Food and gas prices up; will consumers raise or fold?

by Suzy Badaracco — President, Culinary Tides Inc

When I was little, some of the games my brothers and sisters would play were card games – rummy, poker, gin, kings in the corner, etc. Mostly because there was…

Tiki, sangria, kombucha oh my!

by Suzy Badaracco — President, Culinary Tides Inc

Winter is to spring as the economic crisis is to the recovery. And thank goodness spring is finally here.

A great find and loss

He was a great find. An experienced fast food manager walked in and applied for an open shift manager position. He interviewed well and obviously had a great…

'Ma'am, it’s not a cup holder': Proper brand use of social media

by Lori Walderich — CMO, Top That! Pizza

Before getting into social media, it's important to figure out your brand identity and your strategy for presenting it.

Raw explained: Tips and tricks for offering raw dishes on your menu

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

So what do you feed diners who request a raw meal?

Has Pizza Peaked?

by Ed Zimmerman — President, pizza.com

Strucural changes affect demand for pizza, but operators can still grow.

Gluten-free is not so free for restaurants

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

In the beginning of March, I had the pleasure of attending a hospitality trade show for both hotels and restaurants in Ocean City, Maryland. It was an…

Use Menu Engineering to Increase Profits

by Ed Zimmerman — President, pizza.com

Make design changes to your menu and increase your profits

Cut costs by trimming fees

In these trying times, every penny added to the bottom line counts heavily toward profitability. We search in ways to cut costs while still giving the customer…

Breakfast: The most innovative meal of the day

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

You’ve heard it from your mother a thousand times: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  But did you know that as of late, it’s also been the most…

Innovation in the name of charity

by Darrel Suderman — President, Food Technical Consulting

What do the Love Kitchen, Panera Bread, and Cafe 180 all have in common? They provide affordable food to those who can’t regularly pay full price for a meal.

Cha-Ching 2.0: Transaction as Communication

by Jeff Leach — cofounder, naked pizza

If you are not creating a social influence then the relationships you spend time building will not be meaningful and you only succeed in watering down whatever…

Of mice and men and pizzerias

Business ethics, or lack of them, apparently has made its way into the world of pizza in a Philadelphia suburb. A pizzeria owner had a problem with mice that…

A trend is more than one

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

For the last few months I have read over and over that menu labeling does not have an effect on ordering or calorie reduction. These articles have all been…

Hold the salt: 5 quick tips for serving low sodium menu items

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

Cutting out the salt to make dishes healthier is no new concept; however, cooking without the salt can be a challenging and daunting task. That’s why we…

The brand you live is the only one they'll love

by Lori Walderich — CMO, Top That! Pizza

If you think big and creatively, you should find plenty of brand-building opportunities.

Excessive exposure results in sunburn, frostbite, violent robbery

Exposure to the elements for any length of time can lead to devastating consequences. Skin unprotected from the sun may result in serious sunburn.  With…

Keep your customers out of the ER For dessert

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

Does it seem to anyone else that almost out of nowhere, all of a sudden, people are expressing food allergies in amazing numbers? 

Be allergy aware: A quick guide to the most common food allergies

by Betsy Craig — pres, menutrinfo.com

Eight foods are responsible for 90% of food allergic reactions. I've assembled this guide to help you (and your kitchen) be on the lookout for a food allergy.

Rising food costs: The late night exchange

“Pizza, pizza, pizza! Everyday it’s pizza! I get so tired of the pizza that I eat for free as a benefit of working here. So, with a little ingenuity, our late…