Food Trucks Proving They Are Not Just a Fad

Food trucks continue to become an increasingly popular trend for both chain and independent restaurants. Industry experts note that many businesses are to the point of launching their third or fourth vehicle, suggesting that the food truck industry is way past the idea of being a fad.

Some of the notable advantages to operating a food truck include their appeal to social-network-savvy consumers, they can serve as a test outlet for brick-and-mortar restaurants and they serve as a moving billboard for the brand.

If you are interested in venturing in to the industry of food trucks, experts state that most food trucks can be purchased for around $100,000, or leased from between $3,000 to $4,000 per month. The average cost for wrapping a truck in a brand image alone can run from $24,000 to $75,000. However choosing to purchase a remodeled used truck can be a money saver.

New Smartphone App for 2011 NRA Show

The National Restaurant Association launched a new smartphone app for 2011 NRA Show attendees. The new mobile app is available for iPhone and Android platforms, and allows restaurant industry professionals to get the most our of their 2011 trade show experience.

The mobile app allows trade show attendees to browse the exhibitors by category or locations, view interactive maps of the exhibit floor and see event and education session schedules and speakers. The app also provides public transportation information and schedules to and from the show.

Visit the NRA’s website for more information on where to download the app. The 2011 NRA show is scheduled to take place May 21-24 at Chicago’s McCormick Place.

Branding Lessons from America’s Next Great Restaurant

The recent TV show, America’s Next Great Restaurant, provided viewers with a nine-week crash course on everything they ever wanted to know about opening their own restaurant chain. If you missed out on the nine week series, below are ten takeaways that can help you create a new fast-casual restaurant concept from the ground up.

1. Make a powerful first impression with your brand identity.
2. Keep the focus on the food.
3. Deliver on category drivers.
4. Pay attention to details.
5. Make sure you have the right people.
6. Be different, but not too different.
7. Choose what NOT to do.
8. Engage your employees with your brand.
9. Know your brand DNA and stick to it.
10. Be inspired AND inspiring.

For more information on the lessons learned from America’s Next Great Restaurant, check out Denise Lee Yohn’s article on QSR Magazine’s website.

Bar Equipment Checklist

Having the proper bar equipment is essential to operating a successful bar. It can be difficult to know exactly what types of bar equipment you will really need. Serv-U recommends the following types of bar equipment to all bar owners: a commercial bar sink, a commercial bar blender, a commercial ice machine and a commercial back bar cooler.

Commercial bar sinks are available in a variety of sizes and can feature up to four sink bowls. The size of commercial bar sink you purchase should be based on the average number of patrons served in your bar at one time. The right size commercial bar sink will allow you to easily and efficiently clean and rinse bar glasses.

A quality commercial bar blender is often considered a bartender’s best friend. There are a variety of drinks that can be prepared in a commercial bar blender, and by adding frozen drinks to your menu you can appeal to a wider group of customers. Beverages made with fresh fruit purees can also be made with commercial bar blenders, allowing you to serve terrific, fresh-tasting drinks.

No bar can operate successfully without a reliable commercial ice machine. Whether you choose a compact, self-contained or undercounter commercial ice machine you will want to make sure that the commercial ice machine’s daily production rate can meet the demand of your bar. Serv-U recommends that you allow for 3 pounds of ice, per person, in a bar setting.

A back bar cooler allows you to keep refrigerated bottled and canned beverages, beverage mixers and fresh garnishes within easy reach at all times. Back bar coolers are available with solid or glass doors. One benefit to glass door coolers is that they can offer an attractive way to display product for your customers. A glass door cooler can help to reduce energy costs, as your employees can see the contents of the back bar cooler without having to open the doors of the cooler. 

As you setup and begin to operate your bar, you may find that additional types of bar equipment are needed to optimize your bar’s performance. A few other pieces of bar equipment that you may find beneficial are wine coolers, frozen beverage machines, draft beer dispensers and bottle coolers.

Bar Supplies Checklist

Serv-U is your one stop online shop for bar supplies. Keep your bar running smoothly by making sure you have all of the essential bar supplies you need.

Liquor pourers are essential to any bar. Liquor pourers are available in a variety of sizes, colors and materials. Measured liquor pourers offer portion control features, while free flow liquor pourers provide you with the ability to free pour.

Cocktail shakers allow you to create a multitude of mixed drinks and martinis. Available in stainless steel or brightly colored acrylic, the cocktail shaker is one of the most essential tools of every bartender. Cocktail strainers and jiggers are a great accessory to the cocktail shaker.

A muddler is an often overlooked bar supply item. Recently, muddlers are used most often to make mojitos, and other similar drinks that require your create a fruity pulp or mixture in the drink. Muddlers are made from plastic, hard wood or stainless steel.

Glass rimmers are perfect for applying salt or sugar to the rims of glasses. A rimmed glass can add that extra special touch to nearly any martini, margarita or daiquiri.

Bar condiment caddies that hold ice or ice packs are an ideal way to help maintain food safe temperatures for fresh garnishes. Features such as see-through retractable lids allow servers to see the contents of the caddies, while still protecting their contents from outside contaminants.

Bar caddies are another great organization tool for every bar. Bar caddies are ideal keeping cocktail napkins, straws, swizzle sticks and par picks easily accessible to bar staff and servers.

Bar utensils like condiments tongs, bar spoons, citrus peelers, cutting boards, ice scoops and bottle openers are small tools that should not be overlooked, and are recommended to be purchased in multiples. Cork screws and wine openers should also be purchased in multiples. Wine service supplies such as ice buckets, wine bottle chillers and wine stands may be of use to select bars.

Get Set For New Years Eve

Do you have everything you need to celebrate New Years Eve? It is still not too late to get the New Years Eve party supplies you need from Serv-U. 

New Years Eve Party Favors are a great way to liven up the party. Serv-U’s New Years Eve party pack includes top hats, derbies, tiaras, blow horns and serpentine throws. The favor pack includes favors for 100 people.

Serv-U also has disposable champagne glasses. The glasses feature a rigid styrene 2-piece plastic construction. Each case includes 50 disposable 4 oz. glasses.

You can also turn to Serv-U for wine and champagne buckets and stands. Choose from three different styles of wine bucket stands. Wine buckets are sold with or without stands, and can accommodate up to two bottles of wine.

Bar Blender Basics

Below are some points to consider when purchasing one of the most essential pieces of bar equipment, the bar blender. Commercial blenders offer many features for making custom frozen drinks. Using programmable controls, speed/power sequences, variable speed pulse options, automatic ramping and shut-off, as well as digital readouts, commercial blenders should deliver smooth and consistent beverages with little operator assistance.

Just a few things to consider before purchasing a commercial blender:

Horsepower – Choose a blender with at least a 2-HP motor, a blender with less horsepower will chop the ice into irregular sized pieces.

Controls – Blenders that produce perfect frozen drinks feature advanced electronics that automate the duration, speed, sequence and power level of each blending step.

Customization Capabilities – Blenders that offer custom programming provide consistent blending, while freeing-up busy bartenders.

Material and Design – For superior performance, a professional blender should have blades with sealed ball-bearing assemblies of the highest-grade stainless steel that maintains a honed, unbreakable edge, regardless of the hardness of ice or frozen ingredients. For safety, select units equipped with overheating protection. Blender base units with seamless, touch-sensitive panels offer protection from harmful bacterial growth and are easy to clean.

Containers – Blender containers should be built to fill to capacity and still blend drinks well. They should be tough, yet easy to clean. Polycarbonate is the industry-preferred material because it’s durable and ingredients can be seen while blending.

Drink Volume – The number and types of drinks that are served should be considered when purchasing blender equipment. If the volume will exceed 100 drinks per day, a pre-programmed portion ice shaver blender should be purchased so that ice is added automatically, preferably by ingredient weight. If serving 50-100 drinks per day, try a pre-programmed machine blending station for fast and efficient service. If you are making very thick frozen drinks, make sure the blender container is designed for extreme blending conditions.

The Perfect Cup of Coffee

It takes more than a good quality commercial coffee maker to brew a great cup of coffee. Below are some basic Do’s and Don’ts from BUNN on how to make sure your customers receive a great cup of coffee every time.

Do make sure you are getting the good water you need. Check your water source for softened or hard water. If necessary, run your water through a water treatment filter.

Do keep all coffee stored in a clean, dry place away from heat registers and vents or extreme cold for maximum freshness.

Do know the correct operation of your coffee brewing equipment for maximum performance.

Do use only quality controlled paper filters designed to fit your brewing equipment.

Do make sure decanters and/or pots used at serving stations are cleaned every day.

Do dispose of filter and grounds immediately after brewing to prevent drip-thru of unwanted flavors trapped in used coffee grounds.

Do clean your brewing equipment regularly (especially the sprayhead area) -- at least once a week.

Don’t mix fresh brewed coffee with previously brewed coffee as this will dilute the taste and affect the flavor of the whole pot.

Don’t brew over previously used coffee grounds because all of the flavor has already been completely extracted.

Don’t re-heat for serving any coffee with a temperature below 175° F

Don’t serve coffee using beans or ground coffee past the freshness date.

Don’t let coffee "bake" on a serving station or brewer. Twenty to 30 minutes is the maximum time allowable for an open pot to deliver a perfect cup coffee.

Don’t serve coffee in pots or decanters that haven't been properly cleaned, since acids and other organic materials can taint even the best brewed coffee.

Visit BUNN’s website for more tips and information on brewing the perfect cup of coffee.

Don’t Underestimate the Microwave Oven

A commercial microwave oven can be one of the most indispensable pieces of restaurant equipment in a restaurant kitchen. Commercial microwave ovens differ significantly from their residential counterparts in terms of durability, technology, controls and capacity. Microwave ovens cook, defrost, self-steam and reheat foods. Many operators use microwave ovens in accord with other types of restaurant equipment to speed production and help keep ambient kitchen temperatures low.

Many types of operations, including bars, quick-casual restaurants, banquet halls, hospitals, nursing homes and hotels, use microwaves to defrost and rapidly bring foods back to the proper serving temperature. Microwave ovens can also be used to prepare frozen packaged products, steam seafood and vegetables and cook pastas and certain grains.

Most microwave ovens feature programmable memory pad selectors, multiple-portion touch pads, manual operation capabilities, cycle counters to track oven usage, electronic timers with digital displays, see-through doors and lighted cavities. Many microwave ovens are capable of storing up to 100 cooking programs for easier preparation of best-selling menu items. Some microwave ovens will also adjust the cooking time for pre-programmed menu items when multiple items are being prepared. This feature not only prevents over/undercooking, but also results in more consistent food temperatures and textures.

Bar Equipment for a Busy Bar: Frozen Drink Machines

Frozen beverage machines are an ideal piece of bar equipment for bars that serve daiquiris and margaritas. Many frozen beverage machines allow the user to easily set the machine to make icy, frozen beverages or chilled beverages. This is a great feature for bars that specialize in margaritas, as you can easily dispense and serve your customers’ favorite drinks frozen or on the rocks.

Most frozen beverage machines are available in single, double or triple hopper form. With multiple hoppers you can easily offer multiple types of daiquiris and margaritas to your customers. Frozen beverage machines are also available in manual and automatic refill designs. Any piece of bar equipment with automated features can be a time saving device in busy bars.

Many frozen beverage machines feature touchpad displays, making them a very simple piece of bar equipment to operate. These displays also guide users on cleaning and preventative maintenance, making the frozen beverage machines extremely user friendly.