4 Steps For Building An Effective Sustainability Plan For Your Restaurant

Making the decision to make your restaurant a more sustainable operation has gotten considerably easier in the last few years.  That’s because as consumer awareness grows there are more and more benefits associated with “green” restaurants.  If you’re in doubt, simply look at the National Restaurant Association’s sustainability efforts,...

Tundra Specialties Launches Cutting Edge Digital Resource For The Food Service Industry

Information is key to success in the food service industry. Restaurant owners and managers must navigate a complex and competitive world on the path to success. Not everyone makes it, and for those that do, lessons learned the hard way are the most valuable thing they own. John Le Bel, owner of Anthony’s Pizza in Denver, CO, has learned a thing or two...

Why Secrets Make For Good Restaurant Marketing

Kansas City based casual dining concept Houlihan’s has been around for almost 40 years.  In that time they’ve seen the rise of the casual trend and a lot of ups and downs.  In the early 2000’s Houlihan’s was seeing more down than up, and a new management team was brought in to shake things up. After a comprehensive self-reinvention, Houlihan’s has enjoyed better times, even during the economic turmoil of the last couple...

Technology Trends: Restaurant Teleconferencing

The technology needed to allow a person to sit in one room and communicate visually and verbally with a person in another room somewhere else far away has been around for some time now.  It’s been imagined in the movies for decades, going back to Star Trek all the way up to Austin Powers.  But until recently teleconferencing was largely unavailable to the public. Marriott Hotels have begun to change that with state-of-the-art...

How To Cut Bar Inventory Losses 20%

We’ve all been there.  The bartender is super busy and splashes some alcohol in your glass before topping it off with whatever mixer goes with your drink – and you end up with a strong one or a weak one.  And of course flirty girls and good tippers regularly expect – and get – a good pour on their refills. The problem is, inconsistent drink pouring can account for as much as 20% in lost revenue for a busy bar or restaurant. ...

Cooking In Public: Restaurants Bring Food Prep To The Customer

Kitchen culture has captured the American public’s attention in recent years with the explosion of celebrity chefs, various reality shows featuring said chefs, and dedicated cable channels like the Food Network.  All of this media attention has made consumers much more knowledgeable and very curious about the inner workings of a restaurant’s kitchen. More and more restaurants have responded to this trend by opening up their...

The Big Red F Restaurant Group: One Vision, Many Places

If you’re at all familiar with the favorite local haunts of Boulder and downtown Denver, then you probably know a Big Red F restaurant or two, even if that name doesn’t ring a bell.  Big Red F is a group of unique concepts started by Culinary Institute of America graduate, former Q’s Restaurant owner, and Boulder native Dave Query. ...

Managing Social Media Marketing For Restaurants

2010 is the year of social media, and the food service industry has really started to embrace the world of social in a big way.  As I’ve mentioned on The Back Burner before, the biggest expense marketing with social media is your time.  That’s good news for tight marketing budgets but bad news for restaurant managers...

Move Over Beer: Craft Cocktails The Latest Trend

For generations Americans have had a fairly straightforward approach to cocktails – gin and tonic, highball, rum and coke – without ever giving a second thought to the possibilities a true bartender genius is capable of when given the space.  Back in the 1800s and early 1900s, specialty cocktails were commonplace, featuring interesting flavor pairings and even more interesting names. Those days are starting to come back as...

Making The Grade: Should Restaurants Post Food Safety Info?

The Center For Science In The Public Interest, an advocacy group that has tangled with the food service industry before over menu nutrition labeling, is pushing for letter grades of restaurant’s latest health inspections to be posted in the front window. The grade works on a 100-point scale and corresponds with a restaurant’s score: 90-100 being an A, etc.  A city councilwoman...