Ontario Restaurant News - August 2015

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O N T A R I O August 2015 Vol. 30 No. 7

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FEATURE: CORPORATE CHEFS PROFILES FROM THE INDUSTRY

New on the menu: calorie counts

Frank’s Kitchen owners Shawn Cooper and Frank Parhizgar.

After the media hype settles restaurant’s reputation for being a tough reservation lingers. But that’s not the only potential downside to a strong start.

“When you are in a media frenzy, when you do make all the TORONTO — When Frank’s Kitchen opened five years ago, top 10 lists and you are getting 150 calls a day, you believe that’s husband and wife team Frank Parhizgar and Shawn Cooper going to go on forever,” said Cooper, adding other operators have felt the same way. didn’t shout it from the rooftop. Or Twitter.

Cooper noted the onslaught of guests who come through the They didn’t have a media team in place and no press release was circulated. Cooper says they were lucky the National Post dis- doors when a restaurant opens to good reviews will not all become covered them and reviewed the College Street restaurant. Other regulars.

Frank’s did retain a good number of patrons, which the coupublications followed suit.

“When we did get reviewed, itAPPROVAL was quite remarkable how it ple is grateful for, but Cooper said it is easy to think there is so REQUIRED enclosed proof is sent for your approval. We will not proceed with the job until the proof is returned. resonated and we got really nice the acclaim,” said Parhizgar, who much attention that marketing isn’t necessary. They don’t have a DO NOT GIVE VERBAL INSTRUCTIONS. CHECK CAREFULLY! Beyond this point we cannot accept responsibility for any errors. alterations (other than typowebsite. People would call and Cooper would email the monthly heads up the kitchen. graphical errors) will be charged extra. Mark proof “OK” or “OK with corrections” as the case may be, signing your name so we may know that the proof reached the proper authority.

The effect of the fanfare lasted about two and a half years. menu.

Continued on page 8 And while Frank’s has room for Signature walk-ins during the week, the date Of apprOval

Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010152

By Kristen Smith, Associate Editor

TORONTO — Calorie counts will soon be a legislated menu item for many restaurants throughout Ontario.

The province’s Making Healthier Choices Act comes into effect on Jan. 1, 2017, and requires food and beverage items to include calorie counts.

The legislation applies to all businesses with 20 or more locations selling ready-to-eat food items, including convenience and grocery stores. The act was approved at Queen’s Park in May with near unanimous support from members of provincial parliament.

“It really is about empowering Ontarians, helping them make the decisions they need to make,” Dipika Damerla, Ontario’s associate minister of health and long-term care, said during the final reading of the act.

Calorie posting applies to all sizes and flavours of an item as well as menus distributed outside of an establishment’s physical location. As well, restaurants serving a combination of menu items are required to post a calorie count for the meal.

According to NPD Group, Ontario is home to 77 quickservice restaurant brands and 22 full-service restaurant companies with 20 or more locations.

“Currently, over 60 per cent of large chain restaurants already provide nutritional information voluntarily upon demand, on websites or in-store,” Damerla said.

Carol Zweep, manager of packaging and food labelling services for NSF-GFTC, a foodservice consulting firm, explained calorie counts are determined by laboratory analysis or by calculation of ingredients.

Both methods are accepted by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

“There has to be some level of knowledge of when to use what,” she said.

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Grand Electric owners target Muskoka PORT CARLING, Ont. — Paying homage to a 1960s Muskoka social club, two Toronto restaurateurs have expanded their cottage country presence with the opening of Frankies Surf Club in June.

Owners Ian McGrenaghan and Colin Tooke opened Grand Electric Muskoka last summer.

The pair also own Toronto-based restaurants Grand Electric and Electric Mud BBQ. It was when they made their move into cottage country that they heard about The Port Credit Surf Club, more commonly referred to as Frankies Surf Club.

In conversation with locals and long-time cottagers, McGrenaghan said someone mentioned there used to be a place called Frankies Surf Club nearby.

“Immediately, the name resonated with us,” said McGrenaghan. “Out of sheer curiosity, no business strategy in mind, someone gave me the run down. Told me it was kind of a little dance hall, speakeasy, arcade game place for the kids in the area to hang out in the late ’60s. There wasn’t much information. There were a few references to it in some old newsletters.”

As the summer wore on, McGrenaghan and Tooke realized they needed more space for food production and decided to move Grand Electric’s prep to the kitchen of a former restaurant on the same waterfront property. “We got into the space and it turned out that was the space that Frankies Surf Club was in,” said McGrenaghan.

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Frankies Surf Club pays homage to a 1960s Muskoka social club.

With the kitchen accounting for half of the space, the duo decided to revive its former use with what is touted as “part East Coast beach bar, part vintage Muskoka social club.”

The 70-seat cocktail bar also serves coffee and cold-press juice. McGrenaghan and head bartender Will Jones designed the bar menu inspired by classic vacation spots.

“We wanted to both look in the direction of Muskoka’s awesome, golden past, which is all these beautiful old buildings and people getting excited about dressing up and going out …with the white wood, teal and lots of plants that you

get when you go to beach surf clubs,” McGrenaghan said.

The casual business has a small snack menu and while outside booze is discouraged, McGrenaghan says it’s fine for patrons to bring in a hotdog from an outdoor vendor or if Grand Electric is full, people have the option of having their meal at Frankies.

“For this year right now, we’re really just trying to make it a great place to hang out and then people, obviously hopefully, will be inspired to buy a Greenhouse Juice or some clothing,” McGrenaghan said.

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Calorie content may be determined by two methods Continued from page 1 The calculation method combines nutrition information for each ingredient of a menu item to determine the total caloric intake.

“Although people think the calculation method is quite inaccurate, there might not be any significant difference, provided the calculation method is done correctly under the right circumstance,” Zweep said.

Laboratory analysis is the more expensive option for determining calories. However, a lab’s assistance is required when the preparation method changes nutrition.

For example, deep-frying a chicken wing changes the protein’s nutrition levels.

“There’s a difference in the fat absorption of the chicken wing. You really need to do laboratory analysis for that product,” Zweep said.

“You have to make sure it is accurate.”

Consistency in portion size, as well as ingredient supply is also important in determining accurate nutritional information.

“If you buy chicken from five different suppliers, and they have different levels of fat in it, that’s going to affect nutrition,” Zweep said.

“Preparation and consistency is critical for accurate nutrition.”

Through the act, ministry-appointed inspectors are authorized to inspect foodservice locations to enforce menu-labelling requirements. For non-corporate restaurants, failing to

properly post calorie information is subject to a maximum fine of $500 for every day on which the offence occurs.

In the case of a second offence, the fine increases to $1,000 per day.

The act lays out higher penalties for corporations. The fine is increased to a maximum of $5,000 per day for a first offence and $10,000 for a second infraction.

The act will be implemented over a two-year period to allow time for public education and to ensure compliance.

“I have committed once again to consult broadly with our stakeholders,” Damerla said.

“It is at the regulation stage of a bill that the rubber actually hits the road.”

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O N T A R I O

EDITORIAL It’s long been accepted wisdom that you pair white wine with fish and red wine with beef. And more recently, chefs have paired foods with certain attributes with wines that have the same attributes — such as light seafood dishes with delicate white wines.

But Mark de Vere of Robert Mondavi, one of only a few Masters of Wine in the United States, has a theory deemed heresy by some. Indeed, I thought his theory a little odd until I tried it out at To Kalon winery in California’s Napa Valley in late June.

It involves umami, defined as a taste sensation that is meaty or savoury and is produced by several amino acids and nucleotides. It is also viewed by some as a fifth taste sensation, along with sweet, sour, bitter and salty.

The origin of the word is from the Japanese, meaning “savoury quality, delicious taste.”

It’s found in meats, fish, shellfish, ripe

fruit, ripe vegetables and aged cheeses.

The idea is that if you bring sweet and sour to balance umami, the wine will taste the way it is supposed to.

De Vere started his tasting by lining up plain steak, chicken and fish, a small bowl of salt and several lemons in front of glasses of high-end Napa wine.

We drank a Fumé Blanc along with the plain fish, and found that it made the wine taste harsh. We tasted a Chardonnay that was oaky, and found that the plain chicken flattened the taste. We tried plain steak with Cabernet Sauvignon, and found it lost some of its fruit, and the tannins became bitter. Indeed, some in the crowd screwed up their faces with the unpleasantness.

The moral of the story is that high umami foods flatten taste, de Vere said.

Then we tried adding lemon and salt to the fish, and found that it worked well with both the Fumé Blanc and the Cabernet. If we added only salt, it didn’t work as well. But

the conclusion is that it’s okay to drink red wine with fish, de Vere said. In the same way, the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir tasted much better once salt and lemon were added to the meat — any meat.

“This puts the chef in complete control,” de Vere said. “[The chef ’s job] is to help people who walk through the door. You don’t change the artistry of a dish by adding acid and salt. Typically, it optimizes the food.”

During one of Robert Mondavi’s chef programs, well-known French chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten finished his dishes with lemon and a pinch of salt, instinctively brightening the cuisine, de Vere said. Classically trained chefs often sprinkle a little acid and salt into the dish before it goes out the door.

“If you don’t have balance, no wine is going to taste good with food,” de Vere said.

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NEWS BRIEFS Maple Leaf promotes Indulge Rewards royalty program OTTAWA, Ont. — Maple Leaf Foodservice is promoting its long-running Indulge Rewards loyalty program by highlighting some of the ways operators benefit. For example, Robert Realffe of Capital Mobile Canteens in Ottawa redeems his points for Petro Canada gas cards, “It’s great to be able to use them for everyday expenses,” says Realffe.

Scott Burkart, who owns Pyrgos Pizza in The Pas, Man., a town of about 5,000 people more than 600 kilometres north of Winnipeg, used the loyalty program to re-invest in his restaurant. “I found exactly what I needed, a new refrigerator shelf,” said Burkart.

The program saved Burkart an eighthour drive to his local restaurant supply company.

Indulge program members include independently-owned bars and restaurants, kitchens in nursing homes, cafeterias and food trucks. Members sign up at IndulgeRewards.ca, send in their proof of purchase reports and start collecting points from the purchase of Maple Leaf products.

Then, they can use points to get a wide variety of rewards, from gift cards to iPads to foodservice equipment for their businesses.

Everything can be done via email. There’s no entering codes or collecting stickers from boxes shipped to the kitchen.

CHF Ball set for October TORONTO — The Canadian Hospitality Foundation’s annual fundraising gala is being held Oct. 24 at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel, Toronto.

This year, the benefit for Canadian culinary and hospitality students has the theme Black and White Masked Ball — A Night in Gotham. Proceeds from the event fund scholarships for students entering the food-

4 | Ontario Restaurant News

service, lodging and hospitality industry.

Tickets cost $450 each and sponsorship tables of 10 are available for between $4,500 and $25,000 for a platinum sponsor table. Donations are also accepted at thechf.ca.

Cara acquires Landing Group VAUGHAN, Ont. – Cara Operations Limited is now the sole owner of the Landing Group.

In December, Cara acquired a 55 per cent controlling interest in the Landing Group through the purchase of common shares.

On June 29, Cara announced it has purchased the remaining 45 per cent of the company for a combination of cash and Cara subordinate voting shares.

The shares were issued to the four key management founders of the Landing Group and are subject to long-term lockup agreements.

The Landing Group includes Williams Landing, located Toronto’s Liberty Village, Hunters Landing at Concord CityPlace, Toronto, and Harpers Landing in Oakville, Ont.

Just Eat acquires Orderit.ca TORONTO – Just Eat Canada is devouring a portion of its competition.

On July 20, the online ordering and delivery service announced it has acquired Orderit.ca, a similar platform for restaurants to connect with potential customers.

The acquisition adds hundreds of businesses to Just Eat’s restaurant roster.

The company now boasts the ability to allow customers to order online from more than 5,000 restaurants throughout Canada.

Just Eat is Canada’s largest online food ordering service. Just-eat.ca or the company’s mobile app allows customers to con-

EDITORIAL ADVISORY COUNCIL nect with restaurants in their neighbourhood and place an order.

Restaurants support CFCC TORONTO — On Oct. 21, about 50 restaurants in seven provinces will donate their dinner service food sales in the name of “healthy food for all Canadians.”

In its inaugural year, Restaurants for Change raised more than $120,000 for Community Food Centres Canada (CFCC). In 2014, CFCC served 143,419 healthy meals in 1,053 community meal sessions. It also built food skills by providing 414 community kitchen sessions and 1,030 community garden sessions.

George Brown College expands its foodservice research TORONTO – George Brown College will expand its food and beverage research capabilities, thanks to a grant from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).

On Thursday (July 22), FedDev Ontario announced $7 million in funding for the college to support Ontario’s growing food and beverage sectors.

The FedDev Ontario cash is matched with investment from donors and industry support.

MICKEY CHEREVATY Consultant, Moyer Diebel Limited MARVIN GREENBERG Consultant JACK BATTERSBY President, Summit Food Service Distributors Inc. BARNEY STRASSBURGER JR. President, TwinCorp PAUL LECLERC Partner, Serve-Canada Food Equipment Ltd. PAUL MANCINI Director of Retail, Inventory and Wholesale, LCBO JORGE SOARES Director Food and Beverage Operations, Woodbine Entertainment Group ADAM COLQUHOUN President, Oyster Boy JOHN CRAWFORD Director of Sales-Canada, Lamb Weston TINA CHIU Chief Operating Officer, Mandarin Restaurant Franchise Corporation MARTIN KOUPRIE Chef/Owner, Pangaea Restaurant JOEL SISSON Founder and president of Crush Strategy Inc. LESLIE WILSON Vice-president of Business Excellence, Compass Group Canada CHRIS JEENS Partner, W. D. Colledge Co. Ltd.

ONTARIO RESTAURANT NEWS VOLUME 30 · NO. 7 · AUGUST 2015 Ontario Restaurant News (www.ontariorestaurantnews.com) is published 12 times a year by Ishcom Publications Ltd., 2065 Dundas Street East, Suite 201, Mississauga, Ont. L4X 2W1 T: (905) 206-0150 · F: (905) 206-9972 · Toll Free: 1(800)201-8596 Other publications include the Canadian Chains Directory and Buyers’ Directory as well as: P A C I F I C / P R A I R I E

A T L A N T I C

Customer spending climbs in Q2 TORONTO – Consumer spending at restaurants increased 7.82 per cent in the second quarter of 2015 compared to the previous year, according to the MonerisMetrics Quarterly Report.

According to the report released in July, customer spending at fast food restaurants posted the highest increase at 12.54 per cent, followed by a 7.24 per cent increase for bars and pubs. Dine-in restaurants recorded a 5.59 per cent increase in customer spending.

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Organic farms on Thai rice menu

By Colleen Isherwood, Senior Editor

Introducing riceberry Canadian) per metric ton only.

On a trip to the Rice Science Center located in Nakhon Pathom Province, journalists from around the world learned that riceberry is a deep purple rice derived from cross-breeding JHN, a short-stature purple rice, and Thai Hom Mali (jasmine) rices, which contribute grain softness and tenderness.

Riceberry can be made into Thai sweets such as Ka Nom Tom Berry (coconut balls), Khoa Moa Berry (pounded unripe rice with shredded coconut — riceberry replaces hard-toget pop rice), lowfat, antioxidant-rich Riceberry ice cream, and Riceberry Refresher, a cereal-based drink with lemon and honey added.

Professor Apichart Vanavishit explained that in terms of value for farmers, jasmine and purple rice has the highest value, as a specialty rice that is certified organic and pesticide-free.

The centre is breeding riceberry to be high in antioxiKanonrat Luengsode, Dept. of Foreign Trade, dants, and tolerant Thai Ministry of Commerce, with riceberry. to heat and cold.

BANGKOK — As part of Thailand’s quest for organic, value-added crops, one promising product is riceberry.

Riceberry is a cross-bred organic rice with dark violet grain.

Riceberry has recently been considered as one of Thailand’s most successful economic crops as it guarantees a remarkable yield of up to Bt20,000 ($746) per metric ton, compared to white rice that achieves around Bt7,800-Bt8,300 ($291-$310

6 | Ontario Restaurant News

BANGKOK — Most years, Thailand is the number one exporter of rice in the world. Clearly, the country is a powerhouse when it comes to rice production. “Think Rice, Think Thailand,” was the theme of the recent Thailand Rice Convention, which included an address by Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and attracted delegates from all over the world.

Overall, the country is promoting the export of more high-quality rice — stressing quality over quantity. The idea is that with world tastes changing and demand for high quality and different types of rice fetching higher prices, it makes sense to cater to these new tastes.

Thailand has 27 rice research and development centres focused on varieties of rice and 23 centres dedicated to seedling development plus plans for 15 more. Types include sticky rice, long grain, short grain, red colour, purple colour and rice used to help control diabetes, Vichrai Sriprasert, honourary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, told the recent Thai Rice Convention in Bangkok.

Internally the country struggles to balance the needs for exports with the desire to ensure that the country’s farmers get a good, stable price for their rice.

Complicating matters this year is a drought in many of Thailand’s ricegrowing regions.

Jeremy Zwinger, president and CEO of The Rice Trader, spoke about balancing the global demand equa-

tion, noting water and weather will have the greatest effect on rice markets. The California drought is so severe that it is more profitable to sell water they would use to irrigate the rice than it is to sell rice. Water would cost them $2,700 while a rice crop would only yield $600 to $700 per acre, Zwinger said.

Andre Leu, president of IFOAM, the only global umbrella for organic products with 800 member organizations in 125 countries, spoke about the value of organic products as higher value exports. Right now, rice only accounts for seven per cent of the organic cereals market, meaning it has incredible potential to grow. In Europe and North America, 60 to 80 per cent of people say they buy organic products, indicating huge brand recognition, Leu said.

The most moving presentation of the conference came at the end of the day from Mam Samsee, a farmer in Yasothon province in Northeast Thailand, who has been farming rice organically for nearly 30 years.

He said that his parents did not use pesticides in farming; then they discovered that with chemical farming, the rice grew beautifully and there was less need for water buffaloes to help till the soil. But over time, the soils hardened due to use of fertilizers, necessitating the use of more fertilizers. “Chemical farming caused so much damage, it was not sustainable,” he said.

In 1980, 400 families in the area decided to pursue organic rice farm-

Organic rice farmer Mam Samsee. ing. Some gave up fertilizers gradually until 1993, when there was a drive to recruit organic farmers, and many in the village received certification.

They implemented biodiversity, using the peanut family to nourish the soil, some in tandem with growing rice. Other crops included fruit and watermelon — all used to restore the soil. They used water dropping from buffaloes, pigs, and chickens as natural fertilizer, and they used drought resistant crops to renew the soil.

Thailand’s Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, in whose honour the Rice Conference was held, is leading a campaign to bring water buffaloes back to farming.

“The rice bowl is back. We have redeemed what we have lost. We are healthy; we got our buffaloes back, we have our vegetables and fish and the ability for farmers to be self-reliant,” Samsee said.

Advances in rice quality control metric tonne capacity.

AYUTTHAYA, ThaiThe rice processing land — While organic building has been defarming and premium signed with efficiency in products such as ricemind, with no seams in berry make up a growthe green floors and ening part of the Thai rice suring that materials in market, the industry’s the building do not conmain product for the taminate the rice.

North American market De-husked rice is eleis Hom Mali (jasmine) vated into 14-storey-high rice, said Paradon Munsilos. The processing inro, general manager of cludes cleaning, destemCP Intertrade Co. Ltd. ming, polishing, rotary One 10th of Thailand’s sifting, length grading, rice production goes colour sorting, and authrough the company’s tomatic packing by high newest rice processing speed machines. and packaging plant at Quality control inAyutthaya, an hour and Natapong Suthanarugh, Juthamart Dansermsuk and Paradon Munro of CP (Charoen Pokphand). cludes experts who check a half north of Bangkok. for rapid viscosity, moistonnes of rice per year.

Built in the shape of Munro stresses the plant’s quality ture, DNA analysis and unusual chara rice kernel, and housing a process that starts at the top and is gravity control systems are in place to meet acteristics.

Last, but not least, the facility does fed, the building has won numerous international standards that include domestic and international awards. ISO 9001:2008, GMD, HACCP and research and development on new Canadian Food Inspection Agency products — its showroom contains The facility employs 400 people.

“Our facility is the world’s larg- (CFIA) requirements. Every truck- 17,000 samples of rice.

“North American rice consumpest rice processing facility under one load of rice is weighed and verified. roof,” said Munro. The factory is Raw materials are unloaded into tion will continue to grow, steady capable of processing 1.08 million eight warehouses, each with 240,000 growth, not a big boost,” said Munro.

Quesada

is on a roll

With 44 restaurants open for business, the burrito chain is now expanding into eastern Ontario TORONTO – Quesada, home of the “big ass burrito,” a Canadian-owned and operated quick service restaurant (QSR) chain that has been steadily increasing in size year-over-year, continues to expand across the country. The chain now has 44 restaurants open and 16 in development.

“We’re ready to roll in New Brunswick and Newfoundland,” said Quesada president Tom O’Neill, adding that the new locations will be in St. John’s, N.L., and Miramichi, N.B. One restaurant is under construction in Saskatchewan and six in Quebec. “We will be a national brand shortly,” said O’Neill, who plans to build 300 across the country.

Currently, Quesada has eight area developers who are contracted to open 240 locations over a 60-month period: one in B.C., one in Saskatchewan and Alberta, four in Ontario and two in Quebec. Quesada is currently handling the Atlantic provinces themselves, but is open to having an area developer there too. The company is also looking for an area developer in Manitoba and the Thunder Bay, Ont. area.

Stephane Charbonneau, the franchise owner and area developer for Eastern and Northern Ontario balances his work as an Ottawa firefighter with his commitment to Quesada. Charbonneau told ORN he has been a firefighter for 13 years and with Quesada for four.

“I have always been in the restaurant business and was looking for a little restaurant. I met the president in Toronto. I tried the food, and was blown over — it was so good,” said Char-

bonneau, adding that the franchise seemed small and accessible, and the people running the franchise were nice guys.

Charbonneau opened the first Quesada in eastern Ontario in Cornwall in 2013. He has been area developer for a year, and now has five locations in the area including Petawawa, which opened recently, as well as two restaurants in Kingston, and others in Brockville and Cornwall. A store in Sudbury is starting construction, while an operator in North Bay is interested too.

“We are looking for interest in the Ottawa area — it’s just a matter of time,” he said.

“The best part is the feeling of serving healthy, fresh food to customers. There is nothing pre-packaged, the salsa is fresh and we make all our own recipes. It’s so transparent — if someone says they’re allergic to this, we don’t have to look at the label on a box or a can.”

According to an NPD report released earlier this year, Quesada’s expansion is outpacing the QSR industry norm that anticipates less than one per cent growth annually over the next five years. Restaurants Canada also released a survey in January 2015 that found 70 per cent of respondents did not expect sales to increase in the first half of the year. Meanwhile, Quesada has experienced a double-digit increase in same-store sales this year.

“Stores are showing higher and higher opening sales, and where stores are sparse, people are travelling a long way to get to a Quesada,” O’Neill said.

Steve Gill, a former technology consultant

Area developer Stephane Charbonneau at Cornwall, Ont., Quesada store. turned restaurateur, founded Quesada in Toronto in 2004. O’Neill, a former area developer for Subway, joined them in 2008.

“What impressed me about Quesada is all the little things,” he said. “All the rice and beans are cooked in the restaurant — we don’t use pillow packs. Our three salsas [raja, chipotle and verde] and sauces are made fresh daily; we clean and chop our own cilantro; and we make our own Mexican coleslaw.”

The main drivers at Quesada are consumer demand for freshness and flavour, especially peppers, O’Neill said. “People are getting to know and appreciate peppers as a flavour enhancer — though you have to start with realdeal ingredients.”

While the franchise fee is $20,000, O’Neill estimates the total cost to get a restaurant up and running is $195,000. This includes shipping, training costs, room and board while franchisees are being trained, the first week’s groceries, signs, equipment, construction costs

and marketing fees for the first big push, O’Neill said. Quesada negotiates and signs all leases, making sure the t’s are crossed and i’s dotted.

“We have very good financing from the Royal Bank and the Bank of Montreal at a time when banks are pulling their horns in when it comes to restaurants.

“We will sell the hammers and nails, but we expect [franchisees] to put hammer to nail,” he explained.

Typically, stores are 1,200 to 1,400 square feet, but they’re larger in Quebec because patrons there like sit-down space. This is enough room for 24-30 seats, or more in Quebec. Average check is about $10.

“Our target customer is 18 to 49 years old.

We also appeal to cultures that understand peppers,” said O’Neill.

New menu items include drunken chicken, a tequila-flavoured limited time offer. “We’re careful and logical, whether it’s about expansion or about our menu items,” O’Neill said.

Ontario plans to increase accessibility compliance audits TORONTO - Ontario is planning to increase accessibility compliance audits for businesses throughout the province, and the Ontario Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association (ORHMA) has a plan to help its members met the necessary requirements.

In 2014, the province conducted 2,000 audits resulting in more than 300 directors orders that included monetary fines for violations. This year, the number of planned audits drops to 1,200. However, the provincial government has said it plans to increase compliance inspections to 4,000 properties per year. The province plans to use audit blitzes, as well as partnerships with the private sector, to meet an increase in inspections.

“There are a lot of people that are upset out there,” said Fatima Finnegan, ORHMA’s director of corporate marketing and business development. “It’s been challenging for a lot of operators who are out there running their business.”

Failing to meet accessibility compliance could result in a fine of $200 to $15,000, depending on the severity of the infraction.

“The law is enforced when organizations do not file reports or when they do not comply,” Brigitte Marleau, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure, said in an email to ORN.

“We progressively escalate compliance with a number of enforcement tools when required.”

The audits enforce the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), a 20-year plan, created in 2005, designed to transform Ontario into a fully-accessible province.

“There has been a lot of noise in our sector about compliance and understanding what is needed when it comes to AODA,” said Finnegan. “It has not been a piece of legislation that has done a lot of hand-holding and guiding people through the process.”

To assist its members in complying with the legislation, ORHMA has partnered with Adaptability Canada, a consulting firm focused on an establishment’s built environment.

“We can actually hand-hold our members and walk them through the process of compliance,” Finnegan said.

Adaptability Canada offers 1,200 commercial accessibility products, as well as partnerships with construction companies to deliver enhancements and, in some cases, financing assistance. Through ORHMA’s partnership with the company, the association’s members are eligible for a 10 per cent discount on its services.

“The biggest problem is understanding what to do,” said Jeff Wilson, chief executive officer of Adaptability Canada. “It boils down to: if

you get [disabled customers], can you accommodate them at the level you handle your other guests at? A lot of times the answer is no.”

While restaurant owners may want to increase their level of accessibility, Wilson noted landlords must be on board with improvements as well.

“A lot of times you will have landlords that are not open to doing leaseholder improvements on those buildings. It’s a difficult situation,” Wilson said. “Most restaurant owners and hotel owners want to do this. They want to serve people equally. They want to take care of their guests.”

Since 2012, the AODA has required all businesses to provide accessible customer service including staff training for customers with disabilities. As well, business owners are required to provide emergency and public safety information in accessible formats for staff and customers.

As of 2014, businesses with 50 or more employees are required to have a plan and policy in place to achieve accessibility goals. Those goals must be readily available to employees and customers. As well, businesses must consider accessibility when designing and purchasing selfservice kiosks. In the next six years, the province will introduce new requirements, which include

accessible business websites, additional training for staff, accessible employment practices and new formats for publicly available information.

“We’ve been inundated with a lot of calls from members wanting help and guidance.

They want to do well,” Finnegan said. “The ministry has done a wonderful job with information on what is required. It’s the assistance piece that is more challenging.”

Currently, one in seven Ontarians has a disability and that number is expected to rise to 20 per cent of the population by 2035. People with disabilities and their families represent an economic market of about $25 billion nationwide.

Finnegan said there is a strong business case for a restaurant or hotel to become accessible.

“It’s children and persons with disabilities that decide where the family eats and stays,” Finnegan said. “If we’re accommodating a family member with a disability, that’s where the family will go.”

Aside from direct financial gain, Finnegan explained providing assistance isn’t limited to customers with disabilities.

“Whether someone has a disability doesn’t really matter to our sector. We’re in an industry that is all about accommodation,” Finnegan said. “We’ve done it for hundreds of years. It’s what we do. It’s about building loyalty.”

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Smoke’s signals

Smoke’s Poutinerie founder Ryan Smolkin

Smoke’s Poutinerie has added burritos and hot dogs to its brand as the company plans to open 100 new locations across Canada AJAX, Ont. – Smoke’s Poutinerie has announced an aggressive goal of “global domination,” but first the Ajax, Ont.-based chain is targeting its home nation.

The poutinerie plans to open 1,300 locations in the next five years, including 100 new Canadian locations, which would double its presence nationwide, as well as 800 locations in the United States.

“Opening 1,300 Smoke’s Poutinerie locations is an ambitious plan, but then again, we’ve never shied away from making big, bold moves that shake up the industry,” Ryan Smolkin, Smoke’s founder and chief entertainment officer, told ORN in an email.

“Once we conquer Canada east, west and everywhere in between, we’ll move towards our ultimate goal of global domination.”

Alongside the poutinerie, Smoke’s has added a burritorie and weinerie to its brand. The first weinerie opened its doors in Dartmouth, N.S. in December. The new venture offers a range of hot dogs, from the Montreal-style steamie to a half-pound 12-inch hot dog topped with peanut butter and jelly.

The first burritories are scheduled to open this month in Toronto. The burrito brand boasts original sauces, “suicide rice” and chorizo sausage.

“Burritos and hot dogs are two of the hottest food items in

North America, and we’re the company with the brand power to bring these foods to the masses,” Smolkin said. “Each brand takes comfort food to the next level, delivering delicious and inventive menu offerings to consumers.”

By the fall, Smoke’s expects to open 30 poutineries, 15 burritories and 10 weineries across Canada. The national expansion plan is focusing on western Canada.

“There is demand for Smoke’s Poutinerie in western Canada and we see the region as an untapped market with great potential,” Smolkin said.

To help reach its franchising goal, Smoke’s is looking to nontraditional venues, including stadiums, university and college campuses and amusement parks.

“Hot dogs are a no-brainer at places like stadiums, and burritos are an untapped market in these venues,” he said.

Smolkin opened the first poutinerie in 2009 on Adelaide Street West in Toronto’s entertainment district. Alongside 30 varieties of poutine, Smoke’s features a 1980s Canadiana theme, which includes its signature red plaid and Smoke, the brand mascot who is said to live in a cabin in the woods near the Quebec border where he creates new recipes. The burritorie and weinerie also feature similar branding.

“Each of our brands has its own theme and distinct story that follows the adventures of Smoke,” Smolkin said.

Frank’s is now generating its own hoopla Continued from cover

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Frank’s didn’t over-seat the restaurant, something Cooper said is a common mistake and a tempting one for popular opening restaurants. “We, for a long time, took half as many as we could accommodate,” said Cooper, noting it allowed Frank’s to focus on service and quality and to work out any kinks.

“Even to this day, we have a philosophy about staggering reservations,” she said.

With the reviews and attention in the past, Cooper said they now must generate their own hoopla.

“How do you go about it? I’m sure we’re going through the same journey a lot of other restaurants are going through,” she said. “We need to do something because nobody knows what we’re up to anymore.”

The couple is building a website and plans to devote more time to getting the message across about what Frank’s has accomplished and how it is innovating.

Parhizgar makes bread, charcuterie, cheese, sorbet and ice cream, pasta and chocolate truffles in house for the 50-seat continental restaurant. Anything that can be made from scratch is.

He grows herbs and produce on the roof and introduced a 22-course tasting menu a couple years ago. Parhizgar lists only the protein or main ingredient to allow the preparation to change with ease. He wasn’t sure it would work, but the $95

menu sells out every night.

Inspired by visits to St. Jacobs, Ont., Parhizgar said the food he brought back was in contrast with his white plateware, so he started making plates using earth from the country.

“I just wanted to convey the story a little bit better,” he said.

“If the canvas is your food, you need to have a proper frame. It just didn’t make sense; here we are making artisanal bread and then we put it on a pristine plate?”

Copper noted the colourful, unique plates add to the dish’s visual appeal and guests are blown away by the effort.

Parhizgar said it has been an interesting journey. “It’s funny.

We’re a much better restaurant now than when we first got reviewed.”

He said restaurateurs are constantly trying to improve.

“It’s a shame that a lot of the little boutique restaurants, the mom and pop places, who are legitimately trying to constantly strive and go forward, they just get forgotten about and get lost in the shuffle,” he said.

When Cooper and Parhizgar find out a good restaurant is closing, it comes as a surprise because nobody mentioned it was slow or asked for help.

“You don’t want to be the only one and because nobody’s admitting it, you think you are the only one,” said Cooper.

“It’s so competitive, there’s so many restaurants. It’s hard for the city to support everyone,” she added.

TOOLS OF engagement

When all eyes are focused on the kitchen, restaurants are working hard to maintain front-of-house excellence.

BY DON DOULOFF

George Brown students at Chefs’ House.

Hawksworth Restaurant in Vancouver.

S

everal years ago, at the end of a meal in a high-end Toronto restaurant, the serving staff packaged the table’s leftovers (a black-cod entrée) and stored them in the kitchen. After dessert, the servers learned the kitchen had accidentally discarded the leftovers and were so mortified, they insisted the kitchen prepare a replacement dish, packed it up and presented it to the astonished group.

Those floor staff went above and beyond — and that elevated front-of-house service is what several Canadian restaurants, and at least one hospitality school, are aspiring towards in a competitive marketplace when all eyes are focused on the chef.

“People are coming for more than the food.

They’re coming for the environment and the connection to the server,” said Chad Clark, general manager at Vancouver’s upscale Hawksworth Restaurant.

Accordingly, Hawksworth — three-time winner of Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Award’s Best Upscale Restaurant — hires servers as much for their personality as for their experience. FOH staff undergo a weeklong training process that outlines the restaurant’s cultural philosophy (work ethic, code of conduct, etc.) and then progresses to the next phase, where server trainees shadow floor staff for one or two shifts and learn precise details of the food.

Furthermore, the kitchen provides ‘drop lines,’ short descriptors servers use to explain the complex food, as they place the dish in front of customers. Clark estimates that up to 20 servers work the floor during dinner.

Hawksworth provides a “generous” staffdining discount on non-work nights, to allow the FOH team to “really understand what the guest experiences,” said Clark.

Wine service is another focus. Hawksworth employs a wine director, four accredited sommeliers and several wine commis staff dedicated to telling the story of the restaurant’s 500 to 700-label list, he said.

Hosts are trained to deliver “truly personalized service on every level,” which includes taking detailed information — guests celebrating a special occasion, for example — at the point of reservation and then tailoring their service accordingly the night that party visits. For example, staff will present a plaque commemorating the guests’ special occasion.

At The Keg Steakhouse, the restaurant places huge importance on communication skills, which are essential for front-of-house staff to get “the message across in ways that enhance the experience and reinforce the brand,” said Dean Sockett, vice-president, people and culture.

All FOH staff undergo a three-interview hiring process and once onboard, hosts undertake eight training shifts, while 10 to 14 training shifts are allotted for servers.

Their training involves written and verbal tests highlighting job knowledge and procedures, menu and wine-list familiarization and management’s and guests’ service expectations.

Servers then engage in dining-room role playing (typically, two three-hour sessions), during off hours, where they practice the knowledge and skills they’ve learned from fellow FOH staff

and management, who coach them through the process.

After that, trainees shadow staff during service, first observing, then being assigned one table — with a staff member in turn shadowing them — and eventually being assigned a group of tables. Hosts undergo similar shadowing sessions, said Socket, who noted that the host “delivers the first impression and sets the tone for the evening.” Currently, the Keg operates 92 Canadian locations and 12 in the United States.

Guests are visiting The Keg to connect with friends, family or co-workers, so service should meet their needs but not be intrusive, said Sockett, who noted optimum workload is three to four tables per server.

“Our FOH staff are the frontlines of our brand,” said Jason Rosso, executive national chef at Milestones.

“They are the first and last impression our guests will have when visiting any of our 54 restaurants.”

Milestones’ associate development program is a two-day course “that we put our potential hourly leaders and trainers through, to teach them how to drive our levels of guest satisfaction, streamline execution and drive salesmanship.”

George Brown College in Toronto places heavy emphasis on FOH training. Through its curriculum, which is shaped by consultations with the hospitality industry and through student feedback, the school delivers “experiential learning,” said Dario Guescini, chair of the school of hospitality and tourism management.

A key component to the curriculum is the food and beverage program’s simulation courses.

Dining Room Simulation 1, in semester one, emphasizes technical proficiency and hospitality/emotional intelligence, introduces students to food and beverage service taught in a simulated restaurant environment located in the school’s Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts. Instruction focuses on dining room preparation service skills, style and etiquette.

Designed to teach a higher level of engagement, Dining Room Simulation 2 (semester three) focuses on dining room preparation service skills and styles, etiquette, verbal and nonverbal communication and guest relations. It’s a hands-on course taught at The Chefs’ House, the restaurant simulation classroom and student-operated restaurant on King Street East.

Students learn to differentiate between the need for technical service skills and emotional engagement.

There is an emphasis on tableside service, wine decanting, etiquette, suggestive selling and product knowledge.

In semester four, students must run a software-simulated restaurant. This course requires students to calculate, interpret and analyze the restaurant industry’s financial results, forecasting results and the measurement of management’s performance and customer satisfaction.

This includes analyzing food and beverage costs, marketing, facilities and sales departments as well as human resources to make future strategic decisions.

August 2015 | 9

Wingporium takes cautious approach to new growth ETOBICOKE, Ont. – Wingporium is expanding, but the Etobicoke-based chain is taking a cautious approach to growth.

About five months ago, the restaurant opened its third location in Toronto’s Weston neighbourhood (5025 Steeles Ave. West). Michael Gismondi, creator of the Wingporium brand, said the new restaurant is on par to do about $700,000 in sales by the end of the year.

“They’re doing pretty well,” Gismondi said.

The Weston location adds to the company’s existing roster, which includes the flagship restaurant in Etobicoke (1000 Islington Ave.) that opened in 2005, and the second location in Mississauga, Ont. (170 Lakeshore Rd. West), that opened in 2013. The Mississauga location is a partnership with Christian Mazaris from the Orchard Family Restaurant “The location is fantastic. Our concept really works there,” Gismondi said.

Now, Wingporium is eying a fourth location.

Gismondi is working with two members of his staff to open the next restaurant. Although they have a location in mind for the fourth Wingporium, Gismondi said the plan is not yet finalized.

“It’s about finding the right people to help

you with expansion. That’s the struggle right there,” Gismondi said. “You need people to help you build.”

All four locations will be corporate stores and Gismondi said he isn’t pushing to franchise his brand.

“I want to make sure the people that are getting into this have some sort of experience,” Gismondi said. “I don’t want to just grab people off the street with $100,000 and put them in a restaurant.”

While future restaurants are not out of the question, Gismondi’s goal in the foodservice industry is to grow responsibly rather than quickly to avoid watering down the Wingporium brand.

“I don’t see myself having 100 locations,” Gismondi said. “It’s not money for me at this point. I’m not like some ruthless businessman.”

Wingporium sources their wings from Ontario farmers. The brand also boasts the wings are fresh, never frozen or pre-cooked and are available in 88 varieties.

“We source the best product possible. It’s way more expensive,” Gismondi said. “If you’re going to do wings, you have to do them the best that you can.”

Bee hotel at Fairmont Waterfront Vancouver.

A place to rest their weary wings TORONTO – Fairmont hotels across Canada are abuzz with new activity.

In partnership with Burt’s Bees Canada, the hospitality chain has constructed 16 new bee hotels across the country.

The hotels provide a place to stay for solitary bees who unlike honeybees, nest individually without a queen or hive.

The bee hotel program launched last year at the Fairmont Royal York as well as four other locations in the Greater Toronto Area.

“I think it’s something that resonates with people. It’s an important issue, bees pollinate a significant amount of the food we eat,” said Fairmont spokesperson Kaitlynn Dodge.

The new bee hotels will be constructed at Fairmont properties in Vancouver, Whistler, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Quebec City. As well, 10 bee hotels will be built in public spaces in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Halifax.

“We felt we could play a role to provide much needed habitat in urban centres, where bees sometimes have a harder time, especially solitary bees, finding a place to nest,” Dodge said.

The bee hotels are constructed using natural nesting materials such as wood, twigs, fallen branches, soil and pith-filled holes. With a design that replicates natural nesting areas, the hotels allow the bees to breed and lay eggs.

1 0 | Ontario Restaurant News

Each of the bee hotels has a unique design that plays off of the structure’s surroundings.

“In Whistler, the bee hotel is in the shape of the mountains,” Dodge said. “We wanted to make sure that it was something unique. As guests, (the bees) will visit multiple hotels across the country.”

The bee hotels have also helped draw interest towards their human counterpart.

“We’ve noticed as soon as it went up, there was a lot of interest,” Dodge said. “Guests are interacting a lot with them.”

Solitary bees account for 90 per cent of the bee population and pollinate one third of food consumed in Canada. A single bee is capable of sparking the production of 40 to 70 apples.

To celebrate the insect’s contribution to the food we eat, chefs at six Canadian Fairmont hotels created pollinator menus featuring pollinator-friendly dishes and signature drinks.

“It was just to give people an opportunity to learn more about the issue in a fun way,” Dodge said.

In the last decade, Fairmont has built more than 20 honeybee apiaries at its hotels and resorts around the world. The honey produced in the apiaries is often harvested and incorporated into menus.

“Bee hotels were a natural progression since we have a longstanding history with bees,” Dodge said.

Johnathon Bovillle, owner of Stuttering John’s Smokehouse.

Embracing impediment yields positive results COURTICE, Ont. — The restaurant business is tough, but Johnathon Boville has overcome more obstacles than most in the foodservice industry.

Boville, 38, has stuttered his entire life, but that’s not what got in his way. When people told him he couldn’t do something due to his speech impediment, their criticism drove him to succeed. “I’ve always gone above and beyond to feel like I measure up,” said Boville.

He started in the foodservice industry at 14 years old as a dishwasher, and since then has “done every job in a restaurant.” Boville started his own catering business about a decade ago after a former boss told him he never could.

In 2011, Boville leased a restaurant space in downtown Oshawa. While brainstorming names for the eatery — which Boville designed and constructed on a tight budget — a friend suggested naming it for his well-known trait. Boville thought it had a nice ring to it: Stuttering John’s Smokehouse.

“It’s instant marketing and instant recognition,” said Boville.

He opened the eatery in November 2011 and business was going well — Stuttering John’s was proclaimed “Best Foodie Restaurant” by the Oshawa-Whitby This Week Readers’ Choice Awards in the spring.

However, his success was marred following an accident at the restaurant. In July 2012, Boville fell down the back stairs and broke both of his legs.

His right leg didn’t heal properly and resulted in surgeries, time in a wheelchair and on crutches. After nine months, Boville sold the restaurant and continued the catering business, making arrangements and instructing the cooks.

“I was still so bored,” said Boville. “I hated not being able to be a part of it.”

To continue catering, Boville decided to get a food truck, which required less physical labour.

Last year, he reopened Stuttering John’s

Smokehouse in Courtice, Ont., at 1540 Highway 2.

“It’s been a very interesting journey to here,” said Boville with a smile. “If I didn’t do this, I wouldn’t know what to do,” he said. “Perseverance. It was the only option.”

The 75-seat restaurant took over a space that once housed a fine dining restaurant and, at one point, a strip club.

This summer, he and co-owner Georgia Zois added a 40-seat patio overlooking a creek to the 2,000-square-foot eatery.

Boville said a number of people have come through the doors of his restaurant from his past: former teachers, neighbours and soccer coaches. “They all say, ‘We knew this was yours’,” he said. “I stutter; it’s a fact.”

What he didn’t expect is the restaurant’s name would connect him with other people who stutter — people who do things because they were told not to, told to find a career that involved minimal talking. Boville was told to go into manual labour. “Now, I talk all the time,” he said.

He met a lawyer who chose that profession because it required him to talk and a mother whose teenage son wasn’t social because of his stutter.

“My sign brought this woman in to talk to me,” said Boville, adding his decision to go with Stuttering John’s Steakhouse had interesting ramifications. “In naming it that, I’ve had so many chances to talk to people about speech impediments, about stuttering.”

Boville attributes his speech improvement — at one point he “could barely string two words together” — to his time working as a bouncer.

It could have been the adrenaline, having less time to think about what he would say, perhaps the music in the background, but what probably helped the most, he said, was the confidence he gained. “Each year, I seemed to talk a little bit better.”

n e h c t i K I

n an increasingly competitive industry, the role of a foodservice company’s corporate chef is progressively more important and perhaps more demanding. Ontario Restaurant News spoke with Canadian chefs in charge of culinary creations for hotel and restaurant chains, suppliers, manufacturers and airport foodservice. Here are their stories.

By Ontario Restaurant News Staff

Philman George, HIGH LINER FOODS Philman George’s background helped create his future.

With parents hailing from the small Ca Caribbean island of Barbuda, where the ocean is the main source of food, George’s mother raised him on a steady diet of seafood.

“This appreciation and respect for seafood was instilled in me at an early age,” George said.

He landed his first job in the foodservice industry about two decades ago as a dishwasher at a pub in Streetsville, Ont. After graduating from high school, he was restauhired to work at a Mediterranean restau rant as a line cook.

“The chef saw my passion and suggested I enrol at George Brown College for culinary management,” George said.

“I took his advice and my career in foodservice really took off.”

After being hired for his first head chef position at age 24, George began

to build a reputation for his skills with seafood.

“I have to attribute this to my Caribbean roots and my deep appreciation for seafood,” George said.

From there, George would lead kitchens as far away as Australia and the Caribbean, before returning to Ontario to join High Liner Foods as their corporate chef and culinary manager.

“It’s very different from running a restaurant,” George said of his role with High Liner.

“Here I’m either creating recipes or testing out new products to see how they perform. Sometimes it’s taking a hard look at competitive products to help understand what makes us unique.”

The corporate kitchen, for George, is about understanding his customers. On occasion, High Liner’s customers will visit George’s kitchen in search of new ideas.

“Each one is unique and has their own set of challenges,” he said. “Their challenges are our challenges. We depend on each other for success.”

He added keeping pace with current flavours is an important aspect of the High Liner kitchen.

“As the foodservice industry evolves we must evolve alongside with it,” George said. “The exciting part is being able to help spark that evolution through product innovation.”

George’s answer to staying on top of culinary trends is straightforward; eating is the best way to stay current.

“It’s not enough to read about it, you have to go and experience it for yourself,” George said.

“I’m very fortunate to live in Toronto. The culinary scene here is off the charts. We have such a diverse ethnic culinary scene here.”

The draw to a culinary career, for George, is food’s ability to provide a temporary escape for his customers.

“That moment when you are biting into a perfectly prepared seafood creation, you’re not thinking of anything else but how good it tastes,” he said. “Bringing these moments of pleasure into people’s lives on a daily basis is one of those immediate gratifications that is unique to our industry.”

Graham Hayes, FRENCH’S FOOD COMPANY & MCCORMACK BOURRIE Graham Hayes got his first taste of the foodservice industry at age 10 and he has never worked anywhere else.

Born in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland, Hayes’ mother and her husband owned Kelvin Catering, which travelled to events serving rock stars and royalty.

Hayes said this experience gave him a solid grounding in the industry. “I attribute that to a lot of my passion for what I do.”

He attended Larne Culinary College, in Northern Ireland and apprenticed at the Magheramorne House Hotel, where the menu changed every week. After some time working in Bermuda, Hayes moved to Canada in 1990.

He worked at Peter Oliver’s Bofinger Brasserie in Toronto and Hockley Valley Resort before taking his first head chef position at Whitlock’s Restaurant in The Beach area of Toronto.

After reopening Superior Restaurant (now closed again), Hayes got a job with SIR Corp in 1997. There, he spent 10 years as the executive

chef for Canyon Creek and five years as Jack Astors’ director of culinary before moving into the world of supply as a corporate chef for JL International Food Brokerage.

In January, Hayes became the Canadian corporate chef for French’s Food Company and director of culinary service for Ontario-based McCormack Bourrie Sales and Marketing.

The joint venture between the manufacturer and its broker means in addition to being the Canadian trend touch point for French’s family of sauces, Hayes has McCormack Bourrie’s other brands to work with.

“From a chef ’s perspective, I get to work with these unique, trusted bands and I can also twist them and manipulate them to do really cool things,” said Hayes. “I can pair lots of things up.”

Recently, Hayes made a Sara Lee molten lava cake with a ganache made from Hershey’s chocolate and Frank’s Asian ginger sauce.

“It’s really cool for me because I get to play

in two really big sandboxes,” said Hayes.

His day could start with a golf course meeting in the morning to discuss French’s trends, then over to a small chain at lunch representing Ventura Foods mayonnaise, and in the afternoon a chat at a health care facility about low-sodium or gluten-free products. Towards to end of the day, Hayes might find himself with a multi-unit operator. “There’s no two days that are the same,” said Hayes.

When creating a new menu item for an operator Hayes has to take into account a number of things such as labour, equipment and staff skill level.

“If somebody asks me to come up with ideas for their concept, I want to work in their restaurant first,” said Hayes. “The dishes I create, I don’t want them to be a waste of time looking at them. I want [clients] to know they already fit.”

August 2015 | 1 1

Boban Kovachevich,

EXECUTIVE HOTELS & RESORTS With an average day stretching from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Boban Kovachevich believes the role of a corporate chef requires a love for the trade.

“I just enjoy every second at work,” he said.

Born in Belgrade, Serbia, Kovachevich spent a lot of time working in Europe including six years in Israel, where the Jerusalem Post named him one of the top 10 chefs in the Middle East.

He got a job with Executive Hotels & Resorts after moving to Canada in 1998 and was promoted to executive chef of the chain’s downtown Vancouver location shortly after.

Now, Kovachevich is the corporate chef for Executive Hotels’ Lower Mainland B.C. hotels, a position he’s held since 2007 following four years with Harrison Hot Springs Resort & Spa. He oversees foodservice for five hotel restaurant concepts: Tivoli’s Restaurant, an Italian eatery in Burnaby, B.C. and in the Vancouver airport location; The Wild Fig Restaurant, Asian fusion in Coquitlam, B.C.; Carver’s Steakhouse + Lounge at the airport Executive; Copper Chimney Indian Grill & Bar at Vancouver’s Le Soleil hotel; and La Vallee at the downtown Executive. Throughout Canada, Executive has 13 properties as well as a few in the United States, but other provinces have franchised foodservice.

Kovachevich is responsible for creating menus, food production and innovation, ensuring high food quality and consistency, educating property chefs about new products and adjusting day-to-day operations for efficiency.

He also oversees banquet foodservice, which Kovachevich said brings in about $2.5 million per hotel.

“Vancouver is, in my opinion, one of the most multicultural cities in Canada and there are lots of flavours from India through to Asia,” said Kovachevich, adding 90 per cent of banquets request fusion or food from

a particular culture.

Kovachevich visits each hotel weekly and spends Saturday at whichever property will be busiest. After a food and beverage team meeting, he and the property’s head chef spend time examining operations, costs and guest comments from the week prior.

“When you find out a guest complained about something, this is good for us to know how we can improve,” he said.

“I jump [on the line] anytime, anywhere, when it’s needed,” said Kovachevich.

Last year, he spent time heading up the kitchen at the Coquitlam property to fill the gap between executive chefs. “I really don’t like to rush to hire anybody just to cover the position,” Kovachevich added.

Working with Executive’s other chefs on menu development is Kovachevich’s favourite part of the job. This ranges from changing unpopular or less prof profitable dishes to creating a new menu when Wild Fig changed from a steakhouse earlier this year.

“When I introduce a new menu, I usually involve the chef and complete kitchen crew to talk and discuss,” he said.

John Pekka Woods, HMSHOST

If John Pekka Woods can’t find a product that meets his standards, he removes it from the menu.

“If you can’t make it well, don’t serve it,” said Woods, Toronto-based executive chef/ director of culinary standards Canada for HMSHost.

Woods was the executive chef at Epicurean Restaurant & Bistro in Niagaraon-the-Lake, Ont., for eight years before opening Alice’s Restaurant in Toronto (named for his daughter), which closed in 2009.

Looking for a job that would allow him to spend weekends and evenings with his two girls, Woods joined HMSHost in 2011.

“The flying public is asking for better food,” said Woods, who has seven airports from coast-to-coast under his purview.

At Toronto Pearson International Airport, the large production kitchen allowed HMSHost to elevate offerings more than airports with small prep spaces, according to Woods.

The company familiar local and national brands, but also partnered with celebrity chefs to create airport

1 2 | Ontario Restaurant News

restaurants including: The Hearth by Lynn Crawford, Twist by Roger Mooking, Lee Kitchen by Susur Lee and Bar 120, which features a menu of molecular gastronomy by John Placko.

Woods said it has been fun working with these sophisticated chefs. His role is to take their menu ideas and ensure they work in an airport setting with respect to volume, equipment and the airport’s varied customer base.

“On the street, you get a bus pulling up to your restaurant and that’s really scary. In the airport, we have three planes or four planes that will be delayed and now we have 800 people wandering around looking for food,” said Woods.

“When you’re flying through an airport, much like an amusement park, you’re there to get on a plane and go somewhere, so we need to make sure that it is approachable for as many people as possible,” he said.

Since bringing on these new restaurant concepts, more menu items are made in house, such as house-cut fries and Hearth’s caramelized onion soup, and sourced locally.

When it comes to prep, the kitchen is making smaller batches more often. “When I first got here, I think I counted the recipe book at about 80 recipes downstairs in production and now we have more than 300,” Woods said.

In addition to making sure everything is running smoothly with respect to supply, production and execution, Woods is sometimes found opening one of HMSHost’s restaurants for the day.

“I like to work the line, especially when they get busy. I tend to let them do the hard parts and I’ll move into the salad station or the fry station,” said Woods, adding this allows him to look for efficiencies.

As Woods’ role shifted to include more planning and implementation of new items, Claudia Gibson and Zubin Aria were brought on as specialty chefs to help with operations.

Geurin Sykes, RATIONAL AG

For Rational AG, 1976 was a landmark year.

The company launched what would become its flagship product: the Combi-steamer.

Coincidentally, 1976 is the same year Guerin Sykes, Rational Canada’s corporate executive chef and key accounts manager, was born.

However, Sykes’ interest in foodservice was piqued long before crossing paths with the manufacturer of ovens and food steamers.

He entered the foodservice industry at 12 years old, and eventually left his native Nova Scotia to pursue a culinary career in Ontario. By the time he was 22 years old, Sykes opened his first restaurant in Burlington, Ont. “I kind of grew up in this industry. My mom was a non-papered chef. At a very young age I was at the apron so to speak,” he said. “They couldn’t keep me out of the kitchen.”

Sykes originally joined Rational as an executive chef. As demand grew for the company’s products in Canada, he moved into the role of corporate executive chef.

“All of our corporate chefs were based out of Germany,” he said. “As sales grew, demand grew and our customer base grew. It was a necessary need.”

Rational employs corporate chefs in 15 of its largest markets around the world in an effort to meet its customers’ needs. Today, Rational’s products assist chefs around the world to prepare more than 100 million meals a day.

“It’s more relevant. Each country is a little bit unique. Not everything translates from country to country appropriately,” Sykes explained. “Each marketplace, although similar, definitely has its own struggles, challenges and needs.”

Backed by a support team of eight executive chefs and 85 regional chefs, Sykes leads the company’s training initiatives for customers throughout Canada.

“For Rational, I am the link between the manufacturer and the handson chefs,” he said. “My role is interpreting what the customer, or my

chefs’, challenges are and translating it back to the manufacturer, or vice versa.”

Outside of training clients, Sykes assists with research and development of Rational’s product line.

“I do a lot personally with large chain accounts. When it comes to the R&D side of things, I work with their corporate chefs or with their development chefs,” Sykes said.

“That part is definitely interesting, and quite challenging too.”

The R&D side of the position may be difficult, but Sykes explained solving problems for his fellow chefs rewards him. “It’s probably the best part of the job. Not everything is black and white and you do need to think outside of the box,” he said.

Research and development also ensures Rational remains current as technology continues to meld with kitchen hardware. Innovative kitchen tech is what built the Combi-steamer, Rational’s flagship product, which combines steam and dry heat in one cooking cabinet.

“We are the learning curve and we continue to be the learning curve,” Sykes said. “We focus on three simple things: we want to save people time, save them money and make their life easier.”

Brandon Thordarson, MOXIE’S GRILL AND BAR Long before Brandon Thordarson was creating menu items for Moxie’s Grill and Bar’s as executive chef, he had a vested interest in the culinary arts.

At nine years old, Thordarson enrolled in his first cooking class.

“I was cooking cookies and cakes. It was amazing and that sort of sparked the interest at a young age,” he said.

Thordarson continued to develop his skills, working at a family restaurant throughout high school. After graduation, he enrolled in culinary school, which opened the door to travelling the world to work as a chef.

His experiences abroad are now the building blocks used to create new entrées for Moxie’s menu, his main role with the company.

“I think culture and travel are the biggest inspiration,” he said.

Local ingredients also help spark ideas when developing a new menu item.

“When I am looking for a spring feature, I literally just go to the Cal-

gary’s farmers’ market,” Thordarson explained. “I like to buy a lot of fresh produce right there. I’ll grab what I need to do some discovery and development.”

Once Thordarson has a creation in mind, the recipe is perfected and eventually presented to the president of the company.

“We do full due diligence on the development piece before we launch it in five of our test stores,” Thordarson said. “From there, depending on the success or failure of the dish, we launch it nationally.”

From concept to customer, the process for a new entrée takes about six months to a year.

“It is cool to see it go live and land, especially when it’s executed perfectly,” Thordarson said. “When it’s done perfectly, and you know the methods worked, it’s a very invigorating feeling for sure.”

Since joining Moxie’s in 2012, Thordarson’s role has evolved beyond recipe development. When a new menu is created, Thordarson is tasked with training chefs at Moxie’s 64 locations throughout Canada.

“I’m getting more involved with operations as far as making sure execution is perfect,” Thordarson said.

He also follows up at Moxie’s various restaurants to ensure consistency with his original vision. The visit also offers insight into whether or not the wording of a recipe needs clarification, or if the dish could be prepared in a more productive fashion.

“I’ll visit with a chef and we’ll order the food together. It’s enlightening for myself to go and see the food being executed,” Thordarson said. “And it’s great for the young chefs in the company to have me come in and sit down with them.”

August 2015 | 1 3

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BEVERAGE NEWS

What makes a great wine?

By Colleen Isherwood, Senior Editor What factors enable Robert Mondavi to command prices exceeding $150 U.S. per bottle for its reserve wines year after year?

What goes into making a premium wine?

An outline of the winery on a window overlooking To Kalon vineyard.

Mark de Vere, Master of Wine.

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This was the question at the heart of a media tour of To Kalon Vineyard in Napa, Calif., in June. Led by Mark de Vere, one of just a handful of Masters of Wine in the U.S., with input from To Kalon director of winemaking Geneviève Janssens and others, journalists and wine buyers from around the world explored the making of great wine.

We saw vineyards from the air, floating in a hot air balloon above the Napa Valley. We tasted classic Cabernets from around the world; then zeroed in on California, the Napa Valley, the Oakville AVA (American Viticultural Area) and finally the Mondavi To Kalon Vineyard.

We learned about the subtleties of climate and soil — how they differ within the confines of the Napa Valley. And we learned about how the winemaker comes up with just the right blend for each year’s premium wines.

Old world versus new world One of our first assignments was to taste five Cabernet Sauvignons from around the world. There was a Chateau D’Issan 2012 Bordeaux from France, which de Vere described as having acidity, a graphite aroma, a hint of green pepper, but not too much, an expensive oak focus and a tightness on the palate.

It tasted quite different from a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, due to geographical influences. Bordeaux is at 45 N latitude, while Napa is at 38 N; Napa has an earlier spring and later fall; in Bordeaux, the days get shorter faster; Bordeaux is influenced by the Gulf Stream, while Napa’s climate is moderated by a very cold body of water, the Pacific Ocean.

Winemaker Geneviève Janssens.

Wines from the Oakville AVA in the Napa Valley.

Next, we tried five Cabernet Sauvignons from the West Coast, discovering some regional differences. The 2011 Seven Hills Vineyard Cab, from Walla Walla, Wash., an inland desert area, was rich and dense, punch and strong.

This area has a more continental climate, and offers a strength in tannins different from that of California wines.

Napa rocks So why is the Napa Valley considered one of the world’s premiere wine regions?

Napa is 58 km from the Pacific Ocean and 78 km northeast of San Francisco. It’s small in size, providing only 4 per cent of California wines by volume. It’s just 45,000 acres, compared to 290,000 for Bordeaux, but it has a big impact on Napa County, generating $13 billion and 46,000 jobs.

Geologically, thanks to the Pacific Plate pushing under the Continental Plate forming valleys parallel to the coast, the west side of the valley has red, volcanic soil. There are over 100 soil variations in the valley, de Vere said.

“Napa has a dry summer, a Mediterranean climate and a long growing season that is consistent from vintage to vintage,” he said. A key factor is the cooling influence of the fog that comes off the Pacific Ocean from the direction of San Francisco. The south end of the valley is much cooler than the north.

Alluvial soils washed down by waters off the hills form alluvial fans; heavier stones are deposited first and the soils that are closer to the river are rich, clay soils.

The Oakville AVA, where To Kalon is lo-

cated, is largely a valley floor with vineyards on the side of a hill on the far east side. De Vere calls it “the sweet spot” for Napa wine. “The fruit is ripe, with big tannins, but with finesse and it keeps its acidity. Oakville has the highest score for wines of any of the AVAs in Napa,” he said.

Soil preparation, spacing of the vines and row direction all affect wine production, TO Kalon winemaker Janssens said, showing us samples of different soils taken from various parts of the vineyard.

On the last day of the trip, we tasted wines from the barrels. The barrel samples were from different parts of the 150 acres of the To Kalon vineyard, and were possible candidates for use in To Kalon’s Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve.

A sample from the north side of the vineyard tasted soft and round with an attractive nose, classic Napa character, soft tannins and fine structure — but it lacked complexity and intensity. Another sample from higher up on the slope and sandier soil, had more of a black fruit taste and was strong and firm, with more power and expression.

The third sample, from the Monastery Block soils right at the back of the vineyard, had more elegance and finesse.

The fourth barrel sample was a Cabernet Franc from the back of the vineyard — Cabernet Franc being an invaluable blending tool.

Weather adds to the mix, Janssens explained. While 2011 was a challenging year due to climate, she describes the Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve they made as “very poetic, and we expect it to age well in time.”

BEVERAGE NEWS

Brewdog unleashed in Canada

From left: Nishin Meawasige and Blair Hagman.

Manitoulin Island gets brewing MANITOWANING, Ont. — Long-time friends Blair Hagman and Nishin Meawasige have been working out of Hagman’s garage to create Manitoulin Brewing Company’s flagship Sawingbridge Blonde.

The duo were inspired a couple years ago by the good music, vibe and craft beer at the Hillside Festival in Guelph, Ont. “We thought, ‘We should do something like this’,” said Meawasige, who works for local First Nations. “What better place to open a craft brewery than Manitoulin Island? It’s such a unique place here in Ontario — in Canada, really; the largest freshwater island in the world.

So many things about the island were a draw for us to want to start a brewery here and get involved in the industry.”

Unlike many startups that are born of a love of homebrewing, Hagman said, “The idea was crazy because Nishin and I never brewed a day in our life before and it was just this idea that happened at that moment in time at that event.”

A week later, they were still thinking about it.

They put an ad out through Niagara College and brought on brewmaster Mark Lewis. In

June, their first shipment went out to about 15 licensees on Manitoulin Island and a handful of craft-focused establishments in Sudbury, Ont. A property in Little Current, Ont., will become MBC headquarters with a tasting bar and retail store following summer renovations.

Hagman said they are getting an idea of their potential market and plan on installing a 20-hectolitre system to increase capacity.

“We can’t produce any more right now to be able to go any further. We don’t want to over commit to bars and restaurants,” said Hagman, a Grade 8 teacher.

Meawasige said it is important to them to have MBC’s brew available to restaurants before retail in order to support other local businesses.

The brewery has a Belgian Ale and an IPA in the pipeline and will continue to name future creations after Manitoulin Island landmarks.

MBC is one of two breweries on the island.

Split Rail Brewing Company, founded by Andrea Smith and Eleanor Charlton, opened July 24 in Gore Bay, Ont. after a Kickstarter campaign raised $23,806 from 156 backers.

TORONTO — Scotland’s largest craft brewery has embarked on a mission to take over taps throughout Canada.

Brewdog was recently reintroduced to the Canadian market during a cross-country tour in July.

“Our ethos has always been to make people as passionate about craft beer as we are, and to change people’s perception about what beer can be,” said Jonathan Reid, Brewdog’s European business development manager.

Brewdog was available in Canada until about a year ago, when demand began to trump supply.

“Our growth at times outstripped our supply. Now we’re in a position where we’re growing at a healthier level,” Reid said during a beer meet-and-greet at The Caledonian in Toronto.

“It’s great to be back in the Canadian market.”

In Canada, Brewdog is offering Punk IPA (5.6 per cent ABV, IBU 35), Five Am Red Ale (5 per cent ABV, IBU 35), This. Is. Lager (4.7 per cent ABV, IBU 40), Hardcore Imperial IPA (9.2 per cent ABV, IBU 125) and Dogma Scotch Ale (7.4 per cent ABV, IBU 30).

“We’re a Scottish brewery that brings a contemporary twist on traditional styles,” Reid said.

“It’s a nice representation of the U.K. craft beer scene.”

The brewery has partnered with Premier Brands to distribute its products. So far, Brewdog is available in about 40 establishments in Toronto, as well as in bars and restaurants in

Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta. Brewdog expects its beer will be available nationwide by the end of summer.

“We continue to open (new taps) every day,” said Jeff Dafoe, president of Premier Brands.

“There’s always people looking for the product.”

Brewdog first opened in Fraserburgh, Scotland in 2007. Today, the brewery sells about 90,000 hectolitres in 55 countries a year.

Brewdog also holds the Guinness World Record for the strongest beer ever sold. Named The End of History, the beer boasted a 55 per cent ABV and sold for about $800 US a bottle.

“We do a lot of things that grab people’s attention,” Reid said.

2015 CVA awards handed out “He is an industry veteran in the true sense of the word, actively serving the wine industry for 45 years. Newman has helped build the Canadian wine industry from the ground up, working to establish the regulatory, financial and policy foundation which has helped pave the way for this indusFrom left: Dan Paszkowski, CVA president and CEO, John try’s 550 wineries,” Schreiner, Newman Smith and Tony Stewart, CVA chair.

Tony Stewart, CVA chair and president of NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, Ont. – The Canadian Vintners Association (CVA) presented Quails’ Gate Winery, said in a release.

The Wine Industry Champion Award was Newman Smith and John Schreiner with the 2015 Canadian Wine Industry Awards on July presented to Vancouver resident John Sch16 at the fifth annual International Cool Cli- reiner, who has written 15 books on Canadian mate Chardonnay Celebration in Niagara-on- wine over three decades including The Wines of Canada and Okanagan Wine Tour Guide. the-Lake, Ont. “John’s been a fan of Canadian wines long Newman Smith, of Ontario’s Strewn Winery was presented with the Award of Distinc- before they were considered cool and through tion for outstanding leadership, commitment his work, he’s educated and influenced consumand passion for the advancement of the Cana- ers across the country and beyond our borders,” said Stewart. dian wine industry.

August 2015 | 1 5

D E C O D I N G T H E D ATA

Home is where the heart is, and food is following suit

By Scott Stewart

As social media and online shopping tightens its grasp

The Canadian foodservice market is experiencing a challenge that affects the entire industry.

The average Canadian used foodservice 193 times in 2011, but now only goes out 177 times annually. Population growth has been able to negate those declines in per capita visits, keeping total traffic relatively flat — but the erosion of visit frequency is a concern that is not showing signs of stopping.

Why are Canadians using restaurants less often? According to The NPD Group, much of this has to do with the activities consumers are taking part in before their foodservice visit.

Specifically, there are certain activities that are more likely to result in a foodservice visit than others, such as being on vacation compared to working from home all day.

If these foodservice-friendly prior activities decline, then the industry is threatened with lower traffic numbers as a result. The key is to understand these shifts in consumer behaviour to develop ways operators can better position themselves for success.

A shift back home Canadian commercial foodservice traffic declined by one per cent this year.

However, in that same time period, occasions that started at the consumer’s home increased by four per cent.

The issue has been other prior activities: shopping/errands dropped by eight per cent, visiting someone else’s home and entertainment/recreation both lost five per cent, while vacation declined by more than 15 per cent.

on society, spontaneous visits to restaurants dwindle.

This indicates that Canadians are out and about less often; considering other consumer trends in recent years, this development is not surprising.

With the advent of online shopping and banking, the need to leave the house to run errands is lessening.

As social media becomes more entrenched in our lives, it’s becoming less necessary to visit friends and family in person at their homes.

With the growing trend of “staycationing” it would be expected that vacation traffic is dropping quickly.

Altogether, this means the Canadian consumer is spending more time in their home and less out in the market.

That is a major concern for a market that often depends on spontaneous decisions and the need to replicate a consumer’s kitchen when they can’t be at home. If consumers are at home more often, the need for foodservice dwindles.

Not only is this evident in the total market, but full service restaurants (FSR) are experiencing these issues as well. Since last year, FSR traffic declined by 40 million visits, but occasions that originated at home increased by 21 million, a growth of three per cent. A more extreme trend was not in where consumers started, but where they ended up. FSR occasions eaten in the restaurant declined by 55 million compared to last year, but occasions of eating at home actually grew by nine per cent, adding

17 million more occasions. This means that, while consumers are visiting FSR less overall, more consumers are actually taking their food home.

Interestingly, FSR consumers who started at home are also more likely to eat it at home too. Among consumers who started at home, 23 per cent of FSR occasions are off-premise, compared to only 15 per cent among all FSR consumers.

This is where the growth is coming from as well; of the 21 million new FSR occasions coming from home, 14 million meals were consumed off-premise.

This adds further evidence to the idea that consumers are spending more time in their homes, to the point that they’re forgoing the traditional FSR experience and opting to bring the food home instead.

What operators can do With this shift, there is both a concern and an opportunity for operators.

The concern is that occasions starting from home are not growing enough to compensate for other losses.

Long term, this presents a threat to the market as consumers are increasingly in situations where they can source a meal from their own kitchens.

The opportunity is for operators who can capitalize on the shift to these occasions starting from — and often going back to — the

home. Bolstering off-premise options is one way for an operator to continue to compete.

Not only does this mean allowing for carry-out or implementing delivery, but also ensuring packaging is effective and food quality is maintained if there is a delay between being served at the restaurant and being eaten at home.

The other opportunity is to anticipate this consumer shift and use it in communication and messaging. Making the restaurant experience about getting out of the house and the kitchen and enjoying the sit-down experience will resonate with consumers that we know are spending more time in at home.

Operators who adopt this messaging can build a strategic advantage over competitors amidst this shift in behaviour.

Adapting to the new consumer There is certainly reason for concern in the foodservice industry, as overall consumer trends seem to be hurting the market.

However, this trend is larger than restaurants, with social, technological and economic implications that no restaurateur can expect to control.

What the restaurant can do is anticipate and react to this shift by offering food in ways that are more responsive to this more homefocused lifestyle, and communicate in a way that is going to resonate with these Canadians.

Scott Stewart is an account manager, foodservice Canada for The NPD Group. The NPD Group has more than 25 years of experience providing reliable and comprehensive consumer-based market information to leaders in the foodservice industry. For more information, visit www. npd.com or contact him at scott.stewart@npd.com.

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S U P P LY

Relief on beef prices isn’t expected soon CALGARY — With beef prices continuing to climb, experts are signaling relief isn’t on its way anytime soon.

According to Statistics Canada, the slaughter cattle price was $192.80 per 100 pounds in Alberta throughout May, which represents a 36 per cent increase compared to the previous year.

“Most of the fundamentals are pointing towards these elevated beef prices staying fairly high,” said Brian Perillat, manager of CanFax, the market analysis division of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. “They may come off a little maybe next year, but I wouldn’t count on it too much.”

Perillat explained several factors have led to a shrinking number of cattle throughout North America, which fuels an increase in prices.

“Basically, it goes back to the fundamentals of supply and demand,” said Perillat. “Supply has been short and demand really has been phenomenal, not only domestically in North America, but globally.”

While Perillat believes the bulk of the price rise has already occurred, the cost of beef likely will not drop for two to four years. He said a lower price point for pork and poultry could help balance the price of beef in an effort to compete.

“We’ve seen the bulk of the rally,” he said.

“But we’re expecting to maintain quite elevated levels for a while yet.”

Charolais cattle graze in a field.

Photo courtesy of Ron Waddling.

While demand has grown, beef supply has shrunk. Drought throughout North America has led to beef producers slashing their herd sizes. In the United States alone, drought in 2011 and 2012 led to the sell-off of about one million cattle due to lack of feed and water.

“A lot of producers exited the cattle industry. Last year, the U.S. herd was at one of its lowest points in about 60 years,” Perillat said.

“The Canadian cattle herd is at its lowest point in about 20 years.”

Rebuilding the herd requires sending fewer cows to slaughter, as heifers are needed for breeding.

“You take them out of beef production to

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rebreed and start to grow the herd again,” Perillat said. “That turnaround point takes about two, three or four years, and that just started in the United States.”

While American beef producers begin to rebuild their herd, Canadian producers are facing similar trouble with drought this year. For Alberta and Saskatchewan, 2015 marked the driest spring on record in 68 years.

“We just didn’t see the April showers that bring May flowers,” said Patrick Cherneski, manager of climate operations, monitoring and forecasting, for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. “We’ve had extended periods, really long stages, with no precipitation.”

With 75 per cent of the prairie landscape receiving low rain, crops are suffering, particularly in central Alberta and western Saskatchewan.

Cherneski said crops typically used for livestock feed are the hardest hit.

“We’re hearing reports in those areas that the first cut of hay was poor and there likely won’t be another cut,” Cherneski said, noting two hay harvests a season is the norm.

The lack of hay means beef producers need to import feed or move the herd from its normal grazing location.

“Of course, there’s a cost equation here,” Cherneski said.

Beef isn’t the only ingredient with a climbing price tag. According to Statistics Canada’s Consumer Price Index, the price of meat in general climbed 7.9 per cent in May, when compared to the previous year, while the cost of fresh vegetables increased 5.8 per cent, bakery products three per cent and fresh fruit jumped 2.9 per cent.

As well, the cost of food purchased from restaurants increased 2.9 per cent nationwide, the largest increase since December 2011.

A survey by Restaurants Canada found about 65 per cent of restaurants recorded higher food costs in the first six months of 2015. The survey also found that 53 per cent of respondents expect their menu prices to climb in the next six months.

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August 2015 | 1 7

PEOPLE

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1. Masaharu Morimoto at Taste of Toronto. Photo by George Pimentel. 2. Ken Lefebour cooking for charity. Photo by Chris Hourmouzis. 3. Paul Moran. 4. Laren Mote.

Frederic Dimanche has been appointed director of the Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management (TRSHTM) at the Toronto’s Ryerson University.

Dimanche replaces David Martin, who served as director for 10 years.

“We all look forward to having Dr. Dimanche join our faculty and the Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management,” Steven Murphy, dean of the Ted Rogers School of Management, said in a letter sent to industry colleagues.

Dimanche comes to the school from the SKEMA Business School in France, and completed his academic studies at the University of Oregon and the University of Poitiers, also in France.

In addition, he has extensive experience in undergraduate and graduate teaching and research. In 2001, SKEMA Business School hired Dimanche to lead the development of Master programs and research in the field of tourism management.

Tobias MacDonald has joined the ranks of Certified Master Chef, the highest culinary designation in Canada.

After four years of hard work, he completed his practical examinations at Toronto’s Humber College in late June.

MacDonald is a member of the culinary arts faculty at Vancouver Community College and a Culinary Team Canada coach. He has a long history in the realm of culinary competitions including gold medals as Team Canada Captain in 2008 at the IKA World Culinary Olympics in Erfurt Germany, as well as gold medals in the World Culinary Cup in Luxembourg and the Salon Culinaire Mondial in Switzerland. He Bill Tremblay joined Ishcom Publications in early July as assistant editor of Ontario Restaurant News, Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News, Atlantic Restaurant News and Canadian Lodging News.

Tremblay brings a decade of community news experience to his new position. Most recently, he was with The Orangeville Banner as a reporter and photographer.

Tremblay has received numerous awards for his writing and reporting including: North Dufferin Agricultural and Community Taskforce’s (NDACT) Tater Awards for best Foodstock coverage in 2011; best feature writing, Metroland Award, on the demise of the Mel-

1 8 | Ontario Restaurant News

was the America’s representative at the WACS, Global Chef competition in Daejeon, South Korea in 2011 garnering a third place finish.

Tobias also was instrumental in coaching and inspiring the 2012 National Junior Culinary Team in their quest for gold in Ireland, Korea and Germany.

MacDonald is the second Canadian chef to complete the designation, following Judson Simpson two years ago.

Members of Toronto’s culinary scene were joined at Taste of Toronto by Masaharu Morimoto, who will be opening his first Canadian restaurant at 224 King St. W. in collaboration with ICON Legacy Hospitality and INK Entertainment.

The second annual festival hosted more than 22,000 guests at Fort York, where kitchen teams from 26 Toronto restaurants set up shop from July 2 to 5.

At the opening day reception, Jacob Richler, Pay Chen and Rebecca Fleming had the task of judging dishes and booths. From the 16 bites presented for judging: first place went to chef Damon Campbell, Bosk at the Shangri-La Hotel, Toronto, for his crispy black vinegar chicken with shishito pepper, cucumber, toasted peanut, cilantro glaze; Michael van den Winkel, Little Sister, picked up second place with babi panggang roasted pork belly, fresh chili sauce, bean sprout and red onion pickle and third place was claimed by Splendido’s Victor Barry for his Atlantic salmon dish with rice cakes. Barque was named best-dressed booth.

In June, Hamilton area chefs, artists and musician came together to support their local community at the Hamilton Spectator Auditorium.

Chef Ken Lefebour, owner of Nellie James Gourmet Food to Go in Dundas, Ont., is the man behind the idea and second edition dubbed A Happening Too — Bridging the Gap. This year, $4,700 was raised for Hamilton Interval House and The Hamilton Spectator Summer Camp Fund.

B.C. chef Paul Moran placed fifth in the San Pellegrino Young Chef 2015 competition.

Held in Milan, Italy in June, the contest invited 20 chefs younger than 30 years old from around the world to compete.

Moran, who is executive chef for both The Outpost, an exclusive fishing lodge in Haida Gwaii, and CMH K2, a heli-skiing destination in British Columbia, prepared his signature dish, blood pigeon smoked and roasted with beet jus and charcoal oil, polenta and salsify, for the inaugural contest.

Mark Moriarty, who represented the United Kingdom and Ireland, placed first in the competition.

Lauren Mote, Bittered Sling Bitters coproprietor and UVA wine and cocktail bas manager, was named the 2015 Canadian Bartender of the Year in bartending competition Diageo World Class Canada.

Held in late June in Chicago, Mote competed against nine top bartenders for the chance to represent Canada at the global finals in Cape Town, South Africa. The competition, which runs from Aug. 28 to Sept. 5, will host bartenders from 57 countries.

After eight years with Groupex Systems Canada and four years as chief operating officer of Restaurants Canada, Carmine Aquino has

left the association, effective July 31.

“It’s been an honour and a pleasure to have worked with the great teams at Groupex and Restaurants Canada over the past 12 years, as well as with so many talented leaders in our industry,” Aquino said in a release. “I’m proud of what we accomplished together for this wonderful industry, but it’s time for me to move on to new challenges.”

Aquino joined Groupex — a group buying service for independent operators owned by Restaurants Canada — in 2003 and served as president from 2006 to 2011.

He then joined the senior management team at Restaurants Canada, assuming responsibility for membership, trade shows and sponsorship programs.

Prior to joining Groupex and Restaurants Canada, Aquino held various senior positions over a 23-year career at Sysco.

A decision on Aquino’s replacement has not yet been made.

Food industry research company Technomic Inc. announced the addition of Margot Swindall to its Canadian business development team on July 21.

Swindall will be responsible for the expansion of Technomic’s footprint in the Canadian market and will focus on the company’s service portfolio including its Digital Resource Library, Consumer Trend Reports, MenuMonitor, Foodservice Planning Program and Consumer Brand Metrics.

Swindall began her foodservice career at the Campbell Soup Company with a focus on the distribution channel. Most recently, she was the director of new market opportunities at Fresh Start Foods.

COMING EVENTS Sept. 3: Kitchen Bitches: Smashing the Patriarchy One Plate at a Time, Revival Bar, Toronto. kitchenbitches.ca ancton, Ont., quarry; and second place for breaking news from Local Media Association Awards for coverage of the 2013 ice storm.

“We’re delighted to have someone with Bill’s newspaper experience and know that he will be a valuable addition to our team,” said senior editor Colleen Isherwood.

Sept. 17-20: P.E.I. International Shellfish Festival, Charlottetown Festival Grounds, Charlottetown. peishellfish.com Oct. 4-5: Canadian Coffee & Tea Show, Vancouver Convention Centre East. coffeeteashow.ca

Oct. 21: Restaurants for Change. restaurantsforchange.ca Oct. 24: Canadian Hospitality Foundation Ball, Fairmont Royal York Hotel, Toronto. thechf.ca Oct. 25-27: Natures Expo Virtual Trade Show. naturesexpo.com Nov. 8-10: HX: The Hotel Experience (formerly IHMRS), Javits Convention Center, New York City. thehotelexperience.com

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Ontario Restaurant News’ editorial staff is in the community, at industry events and conferences, getting in on the discussion and connecting with operators through social media. Read the magazine how you want and when you want with our smartphone and tablet-compatible website and digital editions. Reach the foodservice industry through its inbox, our twice-monthly Restaurant News Report provides national coverage and in-depth regional news. www.ontariorestaurantnews.com

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