Q&A Herb Karlitz, from page 31 woman with an English accent who told me Harlem EatUp is the coolest festival. Now in its third year we know that it is a home run, last year we attracted people from seven different countries and 36 different states. It has organically grown into this beautiful festival that is all about a sense of place. Harlem EatUp is all about the roots, the history, the art, the culture and most importantly the food.

just unveiled one of their headliners, Alvin Ailey, who has not been back to The Apollo in years. Alvin Ailey had already prepared a curated work as a tribute to Billie Holiday that they will be performing. Our event at The Apollo will benefit our Harlem EatUp Foundation, and will generate additional funds for charities and worthwhile organizations that are located in Harlem or do great work in Harlem.

How does Harlem EatUp help the local community? We are really looking to raise the profile and really help the neighborhood. We want to create a positive impact for the local organization that does work in Harlem. We have some beneficiaries like Citymeals-onWheels, which does a lot of great work in Harlem to feed the elderly, and Harlem Park to Park which is a dear partner of ours who represent the small businesses in Harlem. What I think helps Harlem EatUp stand out is that it’s not just another festival plopped in a city. We are a not for profit organization, we do not have huge independent backers, we do this for Harlem and that means having the community in attendance. We want to be respectful to the community and make sure that there are tickets available at a reasonable price. It’s through these sponsors that we are able to cover these shortfalls. How does Harlem EatUp help exemplify the local culture? Ever since we started Harlem EatUp we have been motivated to showcase local iconic organizations, like the National Dance Theater. One of the biggest things engrained in Harlem’s culture is their jazz. Harlem EatUp will be producing homage to the late, great Billie Holiday who got her start at the bars and clubs of Harlem. The Billie Holiday benefit concert will be held at The Apollo, another iconic Harlem institution. The concert has 32 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

How does Harlem EatUp help local businesses grow? What we found after the festival was that the attendees were trickling into the local Harlem restaurants that were highlighted. The weekend activity is called The Stroll and is split into two areas, free marketplace where there are all the chef demos that are completely free and a marketplace where local businesses can showcase their stores. The second area is an enclosed

paid area where there are other restaurants serving small bites and that’s where we are pouring spirits, wine and beers. People are trying restaurants, taking cards, and discovering all of these wonderful spots that they never knew were there. It really becomes a great marketing opportunity to show themselves to an audience outside of their

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 33

Q&A Herb Karlitz, from page 32 local community. We also completely understand that some of these restaurants are small spots that can’t afford the overhead. We set it up for them, we financially subsidize them, and we try and help them where we can. Let’s talk about this year’s Harlem EatUp. On the chef side of things, what do you have planned? The way we decide on the celebrity chefs is that they have to have some tie to Harlem. Either that they love the area; they love the food and are inspired by Harlem. This year we are bringing in Dominique Crenn from San Francisco who loves Harlem for its Jazz, Daniel Boulud who happens to be the chef chair for City Meals on Wheels. I have gotten calls from other three star Michelin chefs and had to say no to them because I cannot find the relevant tie to Harlem. We will have Karl Franz, one of the

best Mixologists in the city with his own-programmed area where we will possibly have a chef in there cooking for him. All of the spirit companies we’ve been working with are creating special cocktails, even including a Billie Holiday cocktail for our event at The Apollo. The Bordeaux Wine Council will also be pouring more than 85-90 different Bordeaux wines for the Harlem restaurants that are participating where they can pick a wine they would like to pair with their dishes along with making new relationships with suppliers. On the celebrity chef side we will have Michael White, Michael Anthony from Gramercy Tavern and Untitled, Carla Hall, Michael Voltaggio, Angela Dimayuga of Mission Chinese, Joey Campanaro, Jimmy Bradley, Jonathan Waxman and Roger Mooking. Along with Dominique Crenn and Daniel Boulud as I had mentioned before. We

34 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

try to keep it fresh, rotating and with some sort of relationship with Harlem. With such a tremendous response, how long do you plan on doing Harlem EatUp? A festival is a compilation of a bunch of different experiences blended over the series of a couple days. This festival just happens to span over the time of May 15th to the 21st. It seems we must be doing something right because all of our events sell out right away. Frankly the scheduling of these events is the easy part. We have received such amazing feed back from everyone involved, everyone who attended and everyone that’s even heard of Harlem EatUp. It takes 3-5 years for a festival to really get into the black. Marcus and I are personally committed to underwriting this festival to get it to that point

where we are not raising ticket prices and attracting more sponsors and companies that want to come on this ride with us. What does the future look like for Harlem? I think Harlem is an amazing vibrant neighborhood that will continue to grow and evolve like neighborhoods do. I just hope it keeps its charm and cultural history of this 100-year renaissance. I think of some of the restaurants that are the first restaurants to hit Harlem like Sylvia’s and Melba’s I hope will thrive forever like the Joe Stone Crab of Miami and the Peter Lugers of Brooklyn. Culinary offers so many opportunities, it’s not about the price, it’s not about the fanciness, it’s about the experience.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 35

SCOOP

INSIDER NEWS FROM METRO NEW YORK’S FOODSERVICE SCENE

Boulud Hosts 20th Annual Sunday Supper At Restaurant DANIEL To Benefit Citymeals On Wheels Scoop notes one hundred and sixty-five guests dined at Restaurant DANIEL—one of New York’s most iconic culinary establishments for the annual Sunday Supper benefiting Citymeals on Wheels. Citymeals on Wheels is a nonprofit organization that works with community-based organizations and senior centers to prepare and deliver more than 2 million weekend, holiday and emergency meals for over 18,000 homebound elderly New Yorkers every year. The event raised $840,000 to prepare and deliver 113,821 meals for homebound elderly New Yorkers. For twenty years, Citymeals on Wheels Board Co-President Chef Daniel Boulud has hosted this fabulous dinner serving a multi-

Citymeals on Wheels Board CoPresident Chef Daniel Boulud; honoree John Raphael

Citymeals on Wheels Board Co-President Robert S. Grimes; Event emcee Gail Simmons

course menu with celebrated chefs from across America and Europe. Chefs Grant Achatz (Alinea: Chicago, IL), Ludo Lefebvre (Trois Mec: Los Angeles, CA), Edouard Loubet (La Bastide de Capelongue: Bonnieux, France), Heinz Reitbauer (Steirereck: Vienna, Austria), and Raymond Weber (CUT by Wolfgang Puck: New York,

NY) cooked alongside Chef Boulud at the sold-out affair. From Restaurant DANIEL, Executive Chef JeanFrançois Bruel, Chef de Cuisine Eddy Leroux and Executive Pastry Chef Ghaya Oliveira also contributed their talents. The evening’s emcee was culinary expert, food writer and dynamic television personality Gail Simmons,

36 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

Francine Farkas; Empire Casinos’ Tim Rooney; Sue Dickey Macarthur; Georgette Farkas of Rotisserie Georgette

Special Projects Director, Food & Wine and Judge on Bravo’s Top Chef. CK Swett, Co-Founder and Auctioneer of Lot 1 Auctioneers, served as the evening’s auctioneer. Chef Boulud said, “I am so happy to be celebrating the 20th anniversary of

continued on page 38

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 37

Scoop, from page 36

Citymeals on Wheels Executive Director Beth Shapiro; Citymeals on Wheels Board Member Drew Nieporent

Chef Grant Achatz; Chef Edouard Loubet; Chef Ludo Lefebvre

the Sunday Supper at DANIEL and another successful night devoted to raising money for Citymeals on Wheels. It means a lot to be able to gather friends, family and supporters together at my restaurant in support of our older New Yorkers who are confined to their homes and who rely on a warm meal and the relationship of Citymeals to get by. Thank you to my fellow chefs for traveling here from nearby and afar and to those who dined with us tonight for giving back to such a meaningful cause.” Beth Shapiro, Executive Director of Citymeals, explained, “The annual Sunday Supper is always a night to remember and a night to remember the 18,000 frail aged New Yorkers we serve. Citymeals is deeply grateful for the generosity Daniel and his guest chefs show year after year. Events like this ensure elderly New Yorkers never go hungry or without company. Thank you to all of these talented and generous chefs, DANIEL staff, Gail Simmons, CK Swett, and all of our guests for joining us for the 20th annual event tonight.”Chefs Weber, Bruel and Leroux created the canapés served during cocktail hour as guests whet their appetites for the dinner. For the first course, guests dined on Chef Achatz’s Tigers Milk and Coconut Citrus Vapor Ceviche, while Chef Reitbauer prepared Barbecued Sturgeon with Young Kohlrabi, Quinoa and Elderberry for course number two.Chef Loubet created the entree featuring Daube de Boeuf Provençale Comme

une Olive. Castle Valley Red Corn Grits with Provence Black Truffle by Chef Boulud followed the main course and Chef Lefebvre closed out the night with Tahitian Vanilla Rice Pudding with Ricotta Ice Cream, Lemon Brown Butter and Wakame with Chocolats from Chef Oliveira. Wine Director for The Dinex Group, Daniel Johnnes, and Head Sommelier at Restaurant DANIEL Raj Vaidya, selected the fine wines that accompanied each course. The specialty cocktail of the night was “The Patrón Mule,” a play on the original, with Patrón Silver Tequila, Lime and Ginger. The evening’s co-chairs were Nancy and Jon Bauer, Ellen and Robert S. Grimes, and Leslie Ziff. Chef Boulud presented longtime Citymeals supporter John Raphael with the “Serving Good Daily” award. The newly created honor recognizes those who go above and beyond on behalf of the Citymeals mission. For more than 25 years, Raphael has championed the city’s most vulnerable population, especially through his commitment to the Citymeals Dineout program. Among the evening’s guests were Beverly Bartfeld, Nancy and Jon Bauer, Dixon Boardman, Katherine Boulud, Joel Buchman, Frank Castronovo, Ariane Daguin, Georgette Farkas, Frank Falcinelli, Rita Jammet, Philippe Laffont, Lela Rose, Citymeals Co-Founder and Board Chair Gael Greene, Citymeals on Wheels Board Co-President Robert S. and his wife Ellen Grimes, and Citymeals Board

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Members Albert P. Behler, Jim Carter, Joseph M. Cohen, Aaron and his wife Stephanie Goldman, Suri Kasirer and her husband Bruce Teitelbaum, Michael and his wife Ninah Lynne, Drew Nieporent, Lisa Rosenblum, and William T. Speck and his wife Evelyn Lipper. Official sponsors were Citymeals Official Airline American Airlines, Citymeals Official Water FIJI Water, Cadillac, and Spirits Sponsor Tequila Patrón. The evening included live and silent auctions of one-of-a-kind travel and dining experiences, specialty gourmet selections, and rare and large format wines. Live auction lots included an incredible trip to Tourrettes-sur-Loup and Monaco in the South of France, several nights in London at the 5-star Mandarin Oriental-Hyde Park, an idyllic vacation to California Wine Country, and more. Silent auction items included dining experiences at some of New York City’s most distinguished restaurants, including Le Bernardin, Vaucluse and Indian Accent; a luxury tasting experience from Patrón; weekend getaways to Vienna, Los Angeles, Chicago, and other destinations; a Cadillac V-Performance Lab event; and tickets to events such as Hamilton and the New York Yankees Champion Suite with Batting Practice Experience. Citymeals was able to promise that 100% of ticket sales and donations in support of the event will be used entirely for the preparation and delivery of meals. Photos by Eric Vitale Photography and Stephanie Badini Photography.

‘Trio Of Titans’ Gathering To Honor Food Service, Hospitality Industry Leaders

Scoop notes more than 600 food service and hospitality industry leaders, celebrity chefs, Culinary Institute of America alumni, and other luminaries from business and entertainment will come together at the American Museum of Natural History to honor a “Trio of Titans” on April 19. Tim Ryan,

president of the CIA, will present the Augie Award™ to three individuals who, through their prolific life’s work, have transformed and elevated the food and hospitality industry helping it garner the respect it deserves. Created in tribute to famed French chef Auguste Escoffier, the Augie Awards recognize the achievement of visionaries, entrepreneurs, and chefs. This years’ honorees are Martha Stewart, Jacques Pepin, and Shep Gordon.

Katz’s Delicatessen To Open Brooklyn Outpost In April Katz’s Delicatessen is on its way to Brooklyn. The iconic NYC spot, of “When Harry Met Sally” fame, will be opening its first outpost at the new DeKalb Market Hall in Brooklyn in April. “In just a few short weeks we will be opening the first ever Katz’s Deli outpost! Keep an eye out for us at the old Albee Square Mall (now called CITY POINT) on the corner of Flatbush and Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn. See you soon!” the deli wrote on Instagram. While smaller than the original restaurant, the spot will still offer its menu classics like pastrami and corned beef sandwiches. “Katz’s will maintain its authenticity and reputation for offering the highest quality cuts of meat that New Yorkers, tourists and celebrities alike adore.” The Lower East Side deli has called the corner of Houston and Ludlow home since 1888 when it was originally known as the Iceland Brothers. It was renamed Iceland & Katz when Willy Katz became co-owner in 1903 and was given the name you know best seven years later.

Golf Simulator Keeps It Fresh At CT Eatery Scoop notes that CT restaurateur Dan Mottola has been in the restaurant business long enough to know keeping things fresh is essential for success. To bring in more customers during the typically slow winter

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Scoop, from page 38 months, Mottola had a CCS Golf Simulator installed on the third floor at the Putnam House, the restaurant he has owned for 19 years on Depot Place in downtown Bethel. “It’s funny because you have people walking through the bar and dining room with their golf clubs,” Mottola said. “I get a kick out of watching people in the bar wondering what’s going on. We’re always doing something different here.” The golf simulator room is rented by the hour and customers may have food and drinks delivered. The Putnam House runs a golf league on Mondays and Tuesdays. Dick Dingee, a Ridgefield resident and regular customer of the Putnam House, said the golf simulator is keeping him in shape for golf season. Dingee golfs in the league at the restaurant. “In winter, you never get to swing the clubs. I usually don’t swing the clubs from November to April and then I’m sore after the first round in spring,” Dingee said. “This

will help your game. It’s very accurate. It rewards good hits and if you screw it up, you screw it up.” The simulator, using lasers and microphones, gives users information on their swings such as distance, direction, club speed, angle and spin. It offers users a choice of dozens of courses from around the world. Mottola said a foursome could play nine holes in about two hours, or 18 holes in about four hours. The room rents for $35 per hour through the website www.putthutgolf.com. “It was winter so we figured we’d get it. First we had to see if it would fit. It requires a 9-foot ceiling and a 16-foot wall. It fits perfectly,” Mottola said. “For now we’re rolling with it. We’ll see what happens in the summer. Everybody is really enjoying it now. The whole idea of being able to play golf in the winter is really cool. “It’s a fun change,” he said. “It’s easy to be fresh and exciting when you’re new. It’s tough after 19

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years.” The bar offers the beer promotion “Golf Simulator Bucket Specials” for players. A few other restaurants in Connecticut have golf simulators. Maggie McFly’s in Brookfield has had one since 2009. Mottola is a Bethel native and used to own One Front Street. That bar was most recently The Spot, which closed last month. Adding the golf simulator is not the only change for the Putnam House. Wilson Ginin has been named the new executive chef and menu changes are on the way. “He’s very talented and has a lot of ideas,” Mottola said. “He has a great demeanor and that makes for a very good environment in the kitchen.”

Former Chef At The Red Cat To Helm New Restaurant ‘Motel Morris’ In Chelsea Scoop says a chef who worked at The Red Cat will take the helm at a New American restaurant opening on Seventh Avenue. Motel Morris is

slated to open in the former Spa Belles location this month. Its four owners brothers Sam and Brett Nidel, Brett Nidel’s wife Tamara McCarthy and his childhood friend Matt Mogil currently operate The Commons Chelsea a few storefronts away, the group said. Bill McDaniel, who was Chef de Cuisine at The Red Cat for 14 years, will head up the kitchen as executive chef. The eatery will serve New American food with a nod to global influences and regional American classics, along with specialty cocktails and craft beers. The restaurant’s name pays tribute to the Nidel brothers’ grandfather and Mogil’s great-grandfather both of whom were named Morris. “Motel,” meanwhile, is meant to evoke American culture of an earlier era, when vacations meant family road trips, and travel often involved overnight stays along the interstate, replete with a meal at a

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Scoop, from page 40 reliable restaurant serving American standards perfected over time.

New Yelp Feature Locates NYC Restaurants With Gender-Neutral Bathrooms Scoop notes that among the news from Yelp at last month’s IRFSNY Show was the launch of a platform that can help customers find restaurants with gender-neutral bathrooms. The company defines a gender-neutral bathroom as a “locking, single-stall bathroom,” Rachel Williams, head of diversity and inclusion at Yelp, wrote in a blog post. Here’s how you will know if a business has gender-neutral restrooms: Click on a business, then tap “More Info.” That status for “Gender Neutral Restrooms” is listed at the end of other miscellaneous information like attire and noise level. Users can identify businesses that have genderneutral bathrooms when they check into a business or a business can edit

this information from their “business user account,” Williams wrote. Yelp’s new feature can help all people locate single-stall bathrooms, regardless of what court orders say. The app’s added feature may help transgender people feel safe when the laws are blurry. And hey, who doesn’t love the extra privacy of a single-stall bathroom? In another show of support for trans people, Yelp is supporting Gavin Grimm, the teenager who sued his local school board because it forbid him from using the boy’s bathroom. Yelp signed the Human Rights Campaign’s amicus brief supporting Grimm. “At Yelp we thrive on inclusion and acceptance, and we hope that our support for Gavin’s case and the addition of this new business attribute will help our friends in the LGBTQQIA community,” Williams wrote.

Majorelle Makes Long Awaited Manhattan Debut

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Scoop notes that Majorelle, which was originally slated to debut last fall, finally opened its doors on March 15. The restaurant in the Lowell hotel on the Upper East Side, serves a Moroccan-inspired Mediterranean menu; it takes its name from the Moroccan gardens of the late Yves Saint Laurent, a La Grenouille patron. In addition to a garden, the restaurant will feature interiors by Michael Smith and a marble bar. While former La Grenouille sous-chef Mario Fortuna will serve as the main chef, Christian Delouvrier, who earned four stars from the New York Times at Lespinasse, will be a consultant. Even before the official opening it already attracted a high-profile crowd: The crowds have included Bruce Springsteen, Ronald Perelman, and Four Seasons restaurateur Julian Niccolini, as well as their wives. Whether Masson brings the same signature

touch to the flowers that he did at La Grenouille, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Legendary Chef Keller Makes Iconic Per Se Affordable To Millenials Scoop says being a millennial can feel like a thankless existence, but now 30-and-under New Yorkers have one perk to look forward to. Per Se, the fine-dining stalwart from legendary chef Thomas Keller inside the Time Warner Center, hosted a “30-for-30 Dining Experience” on March 30th, where 30 tables were reserved exclusively for people under 30 years old. Beyond scoring a table, those youthful diners also enjoyed a seven-course dinner for $175, a steal in comparison to the usual $325 ninecourse lineup. The evening included an optional wine pairing for $50.

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FIORITO ON INSURANCE

The Data Breach Response Recipe

n today’s society, data breaches are inevitable for businesses in all industries, with the associated costs rising dramatically each year. Now let’s assume your restaurant or hospitality business has been hacked. Naturally, you’ll want to solve any issues yourself. The problem is your best intentions may do more damage. Taking matters into your own hands can lead to a cyber claims denial, it can broaden the reach of your hack and it can ultimately create new exposures for your organization. Even with a cyber insurance policy, you will want to engage a trusted insurance advisor as quickly as possible, to address the attack in its entirety. From the first critical hours to the remainder of the breach, here’s what needs to happen: Putting Your Cyber Policy Into Action As soon as you suspect something has gone wrong, calling your insurance broker should bring all the resources you’ll need directly to your fingertips – a privacy attorney, a cyber forensics expert, notification and credit monitoring as well as a public relations firm whose job it is to maintain the reputation you’ve worked so hard to build. Your broker will closely review your cyber policy coverage and help you initiate a claim. They should then connect you with a recommended privacy attorney to determine your next

Robert Fiorito serves as Vice President with HUB International Northeast,

There’s no one size fits all policy when it comes to covering your breach. A robust cyber policy will bring with it resources to help you immediately start to comply with both federal and state regulations. steps. This includes hiring a reputable cyber forensics expert to verify the when, how and why your breach occurred – even determining if your network is still infiltrated. You’ll have a forensic scope call with your new privacy attorney and the forensic experts. Having your privacy attorney hire the forensic expert on your behalf is a key move. It ensures that the entire forensic investigation remains under attorney client privilege and can’t be subpoenaed later by regulatory officials or a class action lawsuit that results from your data breach. It ensures that inexperienced IT personnel don’t access your already compromised network and come to false conclusions. At the same time, depending on the scope of the event, your broker will hire an experienced PR firm to create messaging around your data breach, both focused on restoring faith with internal members of your

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staff as well as external clients, customer and vendors, as necessary. Once the forensic report comes back, which can take anywhere from five days to five weeks, depending on the scope of the breach, your privacy attorney will determine if personally identifiable information (PII) was exposed, requiring individual and/or regulatory notification. Where individual notification is necessary, organizations could have to comply state privacy laws, dictated by the breached individual’s residence. When this happens, your broker will engage a policyapproved, experienced notification call center to handle the barrage of necessary paperwork. There’s no one size fits all policy when it comes to covering your breach. A robust cyber policy will bring with it resources to help you immediately start to comply with both federal and state regulations. The key to having the right resourc-

a leading global insurance brokerage, where he specializes in providing insurance services to the restaurant industry. As a 25-year veteran and former restaurateur himself, Bob has worked with a wide array of restaurant and food service businesses, ranging from fast-food chains to upscale, “white tablecloth” dining establishments. Robert can be reached at 212-338-2324 or by email at robert.fiorito@hubinternational.com.

es is knowing what to do and when to do it. This only comes along with an experienced broker that’s savvy in data breach risk and compliance. While out of pocket costs are minimized when you have a cyber policy, a good insurance broker can help you remediate a data breach even without cyber coverage. This includes connecting you to a privacy attorney who will initiate a forensic investigation under attorneyclient privilege, determining if you need to notify affected individuals and state or federal authorities. Going at a cyber breach alone is a sure way to dig your organization deeper into crisis. Working together with an insurance professional from the first hour of crisis is a sure way to get yourself to the other side of a cyber breach safely – and as intact as possible.

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TRADE SHOW NEWS

Over 18,000 Industry Professionals Attend The 24th Annual IRFSNY Recap of Awards Presentations, Cooking Demos and Celebrity Chef Appearances

ast month the Javits Center was bustling with 18,000+ Independent and Multi-Unit Restaurant Owners, FSR & Quick Serve Establishment Operators; Foodservice Professionals, Caterers, Chefs, and more from across all segments of the industry who gathered for the 24th Annual International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York, which offered a collection of the best new food, equipment and technology. The show included everything from awards presentations to education sessions and cooking demonstrations, filled with celebrity chefs and tastings. Chefs, industry leaders, owners and operators networked and conducted business with 535 exhibiting companies during the three-day trade show and conference, which was recently named one of the top food and restaurant events among the Top 100 events in New York by BizBash Magazine. The event is owned by Urban Expositions and sponsored by the NYS Restaurant Association (NYSRA). “Last month, The Javits Center was the place for the restaurant & foodservice industry offering jammed packed aisles, buzz worthy special events, timely education sessions, and thousands of new products. The event truly offered something for everyone,” said

Andrea Tencza, Director of Marketing for Urban Expositions’ Foodservice Events. “We thank the New York State Restaurant Association and their members, our exhibitors, attendees, speakers, and press who came out to support the only event in New York exclusively serving the restaurant and foodservice industry.”

Attendees voted in several categories in the Innovative New Product Showcase. The Overall Winner for the best new product was Allie’s GF Goodies, LLC for their certified gluten free and certified kosher parve bakery; The 1st Place Runner Up was Catering Box for their custom food service boxes to safely & professionally transport ca-

(L To R) Little M. Tucker’s Morgan Tucker and Frank Cullinan of Villeroy & Boch

continued on page 48

The TouchBistro team brought their award winning iPad POS solutions to Javits

(L to R) Chef John Hesse of That Meatball Place, Maria Loi of Estiatorio Loi, Salumeria’s Cesare Casella and Evan Leventhal of StarChefs

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tered food; The 2nd Place Runner Up was Brooklyn Organics for their beverages including Bruce Cost Ginger Ale and Bruce Cost Ginger Beer; and Best New Product in the Food Trends Experience was Gus-Grown-Up Soda for their line of all-natural premium

(L to R) Admiration Foods’s Vincent Barcelona, Erica Diaz and Beverly Barcelona manned the New Jersey firm’s show booth

Roger and Sons’ Joe Cirone (L) and son Roger welcomed many guests

(L to R) Kingsborough Community Colleges’ student chefs brought intensity to the pastry competition

A La Cart Restaurants’ chief Jeffrey Bank toured the show

(L to R) Greg Grossman and Elissa Sykes of Culinari Group

(L to R) Office Star’s Jammie Stamey and George Mariscalo

(L to R) TD Marketing’s Mike Fortanesca and Michael Klatman with Anthony Patella of Moyer Diebel

(L to R) Gary Sample Jr. and Rick McDonald of Delivery Concepts

(L to R) Ace Natural’s Paul Guarino and Rod Moyer

The New England Linen Supply team brought a portfolio of new concepts to the show floor

Noted consultants including Clark Wolf (2nd-R) toured the show with Yoshima Tada of Mt. Fuji International

(L to R) Blodgett’s Tim Thaler with Marsal’s Rich Ferrara, Santo Bruno, and Carl Ferrara

(L to R) Longtime broker Richard Forgione and Fremont/Budweiser’s Allen Langer

(L to R) The Performance Food Equipment duo of Jon Bowerman and Ken Kurzweil

(L to R) Anthony Gulotta, Anthony Donato and Jante Tomasi of Gulota’s Say Cheese Restaurant in East Setauket, NY

Day & Nite had a busy show as new technology has spurred growth in their customer’s needs

(L to R) Alicia D’Alotto and Dennis Quirk of City Ice In Staten Island

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IRFSNY, from page 46 sodas and sparkling cocktail mixers. Fifteen exhibitors were chosen by a panel of media judges to Pitch the Press, and present their new product or service to editors, buyers, restaurateurs and others. Best in Show for Pitch the Press was awarded to CateringStone for their Revolutionary CateringStones keeping food hot or cold for hours without ice, electricity or open flame using 100% food-safe technology. The judges included Michael Scinto from Total Food Service, Jeffrey Dryfoos formerly with Dessert Professional, Barbara Castaglia from Restaurant Management, and Dave Turner from Tabletop Journal. The Culinary Demonstration Theater included the presentation of the Torch Award to Danny Meyer, CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group and Founder of Shake Shack for his outstanding contributions to the industry. Danny signed copies of his

New York Times bestseller “Setting the Table”. In addition, the Rapid Fire Appetizer Challenge was won by Chef Reinhold Paul Teuscher from Chef Reinhold Culinary Solutions and there were culinary demonstrations presented by Celebrity Chef and Restaurateur Donatella Arpaia; Dan Jackson, Café 2 and Terace5, MoMa; Roxanne Spruance, Kingsley; Adam Latham, The Gumbo Brothers; Katzie Guy Hamilton, Equinox; and Bill Rosenberg, NoMa Social. The exhibit hall had several featured areas including the expanded “Pub” which offered 20 innovative craft beverages including beers, ciders, wines, spirits, and more; the Food Trends Experience where 75 new companies provided samples of new foods that are inspiring new fresh menu ideas; Taste NY Food & Craft Beverage Show-

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Among the show’s creative technology entrepreneurs was Marqii’s Avi Goren (R)

(L to R) Spring’s Michelle Luzzi and Erik Weiss of Gotham City

(L to R) George Nasta of Sam Tell worked with customers including Colleen Somers and Bob Mathews of Cape May’s Dry Dock Restaurant

(L to R) Carlise’s Tina Hynes, Mark Shapiro of Advantage Waypoint and Kathy Drew of Carlisle

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IRFSNY, from page 48 case featured over 40 New York food and beverage companies who showcased locally grown products; and the Education Station, where attendees received up to the minute business strategies. The Japan Pavilion celebrated its 11th year at the show, where the Japan Food Service Association featured Japanese Rice - a premium quality short grain rice that has been a staple through Japanese History. Culinary presentations were given by John McCarthy, Kunihide Nakajami and Jason Huang who demonstrated Risotto, Japanese Style Takikomi Gohan, Congee, Brown Rice Pudding and much more. Paris Gourmet congratulated John Cook, Norman Love Confections (FL), the winner of the 28th Annual U.S. Pastry Competition for his highly technical chocolate sculpted showpiece based on the theme Modern Masters Come to Chocolate. Chef Cook won

(L to R) First Lease’s Giuseppe Cucuzza, Richie Dietz of M. Tucker, Bill Finngan and Jeff Hendler of Icesurance, and David Maschke of First Lease

(L to R) New Jersey restaurateurs Mark Jakuboski of Old Man Rafferty’s and the Brick House’s Donna Amato

a $10,000 grand prize, a silver plaque, and gold medal certificate. Other highlights included The 8th Annual Farm to City Expo focused on The Power of Branding ‘Local’ sponsored by NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets and Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Panelists included Marianne Klimchuk and Sandra Krasovec, Fashion Institute of Technology; Lela Chapman, Greenmarket, Co; Rick Stein, Food Marketing Institute; and moderators Jill Kaplan, Crain’s New York Business and Jenna Liut, Heritage Radio Network. The panelists offered insight on why building brand value is important and how to increase the bottom line by making ‘local’ stand out. The New York State Restaurant Association hosted a riveting panel discussion on the state of the restaurant

(L) Imperial Bag and Paper’s Bob Tillis visited with the FC Meyer packaging team

The show marked the return of the truly gifted kitchen designer Jimmy Nolan of Lott Restaurant Design to the show floor

(L to R) Bridor’s Krista Kelly and Maxime Sarazin

Imperial Bag & Paper’s Chris Freeman (L) whose visionary booth design has been a hallmark of the annual event welcomed show guests

(L to R) The Dinosaur Bar-B-Que trio of Lindsay Amore, Garth Caruso, and Richard Zoob

(L to R) Pecinka Ferri’s Ed Pecinka, Joe Ferri and Warren Polansky of Sam Tell

(L to R) The Corwin family manned the Crescent Duck booth

(L to R) Pearl Restaurant Group’s Jim Sullivan, Mike Fabry and Erin Flynn

(L to R) Formutatti’s Kevin Yang, Kibok Choi and Su Son

(L to R) Montague’s Jason Whalen, Joe Deckelman with Monobloc’s Michael Poulos and Bill Dolan

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IRFSNY, from page 50 industry. The standing room only crowd heard from a dynamic panel which featured Jeremy Merrin, Havana Central; Dino Lavorini, Union Square Hospitality Group; Domnick Purnomo, Yono’s Restaurant and Moderated by Melissa Fleischut, President and CEO of the New York State Restaurant Association. The Ferdinand Metz Foodservice Forum, featured a half day workshop from Darren Dennington, Service with Style Hospitality Group and David Scott Peters, TheRestaurantExpert. com who presented How to Easily Survive Increasing Minimum Wage and Food Costs. The Foodservice Council for Women session featured Chef Roxanne Spruance of Kingsley; Betsy Craig of MenuTrinfo; and Melissa Fleischut, the New York State Restaurant Association who joined Kathleen Wood of Kathleen Wood Partners to discuss what it takes to succeed in the foodservice industry today. Ferdinand Metz moderated a panel on the

Celebration of Women Chefs which featured Alison Awerbuch of Abigail Kirsch Catering; Zarela Martinez of Zarela’s and Chef Emma Bengtsson of Aquavit. At the close of the Show, City Harvest, the world’s first food rescue organization dedicated to feeding the city’s hungry men, women, and children were able to rescue 11 pallets of food totaling approximately 11,000 lbs. “A huge thanks to our volunteers who helped rescue thousands of pounds from the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show at the Javits Center! We delivered milk, yogurt, frozen soup, green onions, oranges, and potato rolls to Bed-Stuy Campaign Against Hunger (BSCAH) and Shiloh SDA Church - helping to feed our hungry neighbors in Brooklyn,” said Matthew Lum, Manager Food Sourcing, City Harvest.

continued on page 54

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(L to R) TFS’s Mike Scinto and legendary restaurateur Danny Meyer

(L to R) Garden State restaurateurs Chef Jason McMullen of Valente’s, Anthony’s Pat Ianoon and Saul Cordova

(L to R) Ron Lustberg Jr of CLV, Balter’s Lori Balter, Megan Blohwaiak of Service Ideas, and Balter’s Adrianna Unarreal

(L to R) Andrew Halper of I. Halper and Westchester Country Club’s Rob Sanders

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IRFSNY, from page 52

About Urban Exposition’s Restaurant & Foodservice Shows: The 2018 International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York will be held Sunday, March 4 - Tuesday, March 6, 2018 at the Javits Center in New York. The show is produced and managed by Urban Expositions, and sponsored by the New York State Restaurant Association. Urban Expositions produces several other foodservice events including the Western Foodservice & Hospitality Expo to be held Sunday, August 27 through Tuesday, August 29, 2017 at the Los Angeles Convention Center and the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show scheduled for Sunday, September 10 - Tuesday, September 12, 2017 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. For more information on exhibiting or attending future events visit the official Show website at www. thefoodshows.com.

(L to R) Michael Stimma and Debbie Vitello of Stamford’s Villa Italia

(L to R) Sea Breeze’s Jon Samuel and Bill Schiffman

(L to R) Tom McHale and Vincent Palumbo of Equipex

The Culinary Depot team welcomed Pecinka Ferri’s Joe Louis Ferri and TFS co-publisher Fred Klashman

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(L to R) Rumba Cubana’s Carlos Goyanes, Alan Lopez and Nairelys Rodriguez

(L to R) Merrick Dodge’s Ira Reiter and Mike Leibman of ReeferTek

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23,

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Pinch Chinese

1 Sean Tang, Owner, Pinch Chinese, New York, 2NY 2 23

Leif Billings, Regional Director Northeast, Next Step Design, New York, NY 24

177 Prince St, New York, NY

ew York City may not be the dumpling capital of the world but the dumpling game in New York is nothing to joke about. Now this town has one more contender in the ring for the best dumpling in the city. Sean Tang, a first time restaurateur is behind the new Soho spot Pinch Chinese. Tang is bringing tradition and recipes that are engrained in the menu of Michelin star rated Taiwanfounded chain Din Tai Fung to New York. Pinch Chinese is already growing with excitement and anticipation,

due to its coverage on Grub Street. Pinch debuted as #4 on Grub Street’s Restaurant Power Rankings and its raving reviews. But a big part of the excitement behind Pinch Chinese is with the talent that Tang is bringing in. Pinch’s kitchen is full of international talent like Charlie Chen, a former executive chef for Din Tai Fung who helped open the chain’s Shanghai locations along serving on its corporate-chef team. Tang also brought in several master chefs from China who have helped run Din Tai Fungs all over Asia. Tang has brought in the masters to give Pinch Chinese an un-

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9 The modern welcoming themed Mediterranean interior at themed Pinch Chinese interior is at matched Ousia is by matched the quality by the and quality efficient andequipment efficient equipment of their kitchen. of their bar and kitchen including an ice machine from Ice-O-Matic.

Adrienne Yancone, Project Manager, Eimer Design, Philadelphia, PA

matched level of authenticity. Sean Tang’s Approach: I’m very proud of our new restaurant, Pinch. It’s a chain that was founded in Taiwan and my big challenge was to bring the same soupdumpling gospel we have here, to New York. It’s pretty funny I was in Shanghai and thought that the Chinese food in New York would be better. So I had several conversations 2 authentic with Paul about bringing Shanghai Chinese to open here and it just kept evolving. Our chef, Charlie Chen, is from Chi-

54,

na, from Shanghai, he’s been there for the last 16 years working as an executive sous chef and growing into the executive chef position with the Din Tai Fung in Shanghai. He left them formally to join our project, having, at the time, overseen two of their kitchens in Pudong, Shanghai, which is the Wall Street of Shanghai, where all the multinationals have their offices, where all the banks have their offices. It’s a big corporate crowd, with a lot of pressure to produce every day and a lot of the highest paid

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 59

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than they’re steamed and consumed because the skin starts to break down. There’s a showroom, an open part of the kitchen that’s behind a panel of glass. It’s a large open room where our three or four dim sum chefs are folding soup dumplings throughout the dinner service. Other than that, it’s a closed kitchen. Chinese kitchens tend to be closed because woks when they’re turned on -- when you’re in the space and there’s no music and there’s not people talking at dinner – are like a jet engine. You can hear it throughout the space. Our layout was another beast to tame, we cut it into thirds. We’ve got the lounge in the front third, the bar in the middle third, and the dining room in the back third. I designed what we called “the wood portal.” They put 2x4s of bamboo randomly perpendicular to the wall so they’re

sticking out of the wall and the ceiling on both sides like a frame. They spaced the bamboo out every six to eight inches and so we got what we call the portal. It sits right over the entire bar area. The front area to the back area has this distinctive separate feeling because of the bar. And we wanted this feeling because we wanted it to be a place where you get that really quick al fresco dim sum and drink. And then in the back is where you have your full dining experience – which I think is what Soho looks 16 like. I can just pop in for a drink; sit there in front 1of a window. That’s what 5 we’re trying to be. We were very ada14 mant about creating a neighborhood 13 experience. 12 Ultimately, the reason restaurants 11

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ing neighborhood, but it’s not quite there yet for this type of cuisine, for this price point. So we found a neighborhood in Soho that has the best of everything, most notably, great residents. The residents we’ve met, they’ve lived here 25, 30 years. A lot of them bring their kids into the restaurant. We get a great mix of tourists and New Yorkers also, shopping all four seasons of the year. In terms of the kitchen, Chef Ken sketched out a rough idea of what a kitchen of our design would look like. He spec’d out the things he wanted and the arrangement he wanted and they fit it into the space. It really was a marriage between the two visions. But the main thing we wanted to accomplish coming here was a showroom for the Dim Sum folding. All of our soup dumplings are made to order. They must be made no earlier

and very demanding customers. He brought with him six other chefs, all of whom had never left China before to come to New York to open Pinch. So we have a team of seven from China and hopefully many more coming down the road. We didn’t really have to tweak much to begin making it in New York. The base of what we do, our star attraction, is the Dim Sum and the Dim Sum is well regarded throughout the world. Din Tai Fung has close to 100 locations throughout mostly East Asia. Now with the location I had been looking for a space for a little over a year. We looked everywhere, from Mid-Town, West and East, through the East Village, Greenwich Village, Chelsea and we narrowed it down to a few places. Chelsea was one that we really liked, it’s an up-and-com-

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floor and the cellar level we were able to squeeze everything prep kitchen. Even though in there for an optimized space and this restaurant had some ismost importantly functionality. sues, it was nothing out of It became all about getting open, the ordinary for New York we went with Joel Kaplan from E. City. My team and I just Friedman who was our kitchen conthought of it as fun chaltractor and was brought in early in lenges. We had a major issue the project to lock in pricing and get with beams that were holdshop drawings moving, and EMI for ing up the kitchen rotting stainless steel fabrication because from the wall and settled they had the best lead time and were down on the top of the walklocal. On the cold side we had to rein box. We were hoping to place the walk-in boxes with four new reuse these walk-ins but afKolpak walk-ins in four different sec1 ter they were shut down they tions. We set up a beer section, a6duck literally fell apart. We ended drying room, a freezer, and a cooler 15 duck drying room is still up ordering replacements. section. The 14 When the existing boxes in the works too, because they’re go13 were demolished we found ing to be doing very authentic duck, 12 out they were holding up the they’re still going to add UV lights, a 11 kitchen. humidifier and a special blower fan. 10 On the equipment side of We added two Hoshizaki ice ma9 things, I knew I had to be chines, one large cube machine and 8 realistic about what will last then another flaked ice machine. 7 and what would not. It may The kitchen itself was very small 6 be a bit of a cliché but you so we really had 17to optimize our 5 18 know what they say, they space. One big thing we had to con4 19 don’t make things like they sider was to not bring the wait staff 3 2 used to. A lot of the equipinto the kitchen.0 It was already jam 2 21 ment you see today just does not last packed, so it really was impossible 1 22 like it used to. It’s a difficult realizato have wait staff in the back of the 23 tion because you can get ambitious house so a front of house dish drop 24 when you are trying to save money was wedged into a small alcove. The for your client. last issue we were faced with was the What I really enjoyed about workbar, we did not have a lot of depth so ing with Sean is that he was very were only able to do an 18 inch deep hands-on. Even in terms of the Chibackbar. It actually worked out really nese equipment he would go out well because Perlick now has an 18’’ and purchase from Chinese vendors backbar refrigerator that we put in on the Bowery. He got his own speand the bartenders love it! Pinch was cial wok, dim sum cookers; duck an extremely fun project to work on. oven, special vegetable washer and Sean is dedicated, ambitious and had ginger grinders all purchased on the a real vision of what he wanted. Bowery. Even with everything Sean had purchased we still needed to get Adrienne Yancone’s Approach: more firepower for the kitchen. We When we went through the existing created a dim sum station with the restaurant for the first time I realized noodle cooker and dim sum steamer. that Sean’s vision was to take this reUnder the rest of the hood we put in ally long and narrow space and gut a range, steamer, candy stove and a 2 continued on page 95 fryer. Even with such a tight kitchen

Leif Billings’ Approach: When we first got in there, the original plan was for a quick renovation of this existing restaurant kitchen. Once they closed we were basically going to just flip it around with some minor upgrades, new bar and dim sum display room. We really wanted to get Sean and his team in there right away. But as we got deeper into the project we found that there was a lot of equipment and infrastructure in really bad shape. This project ended up turning into a complete renovation of the first

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list, with a really thoughtful cocktail selection, was really important to me. We’re very happy with what we’ve ended up with – a very, very laidback experience, but one where you can still get that full New York dining experience.

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succeed or fail is whether or not the neighborhood takes to you. You’re going to get the people who dine here once a year from another neighborhood, from Brooklyn or from up from the West Side or wherever it might be and that’s great, we’re always welcoming them, but the neighborhood will determine whether you succeed or fail. Some of those local neighborhood touches include a change; we just recently changed to plastic chopsticks. We were using bamboo chopsticks before that were a one- time use. We switched, just for ease of waste. It got to a point where we were throwing away too many chopsticks and it was just becoming a hassle for our entire team. So, we switched to red plastic chopsticks, which match our clothes, red, black and grey. One aspect that is very unique to New York is the bar, the kind of bar/ dining culture that we have here – the bar being a lot of times the heart of the restaurant. And that’s not the case with Chinese restaurants in New York; it’s a very separate kind of experience. 2 You go to the typical Chinese restaurant and you’re probably getting a beer, Tsingtao, or you’re getting a soda or you’re getting water. We have Tsingtao in the bottle, we have soda on tap and we have obviously water but, surprisingly, having alcohol with dinner is much more prevalent in China than it is here, the drinking culture with dining. China is now the world’s largest consumer of wine. And so, creating a full dining experience, with a really thoughtful wine

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NEWS

AWARDS

ACF Names Westchester Student Torres “Student Chef Of The Year”

onroe College, a naa CINY student was invited by judges tel in Westchester, NY. She, too, will tional leader in eduto compete as that year’s “wild card” advance to the national competition cating urban and inparticipant. this summer at Disney’s Coronado ternational students, “Yudi is incredibly talented in the Springs Resort. recently announced that Yudelka kitchen and by far the most accomThe Culinary Institute of New at (“Yudi”) Torres, a student in its Cuplished competitor we’ve ever had at Monroe College is an award-winlinary Institute of New York (CINY), CINY,” said Frank C. Costantino EdD ning, nationally recognized culinary was named the “Northeast Region CEC CCE AAC, Dean of Monroe Colinstitute that provides students with Student Chef of the Year” at the lege’s School of Hospitality Managea combination of theoretical eduAmerican Culinary Federation’s ment and the Culinary Arts, which cation and hands-on experience in Northeast Regional Championship houses CINY. “Eight gold medals, culinary arts, pastry arts, and hosin New York last month. numerous ‘best of shows’, and a pitality management. With facilities Ms. Torres’ winning “Tasting of team gold medal won at nationals designed to simulate the kitchens Farmed Idaho Brook Trout” dish fealast year are just a few of her stellar of restaurants, hotels, and large protured a seared filet with braised baby accomplishments. We congratulate duction operations, students receive fennel, olive oil poached tomatoes, her on this latest accomplishment, personal instruction and mentortourné potato, and a hearty Caldeiand share in her excitement at adship from a faculty of ACF-certified rada sauce, accompanied by a delivancing to nationals.” chefs and experienced industry cate trout in puff pastry with spinach Maria Wu, a 2014 graduate of CINY, professionals who are committed to and mushrooms and a lemon emulwas named at the same event as the their success. CINY has been ranked sion. The third component was a “Pastry Chef of the Year” in the proone of the top 10 culinary schools in trout and bacon mousseline-stuffed fessional category. The White Plains, the Northeastern U.S. and in the top shrimp, with parmesan tuile and a NY resident is employed in the pas20 nationwide. shrimp-flavored arborio purée. try kitchen of the Ritz-Carlton HoSince 2009, the program has proAs winner of the reduced award-winning gional title, Ms. Torres culinary teams, students, will advance to the nafaculty and staff, as well tional “Student of the as a critically acclaimed Year” competition to student-run restaurant, be held in Florida next The Dining Lab, which July. There she will comwas deemed a “training pete against three other ground for students” by regional winners. This The Wall Street Journal is the second year in a and “the little kitchen that row that a CINY student could” by The New York earned the Northeast Times. Its culinary comRegional “Student Chef petition team was named of the Year” title and CINew York State ChampiNY’s third straight year ons for two years running Yudi Torres, a student in Monroe College’s Culinary Institute of New competing at nationals and has won more than York (CINY), was named the ACF’s “Northeast Region Student Chef of the Year” in this category. In 2015, 680 ACF medals.

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Yudi is incredibly talented in the kitchen and by far the most accomplished competitor we’ve ever had at CINY,” said Frank C. Costantino, Dean of Monroe College’s School of Hospitality Management and the Culinary Arts, which houses CINY.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 65

NEWS

TECHNOLOGY

Mastercard Set To Unveil Mobile Solution

t’s 1 a.m. You’ve had a few too many at a crowded bar and walk out without paying the tab. Your credit card and driver’s license sit behind the cash register, leaving your personal info widely accessible while you sleep off those vodka tonics. There’s a new option that might lessen the pain. Not the hangover pain - for that, you’ll need aspirin. But if you’ve ever left your credit card at a bar by mistake, or spent several minutes trying to flag down a harried bartender to close you out, there may be a new option. An upgrade being rolled out this summer to Mastercard’s mobile payments service will let people open, manage and close their tabs at participating bars and taverns completely through their phones, without having to hand over a credit card. The Open Tab feature, available in the U.S. and the U.K., will be an upgrade to Mastercard’s existing Qkr mobile payment

service. “We heard from so many bars and pubs who always have a number of credit cards left at the end of the evening, and we thought, ‘we know how to address this,’” said Betty DeVita, the business head of Mastercard’s Qkr platform. DeVita also cited Mastercard survey data that it takes on average 12 to 15 minutes to close out a bill, time that could be used to serve more tables and customers. “The service will be free to customers and the service will cost the same for bars and restaurants as their normal credit card processing costs,” DeVita said. While Mastercard is rolling out the feature, Qkr will work with any major credit card as long as the merchant accepts it. Popular apps like Venmo, Square Cash and bank-specific versions like Chase QuickPay have already changed the dynamic in how some people are paying for things. The payment ser-

“We heard from so many bars and pubs who always have a number of credit cards left at the end of the evening, and we thought, ‘we know how to address this,’” said Betty DeVita, the business head of Mastercard’s Qkr platform. 66 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

vices that let people send each other money for free via their phones mean you can quickly pay a friend back for a drink or divide the dinner check instead of just hoping that someday soon the friend will take a turn. Those have the benefit of working at any restaurant, but don’t have the ability to split bills until after the fact. The new bar tab option on Qkr is fairly straightforward. Customers can open the Qkr or the bar’s app, and set up a tab, entering their credit card in-

formation if they hadn’t already done so. Once the tab is ready, customers would get a table number, which they’d give to the bartender each time they order a drink. When they’re ready to go, customers can close out their tabs in the app. There are options to add other people to the tab, much like how a person can split a fare on Uber, as well as the ability to pay for individual drinks or pay for rounds of drinks. It also provides the option to automatically leave a tip.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 67

NEWS

TECHNOLOGY

Yelp Expands Reservation Services With Waitlist Purchase

elp Inc. has acquired Nowait, a restaurant technology company with the industry’s leading waitlist system and seating tool, for $40 million in cash. The announcement comes after the company had previously disclosed a strategic investment in Nowait and integrated its services into the Yelp app. The purchase of Nowait, which was founded in 2010, will add to the customer experience when booking

tables with Yelp Reservations and ordering food for pickup and delivery through Yelp Eat24. Nowait is the first mobile network for waitlist restaurants, giving eating establishments the ability to share real-time seating availability with diners while also allowing customers to add their name to the waitlist remotely. The service also allows for realtime communication between the restaurant and the customer and is a replacement for paper waitlists and buzzers. The system, which is live at

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about 4,000 restaurants across the United States and Canada, can help boost business for busy restaurants, as well as save customers the time and hassle of traveling to an eatery with exorbitant wait times. “Yelp already plays a big role in millions of purchase decisions every day as consumers actively seek out businesses and services that save them time and money. The full integration of Nowait allows us to provide real-time seating availability that better equips diners to

make informed decisions,” said Jeremy Stoppelman, Yelp cofounder and chief executive officer. “Nowait has quickly become an important feature for Yelp users and a valuable addition to our overall restaurant offerings. With this acquisition, we’ll make even bigger strides in the restaurant industry by allowing Yelp users to more quickly move from search and discovery to transacting at a local business.”

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 69

NEWS

EQUIPMENT SOLUTIONS

Remco Celebrates 25 Plus Years Of Delivering Pizza Profit Solutions

ince 1989, Romano Moretti has been known as one of the pizza industry’s visionaries. What began with humble beginnings as a new/used equipment and hood fabrication business has grown dramatically. Today Remco is known as one of the equipment and supply industry’s most creative manufacturers. The Florida firm’s patented technology is the result of listening carefully to the needs of the restaurant and food service operator. Total Food Service recently had the opportunity to chat with Romano about the latest trends on menus and Remco’s newest solutions to meet those changing needs. How did you get into the industry? In the 80’s, we were in the New/ Used equipment business and Hood fabrication. Summer of ’89, we received a service call from a guy with a rotisserie oven. A popular concept at the time, up and coming to say the least. We went to investigate. Repaired his oven and being the visionaries that we were, saw so many opportunities in the design, we decided to design, build and patent a process that would revolutionize the industry. We entered the rotisserie market with a bang. Over the next few years, we saw the

Our UL listed Remco ovens only need a direct B-vent like your hot water heater, that means you can place the oven virtually anywhere in the establishment without an unsightly hood and costs… Huge benefits!” need for our technology in the pizza industry. Hence, the Remco carousel pizza oven. Who was the entrepreneur that created the vision for the company? Romano Moretti What was the niche that you saw when Remco USA launched? To provide a product and process

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to the professional food operators that would eliminate costs, make it easier to operate and give them a dependable product that they could rely on day in and day out. As in all food service operations, owners and operators are always looking for a better mousetrap. We gave it to them. How have the needs of that custom-

er changed through the years? For instance there’s a lot more operators making pizza than just pizzerias. For sure. The pizza industry has expanded greatly over the years. Everyone can create a pizza element into their concept. To maintain our presence in all the potential markets, we began developing the various sizes to fit the needs and demands of the operators. From a gas station, to a corner mom and Pop, to the high volume, corporate full service and institutional operations, we have one for you. You recently exhibited at the NAFEM show. What new bells and whistles did you bring to the show floor? This year, the Daytona took on a new exhaust assembly, burner location and size. Also, as a manufacturer and fabricator, always looking to better our line and products, we introduced a new fabricated, custom designed prep/ display table. Your new Daytona line has created quite a buzz. As you looked at creating the Daytona line…. what was the niche you saw? It’s not a niche, it’s a need. A process of high quality product, cooked fast, at a low cost with the

highest efficiency. Easy install, low energy usage, easy to operate and ROI in less than a year. With the industry taking on higher costs in all aspects of the operation, this one saves you money. Talk about the importance of being able to install a Remco without a hood? It’s all about cost and flexibility of placement. A hood system cost upwards of $15,000.00 to purchase and install and takes two to three weeks in construction! Our UL listed Remco ovens only need a direct B-vent like your hot water heater, that means you can place the oven virtually anywhere in the establishment without an unsightly hood and costs… Huge benefits!

What kind of creative menu additions with your ovens are you seeing in your travels? It’s not just pizza. We demonstrate how the Daytona can produce an entire menu. We are able to produce items such as Pork, Beef, Chicken, Chops, Steaks, Filets, as appetizers and main courses. You can literally eliminate grills, flattops, stovetops and fryers with a Daytona designed menu. You also have a line of rotisseries. Talk about some of the features in those units? Our rotisserie ovens are again, the most cost effective, easy to use, dependable ovens on the market. We eliminated gear driven spits with a patented gravity driven system.

The drive system will not jam or fail and needs no maintenance. Our patented circular cavity, open front design, allows product to cook with very little weight loss. The flicker flame gives you the look of a wood/ coal burning oven without the cost and labor. The infrared technology decreases the cook time by approximately 30% and the ovens roll in the door with no assembly needed. Gas efficiency averages 45,000 BTU while cooking with no heat-up time. Cleaning and operating is made easy with removable drip pans, on/ off safety pedal and custom designed accessories for any product. Is your target the end user/restaurateur or the consultant dealer? We have always been factory direct sales however; it is our goal in

the near future to create new synergies with consultants, designers, specifiers and dealers to broaden our presence in this fast paced market. What’s the next step for a foodservice professional that wants more info on your line? The simplest way is to call 1-800-98REMCO or visit us @ www. RemcoUSA.com. We’re a personalized company taking care of each client individually. Our product line is so unique; it is difficult and lengthy to explain through emails and text messaging. We love the client to come in to our test kitchen to actually see, touch and taste the Remco process.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 71

COFFEE STRATEGIES

WITH JONATHAN WHITE

Keep Changing

travel for many business conventions. As part of these conferences, each organization usually hosts a series of seminars relevant to their members and topics within their industry. For many years, most of these seminars were very technical, detail oriented presentations; while they may have offered helpful specific information, the overall impression was quite forgettable. Today, many more seminars focus on general business topics that encourage you to work “on your business” rather than “in your busi-

Innovating is hard work. It involves both concentrated effort and often extended time for “things to gel”.

Jonathan White is the Executive Vice President at White Coffee Corporation in Long Island City, NY. Learn more about how Jonathan and his team can help you at www.White Coffee.com.

ness”. I have found this far more helpful as it gets you to think about the big picture. Common topics are strategic planning, unique selling propositions, and hiring the right people. But at a recent coffee con-

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vention, the organizers wisely chose a theme of “innovation” that I believe is the most critical focus point for a business to survive. Innovating is the key to survival. The fact that a business has a stel-

lar reputation and overwhelming market share is no guarantee

continued on page 104

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THE FOODIE QUIPPER

WITH JOE FERRI

Management, by George (Jetson)

ou know what really pushes my buttons? A bad case of forward-itis, that predilection to impulsively kick-the-can down the road. Most of us know in our hearts that simply forwarding an email doesn’t really constitute managing people. Copying all, or dictating an administrative fiat can no longer substitute for a well-defined strategy. Even though, like George Jetson in the cartoon, it sometimes feels like our only role in the management process is to simply press the keys on a computer. Our reliance on automation creeps into every area of business, not only into communications. You must keep in mind, however, that current technology cannot replace leadership (and probably won’t either, at least for the near future). We humans can - and should - augment our abilities with the latest available tech, making use of its time-saving and productivity components. Similarly, we must update our own skillsets regularly, if only to just keep pace. Robots, artificial Intelligence (A.I.) and the internet of things (IOT) are all coming to a foodservice operation near you. Being a master of, and not a slave to these initiatives ought to be the goal of everyone, especially managers and would-be managers. Automation in our industry will be redefining all our roles from here on out. Presently, we can’t rely upon any of these tools for all but the most rote tasks, although there are plenty of those that can be disrupted, thus driving out inefficiencies.

So, what is it that we humans will be doing? Overseeing burger-flipping droids? Scheduling fry-bots? Programming autonomous delivery vehicles? Cleaning up the mess when one of these goes astray? Yes, absolutely, sure and you-betcha! We’re already doing some of this right now. Much of our world has defaulted to the self-service mode, due in part to the constant barrage of apps being introduced. Integrating people with systems represents the biggest challenge to our industry. Forces at play, including the ris-

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ing minimum wage, health insurance uncertainties, and a plethora of unfunded government mandates have conspired to make the foodservice industry ripe for automation. Add to these, our reliance on mobile devices, a shrinking pool of willing available talent, and shifting traffic patterns, and you have the perfect storm for disruption. The future of driverless cars, drone deliveries, mobile-app ordering, and meal kits has arrived. Opportunities abound! Today’s supervisor might well face a workforce of meatbags, cyborgs and androids. Will you be prepared for the challenge of overlaying automation on existing ecosystems? Managing all of it will fall upon those who have mastered the latest techniques, intuitively knowing

Joe Ferri (AKA the Foodiequipper) was conceived in a Greenwich Village speakeasy’s walk-in box, the love child of the hat check girl and bartender. He is in his fifth decade of (somewhat) gainful employment in the foodservice industry. He is past chairman of MAFSI and currently COO of Pecinka Ferri Assoc., a NY area equipment, furnishings and supplies representative. Follow Joe @ joeferri on Twitter.

which buttons to push, and which tasks to delegate. The alternative to getting ahead of the changes lying ahead: Will there be a robot managing you?

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 75

EYE

METRO NEW YORK’S FOODSERVICE EVENT COVERAGE

Club Managers 23rd Annual Show At Glen Island Casino

unning a private club is a challenging endeavor. Healthcare and food regulations, trends, governance, financials and strategic planning are all necessary parts of running one well. To help club managers succeed at these, the Metropolitan Club Managers Association held its 23rd Vendor Show at Glen Island Casino. The MCMA Vendor show brought together 1,200 people from the private club industry for its annual one-day networking and education event. The Vendor Show has raised over $3,000,000 since

its start in 1994 to support educational programs for club managers and to assist managers to further the club management profession; provide financial assistance to individuals from the public sector, including minorities, interested in the club and hospitality fields and, create a greater public awareness of professional opportunities; promote the club management profession through academic programs offered by (community) colleges, culinary schools, and universities both in New York and other states, and to cooperate in the dissemination of

(L to R) Brae Burn Country Club executive chef Maxwell Shteyman and Orienta Beach Club’s Jon Hoffman put their culinary brillance on display

(L to R) North Hills Country Club’s chef Andrew Krug and Chef Pablo Lorenzo of Country Club of Darien

(L to R) Jeff Dellon of H. Weiss and Rational’s Chris Lustberg

(L to R) The CleanseTec trio of Pat Anable, Larry Albom and Bob Clark brought a portfolio of new club cleaning solutions

(L to R) The M. Tucker trio of Fred Silver, Paul LeBarron and Dave Placenti

(L to R) For the innovative Hafsco design team, the show was a family affair: Tom Capobianco with his children Briana, Darren, and Demi Capobianco

(L to R) Harris Restaurant Supply’s Elliot Reeder and Tony Lanza brought years of experience and proximity to many of Westchester’s top clubs

Featherstone Foods’ Joel Schonfeld brought an extensive array of baked goods solutions to the vendor expo

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professional information to allied associations, academic institutions, and other groups involved with the hospitality field. Foodservice suppliers, including 120 vendors showing club specific products, exhibited their wares at the show. Attending were clubs from the Metro New York area, including Manhattan, Westchester, Long Island, the Capital region of upstate New York and lower Connecticut. A talk on trends in the club industry led off the day, with expert panelists from five different industries, who shared their obser-

continued on page 78

Iwona Stark (R), general manager of Westchester’s Old Oaks Club led her charges to the 2017 event

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 77

Club Managers Show, from page 76 vations and expertise on what’s hot, along with best management practices in strategic planning and board governance currently in use around the country. The event’s educational seminars always tackle a wide diversity of issues that face the local club manager community. Several of the seminars dealt with maximizing food and beverage profits. Other key topics included, energy efficiency that even with low oil process continues to be a focus. The educational session also tackled insight into detecting and preventing employee fraud, which has many different faces. It can appear as a small petty cash transaction, a fictitious employee or vendor or check manipulation. At the dinner reception, Club Chefs of Westchester and Lower Connecticut took a night off from competing with each other to come together to showcase the truly amazing talents that

they bring to their members every day. It has been fascinating to watch the recruitment of top culinary talent by local area clubs. TFS spotted top club chefs including Peter Assue of Beach Point Club, Chef Daniel Neuroth of the Bronxville Field Club, and Manursing Island Club’s pastry toque Dianna Levene. “Clubs today find themselves in competition with local area restaurants,” noted Rory Godfrey of Rye’s Apawamis Club. There simply isn’t a better example of the skils that today’s clubs bring than when you sample the fare of Chef David Pasternack of Manhattan’s Knickerbocker Club. The Foundation has grown to host an annual fundraising Challenge Cup Golf Tournament, a great Vendor Show, high-level computer workshops, and annual President’s Symposium featuring speakers of national prominence.

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 79

RESTAURANT REPAIR

WITH ERIC SCHECHTER

Don’t Be A Greasy Spoon

xhaust hood systems play an important role in the restaurant kitchen, pulling heat, smoke, and odor away from cooking surfaces. This is for the protection of both employees and the restaurant facility itself, but over time, the greasy buildup inside hoods and ductwork can become a safety hazard of its own. Protecting against this hazard requires regular and thorough cleaning of the exhaust hood, exhaust hood filters, and ductwork. Grease buildup inside the hood duct system is among the leading causes of restaurant fires, and proper maintenance and cleaning can drastically reduce this risk. Below are some of the most frequently asked questions we get at SendaGuy Now from restaurant operators regarding their kitchen exhaust systems: Question #1: As a restaurant owner, what is my responsibility in regards to cleaning my kitchen’s exhaust system? Answer: According to NFPA-96 section 4.1.5: “the responsibility for inspection, testing, maintenance, and

cleanliness of the ventilation control and fire protection of the commercial cooking operations shall ultimately be that of the owner of the system, provided that this responsibility has not been transferred in written form to a management company or other party.” In other words, it is the owner’s responsibility to keep that system clean of grease and particulate buildup, and reduce the risk of a fire hazard. An incomplete cleaning performed by a low priced contractor (with most likely inadequate insurance coverage) will not protect the owner from the cost and litigation of a fire. Question #2: How often should my kitchen exhaust hood system be cleaned? Answer: According to NFPA-96 Standard section 11.4 the “entire exhaust system shall be inspected for grease buildup by a properly trained, qualified, and certified person(s) acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction and in accordance with Table 11.4.”

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Question #3: What is considered clean? Answer: The industry standard is to clean down to the bare metal. If a system has not been cleaned properly for any length of time, sometimes it may take multiple cleanings before getting to bare metal. According to NFPA-96 section 11.6.2: “Hoods, grease removal devices, fans, ducts, and other appurtenances shall be cleaned to remove combustible contaminants prior to surfaces becoming heavily contaminated with grease or oily sludge.” The best way to determine if a surface is clean is to inspect it. If it looks like there is an accumulation of grease on a surface, then it probably needs cleaning. If you need a more precise measurement, ask a member of the International Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning Association (IKECA) for a Grease Gauge. The Grease Gauge is a tool developed by IKECA to determine the cleanliness of a system by measuring the fuel accumulation on a surface.

originally installed in the system? Answer: The most effective and efficient way to clean kitchen exhaust systems is by accessing as much of the system as possible. In order to

Question # 4: Why do I need access doors, and why weren’t they

continued on page 98

Eric Schechter is a Certified Restaurant Facilities Professional (CRFP) with over 25 years’ experience in the restaurant facilities industry. Eric is also Chief Business Guy at SendaGuy Now, the mobile app for restaurant repairs on demand, where he’s in charge of Strategy, Product & Service, Development & Evaluation, Go-To-Market Strategy and Product Management. Eric can be reached at eschechter@sendaguy.com

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 81

EYE

METRO NEW YORK’S FOODSERVICE EVENT COVERAGE

The Annual Partridge Club’s St. Patrick’s Day Party 2017

t was truly a glorious day as Partridge Club members celebrated the wearing of the green last month. The club’s annual St. Patrick’s Day bash took center stage at the Union League Club in Manhattan. The legendary Dennis Sweeney who for years has hit the club’s funny bone with his special brand of blarney returned to the sheer delight of the huge turnout. The event and the warm weather marked the quickly approaching Spring season. Under the tutelage of Partridge president Marc Fuchs to make as the the club continues to grow its commitment to support the education of the industry’s next generation. The club has now attracted new scholarship funding from “Friends of Partridge” corporate sponsors. Partridge’s St. Patty’s Day event gave many foodservice executives the opportunity to toast the holiday with many segments of the industry. Among the notables were Pepsi’s Michelle Chang and Emily Alati and Christine Bonho of Aramark. PBAC’s Larry Cantamassa and veteran consultant Kent Bain toasted the holiday. Longtime Partridge member Dan Condon of Condon O’Meara McGinty & Donnelly welcomed guest including Woodway’s TJ Daigne and longtime club manager Steve Kremens Minners Design’s Maureen Cole and Lou Rozzo of F. Rozzo Fish wel-

comed many guests. Many of the Metro New York marketplace’s leading foodervice operators including Credit Suisse’s Jay Silverstein and Tony Kaszuba of Restaurant Associates enjoiyed the corned beef and cabbage. The Partridge Club’s scholarship initiatives are led by Marc Sarrazin

of DeBragga and Spitler. The event raised Partridge grants, which go to such noted institutions as The Culinary Institute of America, Johnson and Wales, Cornell University, The University of Massachusetts and Paul Smith College. The Partridge Club was formed in 1935 at the Victoria Hotel in New

(L to R) Sean Bangh and John Alfano of Pro-Tek

(L to R) M. Tucker’s Fred Bonaccorso, Kevin D’Onofrio of West Point and Eric Santagato of M. Tucker

(L to R) The St Pats. event marked the return of Dennis Sweeney who visted with new Partridge members Jonathan and Karen Kasman

(L to R) M. Tucker’s Marc Fuchs, Barbara Boden of JPMorgan Chase, PBAC’s Michael Posternak and Victoria Vega of Unidine

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York City. The membership was made up of leading purveyors to the hotel, club and restaurant trade. The St. Patty’s luncheon brought the mission of the Partridge Foundation to raise scholarship funds for institutions of higher learning providing training for students pursuing a career in the Hospitality Industry.

(L to R) Brookdale Medical’s Patrick LaMont, Hobart’s Dick Hynes, Chris Brady of Romano Gatland and NY Methodist’s Robert Martin

(L to R) HUB Insurance’s Bob Fiortio and Dick Cattani of Restaurant Associates

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 83

FAITHFUL FOOD

WITH FAITH HOPE CONSOLO

Feast in FiDi

pring in Manhattan welcomes renewed activity and a glorious awakening downtown, in the Financial District. Residential demand plus Wall Streeters after work, followed by uptown brands moving downtown, is all adding up to turn this neighborhood into one of the city’s delicious dining destinations. Enjoy this foodie tour! Name and Menu tba by Danny Meyer @ 28 Liberty Street Danny Meyer has decided to turn his planned FiDi events space into a sky-high, 6,000-square-feet public restaurant, 28 Liberty St., at William Street. It’s on the 60th floor, about 880 feet high, and it will have 360-degree views of the New York skyline. The rest of the space will still be used as private event space, with room for up to three events and 800 people. Once it opens next year, it will be the highest ballroom in the city. Yet to be Named Restaurant by James Kent @ 70 Pine Street Former Nomad executive chef James Kent will open a restaurant in the 70 Pine St. Financial District Tower at the Art Deco building. Planned is a ground floor restaurant and a lounge complex on 70 Pine’s 62nd through 64th and 66th floors and its outdoor terraces. The landmarked tower, formerly the headquarters of AIG, was converted into luxury rentals by Rose and is now 60% leased. City Acres @ 70 Pine Street Also at 70 Pine Street, we see

Years of construction work has finally led us to this—downtown Manhattan, and in particular, FiDi, is alive again, and expanding our culinary horizon.

Faith Hope Consolo is the Chairman of Douglas Elliman’s Retail Group. Ms. Consolo is responsible for the most successful commercial division of New York City’s largest residential real estate brokerage firm. Email her at fconsolo@elliman.com

FiDi is also getting in on the food hall trend. When City Acres Market opens at the base of landmarked 70 Pine St., a slate of food vendors — including Artichoke Pizza and Vanessa’s Dumplings — will also launch their own counters inside, City Acres was formerly known as Urban Market. The upscale market, which has a location in Williamsburg, will take up about 13,000 square feet in the building, with a ground floor and basement level space. Other food hall vendors include cold pressed juice spot JuiceBrothers, vegan eatery Cinnamon Snail and Beyond Sushi, which makes vegetarian and vegan sushi rolls and other meatless Japanese dishes. Beyond Sushi is also opening a second spot in May: a larger, full-service restaurant at 134 West 37th St., with a liquor license.

Center tower next year. It’s the same complex that is home to Eataly and a location of Epicerie Boulud. Humm and Guidara are aiming to open their new FiDi restaurant in 2018.

Restaurant by Guidara and Humm @ 3 World Trade Center Will Guidara and Daniel Humm, the team behind Eleven Madison Park and the Nomad, will soon be adding a big new restaurant in the Financial District to their portfolio, a 7,000-square-feet restaurant on the ground floor of 3 World Trade

Blue Ribbon Federal Grill @ 84 William Street The Bromberg Brothers and the team behind Blue Ribbon Bakery Kitchen are also bringing their eclectic downtown energy to the heart of the Financial District. Blue Ribbon Federal Grill is located in the ground floor of the AKA Wall Street,

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Nobu New York @ 195 Broadway Nobu Matsuhisa’s flagship restaurant is vacating its original TriBeCa home for FiDi, slated to move to its new location at 195 Broadway in early 2017 inside the former AT&T Building. Ichimura @ 69 Leonard Street Eiji Ichimura, who garnered three stars from the New York Times for his sublime sushi inside Brushstroke opened his own 10-seat counter featuring an omakase menu, including the special style of aged fish that he’s known for.

at the corner of William Street and Maiden Lane. Federal Grill’s menu embodies the abundant “something for everyone” approach that has guided the Bromberg’s throughout their careers. Along with plenty of aged steaks and chops, the menu includes a broad scope of seafood and veggie options Fuku @ 110 Wall Street David Chang’s fried chicken chain will open its fifth location of the fast-casual spot in the neighborhood. The chef and restaurateur of Momofuku fame is to open an outpost of his sandwich shop Fuku at 110 Wall St., near Front Street. The small spot has just five tables that I’m sure will have a wait! A new restaurant from Chang is also opening at South Street Seaport’s revamped Pier 17, which is also being made new. Years of construction work has finally led us to this—downtown Manhattan, and in particular, FiDi, is alive again, and expanding our culianary horizon. Enjoy savoring this roundup and watch for my next edition of Faithful Food! Happy Dining!

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 85

Karena Wu, from page 16 Wylie sat for over 7 hours with his head turned to the side. Prolonged posturing like a forward head, side bent or rotated head can shorten the surrounding muscles and cause the muscles to pull up on the bone. Stretching the surrounding muscles will only provide temporary relief as the bone underlying is stuck and not sitting in the right position. Traumatizing them with too aggressive self-massage will only aggravate the condition. What fixes this issue is mobilizing the bone back into the place where it is supposed to sit. That will then normalize the overlying muscles to relax and lengthen to their original position. This can be done using a strap over the side of the elevated rib and bending the head toward the same side to relax the muscles. Pulling down on the strap in this position helps to mobilize or move the bone back to its

original position. If this does not work, then see a physical therapist to perform manual joint mobilizations. They will use their hands to specifically target this bone. This last visit from my friend Wylie ended being a great story of another source of neck pain, unfortunately for him. As our careers take us out of our normal environment which in this case would be the kitchen, we can encounter different challenges in different industries. What happened in this case was learning of the physical demands of prolonged posturing of the head and neck and the subsequent cause of his pain after his physical therapy evaluation. We look forward to watching Wylie judge the cooking competition with a smile on his face and hopefully not picking up on any discomfort caused during the filming of the TV show.

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April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 87

NEWS

AWARDS

LaFrieda, TouchBistro Highlight New NYC Restaurant Spotlight Awards

he Restaurant Spotlight Awards 2017 are set to celebrate the best of New York State’s bustling restaurant scene. The inaugural event is being sponsored by TouchBistro, and Edible, with Pat LaFrieda judging. Nominations include New York restaurants (including bars, food trucks, and other food venues except for nationwide chains), and/or restaurant owners/operators, and/or servers for the awards program. There is no entry fee to participate, and there is no limit to the number of New York-based restaurants, owner/operators, and staff that anyone can nominate for the awards. Self-nominations are also accepted and encouraged. The Restaurant Spotlight Awards were created to showcase and recognize those in the restaurant industry that serve the highest quality food, place their patrons first, and use innovative approaches to continually deliver the best customer service. Nominees are eligible to win prizes worth thousands of dollars if selected as a Winner or Finalist.

award categories: • The Executive Award - Recognizes the owner/operator who goes above and beyond their duties in managing

The Restaurant Spotlight Awards will shine a light on one winner and four finalists in each of these three

Pat LaFrieda

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their restaurant and support staff. • The Service Excellence Award Acknowledges individual servers that go that extra mile to provide patrons

with outstanding customer service that leaves a lasting and memorable

continued on page 110

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 89

FOOD SAFETY

WITH SUSAN ALGEO

Hot Trend: Food Allergy Training Is Slowly Being Mandated Across The U.S.

s I’m sure most of you know, we have seen an increase in food allergies in the United States over the past two decades. The science and theories about why that is happening is a topic for another day. However, the rise in food allergies has had a major impact on restaurants and food service establishments. As we see an increase in food allergies, we need to see an increase in food allergy training. This is happening, slowly, in food service across the country. Over the past few years, more allergy training courses and certifications have been developed, and regulations for training and notifications have been put into place. But more needs to be done to educate and train food service employees around safely and successfully accommodating food allergies. Let’s review some basic food allergy statistics. Approximately 15 million people in the United States have food allergies, including 9 million adults and 6 million children. The 8 most common allergies – including milk, eggs, soy, wheat, fish, shellfish, peanuts, and tree nuts – make up 90% of American’s food allergies. Keep in mind, though, there are many other foods that people may be allergic to. In fact, there are over 160 foods that have been identified as an allergen, including some spices. The CDC has found that be-

Susan Algeo, MPH, CP-FS, is the Director of Project Management at Food Safety Training Solutions, Inc., where she facilitates food safety training classes, including ServSafe® and NRFSP®, for numerous corporations nationwide. She’s known for making

Over the past few years, more allergy training courses and certifications have been developed, and regulations for training and notifications have been put into place. tween 1997 – 2007 there was an 18% increase in allergy rates in children. Symptoms of an allergic reaction can include itching, swelling, stomach cramps, vomiting, dizziness, and even death. It is important that food employees get proper training to protect their customers from illness and, potentially, death. Along with concerns about proper procedures for food allergens, we must also protect customers with food intolerances and sensitivities and those with Celiac Disease. Food service employees need to understand the risks associated with food allergies and ways they can prevent allergic reactions from happening to their customers. Proper training is required to learn about the allergens, how to avoid crosscontact, the importance of labeling, and how to engage in open communication with the customers. With all the things that are happening in a kitchen, food allergy concerns

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can take a back seat. When front-ofhouse and back-of-house employees work together, customers can be served safely and it could very well save their lives. Congress passed the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCP) in 2004 which applies to labeling of foods regulated by the FDA. But labels can only do so much to protect customers that are being served in restaurants and other food service establishments. That is why more ongoing training is necessary for all food service employees. As of right now, there are five states, and a few counties and cities, across the country that have some type of mandated allergen training for food service. Just as it took for time for food safety manager certification to become standard across the country, so will mandated food allergen training. Massachusetts led the way by passing the Act Rela-

the lessons – and the subject matter – memorable and engaging. An integral part of the Food Safety Training Solutions team, Susan also provides other food safety services, including consulting and more. As a consultant, she helps operators and their teams improve their standards, procedures, and overall commitment to food safety. Additionally, she conducts third-party inspections of customers’ operations to improve their health inspection results.

tive to Food Allergy Awareness in Restaurants (FAAA) in January 2009. Along with having certified food protection managers take additional allergen training, the law also required allergen awareness posters to be displayed in staff areas and notices on menus for consumers. Rhode Island followed suit, passing a similar law in 2012. Michigan’s regulations came in 2014, requiring the poster and manager training to address food allergies. In 2015, Virginia added allergen training standards to their regulations along with providing food allergy education materials to food service employees. Maryland started requiring food allergy awareness posters to be displayed in staff areas in 2016. New York City, NY and St. Paul, MN are two cities that have their own

similar allergen awareness requirements. There are more states and jurisdictions that are trying to get regulations passed that will require additional training or some type of customer notification about food allergies. Although we have seen an increase in food allergy rates, the actual number of people with severe food allergies still remain a small minority of customers (about 4% of the adult population). I believe this is a main reason we haven’t seen more states adopt these new laws to protect those customers. It will take much more time for allergen training and customer notifications to be regulated across the country. Until the laws meets up with the protection of consumers, we have to

take it upon ourselves to protect our food-allergic guests. Continue to train employees on food allergens, make them aware of the risks of cross-contact, and have discussions with customers to explain how dishes are prepared and any potential allergens in the facility. Having regulations for awareness posters displayed and a certified food protection manager knowledgeable about – and trained around – accommodating food allergies is a step in the right direction, however restaurants need to continue to work to improve the quality of services for their food allergic customers. By all of us working together, regulators, industry, and consumers, we will be able to make the necessary changes to protect anyone with a food allergy.

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LIZ ON TABLETOP

TABLETOP SOLUTIONS

The Evolution Of The Steakhouse

ast year we talked about how a great steak is as fashionable as ever. Once again in 2017, with the opening of a new Bobby Vans in the city last month and Wolfgang Puck bringing his CUT steakhouse to NYC; high-end steakhouses continue to grow in the Tri-State area. No matter how accomplished a home cook is, a great steak is still a challenge. The chances of having a commercial grade broiler or grill that can generate the intense heat necessary to replicate the steak at a high-end steakhouse makes it virtually impossible. Our H. Weiss team recently complet-

ed a re-do of one of Manhattan’s truly iconic steakhouses. It gave us some really interesting insight into the reemergence of the steak on Metro New York’s menus. In addition to equipment, the other major differentiation between what your guests or members can do with beef lies in the access that you have great cuts. That huge slab that your parent may have feasted or celebrated with are gone. They have been replaced with grass fed or organic cuts. The other key opportunity to showcase your menu lies in how you serve sides and sauces. These new cuts re-

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quire a fresh new look at how you serve them to your customers. The old way of serving a steak was to place the slab on a simple old white (US Vitrified china) platter. Plates were warmed, and, while the meat was left to rest, the juices dried on the warm plates and looked terrible. That old outdated 60’s look may have even been topped with a candy apple slice. As the H. Weiss team designed the tabletop, it dawned on us the menus of a great steakhouse have expanded dramatically. Today’s menus include other “steaks”: including duck breast, ostrich and tuna - simply prepared, with great sides. As we did the planning with the chef, we also spoke of how “steaks” beg to be shared. This creates almost a communal table concept. There’s so much talk and focus about loyalty programs today. Nothing drives loyalty more that a great meal shared and en-

Liz Weiss is the President and coowner of Armonk, NY based H. Weiss Co. She is known nationally as one of the nation’s foremost authorities on tabletop design. The Michigan State graduate is also actively involved with WPO-Women’s Presidents Organization. Comments may be sent to eweiss@hweiss.net.

joyed with friends and family. Our serving suggestions to set the right tone start with luscious composed salads with fresh greens and other high quality ingredients. Why not make a “sharing” statement by serving

them in a large bowl or on large plates. From a presentation standpoint, profits and presentation can be maximized with the return of an old concept: table side slicing and serving. At H. Weiss, we have found beautiful custom wood boards with the restaurant logo that can even be sold separately to customers as a souvenir of the special time they enjoyed at your restaurant, club or hotel. We have also helped many of our customers create that special signature with Marble boards. I like their look but they are cold. We have also been utilizing slate boards, some with glass domes that make fantastic presentations. We noticed that sauces have become a real point of differential for chefs that feature “steaks”. So with the rebirth of how it is presented, sauces have taken center stage as an expression of the chef’s individual flair. Choice of sauces where the chef can be inventive, now have nice ways of serving them. The H. Weiss table-

top team has been suggesting the use of copper or stainless steel pots with sauce presented at the table. We also like the look that can be created with double or triple ramekins and even a glass pitcher. It’s interesting; we are seeing more steaks shared than ever before. With this comes the use of a larger more elegant serving platter with smaller plates. We are also seeing the use of smaller portions with better cuts being served on open sandwiches and in salads. We suggest the use of a colored plate or an upgraded cream plate to make beef pop. One of the newer organic shapes from FOH-Front of the House or Steelite is a must. Today’s sides include a healthier selection. We suggest a fresh new approach to serving sides this year. We have our chef and restaurant customers using Matte finished bowls like Geode from Cardinal or Steelite - which offers several matte colors including beige, gray and black. We also have our eye on some of the

wonderful organic shaped small bowls from Libbey. Today’s sides are often served in tandem with the standards like creamed spinach and fully dressed potato which is still the star. How about this creative approach use an oval bowl with the opened potato served with a tray of toppings - almost like a make your own Sundae. Good bold wines have always been a part of the great steak experience. Why not think about recreating the ceremony of decanting wines - even if it is just a single serving decanter. With our steakhouse project in the City, we also paid special attention to the salt and pepper mills. We were able to complete the look with a pewter finish. We also suggest colorful lacquer, or a good quality clean acrylic mill - with a matching salt mill. Pink or gray salt is a great way to add some color and a special feel. Simple linen or muslin bags for crusty bread complete the table. One thing that has not changed in the steakhouse is the importance of the

steak knife. The golden age of the steak knife has returned. Many of the updated designs have the female customer in mid with the inner profile that fits elegantly into a smaller hand. With the recognition of a growing customer base for steak, innovative manufacturers led by Cardinal have worked with their design teams to introduce designs that feature wood tones and pearl handles. In addition they have also given careful thought to the materials used to produce blades that can easily glide through meat. Do not skimp on the knives - probably the most important item on the table when serving steak. Replace them before the blades go dull and the handles look worn. Why not talk to us about combining the right knife with a large hefty fork lets the customer know that they are eating something large and impressive. Let us know how we can help you rethink your steak presentation strategy.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 93

RESTAURANT EXPERT

WITH DAVID SCOTT PETERS

Make Yourself A Priority

ndependent restaurant owners tend to be the nicest, most generous people on the planet (even the grumpy ones). Think about it. They put others ahead of themselves all of the time. They will bend over backward to take care of guests’ needs. They will run all of their credit cards to the max in order to make payroll. They’ll even go for years losing money, while their guests tell them how to run their restaurants and their employees drive nicer cars than they do. So stay with me and listen to what I have to say, even if it’s not the first time you’ve heard me say it. “You Have a Responsibility to Run a Profitable Restaurant…” • Responsibility to your customers. You have a responsibility to run a profitable restaurant for your customers. Look, there is a reason they dine in your restaurant. You provide an obviously much needed service to your community and guests, otherwise you would not be in business. You must be profitable to stay open for them. • Responsibility to your employees. You have a responsibility to run a profitable restaurant for your employees. This is how they are gainfully employed. This is how they pay their bills, feed their families and live. (Yes, half of them may drink their paycheck away, but that’s another story.) You must be profitable to stay open for them.

•

Responsibility to yourself. You have a responsibility to run a profitable restaurant for you, your family and any investors you might have.

This third area of responsibility is where the lesson begins. A great majority of restaurant owners run their businesses as if they were a charity. Taking care of everyone else first and if there is anything left over that “would be great.” The reality is you must make you the priority! Think about it, without you, there is no restaurant for the customers. Without you, there is no restaurant that employs people to work. Without you, there is no restaurant. So you see, YOU are the priority. Without you everyone suffers. What do you do with this revelation? How does it affect your life? Well that answer is easy to understand, but sometimes very difficult to execute. First, you have to start making yourself and your family the priority. You need to create a budget, which ultimately shows you how much money you want to make. You need to put into place the systems you know will help you achieve your budget. And most importantly, you will need to manage your business to that budget, which often means making the tough call. To get you started, here are the key areas where we focus when we start working with a new restaurant: • Cutting labor cost • Reducing food cost • Expecting more from management

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David Scott Peters is a restaurant expert, speaker, coach and trainer for

This is where we start, but the list goes on and on. It’s a process and lots of tough calls have to be made. But when you change your mind set to “You have a responsibility to run a profitable restaurant,” you’ll never go back to the way it was. Instead, you WILL make money without sacrificing your independence. Just remember YOU have to make YOU a priority. Without YOU, there is no restaurant. “You have a responsibility to run a profitable restaurant!”

independent restaurant owners. He is the developer of SMART Systems Pro, an online restaurant management software program helping the independent restaurant owner remain competitive and profitable in an industry boxed in by the big chain restaurants. Download a free report to discover the #1 secret to lowering food and labor costs and running the independent restaurant you’ve always dreamed of. Learn more about how David can help you at www. TheRestaurantExpert.com.

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Pinch Chinese, from page 62 the entire thing to really fill up the space. The real challenge was trying to capitalize on that challenge of that long narrow space. We wanted to create something that was welcoming but had a modern feel. We were serving dim sum, a very traditional Chinese dim sum, so we really wanted to put a modern take on it. We created just that, a combination of traditional and modern spot on a very Chinese street food vibe that felt comfortable being in Soho. Sean had a vision in a three part concept, he wanted it to feel familiar with a touch of contemporary design with a little bit of “mystery” but still feel vibrant and approachable. After we have pinpointed the conceptual strategies we wanted Pinch to have, we started to build up color pallets, textures, and a feel for materiality. Red was always a big color for us, mainly due to the traditional meaning behind the red color. We knew we wanted that to have a really big accent, Sean had this vision of a red concrete wall because he felt the rough red spoke to the tradition but also gave it an urban feel. The red concrete really became the main piece and we just built the rest around that space. The concrete accomplished almost everything we wanted to showcase in the restaurant; it was modern, contemporary, urban and traditional all at the same time. The next aspect we needed to solve was that long narrow space. Sean always had this idea about almost building on that long narrow space with an almost runway feel. We wanted to have this really centralized circulation path that would work as the walkway for service and customers. For the floor color itself we decided to play off the red concrete wall and have a lighter natural concrete color for the floor. It was a real challenge to create a mysterious feel while still having warmth. For the mystery we kept

the dark shell to the space, with dark ceiling, dark walls, and this big red concrete wall that just pops. For the warmth in addition to the light concrete floor we wanted to create an almost portal condition at the bar so we built that out of bamboo that wraps completely up the wall over the ceiling and back down to become the back of the bar. We had the Revo guys do this and they did a fantastic job. The bar allows you to go through

this entry sequence that helps break down the length of that long hallway. For the seating and tabletops we decided to have that fit seamlessly with the design of the rest of the restaurant. For the tables we had the same company we sourced the bamboo from make us these seriously cooked bamboo tabletops. We thought of the chairs as an opportunity to bring in more color. Our chairs are a mixture of red chairs with a red

lacquer look and introduced some black stools at the bar. The execution on this project was just fantastic, we were all able to work together and be on the same page the entire time. Everyone we worked with just fit seamlessly with what we were trying to achieve. Even in this relatively small space we were able to create these three distinct zones to the space and create a pleasurable restaurant experience.

April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com • 95

NEWS

REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS

Secrets To Successful Site Selection For Restaurant Tenants

hether you are planning to open your first restaurant or expand your operation, one of the most important decisions you must make is where to locate your business. Businesses of all types perform poorly – or fail altogether – due to a poor location. A poor location ultimately results from poor site selection. How else can you explain that identical restaurants from the same chain or franchise system will vary as much as 200% in sales volumes? Of course, you will need to factor in restaurant size, marketing budgets, management and so on; however, these are all secondary to the importance of location, in our opinion. As we point out in our book, Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals FOR DUMMIES, and explain when we regularly speak at the International Restaurant and Foodservice Show of New York, essentially, there are three types of restaurant models: profitable, break-even and go-broke. A truly profitable restaurant location will make money and the business will appreciate in value. A break-even location will pay the owner a small salary and pay the rent but not much more. The go-broke location that comes to our mind was a local restaurant. This unfortunate tenant remained opened for only three months. Despite our warnings that this was a go-broke location, the business owners poured in $80,000 into their restaurant setup and couldn’t pay their rent by the second month of operation. Don’t let this happen to you. If you thought that site selection for

your restaurant was all about location – location – location, you’re right … intellectually. However, when restaurant tenants are involved in the site selection process, good old common sense often goes out the window. Consider for a moment that site selection is part science, part art, part research, part luck and part timing. Therefore, before you even start the site selection process, physically touring available properties; and comparing your options, remember these important factors with regard to your chosen location: Location within The Location: If you are locating your restaurant within an enclosed shopping centre or plaza, ensure that your business is situated in a prime location (or within the busy food court). The end of a quiet corridor or on the second floor may not be profitable. Traffic Flow: When conducting site selection for your restaurant, consider both drive-by and pedestrian walk-by traffic. Access: Can your restaurant be easily accessed? Customers driving by may be nervous to turn left across a busy roadway into your parking lot and will go elsewhere. If you are located within a shopping mall or plaza, remember not to be bound to that mall’s opening and closing hours and ensure that you have a separate outside door for your customers to use. Visibility: Is your restaurant conspicuous to passers-by? Look at sight lines carefully. Are there any trees or other buildings, which will make viewing your restaurant more difficult? Is there an empty field next to the prop-

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erty in question? If so, consider that the landlord may wish to build on that land in the future. Parking: When negotiating for parking, first establish the availability and preferred locations. It’s harder to negotiate for parking spots after they have all been taken rather than when there is a surplus of parking. Trust us, parking is worth negotiating on – so that you, your staff and your customers have a place to park. Also, if you need more stalls than are assigned to your space, negotiate for them now. Signage: Don’t forget to negotiate your signage requirements. Most tenants neglect to do this and simply take whatever the landlord offers. There are two things to ask for in terms of signage: a less expensive monthly charge or a certain amount of free signage. Many restaurant tenants pay rent for signage, but forget to negotiate it entirely. If your restaurant uses pull-away street signs or sandwich boards, negotiate hard for this now as most landlords have policies in place regarding all signage criteria. Anchor Tenants: These are the largest major tenants of a property. Often, these will be department stores and grocery chains for retail properties. Confirm the stability of these anchor tenants. How long have they been leasing as a tenant in the property? Do they plan to renew their lease? We well remember when neighboring tenants at a local shopping plaza near one of our homes were caught completely unaware when a major grocery store, as the anchor tenant, moved out. This grocery tenant continued to pay the rent on vacated commercial space,

Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield - The Lease Coach are Commercial Lease Consultants who work exclusively for tenants. Dale and Jeff are professional speakers and co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals FOR DUMMIES. Got a leasing question? Need help with your new lease or renewal? Call 1-800738-9202, e-mail DaleWillerton@ TheLeaseCoach.com or visit www. TheLeaseCoach.com. For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Dos & Don’ts for Restaurant Tenants, please e-mail your request to JeffGrandfield@TheLeaseCoach.com.

thereby restricting any direct competitor to move in. This resulted in less traffic being drawn to the property for other tenants. Agent: Friend or Foe? Don’t assume that a real estate agent working for a landlord-paid commission will help you find the best restaurant site. Commission splitting among agents can make your tenancy less valuable.

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Schechter, from page 80 reach parts of the system including horizontal and vertical ductwork, openings must be installed to clean these areas. Sometimes at the construction of the exhaust system, the proper amount of access panels needed to maintain the cleanliness of the system might not have been installed. In many systems, doors or panels were installed, but were inadequately sized to provide adequate cleaning. For example, it is extremely difficult to clean an 18” x 18” duct through an 8” x 8” opening. NFPA-96 sections 7.4.1 and 7.4.2 recommend installation of openings large enough to permit thorough cleaning at a minimum of every 12 feet of horizontal ductwork and on every floor of vertical ductwork. It is also necessary to have access doors at every change of direction.

tificates of completion will provide owners with documentation necessary for insurance representatives, fire marshals, and other authorities having jurisdiction. What are the benefits of having my kitchen exhausted professional cleaned? • Cleanliness • Prevent disasters from occurring in the future

Question # 5: What documentation do I need? Answer: The following documentation required by NFPA-96 sections include: 11.6.13- “When an exhaust cleaning service is used, a certificate showing the name of the servicing company, the name of the person performing the work, and the date of inspection or cleaning shall be maintained on the premises.” 11.6.14 - “After cleaning or inspection is completed, the exhaust cleaning company and the person performing the work at the location shall provide the owner of the system with a written report that also specifies areas that were inaccessible or not cleaned”and 11.6.15 - “Where required, certificates of inspection and cleaning and reports of areas not cleaned shall be submitted to the authority having jurisdiction.” Many kitchen exhaust cleaning contractors provide reports showing pre and post cleaning photographs and other observations and recommendations important to your system. In-depth reports and cer98 • April 2017 • Total Food Service • www.totalfood.com

•

Make your Hood Exhaust System efficient, adding years to its life Some insurance companies may offer a rate deduction with regularly scheduling cleanings.

As the resident Certified Facilities Management Professional at SendaGuy Now, I recommend that all of our restaurant clients take exhaust

cleaning seriously and incorporate it into your preventive maintenance schedule. For more information on IKECA visit http://www.ikeca.org/. The free SendaGuy Now app is available for download at both the Apple and Google Play App Stores. Interested restaurant operators and potential repair service partners can also go to sendaguy.com or call 800-214-5410 for service.

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C-CAP, from page 8

Carla Hall’s Braised chili pork and plantains, cornbread, shaved radish salad. Guests with a sweet tooth enjoyed Miro Uskokovic’s Miro’s cookies and milk: triple chocolate chunk, oatmeal, prune rugelach; Sarabeth’s Triple chocolate-chocolate pudding; Wayne Harley Brachman’s Flourless chocolate tart with mocha cream, and Marc Aumont’s Chocolate éclair au chocolat. WCBS-TV News Anchorman Maurice DuBois was the Master of Ceremonies. Marcus Samuelsson presented the C-CAP Honors Award, an original stainless steel sculpture by Philip Grausman, of a germinating fava bean, symbolizing C-CAP’s budding culinary students. Chefs all over the world know that there is a lot of delicate care and handling that goes into the preparation of fava beans, and C-CAP recognized

the care and interest Chef Anthony has in the mentoring of C-CAP students. The event also included a silent and live auction by Christie’s auctioneer Chloe Waddington and was coordinated by Harriet Rose Katz of Gourmet Advisory Services. Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) is a non-profit that provides career opportunities in the foodservice industry for underserved youth through culinary arts education and employment.

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Sederholt, from page 28 business suicide. Make changes to menu, product, concept, labor costs or work something out with landlords. If you see that you might be headed for a wall you can put on the brakes and steer in another direction. The goal is to be able to sell the business that you worked so hard to build and capture enough value to free yourself of debt, taxes and the stress of unwinding. In good situations you can even get a massive

return if you plan your exit well. In talking over these scenarios with friends and colleagues in the New England Culinary Group, we all agreed that with planning and thought that these operators could have handled it differently and actually had a happy ending. They left money on the table or worse – walked away with creditors and the taxman in hot pursuit.

Case #1 – could have sold each pub well known for $200,000 to $300,000 and covered his debt. He also had the opportunity to renegotiate his leases if they were too high for him to sustain as he was in those locations for over 30 years. He had the juice to do it. He also fell prey to misinformation that the sky was falling with minimum wages going up and not understanding that he had no requirement to give health

insurance to all his staff (a myth). Now he is in his 60’s with no job, no prospects and filed personal Bankruptcy. With some advice, patience and planning he could have avoided this. Case #2 – was easy. If the owner had enough and wanted out, he could have sold the units at fire sale prices of $100,000 to $150,000 each. At that price he could have sold them to his managers. This would have given him $1.8 - $2.7 Million to pay off his debt and walk away with some cash. A real steal for a smart operator looking for mature, cheap leases and fully equipped restaurants. Regardless of the concept the buyer wanted to put in instead of the pasta pizza, they would get heavy infrastructure with hoods, exhaust, HVAC, walk-in boxes, power, bars, bathrooms. All of which would cost 10X as much from scratch. This guy blew it big time. Case #3 – Not being a real “restaurant guy”, this owner missed the mark by building a restaurant concept that he thought was creative, without any consideration for what that neighborhood would support. The choices were to bring back the original successful concept or put the place on the market before he burned a bushel basket full of cash. Waiting too long to pull the trigger forced him to close. He now has buyers looking at the spot but a closed restaurant will not fetch the same amount as one that is open and operating. A savvy buyer will often wait out the seller until he can no longer hold on. Attractive deals can be made directly with the landlord, often by merely paying any back rent or some key money. Not sure of a strategy for your restaurant? You can email me at dsederholt@sfscapital.com to discuss your options.

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White Coffee, from page 72 of future success. The halls of business are filled with toptier companies that failed to adequately adapt- and over time, their fate was sealed (see Kodak, Sears and Blockbuster, to name just a few). Innovating is hard work. It involves both concentrated effort and often extended time for “things to gel”. You want to get multiple perspectives and research the various angleswhat others are doing, what legal hurdles there could be, what practical considerations there are in producing a product, and what are the costs involved to begin and maintain this venture. Clearly if one can take “baby steps” this allows for an easier path to try something- but in some cases this won’t work, and a more significant investment of time/money is required. Where can you get ideas for innovation? Trade Shows can show you what your competitors are doing, but merely copying/minimally modifying their products is hardly innovating. Instead, one might be better off asking your customers what their customers are looking for, or where they think the market is headed. Another good potential source of ideas is in your kitchen cabinet. See what other companies in comparable (and sometimes not even nearly comparable) industries are doing with packaging, ingredient formulation, marketing and preparation method. Innovation can be personal as well- how are you providing a service that didn’t exist before? What skills

can you acquire and apply, for your and your company’s benefit? Sometimes items that at first blush seem to be totally impractical can be the best place to begin. Ten years ago, if you had polled most major participants in the retail coffee industry, they would have said that consumers would never spend $20-$30 per pound for their everyday coffee (when they were used to spending a small fraction of that). They believed that the concept of single cup brewing was merely a fad. What industry insiders underestimated was the value of convenienceand what consumers would be willing to pay for this on a long term basis. Today, nearly three in ten consumers consume coffee prepared by a single cup brewer, at home, every day. And the innovation in coffee has spread to other beverages as well. For many years people commonly used the expression of “thinking outside the box”. Now people often suggest to act as if there “is no box at all”. Today’s world is not only hypercompetitive, but hyper costly, and changing faster than ever. The internet allows information to be gathered and exchanged quickly- which only speeds the process along. There is nothing more important to prioritize in your activities- for both your short and long term survival.

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James Beard Awards, from page 4 Residents repping the outer-borough’s food scene may be disappointed by this year’s James Beard Foundation Award list, as only restaurants in Brooklyn and Manhattan were recognized as semifinalists and eventually as finalists. Here’s the full list of New York City chefs and restaurants named James Beard Foundation Award finalists:

The 2017 James Beard Awards Gala, often refeered to as the “Oscars of Food” will be hosted by Jesse Tyler Ferguson of ABC’s award-winning Modern Family, will take place on Monday, May 1, at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Since becoming president of the foundation, Susan Ungaro expanded the Foundation’s culinary scholarship program; increased its membership base with a new online enrollment program; brought the annual James

Best New Restaurant: • Le Coucou, SoHo, 138 Lafayette St. • Olmsted, Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, 659 Vanderbilt Ave. Outstanding Baker: • Zachary Golper, Bien Cuit, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, 120 Smith St. Outstanding Bar Program: • The Dead Rabbit, FiDi, 30 Water St. Outstanding Chef: • Gabrielle Hamilton, Prune, East Village, 54 E. 1st St. Outstanding Pastry Chef: • Ghaya Oliveira, Daniel, Upper East Side, 60 E. 65th St. Outstanding Restaurant: • Momofuku Noodle Bar, East Village, 171 1st Ave • The Spotted Pig, West Village, 314 W. 11th St. Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Professional: • Zalto Glass, Aldo Sohm Wine Bar, Midtown, 151 W. 51st St. Rising Star Chef of the Year: • Matt Rudofker, Momofuku Ssäm Bar, East Village, 207 2nd Ave. Best Chef: New York City (Five Boroughs): • Marco Canora, Hearth, East Village, 403 E. 12th St. • Anita Lo, Annisa, West Village, 13 Barrow St. • Ignacio Mattos, Estela, Nolita, 47 E. Houston St. • Missy Robbins, Lilia, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 567 Union Ave. • Jody Williams, Buvette Gastrothèque, West Village, 42 Grove St.

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Beard Foundation Awards Gala to the prestigious Lincoln Center; and hosted the James Beard Foundation’s traveling national food festival, Taste America. The James Beard Foundation is a New York City-based national nonprofit culinary arts organization named in honor of James Beard, a prolific food writer, teacher, and cookbook author, who was also known as the “Dean of American Cookery.” The Foundation’s mission is to celebrate,

nurture, and honor America’s diverse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. The programs run the gamut from elegant guest-chef dinners to scholarships for aspiring culinary students, educational conferences, and industry awards. In the spirit of James Beard’s legacy, the Foundation not only creates programs that help educate people about American cuisine, but also support and promote the chefs and other industry professionals who are behind it.

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Bobrow, from page 26 without good refrigeration has got to hurt. The same with rich cooking. A veritable thimble of vinegar, melded into a craft cocktail is preventative medicine for the gut! Just ask the early Apothecarian. I did by writing an entire book about it. It’s named, Apothecary Cocktails. So add these simple ingredients together and let the flavors speak for themselves. Đông Nai Fizz (makes two) Ingredients: • 3 Tbsp. filtered water • 1 Tbsp. lemongrass puree from Les vergers Boiron • 1 Tbsp. Blood Peach Puree from Les vergers Boiron • 4 Tbsp. Sweet Rice Wine Vinegar (Most Vietnamese grocers have this) • 3 oz. Few Navy Strength Gin • 3 oz. Privateer Rum (of your choice)

• Angostura and Peychaud’s for healing the gut-along with the vinegar • Splash of ice cold seltzer Prep: 1. To a Boston Shaker filled ¾ with bar ice 2. Add the liquid ingredients 3. Shake Hard for 30 seconds to make a frosty treat 4. Double Strain into antique coupe glasses 5. Splash with ice cold seltzer (preferably from a hand spritzer) 6. Dot with Angostura Bitters for good gastric health 7. Dot with Peychaud’s Bitters, also for good gastric health and colorful demeanor!

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Restaurant Spotlight Awards, from page 88 impression. • The Restaurant of the Year Award - Showcases the best restaurant in the State of New York based on several criteria ranging from service and food to their use of technology to improve customer service. In addition, one restaurant nominated in the Restaurant of the Year Award category will receive a special judge’s choice Rising Star Award. This award will recognize a restaurant that has been operating for less than a year, and has demonstrated significant success during their short time in business. Winners and Finalists recognized as the “best of the best” in New York’s restaurant industry will receive prizes ranging from prepaid credit cards, to leadership coaching, technology, and other items outlined on the awards website. The approximate retail value of all prizes in the Restaurant Spotlight Awards is US$91,497. Esteemed Judging Panel The panel of judges in the Restaurant Spotlight Awards have a strong connection to the restaurant industry. They are also frequent diners with a keen eye for great service, excellent food, and other traits being evaluated to determine the best of the best in New York’s restaurant industry. Confirmed judges to date include: •Pat LaFrieda - Pat is the third generation owner and CEO of NY-based Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors, the company known for its 50 custom hamburger blends supplied to hot spots such as Shake Shack, Spotted Pig, Union Square Café, and Market Table. He is also the mastermind behind the famous “Black Label Burger”, and was also one of the stars of The Food Network reality show “MEATMEN”. • Damien L. Duchamp - Damien is a full time instructor and department head at St. Joseph’s College in Brooklyn, where he specializes in customer service, marketing, technology, and is passionate about sustainability and the impact of tourism on local com-

munities. Through his global hospitality education organization ‘Hospitalented,’ Damien produces programs locally and abroad. As a consultant, he is developing tourism and education opportunities in Ghana, as well as training staff in hotels and restaurants. To determine the top 25 entries in each award category, all nominees will be subject to a public Voting Period that takes place from April 3, 2017 to April 22, 2017. At the close of the Voting Period, the esteemed panel of judges will begin evaluating the top 25 entries in each award category. Winners and finalists will be announced between May 18, 2017 to May 31, 2017. The Restaurant Spotlight Awards are presented in partnership with the following organizations: • TouchBistro - TouchBistro is an iPad point of sale (POS) that helps restaurants increase sales, improve customer experience, and make better business decisions. TouchBistro is used and loved by thousands of restaurants worldwide, and is perfect for all foodservice business types including restaurants, bars, cafes, breweries, food trucks, and quick service restaurants. • Edible - Through Edible’s events, print publications, digital and social channels, we celebrate food and drink culture season-by-season, communityby-community. Our audience of food and drink influencers, media and trade is interested in the story behind what they eat and drink. Our editorial and visual narratives offer rare access to the most influential and interested food and drink enthusiasts, all the while creating an authentic, vivid, enticing and enriching culinary experience. Based on a survey of more than 1,000 restaurants throughout North America, there is consensus that restaurants, managers, and serving staff do not receive the recognition they deserve. The Restaurant Spotlight Awards were created to showcase and recognize those in the restaurant industry that deserve to be called the “best of the best”.

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Foodservice Distributors, from page 12 technology provides tools that allow foodservice distributors to meet these challenges in two important ways: Real-time visibility: Mobile technology provides better insight into food supply chains from the manufacturing floor to the table. Mobile ordering allows restaurants to respond more quickly to changing demands, and communicate those changes to their purveyors and supply chain partners. Mobile track and trace capabilities deliver better assurances about the origin and handling of food, a matter of great importance to new generations of restaurant patrons. Mobile warehouse solutions deliver better visibility into distributor inventory, enhancing customer service by reducing backorders and stock outages. Communication and collaboration: Better visibility into current demand allows foodservice distributors to pivot and adjust to meet changing

tastes and trends, and technology allows distributors to collaborate more closely with chefs and operators. eCommerce and mobile ordering technology allow customers to take control of their orders, access their past order and payment history, and check inventory levels on the products they want all at the click of a button, rather than having to wait for a sales rep to be available to answer questions during sales calls. Ultimately, whether in specialty or broadline distribution, foodservice distributors who harness the power of technology––specifically mobile and web ordering technology for reps and customers––will stand out from competitors in an increasingly challenging market. Article by Michael Elmgreen, Handshake. This article originally appeared on the Handshake Blog.

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