Kitchens itchens

No typical days

Why Caribbean Restaurants is not your average fast casual chain

Herminio Pereira Director of Construction and Engineering Burger King Puerto Rico

By Michael J. Pallerino

On the morning of Wednesday, September 20, 2017, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico with 175 mph winds, leaving a trail of devastation that plunged the island’s 3.4 million residents into a sea of despair. The Category 5 Hurricane, one of the deadliest storms the Atlantic has seen in nearly 20 years, spared little.

Caribbean Restaurants, which owns and operates 170 Burger Kings and 13 Firehouse Subs in Puerto Rico, was one of the few businesses that was able to stand up to the surges. With 56 years of dedicated service to the people of the island, they were not about to stand down now.

Herminio Pereira, Director of Construction and Engineering for Burger King Puerto Rico, says the storm was a learning experience. While Caribbean Restaurants was prepared, you can never really anticipate what is left in the wake of such unpredictably violent storms. In what Pereira calls a team effort, 100 locations were open four days after the hurricane. In most cities, Caribbean Restaurants were the only place able to offer a meal to first responders and the community.

“Our restaurants became a place for families to reconnect,” Pereira says.

In the two years since, Pereira and company are taking the lessons learned and reinvesting time, money and effort back into the post-Puerto Rico landscape, renovating, reinforcing and reinvigorating the area. With repair comes preparation, for with natural disasters, you never know what tomorrow brings. Commercial Kitchens sat down with Pereira to get an inside look at the brand and how it preparing for the long haul.

Give us a snapshot of Burger King brand in Puerto Rico? Caribbean Restaurants was founded in July 11, 1963, with the opening of the first Burger King restaurants outside the United States. In 2012, we opened our second brand with Firehouse Subs under Latin American Subs. We currently own and operate 170 Burger Kings and 13 Firehouse Subs, all in Puerto Rico. After 56 years, we are the leaders in Puerto Rico in the restaurants industry. Caribbean Restaurants and Latin American Subs are subsidiaries of Restaurants Holdings.

What has been some of the lasting fallout from the hurricane on existing stores and future new builds? Two years after the hurricane we don’t have any major fallouts. We took the juncture of the hurricane to invest and reinforce our brands. At the first year juncture of Hurricane Maria, we had zero storm work left pending. We have invested millions of dollars in renovating the restaurant image, at the same time creating direct and indirect jobs in a slow development economy that hasn’t been able to recover since 2008.

Can you describe some of the renovation/ rebuilding efforts since the storm? Hurricane Maria was a learning experience to everyone in Puerto Rico—planning and preparation is the key for a quick recovery. We were prepared for the challenge. It was a team effort from inside and outside sources to coordinate the recovery efforts. The planning was

the main reason we were open in 100 locations four days after the hurricane. We had started our planning more than 10 years before Maria made land in Puerto Rico. In most cities, we were the only place to offer a meal to first responders and the community. Our restaurants became a place for families to connect. Offered the community some sense of normalcy. Also to have some comfort in our A/C dining rooms.

Have there been any modifications in construction relating to wind damage, etc.? During the construction of our buildings, we took into consideration the hurricane and earthquake loads. We had big damages in roofing, signage, parking lights and ceilings, but our buildings didn’t have much structural damages due to wind. Our exterior signs and parking posts did. We ended up replacing the foundations and steel to comply with the current hurricane requirements for most of our big signs and parking lights. We also are preparing for the possibility of any future natural disasters, like earthquakes. This year, we started a program to make our buildings earthquake resistant with installation of anti-seismic elements on our existing and new restaurants.

How does the design of the restaurants cater to what today’s consumers are looking for? The design of the building considers the needs of future and current guests. We have added amenities to give a more authentic and honest atmosphere, providing a more inviting warm informal look and feel, with materials inspired by nature, quality and texture. We also offer different seating choices for all visitors’ needs.

Is there a location that really shows how the BK brand interacts with the community and customers? One of your favorite locations? The location featured in this issue is in Old San Juan; it is one of my favorites. In this restaurant, we considered the BK Garden Grill Concept. The architecture is from a 16th Century historical city. The design includes iconic elements of BK design in a smooth combination with the Spanish architecture typical of Old San Juan. It offers guests an unpretentious environment.

Walk us through how and why it is designed the way it is? The original interior design of the restaurant was completely based in the BK Garden Grill Concept. But on this location, due to exterior surroundings, we wanted to do something similar to the architecture of Old San Juan. The former head of architecture & design from BK Latin America, Jessica Aleman, came to Puerto Rico and fell in love with the space and atmosphere of Old San Juan. Working together, we came up with this design. It is as unique as the location.

Take us through your construction and design strategy. We currently have restaurants in almost all of the towns in Puerto Rico, so we are working on the image renovation program to impact all cardinal points of the island. We also have taken special interest in the San Juan metropolitan area, since a large percentage of our restaurants are there.

The designs take special consideration on the visibility of the restaurant and what impact we want to create. If the restaurant is close to a business area or college, the seating is more suitable to community tables and lounge areas area where spaces can be shared. It will be different near a residential area, where interior playgrounds are provided and a more family friendly seating design.

Give us a rundown of Puerto Rico’s market layout. Puerto Rico has a very diverse market layout. We have restaurants in tourist-focused areas, college, residential and business/industrial areas. Every design takes into consideration the location, which is intended to impact. A common factor is that each guest should feel comfortable and that each restaurant has a friendly atmosphere.

What are the biggest overall issues today related to the construction side of the business from where you sit? The biggest issue is the lack of skilled construction personnel. Puerto Rico is going through more than 10 years of economic slowdown and a large amount of the population is moving to the mainland. All that is due to the lack of work or, now because of the impact caused by Hurricane Maria. The need of a strong trade workforce in the US and the economic conditions have attracted skilled workers and contractors to relocate their businesses.

Talk about sustainability. What are you doing? Puerto Rico has gone through several droughts over the past few years. Living in a tropical island, that is hard to believe, but the climate is changing. We have been collecting drainage water for the air conditioners and rain to use for outside cleaning and landscape irrigation. We also have a recycling program in which all of the cardboard boxes from our supplies are recycled.

What do you see as some of your biggest opportunities moving ahead? There is always space to improve on what you do. One of my main focuses is energy saving alternatives. The cost of energy in Puerto Rico is very high and we need to start moving to a renewable energy source. I have done several changes with high efficiency A/C units, 100% LED lighting and more energy efficienct kitchen equipment, but there is room for improvements. Technology like solar panels and renewable energy are some of the concepts that will keep us environmentally conscious in the future.

Are you optimistic about what you see today in the marketplace? New opportunities in delivery business is making the market more competitive. Technology for ordering food from anywhere, at any time, is changing the way we do business. The different alternatives of food, like the Impossible Whopper, is bringing new options to a diverse set of guests who didn’t have the option of enjoying a Whopper before. The breach between a casual dining and a QSR is closing the gap, making it a more competitive than market than before.

What is your growth plan? What areas are you targeting? For the Burger King brand we are in the third year of a renovation program where 80 restaurants will be remodeled to the BK Garden Grill concept. So far, we have completed 40 of those restaurants. The target now is to impact the metro area of San Juan and continue the development in a smaller scale around the island.

In regard to Firehouse Subs, we continue opening new restaurants in the south and northern areas of Puerto Rico and are very excited about the potential of the brand. We have several restaurants in San Juan area and we are excited to continue to develop the concept in Puerto Rico.

What trends are you seeing? The trends I’m seeing are in carryout, drive thru and delivery. We are considering, in our designs, that the drive thru shouldn’t look like the back of the restaurant. This is where 60% of our sales come from. We are giving more ambiance to it—adding exterior speakers for music, and better illumination and landscapes to enhance the visit.

What is the secret to creating a “must visit” restaurant environment in today’s competitive landscape? The millennial is the current generation that we need to base the design of our restaurants on. They like to have new experiences with every visit. We need to be aware of consumers needs and be certain they feel at home in our restaurants. What is today’s consumer looking for?

I can see that guests are looking for a modern and more authentic aspect from the restaurants they visit. Changes in the restaurants attract and keep your guests coming back. Different seating selections and more comfortable settings is a must in any new restaurant.

What’s the biggest item on your to-do list right now? We are in the fourth quarter, which means finishing the additional last-minute projects for this year and preparing for an early start in 2020.

Describe a typical day. In construction, there are so many variations in the everyday business that every day is different. There are always new challenges, experiences and learning every day. That’s what I love—there are no typical days.

One-on-One with...

Herminio Pereira Director of Construction and Engineering Burger King Puerto Rico

What’s the most rewarding part of your job? We have frequent guests that come to the restaurants every day. They feel that Burger King is part of their home. When we renovate, we talk to them before to make them feel part of it. The satisfactory comments from them are a very gratifying experience.

What was the best advice you ever received? After Hurricane Maria, it was a very difficult time. There was so much to do. There was an absence of communication and lack of power. We didn’t know where to start. My boss told me not to expect immediate improvements, just take small steps, but keep moving forward. That was advice I took to heart, for everything after that required us to keep moving forward, even if it seemed that nothing would get accomplished. Push forward and you will reach your goals.

What’s the best thing a client ever said to you? I can’t say one thing. It is the praises and positive comments when you finish a renovation. It is that people like it and accept the new image of the restaurant. We get good comments on social media from people with disabilities that appreciate the changes. It makes things more accessible for them. It’s a really gratifying job.

Name the three strongest traits any leader should have and why. Honesty and integrity — Leaders succeed when they stick to their values and core beliefs. Without ethics, this is not possible.

Commitment and Passion — Your teams look up to you. If you want them to give them their all, you have to be passionate about it, too. When your teammates see you getting your hands dirty, they will also give it their best shot.

Delegation and Empowerment — Delegate tasks to your subordinates and see how they perform. Provide them with all the resources and support they need to achieve the objective, and give them a chance to bear the responsibility. Be grateful for others success.

How do you like to spend your down time? Baseball is my favorite pastime. I’m a big New York Mets fan and enjoy following them. But I truly enjoy spending time with my family and traveling.