17-03 June/July 2012 Restaurant

O f f i c i a l P u b l i c at i O n O f t h e f lO r i da r e s ta u r a n t & lO d g i n g a s s O c i at i O n

The Cook60x40 Watercolor on Paper

By Gustavo Castillo

Clean eating • CHRiStini’S RiStORante: SeCRetS OF SUCCeSS

2 June/July 2012 Florida restaurant & lodg ing associat ion

Flor ida restaurant & lodg ing 3www.restaurantandlodging.com

From t he ceo

By Carol B. Dover

FRla: a Busy Place this Summer!

Carol B. Doveri t is time to have a cheeseburger in paradise and watch the sunset over the ocean! We are heading to Key West for our summer board meeting and could not be more thrilled to spend a few days in the Conch

republic. Pack your flip flops and join us June 4 - 6 at the Casa Marina resort. Immediately following the Board Meeting on June 6th is the Wild and Crazy Captain’s Party and on June 7th is Frla’s Wild and Crazy Fishing Tournament. Be certain to make plans to attend both events!

During the Board Meeting, we will discuss several pivotal issues that will guide our legislative efforts for the remainder of the year and into the 2013 Florida legislative Session. Frla has con-firmed several dignitaries and lawmakers as attend-ing our meeting. For the federal issues update, rob Gifford, of the Nra will be speaking. Senator Jack latvala will be our Board Meeting keynote, and during the Government relations committee a one-hour legislative panel will be moderated by Steve Metz. The Panel will discuss issues such as: minimum wage, on-line travel companies and destination casino resorts. our panelists will be: Senator Jack latvala, Senator Nancy Detert, Senator ron Saunders, representative Jimmy

Patronis, Jr., and representative erik Fresen. For information about the Board Meeting, visit Frla’s webpage.

even though we are ready to enjoy the Florida sunshine from the coast of Key West, we have to remember Hurricane Season is right around the corner. The time to make a plan for your business is now. You will find helpful articles and links to important emergency operations websites at www.Frla.org.

We would like to thank all of our members who helped us lobby for more economical and reasonable changes to the aDa Pool lift regulations. Thanks to our combined efforts, the deadline for compliance has been pushed back to January 31, 2013. The Frla agrees with the spirit of the law, but will con-tinue to strive for a fair conclusion for both the hospi-tality industry and americans with Disabilities.

Save the Date! The Frla Tradeshow is sched-uled for September 22-24 at the orange County Convention Center. If you have never been to the Trade Show this is a great opportunity to see all of the different allied members who work with the Frla and can help your business and bottom line. Pack up your clubs and come a bit earlier for the Nra/ Frla Bob leonard Charity

Golf Classic. It will be held Friday, September 21 at ChampionsGate in orlando, Florida. This event sold out last year and we raised more than $100,000 for our Political action Committee.

one of the most incredible projects the Frla has ever participated in was the Meals of Hope event in 2011, and we are hoping to make it big-ger and better in 2012. Spearheaded by Frla’s Immediate Past Chair, last year we packaged more than 40,000 meals for local families, and this year our Chairman, Bruce Craul, has challenged us to more than double that order. our goal is to pack 100,000 meals for local families and you can help! Join us Sunday, September 21, 2012 at the orange County Convention Center to help put together the meals. It is truly an amazing feeling to know you are a significant part of making sure a family has food on the table and won’t go hungry.

look forward to seeing you during the Summer!Carol Dover is President and CEO of the Florida

Restaurant and Lodging Association.

Call now to reserve a team or sponsorship: 888-372-9119 x227


Departments 3 From the CeO FrLa-It’saBusyplacethissummer!

6 Chefs that Sizzle Justinpatricktimineri,C.e.C.,Culinaryambassador

9 Sustainability restaurantsFaceUniqueChallengesWhenGoingGreen

10 a la Carte mobuylepaymentsystems,Food&menutoptrends

12 educational Foundation 11thannualnationalprostartInvitational

13 Wine tipssummerWhites

16 Movers & ShakersDonpotter;WilliamsreceivesBronsonLaneaward

17 legally Speaking anIntroductiontoalcoholserviceLiability

18 trends theCleaneatingrevolution:GetIntoIt!

19 Fla500.com pensacolaChefsHonorFlorida’s500YearHistoryinnewYork

20 Marketing HowtoGrowYourBussinessthrougheffectivemarketing

22 Business SuccessreasonsrestaurantsFailpartII

24 SafeStaff Foodmanagertraining&testingschedule

restaurant 11 TopFoodFrendsfromthe2012NRAShow

Held in Chicago in May, the show featured top trends such as miniature or single serving desserts and Southeast Asian flavors.

14 Christini’sRistoranteItalianoHaving won every major restaurant award, this Orlando destination and special event restaurant is one you won’t want to miss!

June/July 2012 • WWW.ReSTAuRAnTAnDlODGInG.COM

CONTENTS


infinite energy, inc is florida’s largest independent natural gas provider, proudly serving florida’s restaurants and hotels for over 10 years. lock in all or a portion of your natural gas usage for up to 5 years so you can protect

yourself against soaring energy prices and save money versus your local utility. special discounts apply for frla members! call 877-iVe gOt gas for more information!

forecastFLor IDA r eStAUr A Nt & LoDGING A SSocI AtIoN

Steven FassbergPresident, CEO & Founder Brooklyn Water Bagels

Steven Fassberg

Steven Fassberg has been a finance and mortgage professional for over 25 years. He also simultane-ously opened, developed and sold an array of impressive restaurant concepts and delicatessens from 1984 until 2002. He began baking bagels at the age of 13 in Massapequa, N.Y., and has owned

numerous New York-style deli restaurants steakhouses, and sports cafes during his career.

Fassberg began developing the concept for real New York water bagels in June 2004, and has been working diligently full time for the last seven years on the development of the franchise model, menu items, operat-ing procedures and food delivery systems. He has fully tested every aspect of the operational franchise model, and has had the benefit of some of the best and brightest minds in QSr who have helped shape the model to perfection. His vision for The original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. franchise model was derived from 25 years of experience in the worlds of restaurant and finance.

What do you think will be the biggest industry trend in the first half of 2012?

Healthy options combined with aggressive meal values.

What issue would you most like to see positively addressed by Florida’s legislature?

Controlling cost increases and bottle deposit legislation.

What is the single greatest factor in the success of your business?

Superior product at the core.

How has participation in FRLA positively affected your business?

The ability to utilize Frla resources and contacts, to help perpetuate growth.

Is there anything you would like to share with Florida’s hospitality industry members?

The present economic climate provides unlimited opportunity for small restaurant companies to attract supe-rior talent, to grow their concept and seize the window of opportunity.

How has your business strategy changed over the last few years?

We have slowed the sales of our franchises intentionally, in an effort to create a sound infrastructure of executive talent to support and sustain long-term growth.


Know a chef who is creating a buzz with innovative cuisine, exceptional presentation or fresh new ideas? FRLA wants to tell the state about them in a bi-monthly feature in FR&L Magazine. Submit your favorite chef du jour to [email protected]. Please include a brief explanation of why your submission should be considered one of the hottest chefs in Florida. Be sure to include restaurant and contact information. Submissions will be featured in FR&L Magazine as Chefs That Sizzle!

HotChef?Are You Considered Among Florida’s Hottest Chefs?

JUStin PatRiCktiMineRi, C.e.C.ExECuTivE CHEF, CuliNAry AMBASSAdOrSTATE OF FlOridA dEPArTMENT OF AgriCulTurE

Chef Justin Timineri

Justin Timineri, certified executive chef, author and interna-tional culinary ambassador is helping the world to rediscover simple healthy cuisine.

Justin was born in Florida and exposed at an early age to the many cultures and unique and various cuisines from this diverse part of the country. His straight forward approach to

cooking relies on simple ingredients combined with fresh seasonal produce and serves as a model for the new american cook.

The culmination of his work experience, from an event chef for NaSCar, PGa and the Kentucky Derby to several top chef positions around his hometown of Tallahassee, including serving as chef at the Governors’ Mansion, led him to his current duty as Culinary ambassador for the Florida Department of agriculture and Consumer Services.

With a natural passion for food and people, Justin is constantly working to improve the way people eat. Justin’s responsibilities include promoting all of Florida’s freshest commodities, creating new recipes, attending trade events around the world, performing cooking demonstrations and educating children on the value of healthy food choices and proper nutrition.

Justin’s philosophy on food is a simple one: “Cooking should always be fun, simple and flavorful”. He always keeps nutrition in mind and enjoys cooking with fresh, local and regionally harvested foods.

Please describe what it is like to be Florida’s Culinary Ambassador:

It is an amazing honor to be Florida’s culinary ambassador, but the position also comes with great responsibility. . Some of my responsibilities include promoting all of Florida’s nearly 300 commodities, creating new recipes using Fresh From Florida products, attending trade events around the world to showcase our state’s abundant resources, coordinating efforts

with other Florida chefs, performing cooking demonstrations and educating children on our state’s growing seasons and the value of healthy food choices and proper nutrition.

What about Florida’s bountiful agricultural and seafood products inspires you?

I gain inspiration from working with the many farmers, chefs and fishermen who work to ensure we have a safe, tasty, healthy and diverse supply of food to enjoy. In addition, the products themselves provide inspiration. My recipes highlight the prod-ucts natural healthy abilities and showcase the wide variety of flavors found in the food that we grow here in Florida.

Describe some of your most popular recipes.In addition to being healthy, my recipes are seasonal in

nature. We place a huge emphasis on knowing the growing and harvest seasons in Florida. This not only enables chefs, but also consumers, the opportunity to buy and taste the freshest – and oftentimes more economical – products available. Therefore, my recipes not only provide a lesson in cooking healthier options, but also doing so in a more responsible manner.

What is your “sizzle” – for example, cuisine and food that are your signature or “specialties”, unique food presentations or any new ideas that you are using?

My sizzle is the way I put a twist on the classics, while still maintaining their wholesomeness. an example of this is my fruit and vegetable sushi, which takes a food that may seem intimidating to children – raw fish – and utilizes ingredients they are familiar with – fruits and vegetables – to create some-thing that looks similar and tastes delicious. our hope is that as students grow more comfortable with the look and feel of unfamiliar foods, they become more inclined to try new flavors or foods going forward.


To what do you attribute your success in the culinary world?

While my bright neon tennis shoes may be the first thing that catches people’s attention, it is a genuine passion for food, a strong work ethic and the ability to relate to any audience that has allowed me to succeed in this business. The state has provided an excellent platform to take my Fresh From Florida message and recipes to the public – not only within Florida, but also around the world. In turn, my recipes have been able to reach and have an impact on a greater audience than if I had been confined to a fixed

location or restaurant.

What is your favorite dish to eat that you’ve created?

My favorite dish is the one I created for a Food Network cook-off that showcases Florida’s light, tropical flavors – Crispy Pan Seared Florida Snapper with Passion Fruit Cream and Florida Citrus Salad with Florida Gulf Shrimp and Green Mango Jam. When I created this dish, I wanted the judges to know this dish came from our state the moment they took a bite. (See recipe below)

How can Florida kids make healthy choices at restaurants?

Kids can be picky eaters, so it is important to have a good selection of not only traditional kids’ fare, but also fun, healthy dishes that parents can feel good about feeding their child. Incorporating side dishes or even entrées that are rich in nutrients but presented in a fun, kid-friendly manner can ensure that kids not only choose these healthy options, but that a chef ’s signature or style is also represented on the plate.

ingredients 6 x 5 oz Fresh Florida Snapper fillets with the

skin on1/2 Cup of cornstarch1/2 Cup of Canola oilSea salt to tasteBlack Pepper freshly ground to taste

Serves 6 Calories 424, Calories from Fat 191, Total Fat 22g, Saturated Fat 2g, Trans Fatty acid 0, Cholesterol 81mg, Total Carbohydrates 8g, Protein 45g, omega 3 Fatty acid 2.42g per serving.

Method With a sharp knife score the skin of filets in a

crosshatch pattern. Pat filets with paper towel until completely dry. refrigerate until time to cook.

Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high heat. lightly dust the skin side of filets with corn starch and season with sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. add oil to coat the bottom of the heated pan. Carefully lay the filets in the pan skin side down. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes on both sides until skin is crispy and filets are done.

Cooking time will vary depending on thick-ness of filets. Keeping filets skin side up, trans-fer to platter

Florida Passion Fruit Coconut Milk Sauce Preparation

ingredients 2 x ripe Florida passion fruit, scooped out

with a spoon1/2 Cup Mirin rice wine1 Tablespoonful fresh ginger, peeled and

chopped1/2 teaspoonful of turmeric

1/4 Cup dry white wine2 Cups whipping cream3/4 Cup unsweetened coconut milk1/2 teaspoonful Thai red curry pasteSea salt to tasteFresh ground pepper to taste

Preparation Place mirin rice wine, passion fruit, ginger

and turmeric in heavy medium-sized saucepan. Boil approximately 6 minutes until reduced

to 1/4 cup. add white wine and boil approxi-mately 6 minutes until reduced to 1/4 cup. add cream and coconut milk and bring to a boil.

reduce heat to medium and simmer sauce approximately 12 minutes until slightly thick-ened, stirring occasionally. Stir in curry paste. Season the sauce to taste with sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Strain through a fine mesh sieve. Set aside.

Serves 6 Calories 388, Calories From Fat 319, Total

Fat 35g, Saturated Fat 24g, Trans Fatty acid 0.88g, Cholesterol 109mg, Total Carbohydrates 11g, Protein 3g, omega 3 Fatty acid 0.43g per serving.

Florida Citrus & Shaved Fennel Salad

ingredients 1 Tablespoonful of rice wine vinegarBlack pepper, freshly ground to tasteSea salt to taste1/4 Cup virgin olive oil3 Florida oranges2 Florida Grapefruit2 Bulbs Fennel, stalks removed1/2 Cup Jicama, julienne

Preparation Whisk together vinegar, salt, and pepper in a

large bowl. add oil in a slow stream, whisking, until emulsified. Set aside.

Peel oranges and grapefruit with a paring

Crispy Pan Seared Florida SnapperWith Passion Fruit Cream & Florida Citrus Salad | With Florida Gulf Shrimp & Green Mango JamThis recipe is slightly more complicated as it comes in 5 parts. However, all the sauces etc. can be made in advance.

Chef Justin’s recipes that highlight Florida’s bounty for FR&L readers:


knife removing all white pith. Cut into sections, working over a bowl to reserve juice. Squeeze any remaining juice from membranes into a small bowl.

Whisk 3 tablespoons of citrus juice into vinaigrette. Drain citrus segments, then add segments to vinaigrette. Quarter fennel bulbs lengthwise. With a mandoline slicer, cut fennel into paper-thin slices (about 1/16 inch thick). add to citrus segments along with jicama and toss gently to combine. Set aside.

Serves 6 Calories 168, Calories from Fat 88, Total

Fat 10g, Saturated Fat 1g, Trans Fatty acid 0, Cholesterol 0mg, Total Carbohydrates 21g, Protein 2g, omega 3 Fatty acid 0.08g per serving

Florida Spicy green Mango Jam

ingredients 3 x Green Florida mangoes (Unripe)1/2 Cup of rice Wine vinegar1/3 Cup of Sugar1 1/2 Teaspoonfuls of salt or to taste1 Fresh Jalapeno Chili, seeded and deveined5 Cloves Garlic1 Teaspoonful of Cumin ground1 Teaspoonful of Coriander Seeds, Ground1 3” Cinnamon Stick2 Whole Cloves Star anise2 Tablespoonfuls of Corn oil

2 Tablespoonfuls of orange Marmalade

Preparation Peel mangoes and cut into 1/2-inch cubes.

Toss mangoes in a small bowl with vinegar, sugar, and salt. Set aside.

To make seasoning paste, cut ginger root into 4 pieces. add ginger root, jalapeno, garlic, cumin, coriander and turmeric one at a time to a food processor with motor running and purée to a paste.

Heat a 4-quart heavy pot over moderately-low heat until hot. Cook seasoning paste, cinna-mon stick, and star anise in oil for 10 minutes, or until very fragrant, stirring frequently. Stir in the mango mixture and marmalade. Simmer covered over low heat until mangoes are tender, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. remove cinnamon stick and star anise and cool jam completely. Set aside


Fat 5g, Saturated Fat 0.68g, Trans Fatty acid 0.07g, Cholesterol 0mg, Total Carbohydrates 29g, Protein 1g, omega 3 Fatty acid 0.04g per serving

Sautéed Florida gulf Shrimp with green Mango Jam

ingredients

2lbs Fresh Florida Gulf Shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on

1/4 Cup of Canola oilSea Salt to tasteBlack pepper freshly ground to taste

Preparation Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat.

add oil to hot pan and carefully add shrimp. Sauté shrimp until pink and just done. add salt and pepper to taste. Place cooked shrimp on plate and serve with Florida green Mango Jam.


Fat 12g, Saturated Fat 1g, Trans Fatty acid 0, Cholesterol 230mg, Total Carbohydrates 1g, Protein 31g, omega 3 Fatty acid 1.61g per serving

To Serve Crispy Pan Seared Florida Snapper + Extra ingredients

Spoon 3 tablespoons of Passion Fruit Coconut Sauce onto each serving plate, top with 1/2 cup Citrus Fennel Salad. Place one seared snapper filet on fennel salad, spoon on 2 table-spoons Green Mango Jam and top with two sautéed gulf shrimp.

PleaSe nOteThe Passion Fruit Coconut Milk Sauce, Citrus

Fennel Salad and the Green Mango Jam may be made ahead of time.

cheFS t h At SIzzLe


restaurants Face unique Challenges When

going green

SUStA INA bILIt y

From eco-friendly paper towels to composting, individuals are progres-sively minimizing their impact on the environment by implementing a variety of initiatives throughout their homes and businesses. For restaurant operators, making these environmentally-friendly changes can seem daunting, but has the potential to improve their bottom line,

strengthen their relationship with their staff (especially Millennials), and demon-strate to their customers and community their business’ commitment to improv-ing the environment. The foodservice industry is the second largest private sector industry in the United States and due to its substantial size, has the potential to make a major impact on the environment by taking a few simple and sustainable steps. Many restaurateurs simply do not know where to start, but there are plenty of easy-to-implement solutions available to restaurants that want to pursue a more sustainable future.

When it comes to transforming your establishment into an energy-efficient operation, think big but start small. Turn off the lights when leaving a room. Power down computers at night and shut down kitchen appliances immediately after you are finished with them. These practices require absolutely no monetary investment on your behalf, but will help reduce your operation’s energy usage and energy bill.

Scraping dishes, scrubbing cookware, and soaking pots and pans are all easy ways to optimize your establishment’s dishwashing procedure, while making a considerable impact upon your water bill. Your restaurant can also become more sustainable by implementing other water conservation initiatives, such as fixing leaky fixtures.

Donating surplus food is also a great way to cut down on waste management expenses and bolster community relations efforts. Build lasting relationships with the members of your community by contacting a local food bank, hunger-relief agency or organization such as the Food Donation Connection – www.foodtodo-nate.com, and finding out how your restaurant can help those in need. The more food your establishment donates, the less waste your establishment ultimately pro-duces.

The money saved investing in more advanced sustainability initiatives will not only pay for itself, but it will also likely make your establishment money in the long run.

Your operation can advance its efforts by investing in energy-efficient appliances or even remodeling to becoming a more sustainable operation from the ground up. If your operation does wish to pursue more advanced sustainability efforts, assistance is often available through state programs and, in some locations, utilities. These initia-tives could provide useful information, energy audits, or even funding to businesses that take active steps to pursue a more sustainable future.

also available to foodservice operations is the National restaurant association’s Conserve Sustainability education ProgramSM. This educational program is an online resource designed by the restaurant industry for the restaurant industry. It helps restaurants to reduce energy, waste, and water—driving down costs and leav-ing a lighter footprint on our environment.

Participating restaurants gain access to Conserve’s easy-to-use checklist, which features more than 90 industry-tried best practices and 64 educational how-to videos, as well as money-saving techniques and a variety of other resources.

To find out more about how a Conserve can benefit your foodservice operation, visit conserve.restaurant.org.


A L A c A rte - r e StAU r A Nt

Food & Menu top trends*Preparation Methods

1. Pickling2. Fermenting3. Sous vide4. liquid Nitrogen chilling / freezing5. oil-poaching

Culinary Themes1. Hyper-local sourcing

(e.g., restaurant gardens)2. Sustainability3. Children’s nutrition4. Gluten-free / food allergy conscious5. Farm / estate-branded ingredients

Kids’ Meals1. Healthful kids’ meals2. Whole grain items in kids’ meals3. Fruit / vegetable children’s side items4. “Mini meals” (e.g., smaller versions of

adult menu items)5. oven-baked items in kids’ meals (e.g.,

baked chicken fingers, oven-baked fries)Source: National Restaurant Association,

“What’s Hot in 20212: Chef Survey, 2011

Capital City Beer Festthe Capital City Beer Fest was held

in Tallahassee in mid-april at FSU’s University Center Club and raised $15,000.00 for the Dedman School of Hospitality!

attendees were able to sample a wide variety of american craft beers and International ales and lagers, from a collector’s glass, while overlooking Bobby Bowden field and enjoying live music.

levy Restaurantslevy restaurants was recently recog-

nized for the “Best responsible alcohol Service Training Program” at the vIBe (very Important Beverage executives) Conference. levy has partnered with Frla and rCS, along with the National restaurant association for years on this effort.

Submissions were independently judged by top beverage directors of the on-premise restau-rant chain community and levy was chosen for this recognition for their comprehensive risk strategy and training.

Florida Restaurant industry at a glance• In 2012 Florida’s restaurants are projected to

register $31.5 billion in sales. • every $1 spent in Florida’s restaurants gener-

ates an additional $.97 in sales for the state economy.

• In 2012 restaurants in Florida employ 841,900 people. (11% of employment in Florida).

• In 2022 restaurants in Florida are expected to employ 974,800 people (15.8% job growth - 132,900 new jobs).

Source: National Restaurant Association. (Includes all restaurant and foodservice occupations.

Employment figures are projected.)

lime FreshRuby Tuesdays recently

acquired “Florida-based” Frla member lime Fresh Mexican Grill chain to shore up its future in the fast casual market. lime Fresh, which got its start in South Florida, is a hot con-cept that has gone national.

Downtown Food & Wine Festival: Orlandothe orlando Downtown Food & Wine

Festival was deemed a success with more than 20,000 people attending and mak-ing $35,000 for the Central Florida Frla Chapter! Frla and CBS radio partnered on this two-day event which featured more than 40 restaurants, wines from around the globe and live entertainment. Way to go!

L to R: Mark Christ, Rebecca Skokowski, Stephanie Murdoch, Jim Whaples, Ladonna Oney

Capital CuisineSeveral restaurants in

Tallahassee joined together in april to cel-ebrate Capital Cuisine restaurant Week. From april 12 – 22 participat-ing restaurants provided special offerings at both lunch and dinner to guests. The offerings were priced at $15 or $25 each. restaurants that were involved in the program fell it was “a success and each business saw an increase in patrons to their restaurants.” Capital Cuisine restaurant Week is slated for May 2013!

Cool Web Pageswww.millersalehouse.com has rede-

signed its website and it looks great! Built by Miles Media specifically for Miller’s ale House, the webpage seeks to “focus on cus-tomer engagement and information, ease of navigation, and enhanced Internet and smart phone discoverability.”

along with the enhanced webpage, each Miller’s ale House location will have its own independent page off the main site to announce specials, regional or store events and pertinent store information.

Check it out!

Mobuyle enables res-taurateurs to accept credit, debit and gift

card payments through smart-phones and mobile devices. Currently, Mobuyle restaurant is available for android devices – smartphones and tablets – and will soon be available on the apple ioS platform for iPhones, iPads, etc. Heartland’s Mobuyle solution for retailers is currently available for both android and apple ioS platforms. Getting started is easy. Download

the free Mobuyle app from the android Market or apple app Store

and contact Heartland to get your Mobuyle encrypting reader that plugs into your device’s audio jack.

Designed for restaurant environments with features like tip adjustment, Mobuyle’s capabili-

ties allow restaurateurs to expand their payment options to coincide with their business offerings, including:• Tablesidecardpayments – reducing the

opportunity for skimming and increasing customer confidence, as the card never leave the customer’s sight.

• Curbsidepickup– speeding up the transac-tion process by allowing food runners/servers to accept car-side payments without having to go back into a restaurant to process a payment.

• Catering– enabling restaurateurs with cater-ing services to accept card payments onsite during an event and the embedded Store and Forward functionality is beneficial at isolated or remote locations/venues.

• Deliveryservices– instead of paying more for card-not-present transactions, restaura-teurs can now equip their delivery drivers with Mobuyle to accept payments at the door of a food delivery. For more information please visit www.heart-

landpaymentsystems.com/mobuyle/

Heartland Payment Systems launches Mobile Restaurant Payment Solution


FooD ShoWS

this is part of NrN’s special coverage of the 2012 Nra Show. The show is held in Chicago, May 5-8. Follow all coverage

on NrN’s ‘at the Show’ section, check out NrN blogs, reporter’s Notebook, and Tweet with us using #NrNatNra.

low pricing was not the top priority for restaurateurs attending the 2012 Nra Show, said suppliers who were displaying their wares at the annual event.

This year, many suppliers at the show said quality, not price, was the first concern of restaurant operators visiting their booths — a change in attitude from recent years — as those operators sought to distinguish them-selves from the competition.

Whether it was super-premium Ibérico de bellota — Spanish pork from free-range hogs that had fattened themselves on acorns for at least 18 months — or single-origin coffee, pre-mium products were a top food trend on display at the show this year.

Here are the rest of the top 10 trends from this year’s show:

1Miniatureorsingle-servingdesserts. as operators sought ways to make their des-

serts unique and customizable, but also more healthful, they sought out single-serving items and miniature portions. Suppliers said slightly unusual flavors, such as ginger, pomegranate-berry or english butter toffee caught restaura-teurs’ attention.

2Indulgentdesserts.Sheet cakes, premium ice cream and big cookies also garnered

interest, suppliers said. They also noted a des-

sert dichotomy, with both the richest desserts available and better-for-you options such as multigrain, low-sugar cookies catching opera-tors’ eyes.

3Customizablecoffee. Single-serving, pour-over coffee was on display

at the booths of many coffee suppliers. Some had machines that kept the water tempera-ture consistent, took out the guesswork and eliminated the need for trained baristas.

4SoutheastAsianflavors. From coconut milk to

sweet chile sauce, Southeast asian touches were in demand at the show this year.

5Sustainability.Many restaurant operators were asking about

the origins of items, from coffee to seafood to vegetables, as they attempted to respond to con-

sumer demand for sustainably grown and processed foods.

6Molecularforthemasses. High-tech flourishes were available for

one and all to use. Fruit juice with leci-thin, stored in nitrogen-charged canis-ters like whipped cream, were squirted out as light foam. Caviar-like pearls of balsamic vinegar or hot sauce that burst in your mouth — made through a pro-cess that the molecular gastronomers of a decade ago called “spherification” — were available frozen.

7Better-for-youitems.Kefir, the yogurt-like drink that’s the poster

child for the probiotic crowd was very much on display at the show as part of a broader trend of better-for-you items, such as green tea-based soda — sweetened with stevia in some cases

— or juice drinks spiked with “superfruits” such as blueberry and pomegranate.

8Conveniencesolutions. Soft-serve ice cream was available in frozen “pucks,” or

individual servings similar to K-Cups, that allow for no-waste portion control. Thaw-and-serve items — bread, pastry, pot pie and pro-teins from pork to textured soy — were avail-able for restaurateurs seeking convenient ways to bring high-quality food to their customers without developing new areas of expertise

9Hypoallergenicfood. are your customers allergic to nuts? eggs? Dairy? Gluten? That

was no problem at the organic pavilion, where products with virtually nothing controversial in them were available for sampling. These one-product solutions for sensitive customers were additional examples of what operators were looking for to make their jobs easier.

This article is reprinted by permission from Nation’s Restaurant News.

Single servings, sustainability and more were in vogue at this year’s event

top Food trends from 2012 nRa Show

Eco-friendly items, such as these third party-verified sustainable vegetables, were on display for opera-tors doing their part to protect the environment.

Cuisines from Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand were trendy at the NRA show this year. Products imported from Thailand included curry pastes, sauces, lychee and guava drinks, coconut milk, longan fruit in syrup and jasmine rice.

“Caviars” of balsamic vinegar, hot sauce and other flavors, now available frozen, bring avantgarde tech-niques to mainstream operators.

Pre-portioned single-serving desserts, left, are intended to make the end of a meal easier for restaurant operators. Back-to-basics, indulgent, des-serts, like sheet cake, pictured right, were popular at the show.

BY CHarlIe DUerr


ProStA rt

U NI V er SA L SPoNSor

GLobA L SPoNSor S

Florida StudentS Place 5th in ManageMent and 6th in culinary

11th annual national ProStart invitational

Florida’s Management and Culinary teams did well at the National restaurant association educational Foundation’s (NraeF) annual

National ProStart Invitational. During the 11th annual National ProStart Invitational, the NraeF and partner colleges and uni-versities awarded more than $1.4 million in scholarships to the first- through fifth-place teams to pursue their education in foodser-vice and hospitality programs.

Florida was represented by eastside High School from Gainesville. The eastside stu-dents representing Florida placed fifth in the Management Competition and sixth in the Culinary Competition.

The National ProStart Invitational consists of two competitions – management and culi-nary – and teams must win first place at the state level to advance to the national event. In this fast-paced competition, teams demonstrated their culinary skills and knowledge of restau-

rant management before nearly 1,000 fellow students, educators, mentors, state restaurant association representatives, industry profession-als and NraeF Trustees.

On april 24th a panel of industry leaders from Central Florida vis-ited Deltona High, at the request of ProStart instructor, Michelle

Stojic. In attendance were: Jim Whaples, from Signature on the lake, Nicole Dipetro from Tijuana Flats, Ken Devine from Panera Bread, laDonna oney from emergency Services and reconstruction, Stephanie Murdock, the regional Director of Frla, Jennifer osgood from Provinsure, ed Foster from louis Wohl and Sons and myself, luanna Skeens from Chefs Warehouse and vice President of education for the Frla, Central Florida Chapter.

approximately 130 students students attended from ProStart, business, marketing and econom-ics courses one of the two 50 minute sessions. Speakers talked about their professions, back-ground, and how they came to where they are.

The speakers offered encouragement to the students and hopefully inspired some! It was a great event, and according to luanna Skeens “Instructor Stojic is an inspired teacher and leader.”


W INe t IPS

W ith the mercury rising, our desire to both keep cool and keep our cool, grows. Stronger, the deeper into the dog days of summer we

venture. our instincts kick in and we manage by indulging in lighter-style foods and beverages that help us feel refreshed – chilled soups, crisp salads and cool white wines.

White wines are more favorable than reds in the warmer months for a variety of reasons. First, they are always served chilled. That in itself is invigorating to a cotton-mouth. Next, in the wine making process, whites typically have little or no contact with the grape skins. This is significant because the skins contain compounds that are referred to as tannins. Tannins create the astringent or mouth-drying sensation that many red wines exhibit. This characteristic can make a parched mouth feel drier than dry; if that’s even possible. In addi-tion, whites tend to have a more pronounced acidic quality than reds. White wine descriptors like “racy”, “vibrant” and “bright” all refer to a defined acidic component that gives these wines

a sense of structure and as a result, produces a light, fresh-mouth feel. Finally, white wines are usually lower in alcohol, which at this time of year can wreak havoc when the object is to stay hydrated.

The following white wines are great represen-tations of their respective varietal. They are deli-cious wines that can be enjoyed while lounging at the coast or settling back at the dinner table relishing in summer’s bounty.

2010 Bodegas Viña godeval godello Valdeorras, Spain almost an extinct varietal, Godello has citrus and floral notes and pronounced minerality

with vibrant lemon and lime flavors.

2010 abbazia Di novacella kerner trentino-alto adige, italy a cross between a German red and white grape, Kerner is highly aromatic with succulent peach and lemon peel and a long, juicy finish.

2010 Shaya Verdejo Old Vines Rueda, Spain a/k/a verdelho in Portugal, it displays green apple and lime aromas with a fresh citrus flavor and faint peppery note on the end.

2010 Chehalem inox Chardonnay Willamette, Oregon explosive floral-fruit nose with flavors of lemongrass-kissed orchard fruit and a bright, mouthwatering finish.

2010 Pulenta estate Sauvignon Blanc Vi Mendoza, argentinaTropical fruit and grassy aromas with stone fruit flavors and nice balance of acidity and sweetness.

David W. Gwynn is the Chef and Owner of Cypress Restaurant and Vertigo Burgers & Fries.

Summer WhitesBY DavID GWYNN

Don FoxCEO of Firehouse Subs

Doug PressPresident & CEO of

The Incentive Group

Monte AmmonsPresident of

Epicenter Marketing Systems

Joe WestCOO of Brooklyn

Water Bagels

Maryann FerencCEO of Mise En Place, Inc.

Mike LesterPresident of

The Melting Pot Restaurants

Bob BashamCo-Founder of

Outback Steakhouse

JULY 19, 2012 TAMPA BAYDOUBLETREE BY HILTON, TAMPA AIRPORT WESTSHORE


Christini’s ristorante italiano

business? if so, why?our web page is a great tool giving our guest

the chance to learn about us and to see our restaurant.

Christini’s is known not only for fabulous food and wine, but also as the place to see celebrities. Can you explain what it is about Christini’s that attracts celebrities?

Celebrities come to Christini’s for the fine dining, high standards and the guarantee of privacy.

Do you host a lot of special events / weddings?

We host a variety of special events, and also some small weddings.

Secr etS oF SUcce SS

INTervIeW BY SUSIe MCKINleY

Just ask anyone who has lived in orlando for any period of time or has been a consistent visitor to central Florida about christini’s ristorante italiano, and you will undoubtedly get a resounding positive recommendation! christini’s is a destination and special event restaurant that you won’t want to miss.

Christini’s has been a destination for visitors to Central Florida for how many years?

We have been in business for 28 years, our anniversary is coming up, May 24th.

Please describe your menu concept.our menu is: Gourmet - true Italian fine

dining. Fresh ingredients and 100 % prepared on premises. No pre-package food.

How do you keep your menu fresh and interesting to returning guests?

We have 90 percent repeat guests; they demand consistency in our menu, and we also create daily specials.

Chris Christini has more than 45 years of culinary experience. He has opened 19 restaurants and hotels world-wide and moved from rome, Italy to work for the owners of alfredo of rome at epcot’s Italian pavilion. In 1983, Christini opened Christini’s ristorante Italiano in 1984 in orlando, Florida. at Christini’s, he personally oversees all aspects of the restaurant. Christini’s impeccable reputation has drawn celebrities and

dignitaries from all over the world. Christini’s has won every major restaurant award: The Ivy award, NrN’s restaurant Fine Dining Hall of Fame, Di rona Distinguished restaurant of North america award, Best of the best Five Star Diamond award, Best award of excellence by Wine Spectator, The International award of excellence, The eqicuren award for outstanding Cuisine and Service, Zagat – “a treasure among res-taurants”, The Golden Spoon award and the aaa Four Diamond award.

What is your most popular dish?our most famous dish is our 26-oz veal chop.

What is your most popular cocktail?our popular specialty cocktail is the cham-

pagne with the raspberry infused wild orchid.

Have you seen the tastes of your guests change over the years?

We have not seen much of a change in our guests’ taste, but there are more requests for veg-etarian, gluten-free and other dietary restricted offerings on our menu.

Christinis.com is a great web page. Do you think it is a big asset to your


How do you drive “traffic” to your restaurant for special events?

Guests and special events at Christini’s are driven 90 % of the time by word of mouth. Christini’s is a “destination” restaurant.

What is the most important thing you emphasize with staff about your customers?

We train our staff to give impeccable service, and pay attention to details.

What do you think is critical to your employee training?

It is very important during our employee training to assure that each employee follows our philosophy and standard to details.

How do you eliminate / reduce employee turnover?

We have small turnover in employees, due to the happy family work environment.

What is your tip to staying in business for such a long time?

I have dedicated my life to pleasing guests. Stay 100 % involved in every aspect of the busi-ness every day.

With more than 45 years of distinctive culi-nary experience, I am convinced that success comes down to this; one restaurant, in one location, serving the highest quality cuisine, the best service and a friendly atmosphere in which to enjoy it…this is a lesson learned during my career with some of the most prestigious hotels and restaurants in the world


Spotlight on Don Potter Pinnacle Hospitality Systems

r e StAU r A Nt moV er S & Sh A k er S

Frla member DaveTrepanier, owner of FireflyRestaurant in Panama City Beach was recently honored with the

First Quarter Navigator Small Business award by the PCB Chamber of Commerce. Dave says he is proud to win the award and thrilled that the success of his restaurant has allowed him to contribute to so many worth-while charities in his community. He also credits the PCB Chamber of Commerce as being a major part of the restaurant’s achieve-ments.

Paul Wohlford (left) Dave Trapanier (middle, award winner) and Beth Oltman, President of the Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce.

agriculture Commissioner adam Putnam recently named three division directors at the Florida

Department of agriculture and Consumer Services. SusanNardizzibecomes the director of the Division of Marketing and Development, TiffianiOnifade becomes the director of the Division of Food Safety and TravisTucker becomes the director of the Division of Fruit and vegetables.

Putnam also announced other staff changes including naming Michael“MJ”Johnston to serve as chief information officer. GloriaVanTreese, who has served the past 14 years as the chief of the Bureau of Food Distribution, becomes assistant director in the Division of Marketing and Development. LeeCornman, former acting director of the Division of Food Safety, becomes the assistant division director. CharlesBeasley becomes assistant director of the Division of Fruit and vegetables after hav-ing served as chief of the Bureau of Inspection.

Putnam names three new Division Directors

First Quarter navigator Small Business award

On May 10, the 2011 Bronson lane lifetime achievement award was pre-sented to DebraWilliamsduring the

Florida association for Food Protection (FaFP) annual education Conference in lake Buena vista, Fl. Many Fr&l readers may recognize Debra for the many contributions that she has made to the Industry over the years while at both the Florida Division of Hotels and restaurants and the Florida Division of Food Safety.

The Bronson lane award is the highest honor given to an FaFP member. The winner must exhibit the highest level of knowledge, skill, com-mitment and dedication to the ideas of food safe-ty during their service to Industry, Government or academia. Debi’s 24+ years of service to pro-tecting the food supply in Florida and your 10+ years as an active FaFP member made her an excellent choice for this award.

Debra Williams has dedicated her career to food safety in Florida for 24 years. She worked her way up from health inspector to become a nationally-recognized professional and adminis-trator. She is a recipient of six Florida Tax Watch,

Prudential Davis Productivity awards. In addi-tion, she has received recognition and awards from the US Food and Drug administration, Conference for Food Protection, National Center for Food Safety and Technology, Harvard University and Massachusetts Pioneer Institute.

In recent years, Ms. Williams took charge of organizing a centralized unit in Tallahassee to conduct food service plan reviews for the Division of Hotels and restaurants. Previously, plan reviews were performed in the division’s seven district offices and the intent to centralize was met with skepticism by both employees and industry alike. However, Ms. Williams overcame concerns to phase in a centralized approach that has become a national standard. Improvements include a reduction in processing time of an aver-age four to five days, standardized plan fast-track-ing for chains, electronic document management and the introduction of electronic plan submittal to facilitate processing. She and her staff consis-tently receive unsolicited praise from the public and industry for their professionalism, dedication and commitment to excellent customer service.

Williams Receives Bronson lane award

Don Potter of Pinnacle Hospitality Systems is known throughout the Frla as one of the allied Members that can always be counted on to

help the association in any way possible. Don and PHS are great believers in their relationship with Frla. Currently, he is working with Frla in a unique promotion: Pinnacle is offering a new mem-bership in the association to every new Pinnacle client. Don hopes every one of Pinnacle’s customers can realize the advantage of being an Frla member.

Pinnacle Hospitality Systems was founded in 1989 by Don Potter and Stevan Barber, who both previously had worked for Siemens-Nixdorf throughout the 80’s.

When Nixdorf closed their Miami lakes office, Don and Stevan opened Pinnacle to provide support to the Nixdorf customer base. aggressively looking for new opportunities to expand their business, they turned to new business solutions. Their search led them to PoSitouch, a restaurant “touchscreen” computer-based business solution being successfully sold in New england. PoSitouch, securing the exclusive right to represent PoSitouch in Florida.

They were the first company to offer an “open” computer based touchscreen solution for restaurants, and by 1992, Pinnacle focused all

of its resources towards the hospitality market-place and expanded its operations throughout Florida. The company has since opened offices in alabama and ohio.

Don Potter’s success can be attributed to his commitment to provide clients with a tailored business solution that can help maximize profit-ability and manage loss prevention. He is commit-ted to industry-leading customer support with a true seven days a week by twenty-four hours a day support center. Customers have access to the help desk at all times. There is also a full staff of field technicians who are ready for on-site service with fully-stocked service vans.

Don also believes in giving back to the association. He has been a member of the Frla for over 21 years now, and he recently joined the Board of Directors for the Broward County Frla Chapter. Dan Murphy, Frla’s vice President for Membership noted, “Don utilizes the benefits of membership in Frla not only as a networking opportunity to improve Pinnacle’s customer base, but as an opportunity to serve the industry that moves Florida’s economy. Frla is proud to part-ner with Pinnacle and looks forward to continuing to work with them.”

Don has also been an active member of vistage Florida for 12 years. Don Potter’s success in the hospitality industry has stood the test of time, and he will continue to be a cutting-edge, innovative, industry leader in our community.

For more visit www.pinnaclehs.com.FdACS

Don Potter


LeG A LLy SPe A k ING

at common law, “no cause of action existed against one fur-nishing alcoholic beverages in favor of those injured by the intoxication of the person so

furnished…” Barnes v. B.K. Credit Service, Inc., 461 So. 2d 217, 219 (Fla. 1st DCa 1985). The rationale was that “the voluntary drinking of the alcohol, not the furnishing of it, was the proximate cause of the injury.” Id. In 1980, the Florida legislature changed the rule by enacting Florida Statutes Section 768.125. That section provides,

a person who sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to a person of lawful drinking age shall not thereby become liable for injury or damage caused by or result-ing from the intoxication of such person, except that a person that willfully and unlawfully sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to a person who is not of lawful drink-ing age or who knowingly serves a person habitually addicted to the use of any or all alcoholic bever-ages may become liable for injury or damage caused by or resulting from the intoxication of such minor or person.

Under that law, establishments “may” be held liable for serving individuals under 21 years of age or over-serving habitual addicts. a habitual addict is a person whose “frequent”, “exclusive” and “dominant passion” is inebriety; a person who “cannot resist getting drunk anytime the temptation is offered.” The legislature intended the law to address only the “class of persons who lack the ability to make a responsible decision in the consumption of alcohol.” ellis v. N.G.N., Inc, 586 So. 2d 1042, 1047 (Fla. 1991). However, trial courts (and jurors) seem commit-ted to expanding the scope of this liability.

Many people believe that the dram shop law establishes the “exclusive” remedies for improper or negligent service. However, that is not the case. For example, proprietors may be held liable for violating a duty to safeguard customers from “extreme danger” while on premises. See e.g, Starling v. Fisherman’s Pier, Inc., 401 So.2d 1136 (Fla. 4th DCa 1981) (finding that a business had an affirmative duty to protect a drunk man

An introduction to alcohol Service liability

who passed out on the business’s pier so that he would not fall into the ocean and drown), review denied, 411 So.2d 381 (Fla. 1981).

establishments serving alcoholic beverages face substantial risk, but have many opportuni-ties to protect themselves. In partnership with the Florida restaurant and lodging association (Frla), rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell attor-neys Stephen K. Talpins and Jacey Kaps will discuss Florida’s dram shop law, “hot” cases that may serve as powerful examples and ways to minimize risk from claims arising from the sale

and consumption of alcoholic beverages in an upcoming series of articles. Working together, Frla members can better serve their custom-ers, improve their business, and protect the public.

Stephen K. Talpins and Jacey Kaps are attorneys with Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell

Sabo v. Shamrock Communications, Inc., 566 So. 2d 267, 269 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990), approved sub nom. Peoples Restaurant v. Sabo, No. 76,811, 1991 WL 183083 (Fla. Sept. 19, 1991).

BY STePHeN K. TalPINS aND JaCeY KaPS


Clean up your menu by looking for items that can be customized and deconstructed for greater health. For example, offering fresh, raw nuts and berries as salad toppers or steaming vegetables without oil make it easier for a clean eater to relax in your restaurant. Just a couple of menu items that feature unprocessed, natural foods can make the difference. Many restau-rants boast menus that strive for fewer ingredi-ents with a focus on local growers. Music to a clean eater’s ears!

lighten up portion sizes. Seasons 52, a national chain restaurant known for its commit-ment to clean eating and seasonal ingredients, promises its customers that no menu items are over 475 calories. This helps customers feel secure in ordering something that sounds deli-cious rather than decoding menu descriptions to find the healthier options.

educate your staff on the terminology of clean eating, such as the differences between organic, all-natural, and locally grown, and other types of food.

advertise the accommodations you make to clean eaters! everyone has to eat, and restau-rant dining is standard fare for business lunches. Make sure your clean eating community knows that your restaurant is a no-hassle part of their busy day.

nurture relationships with the clean-eating community by inviting local health experts, bloggers, and enthusiasts to collaborate with you on menu items and ideas. You’ll be rewarded with great word-of-mouth advertising and a loyal customer base!

Clean eating is all about greater health: for individuals, the environment, and local commu-nities. Showing your patrons that their health is important to you can likely result in loyal customers who will appreciate and reward your commitment with repeat business. You may even find that clean eating is a philosophy that you want to adopt for your restaurant and life. By keeping it CleaN, you help make Florida a healthier place.

Heather Fuselier is a certified wellness coach and personal trainer located in Tallahassee, where she blogs about holistic wellness at www.wellnesswithoutpity.com. As a clean-eating devotee and fitness enthusiast, she enjoys champion-ing wellness in herself, her clients, and her community. Heather has been published in iRun Magazine, TLH Moms, Associations Now, GetFitPod.com, SkinnyMs.com, The Tallahassee Democrat, and is the Tallahassee Healthy Living Examiner for Examiner.com.

For most hotels and restaurants, the word “clean” has more to do with health inspections and employee training than culinary know-how. But, for a growing segment of Florida’s popula-

tion, it’s a word that describes the way they eat: free of added sugars, pesticides, artificial ingredients, and usually from local sources.

Clean eaters are on a mission – and leading a revolution – to bring eating habits back to a simpler palate of fresh foods prepared with minimal ingredients and without over-process-ing. Some clean eaters consider themselves to be “foodies,” on the hunt for exquisite culinary experiences that celebrate food and tantalize the senses. others simply view food as fuel: neces-sary for life and ideally in its most innocent state possible to power up their next adventure. But, while each clean eater may have a unique definition of what “clean” means to them, they can all agree on at least one thing: restaurants are usually not clean.

Why not? one glance at the description for a summer salad reveals why restaurant dining can be more challenge than cheer: warm, crispy pecan-crusted chicken breast, goat cheese, dried cranberries, and glazed pecans served over mixed greens tossed with Balsamic vinaigrette dressing. Sounds delicious! But, a clean eater knows that the cranberries are coated in sugar, the pecans are likely roasted in oil before being drizzled with sugar and salt, and the salad dressing has an ingredient list that includes additives and preservatives to preserve its shelf life. What’s a clean eater to do? either order a plate of steamed veggies and hope they are not coated in butter before landing on the plate, or avoid restaurants altogether. That is not fun for anyone!

Fortunately, there are some simple ways for restaurants to embrace clean eating and be at the forefront of this new trend. Just keep it

C.l.e.a.n.

Clean eating revolution

get into it!

tr eNDS

BY HeaTHer FUSelIer

The


Clean eating revolution

the Pensacola Celebrity Chefs showcased the area’s culinary offerings this earlier this Spring at New York’s acclaimed James Beard House during a dinner honoring Florida’s rich history.

The culinary event not only brought together modern cuisine created from the Gulf Coast’s local bounty and nearly 500 years of Florida history, but also state and local dignitaries, such as Gov. rick Scott and Mayor ashton Hayward, and a handful of New York-based media.

Pensacola Celebrity Chefs Dan Dunn of H2o at the Hilton Pensacola Beach Gulf Front, Irv Miller of Jackson’s Steakhouse, Jim Shirley of the Fish House, Gus Silivos of Skopelos/Nancy’s Haute affairs and Frank Taylor of Global Grill served more than 80 guests a menu of historical recipes that have been used in Florida for hundreds of years, modernized with their own artistic touch. The University of West Florida assisted the chefs in their historical research and prepared a culinary timeline over the last 500 years for the event.

“Florida has a rich and diverse culture unlike anywhere else in the world. This unique event promotes Florida as the premier tourist destina-tion by highlighting Florida chefs, fresh Gulf seafood and cuisine that has been used in the Sunshine State for hundreds of years,” said Gov. Scott.

“The viva Florida 500 celebration invites the world to our doorstep. For 500 years, Florida has been a leader in our nation’s economic pros-

perity and continues to be the gateway of the americas.”

The dinner, hosted by visit Pensacola, the Pensacola Bay area Chamber of Commerce and the Pensacola Celebrity Chefs, was the second time in less than one year that some of Pensacola’s finest chefs have been invited to the acclaimed James Beard House. This evening’s theme was in line with the state’s viva Florida 500 initiative, which commemorates 500 years of Florida.

“We were honored to be back at the James Beard House this year to represent both Pensacola’s and Florida’s rich history and culture,” said Chef Jim Shirley, who is also president of the local area’s Florida restaurant and lodging association. “In each dish, we provided guests the opportunity to taste a hint of our area’s heritage, from locally ground grits, freshly caught fish and locally grown produce, all seasoned with a little Southern and a little Spanish.”

In 2013, Florida will reach a significant milestone, the 500th anniversary of european contact on the continental United States. While Florida’s history dates back more than 12,000 years with the american Indians, Spain’s claim in 1513 began a new, modern era. viva Florida 500 commemorates the story of how many nationalities and diverse cultures thrived togeth-er in Florida and how their legacy continues to shape america. The Florida Department of State and its many partners are planning enrich-ing events and experiences across the state.

Learn more by visiting www.fla500.com and www.vivaflorida.org.

Viva FloridaPensacola chefs honor Florida’s 500 year history at new york’s James Beard house

Left to Right: Frank Taylor (Global Grill), Dan Dunn (H20 at the Hilton Pensacola Beach Gulf Front), Gus Silivos (Skopelos/Nancy’s Haute Affairs), Jim Shirley (The Fish House) and Irv Miller (Jackson’s Steakhouse).

FL A500.com


How to grow Your Business through effective Marketing

m A r k et ING

there is a lot of confusion within the restau-rant industry about the marketing tactics that do and don’t work for restaurants. The reality is there is no one-size-fits-all marketing pro-gram or tool that makes sense for every res-taurant, but there are a few things all restau-

rant operators should think about when it comes to creating an effective marketing mix to grow your business.

Connect onlineThe National restaurant association and livingSocial

recently partnered on a research study, which looked at res-taurant usage and preferences for certain marketing chan-nels and how consumers engage and respond to those chan-nels. The study revealed the power online marketing has to elevate a restaurant’s brand and help attract new guests. What’s more, the research found restaurants that use online marketing (emails from restaurants, emails from a daily deal provider and websites) tend to be viewed by consumers as both modern and popular.

Customize The message you relay through your marketing com-

munications efforts is just as important as the marketing

channel you choose and the key to effective messaging is tailoring to your guest. Customization can be achieved in a variety of ways. Here are a few examples of what’s worked for our restaurant partners:

• Whereeverybodyknowsyourname:Guestswanttofeellikeyouvalueboththeirbusinessandthemaspeople. By tailoring your marketing messages to reference a guest by name you are making the relationship more personal and are earning their loyalty. There are various companies that specialize in creating flexible email marketing tem-plates that can help streamline this process for you.

• Localisthenewblack:Localisreallyhotrightnowandthere’sagreatopportunitytotiemarketingbacktothecommunityyouserve.If you’ve got a great bar with lots of Tvs, think about creating a promotion you can implement the next time your local sports team is on a win-ning streak, or get involved in your neighborhood’s local restaurant week to showcase your talents, encourage new business and build relationships with other local businesses.

• It’sallaboutthemoney:87percentofconsumerspolledintheNRAstudysaidcustomizedmarketingmes-sagesthatincludedasavingsofferwouldmotivatethemtogothatrestaurant. Savings offers come in a variety of manners. a few examples that our partners have found suc-cessful include daily deals, loyalty programs (buy 10 sand-wiches get the 11th for free) and free desserts to encourage repeat visits.

engage meaningfully Social media can be a valuable tool to help promote your

restaurant and engage with new guests, but communica-tion needs to be a two-way conversation. according to the research study, consumers consider efforts to market to them via social media as annoying, disruptive and objec-tionable if not presented in the right way.

So what is the right way to engage? • Talkisgood:Createavoiceforyourrestaurantand

postinterestingandrelevantcontenttoencouragesharingamongyourfansandfollowers. Keep in mind every post does not have to talk about your restaurant specifically. If you are a farm-to-table restaurant, think about the sorts of interesting articles and photos you can share that speak to sustainable farming practices. You’ll be surprised how many of your guests “like” that article and share it with friends. In turn, you’re keeping your restaurant and your brand top of mind and encouraging organic word of mouth.

• Butdon’tforgettolisten:Socialmediaisthenotthechanneltohardsellyourrestaurant.Sure, it can be a great place to let your guests know about a new Spring menu or promotion that you are running, but if you push too much one-way information at your guests you’re going to miss out

BY MaNDY Cole

87 percent

of consumers polled in the nRa study said customized marketing messages that included a savings offer would motivate them to go to that restaurant


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on the opportunity for genuine engagement. • AsDorywouldsay,“Justkeepswim-

ming”:Buildingastrongandrespectedsocialmediapresencetakestime.You can’t expect to go from 1 to 1,000 followers, fans or reviews overnight, but if you invest time into your social media strategy you will see the rewards pay off over time. one of our restaurant part-ners encouraged every new guest we helped bring into his restaurant to post a Yelp review about his/her experience. as a result the res-taurant went from 100 to 700 Yelp reviews in a matter of months and is now one of the most searched restaurants in that market.

enhance, don’t overhaulThe biggest takeaway I can leave you with is

this: Don’t throw out all of the marketing tools you are currently using. Instead think smartly about how you can enhance your marketing mix through online channels, customized mes-sages and meaningful, two way social media interactions.

Mandy Cole is Senior Vice President of Sales, LivingSocial.


bUSINe SS SUcce SS

Micro Factorsentrepreneurial incompetence:

Most restaurateurs enter the restaurant busi-ness as entrepreneurs chasing the dream of own-ing their own business. Some of the motivating factors to enter the restaurant business are the attractiveness of low entry barriers; passion for the product; unique product attributes they have developed (secret recipes); experience in the field; an opportunity to purchase a busi-ness at an attractive price; (over) confidence in one’s ability to perform better than the previous owners of the business; a good match between individual skills and business opportunity etc. Unfortunately, in most cases, an entrepreneur’s passion exceeds one’s competence.

They may possess necessary technical skills that may only be good enough to open the busi-ness, but may not have the necessary business acumen to understand the intricacies of market-ing, accounting, finance, legal matters, human resources etc. In other words, most restaurateurs may be excellent entrepreneurs but not necessar-ily have the skills to succeed as business manag-ers. entrepreneurs may not have the skill sets to transform themselves from entrepreneurs to professional business managers, which also often results in restaurant failures.

experience Most restaurant owners may lack the neces-

sary prior business experience to manage their restaurants. lack of prior experience in a related field makes new restaurateurs more vulnerable to failures. according to a recent study by King (2002) employee theft is one of the primary rea-sons why some restaurants fail. The owner did not have enough knowledge or experience in the field to control employee theft which eventually led to the closing of the restaurant. In contrast, most successful restaurateurs tend to have prior industry or related experience as in the cases of Dave Thomas of Wendy’s; Howard Shultz of Starbucks (who believed to have studied 500 coffee houses located in Italy and US prior to opening any of his coffee houses); Colonel Sanders of KFC etc.

leadershipobsession with Product and Service Quality

is a recipe for success in the restaurant indus-try. This obsession applies to fast food, casual, upscale or fine-dining. The restaurant operator must maintain a pulse on guests’ likes and dis-likes at all times by constantly asking the guest for “complaints” – how can we be your favorite restaurant and make you a fanatically loyal repeat guest? When the operator demonstrates this approach to the business, the employees will reflect the same attitude. This infectious atti-tude will make the difference between success and failure.

ability to Create/Build the BrandDuring the past ten years, more and more

“corporate refugees” have left the corporate world to become entrepreneurs. They set- up shop for themselves and try to make a go of it -even in this economic environment. More power to them! Because of the proliferation of small business restaurant owners, they often lack the basic branding skills necessary to thrive in the competitive world of restaurants.

The competition (especially with the mega chains) is too fierce to not focus on the basic 12 Ps of restaurant branding: Place, Product, Price, People, Promotion, Promise, Principles, Props, Production, Performance, Positioning and Press. The operator frequently does not consider incor-porating all five senses into the restaurant brand to create trial use – triggering moments of truth that resonate emotional chords in the brain of the guest.

only by consistently obsessing over the 12 Ps in order to brand (short, mid and long-term marketing) will the restaurant have a chance to capture repeat and referral disciples. a sampling of these critical branding concerns follows…..name, design and concept.

name of a Restaurant an analysis of 1,800 restaurant names by the

authors has revealed that a typical restaurant name has 13 letters comprising of 8 consonants and 5 vowels. The name of a restaurant makes a difference in the success or failure of a res-taurant. a restaurant name should be different

and at the same time descriptive. restaurant names should be brief enough to remember and consumers should be able store them in their short term memory. When a restaurant name is too long and not descriptive enough, then that restaurant is less likely to succeed.

a restaurant with a name that is brief, descriptive and attractive is more likely to suc-ceed. For example, the well known restaurant company Kentucky Fried Chicken has changed its name to KFC to avoid emphasis on its fry-ing production method which was perceived as being less healthy.

another independent owner has changed his restaurant name from the too long and overly descriptive name, Cameron’s Contemporary american Cuisine, to a brief, but memorable name - Cameron’s; a hamburger chain, Wendy’s Hamburgers, simply became Wendy’s, deem-phasizing its hamburger business as it added chicken and other non-beef items.

From the retail industry, Walton Mart has changed its name to Wal-Mart; General Motors became GM; British Petroleum became BP; International Business Machines became IBM; National Cash register became NCr, etc. Some companies change their names to hide their national identity or the origin of the prod-uct when they enter global markets.

Design and layoutSuccess or failure of a restaurant depends

partly on the physical layout and architectural design of restaurants. Design failures of restau-rants lead to operational inefficiencies and even-tual loss of competitive edge, ultimately leading to financial losses.

architectural limitations were found to be one of the major factors in restaurant failures especially in urban settings, and some of the architectural limitations in restaurants have even resulted in the greater failure of the busi-ness. Inadequate production or storage space is one of the most common complaints in hotel foodservices.

a major hotel near the convention center in orlando, Florida was forced to forego some of the restaurant business as its facilities were not designed in proportion to the hotel size. The

Why Restaurants FailH. G. ParSa, MS, PH.D., FMP, aMY GreGorY, MBa, PH.D., MICHael ‘DoC’ TerrY, MBa

Part ii


production area was too small to accommodate the necessary capacity seating. as a result, some of the customers were forced to choose other restaurants nearby.

Similarly, a major pizza restaurant in Fayetteville, arkansas was forced to new build a ‘dumb waiter’ to bring its supplies from the basement constantly.

after several years of continued operations in that location, this location was closed and the restaurant was moved to a better location to meet its storage needs.

taj Mahal SyndromeMost restaurant entrepreneurs often forget

the fact that a restaurant is a business that is meant to achieve specific financial objectives.

like all other businesses, restaurants are also expected to result in positive financial outcomes with reasonable returns on investments (roI). restaurants that do not deliver these objectives are bound to take the path to a restaurant cem-etery. To put things in a historical perspective, the monument Taj Mahal of India was not built as a place to live or a palace to visit.

The King Shah Jehan wanted to a build memorial for his wife who died at a young age of 39 after giving birth to several children. The construction of Taj Mahal took so long even the King Shah Jehan did not live long enough to see the completion of it.

eventually he was also buried in the same place next to his wife.

Similarly, most restaurateurs often get car-ried away with their own grandiose plans and creative ideas for their restaurants. They tend to invest every last penny they have in building a monument instead of constructing a realistic, practical and financially feasible place of busi-ness.

For example, two entrepreneurs in ohio spent over 1.5 million of borrowed money in remodeling an old bank structure with Greek

gothic columns and incredibly high ceilings into a destination restaurant.

They spent so much money on remodeling the old bank building that they did not have any money left for marketing the ‘Taj Mahal’ they just built. Within six months this particu-lar restaurant was closed for lack of marketing efforts and eventual lack of consumer awareness. This gorgeous building still remains vacant.

ConceptFields (2007), poor concept that is not differ-

entiated is one of the primary reasons for restau-rant failures. When a restaurant is not dediffer-entiated from the competition, then consumer acceptance of that concept is bound to wane quickly after the excitement of a ‘new kind on the block’ attraction fades. Simple ‘cookie cut-ter’ imitation of another concept does not have the staying power.

Most imitations are bound to fail quickly as it happened in case of White Towers restaurants that imitated White Castle; andy’s and Cindy’s restaurants that copied Wendy’s; Burger Chef and Burger Queen that imitated other major hamburger chains etc.

Undifferentiated concept is symptomatic of bankruptcy in entrepreneurial innovation. restaurant concepts that focus on imitation and ‘me too’ concepts do not have the skill sets to face the challenges of continual adaptations that are essential to survive in the restaurant business.

Controlsaccording to the National restaurant

association (2009), a typical restaurant in america earns a net profit under 10%. That means 90% of revenues are used to defer the cost of doing busi-ness. Thus, managers that do not understand the importance of cost controls are bound to fail in the restaurant business.

Two major costs in the restaurant industry are food cost and labor cost. These two costs together are referred to as prime costs. For a restaurant to

succeed, the prime costs are expected to be less than 60% of revenues. It is a ‘rule of thumb’ and a good rule to follow. Most restaurants that have failed often were found to have prime costs exceed-ing 60% indicating greater potential to failure.

For example, a popular celebrity restaurant in downtown Buffalo, New York has reported food cost exceeding 56% which is almost twice the industry average. It is needless to say that this particular restaurant failed within 2 years of opening because of poor cost controls.

Similarly the failure of a popular nationwide restaurant chain, victoria Station, was attrib-uted to its high food cost resulted from selling prime ribs on its menu.

High Fixed CostsUnfortunately some restaurateurs are tempted

by the attractiveness of a location so much that they are often willing to pay unrealistically high rent for a location. The attractiveness of a loca-tion should always be tempered by the realities of the rent paid.

Unrealistic rent, a fixed cost, does not change when revenue changes. When revenues decline and do not meet the financial objectives, the fixed costs continue to remain constant and become a major financial liability. This case is true especially in downtown locations and tour-ist attractions. The rule of thumb for rent/lease/mortgage fixed cost is 7-9% of revenues.

In summary, a variety of factors have been identified as contributing to the approximate 30% failure rate of restaurants in their first year. restaurant failures are contributing over $1.78 billion in potential revenue loss to the american GDP. a better understanding of this phenom-enon is highly desirable.

Given the reach of the restaurant industry for consumers’ employment and enjoyment, as well as the positive impacts to the nation’s GDP, this topic warrants further research and study.

H. G. Parsa, MS, Ph.D., FMP is a Professor of Hospitality Management at the Rosen College, University of Central Florida and is the Associate Editor, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research (JHTR).

Amy Gregory, MBA, Ph.D., is a Faculty Member of Hospitality Management at the Rosen College, University of Central Florida. She held senior level executive positions with Marriott as a revenue manager.

Michael ‘Doc’ Terry, MBA, is a Faculty Member of the Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida. He has over two decades of extensive experience in restaurant and lodging industries.


cPFm m A NAGer e X A m

to register, call toll-free 1-866-372-SaFe (7233) or visit www.safestaff.org. registration for training begins at 8:00 a.m. and for exam at 12:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted. dates subject to change.

Food Manager training & testing Schedulewww.safestaff.org

Altamonte Springs Jun 6, Jul 25Springhill Suites205 W Highway 436

Bradenton Jun 27Courtyard Marriott100 Riverfront Drive

Clearwater Jun 11, Jul 9St. Pete Marriott CLWR12600 Roosevelt Blvd N

Daytona BeachJun 13, Jul 18Holiday Inn2620 International Speedway Blvd

Deerfield BeachJun 12Hilton100 Fairway Drive

Ft. Lauderdale Jun 7Embassy Suites1100 SE 17th St Causeway

Ft. MyersJun 21, Jul 12Holiday Inn Downtown2431 Cleveland Ave.

Ft. PierceJun 7, Jul 5UF Indian River Research2199 South Rock Rd.

Ft WaltonJun 5, Jul 12Holiday Inn Resort573 Sana Rosa Blvd

GainesvilleJun 19, Jul 10Best Western Gateway Grand4200 NW 97th Blvd.

IslamoradaJun 19, Jul 26The Islander ResortMM 82.1, US Hwy 1

JacksonvilleJun 5, Jul 3Four Points by Sheraton8520 Baymeadows Rd

Jacksonville BeachJun 13, Jul 11Quality Inn Oceanfront11 North 1st Street

Key WestJun 7, Jul 10Doubletree Grand Key Resort3990 S. Roosevelt Blvd

Kissimmee Jun 14, Jul 26Seralago Hotel and Suites5678 Irlo Bronson Mem. Hwy

Lake CityJul 24Country Inn & Suites350 SW Florida Gateway Dr

LakelandJun 1, Jul 11Country Inn & Suites4500 Lakeland Park Dr

MandarinJun 20, Jul 18Ramada Inn Mandarin3130 Hartley Road

MelbourneJun 14Holiday Inn8298 N Wickham Rd

Merritt Island

Clarion Hotel260 E Merritt Island Cswy

Miami (Spanish Dates*)Jun 20, Jul 17Jun 7, Jul 5Hilton Miami Airport & Towers5101 Blue Lagoon Drive

NaplesJun 14, Jul 26Quality Inn and Suites4100 Golden Gate Pkwy

OcalaJun 12, Jul 17Homewood Suites4610 SW 49th Rd

Orlando (Spanish Dates*)Jun 18Jun 11Holiday Inn Resort Castle8629 International Drive

Panama CityJun 12, Jul 11Gulf Coast State CollegeGibson Lecture Hall5230 W. Hwy. 98

Pensacola Jun 19, Jul 24Pensacola Civic Center201 E. Gregory St

Port Richey Jun 25, Jul 17Days Inn & Suites10826 US 19 North

Sarasota Jun 7, Jul 12Hampton Inn5995 Cattleridge Road

St. Augustine Jun 27Holiday Inn Express & Suites2300 State Road 16

Tallahassee Jun 28, Jul 26Day’s Inn Monroe Street Conf Cntr2714 Graves Road

Tampa (Spanish Dates*)Jun 28, Jul 18Jun 25Clarion Hotel2701 E Fowler Ave

West Palm BeachJun 4, Jul 19Holiday Inn Airport1301 Belvedere Rd


17-03 June/July 2012 Restaurant

Documents

summer board meeting

board meeting keynote

frla tradeshow

senator jack latvala

florida legislative

florida sunshine

legislative efforts

frlas wild