Soup and Sandwich.  Bacon and Eggs.  Love and Marriage.  Peanut Butter and Jelly.  Culture and Customer Service. 

Some things just go together !  Like the lyrics from a song my Mom used to sing “you can’t have one without the other”!  If there’s any truth to this premise, why then are there so many organizations that seem unable to admit it?

(Break out…

By straight definition?  NOTHING     By commonality?  PLENTY!  They are all food movements of one kind or another reflecting choice whether medically necessary, of religious foundation or nutritional concerns.    These food ‘movements’ are trend signals of what people are now choosing to eat.  AND, they all require a commitment by food service to provide special accommodation.

I have always belonged to the ‘you are what you eat’ group.    I like to think that my choices have…

Applebee’s was one of the first chain restaurants to start offering low calorie options with their Under 550 Calorie Menu, since them we have seen low calorie menu sections pop on various menus across the country.  Here are a couple of the latest low cal players:

Carl’s Jr,’s Turkey Burger

 …

On my block there is a gentle eerie calming sound of semi silence that drapes the area with the slight disturbance of an air conditioner straining under the heat. Perhaps it was the same on Norwegian Island on Friday except it was the snap of a rifle disturbing the silence and the lives of 68 predominantly…

 Without going down the rat h*** of percentages and numbers in regards to the gluten free market size, suffice to agree that the gluten free demand is growing faster than any other market segment and that this demand is not a fad. 

 As proof that what I say actually resembles fact, I see food service quickly embracing this market and announcing gluten free and allergen free menus.  Go into any retail food store now and you will find many, many gluten free products.…

Sometimes I get crazy ideas.

I have a client in Atlanta who's very intent to have the hottest food truck in that metro area. I wrote her business plan early this year and have helped her research and negotiate a brick and morter restaurant to partner with, per Atlanta's code.

Over the last four months we've been negotiating to get the truck. We finally, about three months ago, settled on a food truck manufacturer. Good to go, let's get started and here's a…

Can service actually be too good? We get invited to numerous restaurants as a journalist because we're always looking for good stories.

Service is always something we're i interested in. That being said, we've run into a couple of instances over the past year or so when service has gone above and beyond expectations and limits.

We're talking, unfortunately, about examples that show service gone amok, exceeding its limits in…

I’m using the luxury of advance posting to set this blog for Thursday, July 21.  When it appears, I’ll be far from the electronic media, standing in one of the world’s great trout streams and doing my best to lower the average performance of fly fishermen.  (Trust me -- I’m not very good.  Sometimes I think my only strikes come because the wily trout occasionally collide with one of my flies.)  So, as I like to think in…

Expanding your reach: why someone should “like” your brand

Social media is everywhere, and its critical in the restaurant/hospitality industry . The problem is that you may not have the time to really engage your target market. As the debate on the value and ROI of engaging in social media and marketing continues, calls to like, follow, join, fan, and watch are everywhere. But why? Why should the consumer connect your brand? We could spend days analyzing  how this applies to…

Floating out a request from an awesome hospitality consultant I know.

A talented and experienced Chef / Operator is wanted for a golf course in the Dallas area. Not many details yet (more next week), but the operation is in need of healthy change. Golf course has a good reputation.

Google plus for Restaurants, why it’s going to be better than Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Here we go again another social media site or so I thought. Google plus to me is the next evolution in social media. In Google fashion they found a way to unify several of the services we already use in Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.…

I have heard the cliché “green goes with everything” many times.  It’s always nice to have a few bucks in reserve or the ability to afford the things you like, but where company culture is concerned there is a more appropriate cliché: “money isn’t everything.”

Successful companies that prosper over the long-term are the ones that offer much more than compensation.  The cultures that survive tumultuous business climates are built upon a core central ideal – a genuine care for…

Who says that eating out can’t be low cal?  I say as long as you have the information available, you can make healthier decisions at any eatery.  Working the San Francisco Financial District (or as we locals call it the FiDi) I have a lot of dining options at my fingertips.  Here is an example full day of restaurant-purchased meals complete with calorie counts in my healthy eating range:

BREAKFAST: 

 …

I’m going to mention four sitcoms and I want you to close your eyes and try to remember each ones theme song. It doesn’t matter if you remember just the tune or some of the lyrics. Just see how you do:

Cheers…

When I go to Kroger I am inspired.  No kidding!  The Kroger I frequent is really no different than any other.  Okay, their produce is significantly better than Meijer and they do a fair job with customer service but it’s really not all that special.  That was until…