An interesting trend is starting to emerge in the food world: flexitarianism. This term refers to a person who is not a declared vegetarian but who sometimes eats meatless meals. A flexitarian feels at home just as much in a steakhouse as they do one of the newly emerging salad restaurants. These people, also known as part-time vegetarians, say they embrace meatless meals because they are healthier and a nice alternative to heavy, meat-based meals.

According to this article, meals that are popular with flexitarians tend to be based around hearty ingredients, such as beans and mushrooms. Stuffed Portobello mushrooms and enchiladas made with black beans are both mentioned as dishes that are popular with flexitarians. The article says that menu items such as these have helped to show many typical meat eaters that vegetarian dishes are not the bland, tasteless items they are portrayed to be. As vegetarians become more plentiful more and more restaurants are starting to add meatless options to their menus, and more options means that there are more possibilities to entice meat eaters to choose something else.

As more people convert to the flexitarian lifestyle, and vegetarianism for that matter, more customers will be looking for these options on restaurant menus. While it may take a little more thought and preparation to add these items to your menu, it can be very beneficial. Flexitarians and vegetarians are not the only people who will benefit from these items; anyone who is worried about their health or who wants to have a healthy meal will be thrilled to see these items on your menu.

Your Serv-U representative can help you get everything you need to prep, serve, and store healthy meals that will please all your customers, whether herbivore, carnivore, or flexitarian. So call, email, or chat with a representative today.

Time Magazine just released its list of the 50 Best Websites of 2008. The list is a mix of sites from all areas, such as fashion, social networking, and even food. Foodie favorites Serious Eats and Open Source Food are both on the list. Serious Eats is a great Web site for information on all things food: television, restaurants, recipes, and trends. Open Source Food is a great site to look at to get inspiration for new and inventive dishes.

Also on the list were multiple networking sites and sites that include message boards, which is a great way to find out what you employees, customers, and potential customers are interested in. A great example of this is The Nest, which the magazine calls a lifestyle site that features articles on everything from new recipes to guides to local restaurants. The site also features a message board that focuses on food, where users often talk about their favorite restaurants and the ones they could do without.

All of these sites are just examples of the unending amount of resources that are available to business owners, and anyone interested in food or the business, on the Internet. For more awesome sites look into the blogs that are linked at the bottom of this page. You can find some great ideas for what customers like on these sites. And after you’ve discovered what it is your customers want your Serv-U representative can help you get it all.

Restaurants are feeling the pinch of the economy right now and are trying to find ways to save money. However, some businesses are doing this in a very unpopular way: by cutting down on how much beer they serve. Some restaurants, according to a Wall Street Journal article from Saturday, are trying to save money by shorting the amount of beer they serve when a customer orders a pint.

A pint of beer is supposed to fill a 16 ounce glass with little to no foam on the top. However, according to the paper’s article restaurants are cutting back on that amount. The paper says that some bars are serving pints in 14 ounce glasses instead, which actually means that it is no longer really a true pint, while other establishments are filling up the traditional 16 ounce glasses with extra foam, thus putting only about 14 to 14 ½ ounces in the glass.

The article mentions many patrons who are outraged over this practice, including a few who have started blogging about the technique. One gentleman that they interviewed has even started to measure beer when he is served to see how much is in the glass and how much the glass is intended to hold. The main problem these patrons seem to have with this practice is the fact that prices are staying the same as they were for actual pints and the fact that they are not being told about the practice. People interviewed by the newspaper said that they want to see regulations implemented to stop businesses from being able to do tactics such as these to their customers. Many of those interviewed are posting restaurant names on their web sites to let people know where to go to get a good drink (and in a few cases where no to go) and some are even calling for boycotts of some businesses who serve the so-called too small drink.

It is easy to stay under budget and still have all the supplies you need to run your business, without having to go to such drastic measures. Your Serv-U representative can help you find affordable pieces for your business to help you stay on budget, so you don’t have to pass the money issues on to your customers.

There’s grumbling coming from many restaurants today and it is not from hunger. More and more parents, and even some kids, are grumbling about the items offered, and not offered, on kid’s menus in many restaurants. Many parents, like him and her, are calling for changes to the traditional menu that so many are used to. They want to see more fruits and vegetables, less fried foods, and more items similar to what the adults eat, but in a smaller portion.

Their complaints aren’t coming simply from being sick of the site of chicken fingers and French fries. Parents are responding to the increase in childhood obesity and unhealthy eating habits. This recent article sheds light on the fact that obesity is now starting to be an issue with children as young as two. A main reason for this is the unhealthy eating habits of today’s families. So many people are so busy running from place to place that they simply stop at a restaurant and order whatever jumps out at them off the menu. Unfortunately, many places only offer high fat foods, which don’t offer much nutritional value on their menus.

Happily, some businesses are starting to see that a change is a necessary event and that it can be profitable. Many companies are starting to offer choices for side dishes in place of the traditional French fry, such as vegetables, fruit, or yogurt. Another option that is popular among parents is offering the same dishes as the regular menu, but in smaller portions. This is a great option for parents who want their children to eat regular food, not food considered to be “child friendly,” and have healthy, tasty options available to them.

It’s easy to add new and exciting offerings for children to your menu. You can simply start by offering options such as vegetables as sides with the traditional main courses. It's easy to add more options by simply offering items that are included on the regular menu in smaller sizes. You can place the items on a smaller plate, possibly even in an interesting pattern, to please the child and encourage them to eat. Your Serv-U representative can help you create interesting ways to serve food that kids will enjoy and parents will love because they are healthy, tasty, and come from your business. 

As if the fact that it is Friday isn’t reason enough to be happy, the odd-holiday gods have given us another reason to be happy: it’s National Doughnut Day. The delicious fried dough treat is thought to have been enjoyed during prehistoric times, while the first known recipe dates back to the mid-19^th century according to this site. And while there is debate over how the breakfast treat got its name and its shape, everyone agrees they are a tasty way to start the day.

Homer Simpson, the popular cartoon father, realizes that doughnuts are a special food. They are economical (you can buy a dozen cheap), they travel well (if you don’t mind the crumbs), and come in many tasty variation (glazed, cake, filled, etc.). With so many options there is sure to be one to please every customer. And customers love their doughnuts; a recent message board post on the best doughnuts had over 100 pages of postings. Also, search the word doughnut and you are sure to come across tons of articles listing the best places to find the fried wonders (like this article from MSN) . The blogging world has even jumped on the doughnut bandwagon with tons of blogs marking the holiday (like this one and this one).

Doughnuts are a great addition to your bakery and breakfast menus. They are a popular treat that sells well, looks great on display, and makes your store smell great. Serv-U has all the supplies you need to make, display, and sell doughnuts in your store, just call your representative today. And don’t forget to enjoy National Doughnut Day. As Homer would say, mmmm doughnuts.

If you’re looking for a new dessert to add to your menu for the summer Bon Appétit has a suggestion for you: pudding. Recently the foodie magazine listed pudding as the trendy dessert of the year. An article about the proclamation of pudding as king in The Seattle Times says that pudding never really went away, it just moved into home kitchens. People interviewed in the article said that people began to use mixes to make pudding quickly at home because it is a convenience food. However, the interviewees said agreed that, while making pudding from a box is quick, it lakes the great taste of pudding made from scratch.

Pudding is a familiar item that many people remember from their childhoods. To many people pudding is a comfort food; something that they know will be good and satisfying. Adding pudding to your menu as a summer dessert is a sure way to please all of your customers, young to old. People love pudding and will be smitten to see it offered on your menu. Pudding is an iconic American food and fits well with the other traditional summer desserts that are sure to grace your menu, like pie, cookies, and fresh fruit.

And a great thing about pudding is that it does not require tons of equipment and ingredients. Fresh ingredients, some good pans, a whisk, serving bowls, and a patient hand is all that is required to make a great, tasty pudding. Your Serv-U representative can help you get all the quality equipment you’ll need to make this year’s trendy dessert.

An emerging trend in the food world is the raw food diet. The diet consists of eating foods that are unprocessed and uncooked. Those who follow the plan do not eat anything that has been cooked above 116 degrees, which is the temperature at which foods begin to loose some of their nutrients and enzymes. While this diet has been popular with people, including vegetarians, vegans, and those who want to eat as healthy as possible, for awhile it is starting to become more popular in the mainstream.

Raw food restaurants are starting to appear more frequently across the country. Two of the newest offerings are in Boston and near Orlando. These restaurants feature dishes made of vegetables, fruits, and nuts that are often replicas of traditional cooked foods. An example is a gnocchi dish made from nuts at the restaurant in Boston (gnocchi is typically made from cooked potatoes).

Raw restaurants are popular with vegetarians, vegans, those who want to eat healthier, and even those who just want to try something different. People who frequent these establishments know that they are trying something that is new and still developing and are eager to find out what it is all about. There are many items on most of the menus that people recognize and there is a selection of items to sample, including appetizers, desserts, and drinks.

While you may not be ready to open a completely raw restaurant it is easy to incorporate raw items into your menu. Start slowly, possibly by increasing your salad offerings, and gradually work up to more items. Look around at what successful raw restaurants are doing for inspiration and ask questions of those who are already experimenting with raw offerings. After you’ve gathered your ideas and have decided to add raw items your Serv-U representative can help you get all the tools and utensils you need to incorporate the raw trend into your restaurant.

When a certain west-coast based coffee chain opened it changed the way Americans look at coffee. No longer was the drink just a quick way to get a caffeine boost in the morning; the well-known company helped turn coffee into a way of life for people.

This is evident by the number of coffee shops that have opened all across the county. Some of these shops even face each other (as a few do where I'm from). It is becoming increasingly easier to find a cup of coffee that fits your particular tastes and preferences.

This increase in coffee consumption has lead to the development of an event known as a cupping. The event is really just a coffee tasting, incredibly similar to a wine tasting event. At a cupping, a group of coffee lovers (typically a smaller group) listens to a coffee expert (usually a barista at the business) talk about different types of coffee available and then they taste a selection of different roasts and blends. After tasting each drink the participants talk about how they think the beverage tastes, any underlying flavors they may detect, and whether or not they like the drink, just as is done at a wine tasting.

A coffee tasting is a great idea for an event to bring in customers and have your staff show off their knowledge. A small tasting would even make a great customer appreciation event for your best customers. Showing the different blends you have and getting feedback from your customers shows what they really like and are more likely to purchase, which means not having to guess on what is popular when ordering new stock.

Whether you are planning a big tasting event or just serving coffee everyday, your Serv-U representative has everything you need to make the perfect cup.

This weekend was Memorial Day Weekend, also known as the start of the summer grilling season, which, in my opinion, is a great season. Nothing beats a great burger and an ice cold drink on a bright, sunny day. Not to mention the fact that May is National Hamburger Month.

In the spirit of the beginning of this season burgers have started to make a bit of a come back. Not that they have ever really gone away, but sometimes burgers get overshadowed during colder months by comfort foods and heartier fare. To show the popularity of burgers in all price-realms of the food world: there’s a new burger offering in the quick service world which costs less than $5.00, while an upscale restaurant in New York City just launched a burger that costs $175 (and they’re not the only one). Burgers got another boost recently when bon appétit launched its new Web site which includes the tasty item as one of the Top 100 Dishes that are hot right now and features a tasty looking recipe in the site’s new recipe blog (here and here).

Burgers are a great menu addition because they are incredibly popular, versatile, and work for lunch, dinner, or any time in between. People love them because they are a tasty, familiar item that is always a trusty item to order, no matter where they are. Burgers are also great because they really can encompass so many price points depending on what they are made of, what is on them, and how big they are. It is hard to disappoint when there is a tasty burger on the menu.

Make sure that you thank all of your wait staff today and wish them all a happy National Waiter and Waitress Day. According to the Web site Holiday Insights, today is a day to acknowledge “the value and importance of a good waiter or waitress.”

While servers are thanked daily with tips from customers, it is a nice idea to step back today and think about all of the important things your servers do for your business. Without servers it would be incredibly difficult and confusing to run a restaurant. Servers make sure food and drinks are served, customers are happy, and the restaurant looks good. As this blog says, “a waiter [or waitress] represents the restaurant and can be the difference between a good and a bad experience.”

A great way to thank your hardworking waiters and waitresses is to make sure they have all the items they need to make the front of the house, and themselves, look good. Make sure that all of their trays, menus, registers, and everything else they need daily works well and is in good shape. Your Serv-U representative can help you find the right products to help your wait staff work as best they can.

Waiters and waitresses who have everything they need will be able to run a restaurant to its fullest extent and will be able to be productive employees. Let them know how much you appreciate what they do, today and everyday. And trust me, as a former waitress, it’s nice to be appreciated.