Atlantic Restaurant News - May 2015

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A T L A N T I C May 2015 Vol. 17 No. 2

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IMVESCOR UNVEILS STRATEGIC PLAN

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C O V E R A G E

REPORT ON QUICK SERVICE

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F O C U S

CANADIAN WINE GROWING REGIONS

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FEATURE: TOP 35 CHAINS INCLUDING RANKING BY CATEGORY

Going all season

By Kristen Smith Associate Editor

Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010152

SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — Jonathan Vickerson’s new eatery allows him to maintain his food cart and transition into a brick and mortar location at 24 Central St. He’s renting a 1,300-square-foot space in Summerside, P.E.I., for Vickerson’s Kitchen and while customers are seated and served inside, the dishes are made out back in the parked food truck.

The P.E.I. native studied at the Culinary Institute of Canada and started a catering company in 2007. He has spent time in a number of kitchens on the island, including the Delta Prince Edward and The Dunes Café, and throughout Canada with a year spent up north cooking at an iron mine camp on Baffin Island.

Vickerson saved his pennies and started a food truck back home.

Borrowing money to open a small restaurant is a huge financial risk, he said. “But with these food carts, people are starting to see that they can borrow $50,000 to $60,000, but they can’t borrow half a million dollars. It really is a way that a lot of young chefs are trying to get their foot in the door, I think,” said Vickerson.

Now, he plans to transition that into a restaurant and said he will either move the equipment into the new space this winter or buy new equipment.

“I’ve been quite successful with the catering

business, but you do a wedding every weekend in June, July, August, but it’s really not enough money for the year to keep you going,” said Vickerson.

Vickerson used the kitchen at Brackley Beach North Winds for a reasonable rental fee for both the catering business and the food truck. Working in tight quarters in the 14-foot enclosed trailer decked out with a fryer, oven, and grill, Vickerson plans to continue using the space for prep.

Vikerson is starting out with four menu items: beef stroganoff topped with fresh dill and sour cream made with Island Beef, chicken souvlaki with tzatziki, Cajun shrimp with coconut curry and salmon with a simple cream sauce.

“There is so much awesome product on P.E.I.,” said Vickerson, adding he can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t spend the time sourcing local, fresh products. “I plan on only being open in the evenings so I can source these things out through the day.”

He said it makes sense financially as well, especially for a chef/owner, to go buy a lobster from a fisherman or potatoes from your neighbour.

His chalkboard menu will change constantly and clearly state where the product came from.

Vickerson thinks “if a couple people really get those standards up there and say ‘I buy local,’ it forces other people to do that.”

His fiancé Adrienne Hagen will be sprucing up the 35-seat space with local art and plants.

Chef Jonathan Vickerson.

FROZU! concept growing in Atlantic Canada

FROZU! toppings.

TRURO, N.S. — Grinners Food Systems launched its latest concept, FROZU!, less than two years ago and since then, has grown to more than a dozen locations.

Grinners, a branch of TruCorp Investments, also franchises Greco Pizza

and Capt. Submarine in Atlantic Canada and owns and operates Frank & Gino’s restaurant in Truro, N.S. The frozen yogurt concept first opened in a Capt. Submarine in Truro in August 2013. That original location is being relocated and will become a tribranded outlet with all of the Grinners brands under one roof. “It certainly cuts down on overhead when you do it that way,” said vice-president of operations Don Moore.

Opening 11 units in 2014, there are now two Nova Scotia FROZU! locations (including the one being relocated); six in New Brunswick, three in

P.E.I. and three in Newfoundland and Labrador with a fourth slated to open in mid-May at 430 Main Rd. in Goulds, N.L, in conjunction with a Greco Pizza.

“To get to 13, it took us a year and a half to get there, which made us the largest frozen yogurt chain in Atlantic Canada,” said Moore. “This year, we are targeting 15 to 20 more FROZU!s.”

With a flexible footprint ranging from 100 to 500 square feet, all of FROZU!’s current locations are addons.

Moore said FROZU! boasts a good, profitable product. “And it’s also fun to add to any concept, so within either our

own or another existing business, it really fits with almost anything, should it be a convenience store, another restaurant,” said Moore. “Anywhere there’s foodservice it really fits as a side and usually doesn’t compete with your main menu; it’s all top on sales.”

FROZU!’s menu includes about 50 revolving flavours (and a flavour of the month) and about 80 rotating toppings including healthy options such as nuts and flaxseed and indulgent candies.

“Which is what makes it such a fun concept. You can basically make a new dessert every time you’re there,” said Moore.

Imvescor unveils strategic plan

Renovated Baton Rouge interior in Quebec.

By Jonathan Zettel, Associate Editor MONCTON, N.B. — The company behind Pizza Delight, Mikes, Scores and Baton Rouge has unveiled its plan to right declining sales and refresh its restaurants with a $5.5-million investment.

Moncton, N.B.-based Imvescor — which has 234 restaurants, most in Eastern Canada — said its strategy is to be “brilliant at the basics.”

“Our approach is now that we move forward, focusing on the four pillars of quality, freshness, value and ambiance,” said Imvescor president and chief executive officer Frank Hennessey.

“Over the past several years, for many reasons, in some cases, we have not delivered as well as we could on all of those fronts.”

According to the company, system-wide sales have dropped from $415 million in 2010 to $377 million in 2014.

As outlined at Imvescor’s annual general meeting in mid-April, the plan will focus on same restaurant sales growth, improving franchisee profitability, enhancing and leveraging shared services and improving shareholder return.

The company’s restaurant rejuvenation plan will incent franchisees to renovate more than 100 restaurants across the system. According to the strategic report, 50 per cent of properties are past due for renovations. Hennessey said the $5.5-million investment was an important part of the process to show “we’re committed to their success.”

According to Hennessey, the feedback from

franchise owners has been positive.

“It’s been extremely positive — it’s a bit unprecedented,” he said, adding one of the company’s major franchisees plans to renovate all of his locations. “Everybody recognizes we need to evolve.”

As part of the plan, the company will consider potential acquisitions, if the right opportunity arises, Hennessey said. It is projected over the next few years, the company will net 10 new locations and has no plans at present to expand further west of Ontario or introduce new concepts.

All restaurants within the Imvescor family will see revitalized menus focusing on quality, freshness and value, according to the company.

The strategic plan also states it will reposition Mikes full service restaurants.

By 2018, the company projects between 14 and 18 per cent growth in sales.

Alongside its restaurants, Imvescor also produces 19 soups and 16 frozen meals under the Commensal brand, delivering to all major grocers in the region, taking 80 per cent of the fresh prepared soup market with a total of $8.4 million in sales.

Hennessey was hired on as president and chief executive officer in September 2014 with more than 27 years experience in the foodservice industry. Prior to coming to Imvescor, Hennessey was the president and chief executive officer of Bento Sushi and before that, he spent 11 years at Cara Operations Limited in different roles including president of Harvey’s Restaurants.

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A new face for The Old Triangle HALIFAX — The Old Triangle Pub Irish Alehouse in Halifax is getting a makeover.

The renovations will increase capacity and see a 4,000-square-foot expansion, adding a second level inside the century old building at the group’s flagship location at 5126 Prince Street.

“We had to turn down a lot of requests for large groups — we get everything from wedding parties and retirement parties and everything else and it gets very difficult,” said co-owner Cheryl Doherty. “The renovations will give us a chance to expand our horizons while keeping the original feel of the pub.”

The new look will open up a second floor which will hold a prep kitchen, a full bar with 12 taps, more than 100 seats, and a smaller 25-seat room equipped with audiovisual equipment for business meetings.

Prior to the renovations, the restaurant had an off-site prep kitchen, which proved difficult for operations, Doherty said.

“After exhaustive studies to see if you could actually stick a kitchen upstairs, we managed to work it out,” she said, adding the main kitchen will still operate on the first floor and the pub will nearly double its space from 4,300 square feet to 8,000 square feet. “This will just allow us to do so much more.”

With two red seal chefs on the payroll, Doherty said the pub is looking to push culinary boundaries with charcuterie boards and specials.

As part of the renovations, the pub will add a craft beer fridge, offering at least six local craft brews on tap.

www.atlanticrestaurantnews.com/sub

The Old Triangle owners Brian and Cheryl Doherty.

“Whisky is another thing right now,” said Doherty, adding The Old Triangle offers whisky flights that include a taste of Johnny Walker Blue for $10.

As a sommelier, Doherty looks to offer a wide selection of local and international wines.

“Wine is doing so well, making up about 20 per cent of our liquor business, and we’re an Irish pub,” she said, adding the Nova Scotia wine scene is really taking off with many great selections.

The renovation has not been without its headaches, she said. “Every time you tear some drywall out of the ceiling you, discover something really odd,” Doherty said. At one point during the renovations, the construction crew found a solid granite support beam, “which no

one has ever seen before.”

The Old Triangle takes up three historic buildings and between each section is a two- to three-foot thick dividing wall. “So every time you want to do electrical or plumbing, you have to go through these really thick walls,” she said.

Headaches aside, Doherty said she’s excited to get the operation firing on all cylinders by the end of May. Doherty and her husband Brian started The Old Triangle 15 years ago and there are now locations in Halifax, Sydney, N.S., Charlottetown, P.E.I., and Moncton, N.B. According to Doherty, there are plans for another location in Nova Scotia, which have been put on the backburner until after the renovations are complete.

May 2015 | 3

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A T L A N T I C

EDITORIAL

’m old enough to remember the exponential growth of fast food in the ’80s. The commercialization of burger joints with their bizarre, brightly-coloured mascots — yeah, I’m looking at you Hamburglar — perpetuated and cemented the notion that life is fun and easy, and our food should be too. Nothing from that decade could derail our desire for cheap, easy fast food.

Growing up in rural Ontario, it was the hallmark your town had made it when a McDonald’s location finally planted itself there.

You were living in a veritable Shangri-la if the location had a kids’ playroom packed with plastic balls. While customers, one by one, added to the growing number of those served and were confidently recorded on each golden arches sign, our experience with food as cheap and easy became solidified.

Every time, as children in the backseat, we would literally lose it driving past a McDonald’s, bellowing at the top of our little lungs

our desire for a trip inside.

At the time, no one could see an end to growth. Stories kept popping up of new locations opening in exotic locations — Hong Kong, Egypt and France — confirming the notion that the glory of fast food had reached the ends of the earth, literally. It also gave us peace of mind knowing no matter where we travelled, a taste of home wasn’t far away.

No one would have imagined those skyrocketing sales would ever go flat. According to recent NPD Group data, quick service restaurants (QSRs) saw only one per cent growth in 2014 and it’s a trend they expect to continue for the next five years. For a full report on QSRs, see page 6.

Clearly, the population’s desire for cheap and easy is waning. I believe this is due to our awareness that cheap and easy often equates to food that is unhealthy both for our bodies and for the environment. Despite marketing trying to show otherwise, chains across the industry cannot shake the new consumer perception that cheap and easy means cutting corners and results in a product that is

neither wholesome nor desired. And there’s no amount of nostalgia that can bridge the gap.

Of course, big chains see the writing on the wall. Tim Hortons continues to marshal sustainability projects and McDonald’s is at the forefront of building a completely sustainable beef supply. A&W, perhaps ahead of the curve, continues to roll out antibioticfree, organic products. So they are trying to bridge the gap.

For decades, our society has been fed the packaging first — yeah, that’s you again Hamburglar! — with the product a mere afterthought. Now, we’ve all seen behind the curtain, and companies are scrambling to find a way to provide better products and fresh offerings.

I only wonder whether these multi-national corporations can be nimble and mobile enough to meet the new demand.

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NEWS BRIEFS TFWP changes take effect OTTAWA — Restaurateurs who use the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) can expect changes to cap definitions, median wage rates and the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) application. All changes took effect on April 30.

According to Restaurants Canada, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) has listened to the industry association and is changing the TFWP cap definition. The cap on TFWs allowed in a work location (30 per cent as of June 20, 20 per cent as of July 1 and 10 per cent as of July 1, 2016) will be measured by head count instead of hours, with part-time employees accounting for half a head.

Hospitality NL lauds tourism investment in budget ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador is pleased the province has invested into the tourism marketing budget, as promised in 2013.

“This investment from the provincial government signals their recognition of the strong contribution that the tourism industry makes to the economy and the opportunities that exist to further grow tourism to the benefit of all regions of the province,” said Hospitality NL chair Rex Avery. “The provincial government’s investment, combined with private investment, will support the tourism industry in driving visitation and increasing tourism spending, tax revenues and jobs.”

The tourism industry generates more than $1.1 billion each year and sustains eight per cent of total jobs in the provincial economy, said Rex. “With global tourism growing at an annual rate of five per cent, this investment will enable us to seize these growth opportunities while support-

4 | Atlantic Restaurant News

ing the development of strong communities, showcasing all that Newfoundland and Labrador has to offer and continuing to build a solid, stable industry as part of the long-term provincial economic framework,” he said.

N.L.’s HST increase in budget ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador’s budget raises the HST to 15 per cent, which Restaurants Canada says “unfairly penalizes the province’s job-rich restaurant industry.”

According to the association, this will result in lower restaurant sales, fewer visitors to the province, greater incentive for Newfoundlanders to travel outside the province, fewer job opportunities for Newfoundlanders, and an unfair tax system, which gives grocery stores a greater competitive edge over restaurants.

“Increasing the HST is the exact opposite of what the province’s restaurant industry needs to get back on its feet,” said Luc Erjavec, Restaurants Canada’s Atlantic vice-president. “Restaurant sales growth is already amongst the slowest in the country, and slapping on a government-imposed price increase on restaurant meals will only make it worse. The restaurant industry employs more than 15,000 Newfoundlanders, and this will all have an impact on those job opportunities.”

In terms of revenue generation, Restaurants Canada suggested the government consider selling off the Newfoundland Liquor Corporation (NLC).

Slow Food Nova Scotia supper DARTMOUTH, N.S. — After five successful years, Slow Food Nova Scotia returned with its 6th annual Spring Supper on May 2. Billed as the down home, no

ATLANTIC RESTAURANT NEWS VOLUME 17 · NO. 2 · MAY 2015

fuss, culinary event of the season, it featured nine of the region’s top chefs working together to create a multiple-course, locally-sourced Nova Scotian church supper.

“Getting together to eat well and celebrate the region’s deep food traditions around a communal table is a win-win fundraising event. Slow Food chefs and producers get to walk the talk for this annual feast,” said Sean Gallagher, convivium co-leader, Slow Food Nova Scotia.

Participating chefs and restaurants included: Mark Gray (The Brooklyn Warehouse), Chris Velden (The Flying Apron Cookery), Rob Reynolds (EDNA), Andrew Aitken and Sarah Griebel (Wild Caraway Inn), Dave Smart and Craig Flinn (Chives Canadian Bistro), Andrew Farrell (2 Doors Down) and Kristy Burgess (Lion & Bright).

The event supports the slow food ethos “of good, clean and fair local food for all.”

Pizza Pizza time TORONTO — Canadian chain Pizza Pizza was among the first brands to introduce an app for the Apple Watch, with an April 24 launch.

“We have been on the forefront of innovation since we started delivering pizzas back in 1967,” said Paul Goddard, president and chief executive officer of Pizza Pizza Limited. “Apple Watch represents the next wave of convenient solutions for our customers, and we are thrilled to be part of this evolution.”

The new app offers quick, convenient usability for customers who are already accustomed to online and mobile ordering and includes a 40-minute delivery guarantee countdown timer, the ability to select favourite or previous orders and to place an order from the quick menu.

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Good Thai’mes for former Bridgewater library

Clockwise from front: Hazen Trueman, Jeff Regular, Jenny Uy, Sheldon Kelly, Nuit Regular and Dave Trueman.

BRIDGEWATER, N.S. — Using the recipes of Toronto-based chef Nuit Regular, LannaThai Kitchen is bringing authentic Thai flavours to Bridgewater, N.S. with a late-May opening.

Nova Scotia native Dave Trueman met husband and wife team Jeff and Nuit Regular, owners and operators of Sukhothai, Sabai Sabai and Pai, when he was working for a financial company in Toronto.

The couple agreed to allow Trueman to dish out Nuit’s food on the East Coast.

Head chef Sheldon Kelly has spent about four months in Toronto training with concept

chef Nuit Regular. “She and Sheldon are teaming up to do our menu,” Trueman said.

Named for an old kingdom in Northern Thailand (where Regular is from), LannaThai will start with a simple menu including pad thai, fried rice and four curries. The idea, said Trueman, is to introduce the area to her food, with the possibility of expanding to menu the include more exotic offerings in the future.

“Obviously with our access to fresh seafood we’re going to try to incorporate that,” said Trueman.

“The idea has been in motion for a couple

years now,” said Trueman, who owns the res- rounded by a lot of exposed brick. We were taurant with his parents Hazen and Jill True- lucky because the building itself had so much character that we didn’t have to gut it and redo man.

“We’re transforming the old library into a everything,” said Trueman. “For people that restaurant, which has been a huge amount of were used to the library, they’ll certainly recognize this.” work,” said Trueman.

Trueman said he and his parents have reThe Truemans took the keys to the 4,500-square-foot brick building in March 2014 ceived a lot of help and support during the projafter the library moved from 547 King St. to its ect. “We’ve been overwhelmed with how posinew home in the Lunenburg County Lifestyle tive the energy has been,” he said.

Centre on North Park Street.

With capacity for 130 diners, Trueman said they plan to open with about 60 seats and about a dozen more at the bar. The two-level space will use the upstairs area for private parties and large groups.

The bar top is a feature piece of decor made from maple, with coloured glass and lights making it look like a canyon or beach, said Trueman. Windows allow those seated there a view into the kitchen. Old wagon wheels from the Trueman’s property are used as light fixtures.

Blending the Maritimes with Thailand, Lanna Thai said Trueman is taking a “value approach” to the concept and menu, which will be about $10 to $15 for main dishes. He described the restaurant as a “relaxed environment” with a fun and colourful atmosphere and lots of wood.

“The main dining space is surLannThai Kitchen sign goes up.

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May 2015 | 5

REPORT

How QSRs are still on top

By Jonathan Zettel Forget your fancy artisan cheese, craft beer and organic lettuce sandwiches — the country continues to opt for quick and easy fast food keeping quick service restaurants (QSRs) on top of the foodservice chain. Despite flat sales, the rise of fast casual locations and a changing market driven by millennials, QSRs continue to find ways to bring customers in and deliver cheap, tasty meals quicker than you can say Colonel Sanders.

Breakfast is the most important meal According to Scott Stewart, foodservice account manager for The NPD Group Inc., up until a few years ago, the QSR segment was doing fairly well.

“What’s happened lately, is that the market has really flattened out, but within that there has been some dynamic movement within dayparts,” Stewart says.

Lunch had a bad year in 2014, as did the dinner daypart declining by a few points.

What’s keeping overall sales flat for QSRs, he says, is a win with the rise of breakfast sales.

A number of chains have invested heavily into their breakfast programs. McDonald’s literally gave coffee away for days to bring in traffic and chains like Taco Bell, Wendy’s and Tim Hortons continue to unveil variations of portable breakfast sandwiches and better coffee.

Recently, A&W introduced what could be a first for QSRs in Canada: an organic fair trade coffee. “We went to Van Houtte and told them what we would like to offer and they developed this coffee especially for us,” says Susan Senecal, chief marketing officer for A&W. The coffee is a 100 per cent Arabica, organic, fair trade blend the company calls rich and full bodied in taste.

“Coffee became a priority for us when our customers kept telling us how much they loved our new eggs, but wanted a better cup of coffee,” says Senecal. “Through extensive taste and quality testing, it became clear that organic coffee was a winner among our customers, so we partnered with Van Houtte to provide it.”

In 2014, the company began sourcing eggs from hens fed a vegetarian diet without animal by-products and chicken raised without the use of antibiotics. A&W also sources beef raised without the use of hormones or steroids.

According to Senecal, replacing major ingredients such as the new organic coffee at the company’s 832 restaurants across Canada is no easy task, but the move to transparent ingredient listings has paid off with an increase of 10 per cent in sales.

“It comes with a great feeling of satisfaction in knowing we’re giving our customers what they want,” she says.

Meanwhile, Canadian QSR giant Tim Hortons has introduced several new breakfast sandwiches, a dark roast and as announced in early March, the company is testing a singleorigin coffee in select Canadian markets.

6 | Atlantic Restaurant News

All of this signals an important move within the QSR segment to steal breakfast share and increase the bottom line.

According to Stewart, 8 0 per cent of breakfast sales come from only two chains, leaving the remaining 20 per cent for everyone else to fight over.

“Breakfast is the most habitual daypart,” Stewart says. “It’s very difficult to get into the market, but once you get them, they’re yours.”

BY THE NUMBERS

Bringing in millennials Getting the attention of millennials and maintaining their loyalty can be a real challenge

restaurants

QSRs have been flat at around 36,000 TOTAL UNITS over that

ENTIRE INDUSTRY

SIMILAR SHIFT TO CHAINS.

72,000

Rise of fast casual Over the past five years, there’s been a ton of talk around the rise of fast casual. The QSR hybrid has seen much success in the U.S., and has seeped into the Canadian mainstream with chains such as Quesada, Panera Bread, Freshii and the Burger’s Priest.

With its premium ingredients, in-house sauces and higher checks, fast casual seeks to steal share from traditional QSRs with the idea customers are willing to pay more for a better quality product.

According to NPD’s Stewart, the rise of fast casual is really only a micro-problem for QSR operators. While fast casual has grown by 18 per cent in location footprint alone, it still only represents one per cent of the overall market, he says.

“Is that going to be a major threat? No,” Stewart says. “However, if you are a franchisee and a fast casual operation opens next door, there’s legitimate concern.”

Stewart says the rise of fast casual south of the border started 15 years ago, and now represents 5 per cent of the U.S. market.

“One caveat for Canada is that it won’t take as long as it did in the U.S.,” he says.

The trend, however, can be seen with some major QSR groups upping food quality or adding fast casual concepts to their portfolios.

MTY Food Group Inc. — the company behind more than 20 chains including Manchu Wok, Mr. Sub, Country Style and Mr. Souvlaki — announced in early March the launch of TOSTO Quickfire Pizza Pasta.

“As the rapidly growing segment of fastcasual dining continues to gain acceptance in Canada, MTY believes that now is the time to raise the bar one more level,” Michael Lublin, brand vice-president says in a release. “By creating a fast-premium dining concept, Canadian consumers can experience a high quality, premium fine dining product in a quick service environment and at a reasonable price.”

The first TOSTO location opened in the heart of Toronto’s business district at 800 Bay St. and features made-from-scratch noodles and Romano pizza dough made fresh daily in house.

According to the company, it has noticed a major demographic shift throughout Canada and a greater knowledge of the culinary industry, which translates into a more savvy consumer who demands “a high quality product at an attractive price point.”

has had about

In that time, CHAINS have GAINED about 3,000 while INDEPENDENTS have LOST about 3,000.

CANADA ACROSS THE

same time period, with a

every year

SINCE 2008

TRAFFIC for QSRs INCREASED by only 1 PER CENT in 2014.

DOLLARS INCREASED by 4 PER CENT due to HIGHER CHECKS.

the TOP CATEGORIES for QSRs are: SOFT DRINK

21%

COFFEE

40%

POTATOES

19%

SANDWICHES

20%

BURGERS

13%

According to NPD MARKET PROJECTIONS QSR traffic is EXPECTED TO GROW by 1 PER CENT per year until 2020. for operators.

“Subway is always looking for innovative ways to connect with existing consumers, as well as potential customers, especially millennials,” says Kathleen Bell, director of national marketing for Subway Canada.

In 2014, Subway partnered with the music streaming company Spotify. “The technology on Spotify offered a great chance to reconnect with the target consumers to foster interest and engagement,” Bell says. “[The relationship gave us] a unique opportunity to get in front of potential customers and millennials while tapping into one of their core interests: their love for music.”

Subway Canada has also teamed up with the sports network theScore to launch a smartphone application and with Disney, all with a keen eye on engaging customers, Bell says.

At Carl’s Jr. — which has several locations in B.C. and Alberta and is just breaking into the Ontario market with a location in Waterloo, Ont., and two locations in Toronto — the company is focused on males from the age of 18 to 34, “or anyone who wants to be in that

demographic,” says Kent Graber, managing partner of 6 Points Food Services Ltd., a franchisee of Carl’s Jr. With its sexed-up ad campaigns that have featured celebrity models such as Paris Hilton, Charlotte McKinney and Kate Upton, the company unapologetically looks to drive traffic from male millennials to its eateries.

Once they are in the door, Graber says, it’s important to offer a quality product.

“What’s happened in a lot of the business is that there’s been a transition from the old-style fast food restaurants to the newer restaurants with better burgers, more things like handcrafted milkshakes, better buns and higher quality meats,” he says.

Despite the common perception the foodservice industry is in the middle of a radical shift, Graber offers some perspective.

“I’ve been in the business for 43 years and it’s always changing and evolving. Think of the first drive-thru restaurants; who would have thought those would work?” he says. “If you’re not prepared to change, get out of the business.”

TOP 35

Chains Report Atlantic Restaurant Ne ws’ yearly report highlights the top chains in the region. While the top players continue to dominate the field, it is interesting to note that overall sales are relatively f lat. Only three new locations for both Tim Hortons and McDonald’s in Atlantic Canada shows only slow g rowth for the foodservice giants. Despite low location counts, g ross sales are up showing higher checks and the ability to steal share.

R E S E A R C H BY P E T E R E L L I OT T

Please send changes to pelliott@canadianrestaurantne ws.com.

RANK 2015

RANK 2014

1 2

1 2

3

COMPANY

SALES 2015 ($MILLIONS)

SALES 2014 ($MILLIONS)

UNITS 2015

UNITS 2014

Tim Hortons (Restaurant Brands International) McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Ltd.

641.50

622.24

366

363

311.30

317.80

122

119

3

Subway Franchise Systems of Canada Ltd.

92.80

105.52

209

202

4

4

A & W Food Services of Canada Inc.

62.92

58.90

58

61

5

5

Wendy's Restaurants of Canada Inc.

58.00

58.00

35

35

6

6

Kentucky Fried Chicken Canada (Yum!)

55.42

54.00

59

57

7

8

Boston Pizza International Inc.

49.60

49.00

18

18

8

7

Pizza Delight (Imvescor Inc.)

47.00

49.70

68

71

9

9

Swiss Chalet (Cara)

45.70

44.00

18

16

10

10

Dooly's Inc.

36.00

39.00

38

39

11

11

Mary Brown's Inc.

34.50

37.14

46

50

12

13

Burger King Restaurants of Canada Inc.

31.00

29.00

31

29

13

12

Greco Pizza (Grinner's Food Systems)

30.50

37.00

87

102

14

14

Jungle Jim's Restaurants Safari Eatertainment

28.00

26.00

26

24

15

15

Dairy Queen Canada

24.50

24.50

49

49

16

16

Robin's (Chairman's Brand Corp)

23.00

23.00

46

46

17

18

Montana's (Cara)

18.00

22.00

7

7

18

19

Starbucks Coffee Co.

18.00

17.00

18

17

19

20

Cora Franchise Group Inc.

15.00

16.00

14

15

20

21

Keg Restaurants Ltd.

15.00

15.00

3

3

21

22

East Side Mario's (Prime/Cara)

14.70

14.00

7

7

22

n/a

Grafton Connor Group

14.00

18.00

14

18

23

24

Jack Astor's Bar and Grill (Sir Corp)

13.80

13.95

3

3

24

40

Country Style (MTY Group)

13.50

5.50

27

11

25

26

Second Cup Ltd.

10.67

11.07

20

21

26

n/a

Harvey's (Cara)

10.23

5.00

10

9

27

28

Pizza Hut Canada (Yum!)

10.00

11.00

15

14

28

23

Smitty's Canada Ltd.

10.00

14.00

8

10

29

29

Don Cherry's Sports Grill Inc.

9.00

9.50

4

7

30

n/a

Pita Pit

8.82

5.34

15

10

31

25

TCBY Canada (MTY Group)

8.50

13.50

17

27

33

31

Pizza Shack Holdings

8.00

8.58

28

30

32

32

Pizza Partito

8.00

8.00

16

16

34

30

Quiznos Canada Restaurant Corp

8.00

9.00

16

18

35

n/a

Rotisseries St-Hubert Ltee

7.50

5.00

3

2

May 2015 | 7

TOP 5

Burger Chains

RANK 2015 RANK 2014 COMPANY

SALES 2015 ($MILLIONS)

SALES 2014 ($MILLIONS)

UNITS 2015 UNITS 2014

1 2

1 2

McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Ltd. A & W Food Services of Canada Inc.

311.30

317.80

122

119

62.92

58.90

58

61

3

3

Wendy's Restaurants of Canada Inc.

58.00

58.00

35

35

4

4

Burger King Restaurants of Canada Inc.

31.00

29.00

31

29

5

5

Jungle Jim's Restaurants Safari Eatertainment

28.00

26.00

26

24

TOP 5

Chicken Chains

RANK 2015 RANK 2014 COMPANY

SALES 2015 ($MILLIONS)

SALES 2014 ($MILLIONS)

UNITS 2015 UNITS 2014

1 2

1 2

Kentucky Fried Chicken Canada (Yum!) Swiss Chalet (Cara)

55.42

54.00

59

57

45.70

44.00

18

16

3

3

Mary Brown's Inc.

34.50

37.14

46

50

4

4

Jungle Jim's Restaurants Safari Eatertainment

28.00

26.00

26

24

5

6

Rotisseries St-Hubert Ltee

7.50

5.00

3

2

TOP 5

Pizza Chains

RANK 2015 RANK 2014 COMPANY

SALES 2015 ($MILLIONS)

SALES 2014 ($MILLIONS)

UNITS 2015 UNITS 2014

1 2

2 1

Boston Pizza International Inc. Pizza Delight (Imvescor Inc.)

49.60

49.00

18

18

47.00

49.70

68

71

3

3

Greco Pizza (Grinner's Food Systems)

30.50

37.00

87

102

4

4

Pizza Hut Canada (Yum!)

10.00

11.00

15

14

5

6

Pizza Partito

8.00

8.00

16

16

8 | Atlantic Restaurant News

TOP 5 Sandwich Chains RANK 2015 RANK 2014 COMPANY

SALES 2015 ($MILLIONS)

SALES 2014 ($MILLIONS)

UNITS 2015 UNITS 2014

1 2

1 2

Tim Hortons (Restaurant Brands International) Subway Franchise Systems of Canada Ltd.

641.50

622.24

366

363

92.80

105.52

209

202

3

3

Robin's (Chairman's Brand Corp)

23.00

23.00

46

46

4

4

Quiznos Canada

8.00

9.00

16

18

5

5

Extreme Pita (MTY - Extreme Brands)

6.00

6.00

12

12

TOP 5 Coffee Chains RANK 2015 RANK 2014 COMPANY

SALES 2015 ($MILLIONS)

SALES 2014 ($MILLIONS)

UNITS 2015 UNITS 2014

1 2

1 2

Tim Hortons (Restaurant Brands International) McDonald's Restaurants of Canada Ltd.

641.50

622.24

366

363

311.30

317.80

122

119

3

3

Robin's (Chairman's Brand Corp)

23.00

23.00

46

46

4

4

Starbucks Coffee Co.

18.00

17.00

18

17

6

Country Style (MTY Group)

13.50

5.50

27

11

5

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May 2015 | 9

S U P P LY

Canada gets with GHS TORONTO — In February, Canada adopted the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) modifying the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) 1988 to incorporate GHS classification and labelling for workplace chemicals.

This modified WHMIS is referred to as WHMIS 2015.

“Up until now, every country had their own type of system,” said Ecolab senior marketing manager Mike Brown at a trade media presentation at the Restaurants Canada Show in early March.

WHMIS 2015 will be phased in over several years, but employers are recommended to begin training staff on the new material as well as maintain WHMIS 1988 training, said Brown.

According to Health Canada, suppliers, employers and workers are being given a transition period to adjust to WHMIS 2015.

During this time, suppliers can either comply with the old Hazardous Product Act (HPA) and the repealed Controlled Products Regulations and

Ingredient Disclosure List or the new HPA and the new Hazardous Products Regulations. Either way, the supplier must comply with one or the other and not a combination of the two.

The second phase is from June 1, 2017 to May 31, 2018, during which time manufacturers and importers must comply with HPR requirements.

Between June 1 and Nov. 30, 2018, distributors must also comply with HPR requirements.

By Dec. 1, 2018, employers, who could comply with CPR or HPR, must move to HPR requirements.

During the transition period, however, operators could be receiving workplace chemicals that fall under both old and new regulations. In this case, employees may handle products if they have received training in either WHMIS 1988 or WHMIS 2015. If employers receive products with only WHMIS 1988 labels and Safety Data Sheets, employees may only handle them if they are trained under WHMIS 1988.

Above: New hazard symbols. Below: (From left) Grace Egan and Mike Brown at the Ecolab trade media presentation at the Restaurants Canada Show.

Bonte has busy start to 2015

Mike Whittaker.

DIEPPE, N.B. — In the first three months of 2015, Bonté Foods/Chris Brothers went fully gluten-free, landed a contract for a quarter million sandwiches and won the 2015 Dieppe Business Excellence Award.

The company started the year by announcing that all of its products are now gluten free, marking the culmination of two years of research and development.

Bonté president Mike Whittaker said while gluten-free products are not important to all Bonte’s customers, it is very important to a small percentage of deli buyers. “We need to appeal to 100 per cent of potential customers,” he said, adding it takes time to ensure “the exact same flavour profile is there.”

In early March, the company was awarded a contract for a second year

by CFB Gagetown. Under this deal, Bonté Foods/Chris Brothers will prepare boxed meals for troop exercises, including 250,000 sandwiches, in partnership with Mulder’s Meats of

1 0 | Atlantic Restaurant News

Oromocto, N.B. The Business Excellence Award, presented by Expansion Dieppe and the City of Dieppe, celebrates the company’s contribution to the city’s economic development.

In addition to a supportive business climate, Whittaker credited Bonté’s hardworking employees to the company’s success. “It’s an accumulation of a lot of years of hard work and the nice thing about it is it’s a team award,” he said.

Bonté Foods/Chris Brothers employs more than 110 people at its southeastern New Brunswick plant and produces more than 300 food products for foodservice, grocery and institutional markets across Canada.

The company’s product lines include preservative-free roasted chicken, black forest ham, oven-roasted turkey, corned beef brisket, pepperoni, salami, all-natural deli meats and various pizza toppings and can be found in many retail grocery chains throughout Canada.

Bonté also produces private label meats for Sysco, Compliments, Gordon Food Service, Saputo and many other national brands.

Owned by Truro, N.S.-based Trucorp Investments, Bonté began operation in 1977 as a small meat supplier to local restaurants and has experienced continuous growth since.

“We’ve had some tumultuous times in our history competing in an arena that is dominated by the large national and international companies. So we’ve had to get by on our wits and be able to turn things around very quickly,” Whittaker said. “When you’re a smaller company playing in a larger arena, you’ve got to find the advantages you have.”

He said the fact that the products are locally made gets a lot of support, and being a smaller company allows Bonté to respond to customer demands quickly.

Whittaker said the best move the company has made was to slim down its categories. In 2008, Bonté decided it would close its bakery and outsource sauces.

“Bottom line is our one core competency was meats,” he said. “Our ability to sell meats was being hindered by the distraction of other divisions.”

Whittaker said the company’s meat sales are doing very well. “We call ourselves Atlantic Canada’s deli and we really are beginning to dominate in the meats category,” he said.

Pasabahce Glassware.

Chesher makes moves into glassware sales MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Chesher Equipment Ltd. has announced it has exclusive rights to distribute Turkey-based Pasabahce Glassware in Canada.

Chesher has purchased $500,000 worth of glassware — set to land in Canada at the beginning of May — though the company is already taking orders.

“At Chesher we are always looking for innovation technology and value-added things, I don’t want to be a me-too guy,” said Chesher partner Chris Koehler, who lends his past experience with Libbey Glass to the company’s entry into the glassware market.

According to Koehler, Pasabahce is the world’s largest glassware producer of machine-made

and handmade soda lime glass and lead-free crystal. The glassware company has high quality, durable and brilliantly clear glass that fits across all segments of the market from casual to fine dining, he said.

Products include stemware, beer, spirits, tumblers, barware, tableware and accessories.

“We feel strongly that by servicing it and offering style and design and differentiation, there’s room for us here in this market,” Koehler said.

Based in Mississauga, Ont., Chesher’s brands include: CookTek, Cres Cor, Electrolux, LAINOX, Pasabahce, Roundup, Sunkist, Varimixer, Vitamix and Vizion and it acts as a manufacturer’s agent for BSI and Wood Stone.

BEVERAGE NEWS

Upstreet gets brewing

From left: Mike Hogan, Mitch Cobb and Joey Seaman.

CHARLOTTETOWN — After being avid homebrewers for several years, a trio of Islanders are getting set to launch a craft brewery.

Upstreet Craft Brewing plans to open by the end of June on Allen Street in Charlottetown.

“We started looking into this about two years ago and got so far down the line that there was no turning back, so we all left our jobs and now we’re weeks away from opening a brewery,” said co-owner Joey Seaman, who was the head of an Internet technology company. Mike Hogan, a former computer engineer, will head brewing operations, and Mitch Cobb, who left

his job as a professor at Holland College, are also co-owners.

“When we originally sat down to talk about this it was going to be a little brewery on the side because we all liked our jobs and thought it’d be crazy to leave them,” Seaman said.

“But when we started actually looking into the business and talking to lots of other breweries, it was pretty clear early on that we had to go much bigger or it just didn’t make any sense.”

The 8,000-square-foot brewery will hold a 15-barrel brewhouse with a combination of 30- and 15-barrel fermentors and bright tanks.

While the types of beer the brew-

ery will bottle are being kept a secret, Seaman said the company will try to take traditional types and give them a twist to connect with the local region.

“We’re going to try to introduce a number of beers that aren’t very common around Atlantic Canada and some seasonal beers that reflect Prince Edward Island, especially the agriculture community around here,” Seaman said.

According to Seaman, there’s still a majority of Islanders who are drinking traditional macro-brew beer, but notes “the craft beer scene here is ready to explode.”

The company will be bottling and producing kegs from day one, with canning likely in the future.

Already, Upstreet has “a lot of accounts right across the Island who have been super supportive,” he said. “So we’ll be servicing our tap accounts first and then focusing on bottling next, but we’re getting to the point where we’re wondering if we’ll have enough beer, which is a good problem to have.”

Under the cap of each bottle, an Islander saying will be printed. Upstreet launched a Twitter campaign using the hashtag #underthecap and in 48 hours received more than 2,000 submissions.

Maritimes’ first malt house readies for winter launch HORTONVILLE, N.S. — A recent Community Economic Development Investment Fund (CEDIF) offering by Horton Ridge Malt & Grain Company Ltd. resulted in 76 Nova Scotians investing more than $380,000 to launch Atlantic Canada’s first malt house, which plans to launch by early winter in rural Nova Scotia.

“We’ve encountered a lot of enthusiasm for this concept,” said Alan Stewart, president of Horton Ridge Malt & Grain. “Our malt house project will create a new local product, displacing product that is currently imported from outside the region.”

Stewart hopes to begin construction in May on the malting facility, which will measure 3,200 square feet with a second level of the same size and is located in Hortonville, about an hour northwest of Halifax. The malting equipment (steep tanks, etc.) is being custom-made to Stewart’s specifications.

Horton Ridge will produce smallbatch, artisanal malts, made from organic rye, barley and wheat, targeted to Nova Scotia’s craft brewers. Malt is produced through a germination process whereby the starches contained in the grain are turned into sugars, which support fermentation.

His family operation, Stewart’s Organic Farm, will provide the rye with other Nova Scotia farms harvesting the wheat for malting. Since barley will account for the lion’s share of Horton Ridge’s planned 300-ton annual output, Stewart had to tap Western Canadian farms in order to meet the anticipated demand. Eventually, however, he expects to source barley from Maritime farmers as well.

Stewart expects a “good market” for Horton Ridge’s malt, given the 20-plus craft brewers operating in Nova Scotia. Malt is the largest nonwater component of beer, and Atlantic Canadian craft brewers import more than 2,000 tons per year.

While barley accounts for the majority of malts used in beer, Stewart said he sees “a future for rye malt in beer.”

Stewart said Nova Scotia’s fledgling distillery industry could provide another market. A handful of distillers operate in the province, and a few more are rumoured to be opening, according to Stewart. “With rye whiskey making a comeback,” it bodes well for suppliers of malts made from that grain, he said. Another potential client is Glenora Distillers, which produces scotch whisky from barley malt.

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May 2015 | 1 1

canadian A REPORT ON THREE MAJOR GROWING REGIONS

BY KRISTEN SMITH

I

f a band is drawn around the globe between 41 and 51 degrees latitude north, Canada’s growing regions will be found within this recognized growing zone. The country’s primary wine-growing regions are Ontario’s Niagara Peninsula and the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia.

Although small in scale by world standards — Canada represents less than one (0.5) per cent of global wine production (27.8 billion litres) — according to the Canadian Vintners Association, wine is a growing business in Canada, with wineries sprouting up where terroir permits.

According to the association’s most recent numbers, Canada’s growing regions of B.C., Ontario, Quebec and Nova Sco-

tia include about 30,000 acres and 548 wineries.

Chair of the Wine Council of Ontario Allan Schmidt, president of Vineland Estates Winery, is a third-generation winemaker. Originally from B.C., Schmidt’s grandfather started one of the province’s first vineyards and his father co-founded Sumac Ridge Estate Winery in Summerland, B.C. “We are referred to as a cool climate grape growing region and if you look on a map or on a globe, all the best wines that are made in the world are made in the 40 to 49th parallel, either north or south,” explains Schmidt.

He says the extremes in temperature are one of the reasons Canada can grow grapes so well.

BRITISH COLUMBIA Among Canada’s wine-growing provinces, British Columbia has the most wineries, but not the most acreage. There are 254 licensed grape wineries in the designated regions of Okanagan Valley, Similkameen Valley, Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands.

About 930 vineyards are spread out over more than 10,000 acres, 80 per cent in the Okanagan Valley.

The Okanagan Valley gets almost two hours more sunlight per day during July and August than the Napa Valley. The variety of soils, the slopes of the vineyards and proximity to lakes, rivers and oceans contribute to the variety of styles in the province.

Last year, there were about 20.9 million litres produced and top-planted grapes are merlot, pinot noir, pinot gris and chardonnay.

“We’ve seen some fantastic industry growth, but not just in terms of quantity, but also quality.

B.C. wines enter into a number of international competitions and continually do very well,” says

1 2 | Atlantic Restaurant News

Miles Prodan president and chief executive officer of the British Columbia Wine Institute.

Over 25 years, the industry has grown from 17 wineries, but although that number has increased more than tenfold, most are less than 30 acres.

“These are terms that are often bandied around in the wine industry: boutique, artisanal.

In B.C., we really are just by the nature of our size. We don’t have the room for mechanized anything, frankly, so everything is hand-done,” says Prodan.

“They tell a story, before my time, about how B.C. wine really became accepted by consumers,” he says.

While there had been winemaking in the province for some time, the U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement allowed California wine to be imported at a lower price. Recognizing many of their grapes were not the best quality, the province’s winemakers replanted about 90 per cent with more traditional vinifera varieties.

Prodan says the foodservice industry was an early adopter of B.C. VQA wines and played a critical role in consumer acceptance.

In terms of new wineries, Prodan says about two or three open every six months. “More than anything else, it’s grape growers deciding to try their hand at winemaking,” he notes.

With proportions of red and white almost a 50/50 split every year, there are more than 60 varietals planted in B.C. “That really speaks to how new the wine industry is here in B.C. comparative to everywhere else in the world. You talk to the winemakers and grape growers and what they tell me is: there is no textbook or guidebook for growing and making wine in B.C. because that book is being written,” says Prodan. “What that lends itself to is a really interesting time for experimentation and trying different things in different places … You get such a variety of temperatures that a wine grape can find a place to grow well anywhere in British Columbia.”

Golden Mile Bench in central Okanagan was recently approved as B.C.’s first sub-appellation and Prodan says the province is identifying other sub-regions.

Okanagan is hemmed in by mountains and lakes, so there isn’t a lot of room for expansion and the acreage surveys have levelled off over the years.

“That’s good, because we don’t worry about expansion physically. It allows us to focus on quality and improving techniques, grape growing and viticulture,” he says.

He expects to see volume increase by 15 per cent for the 2014 vintage, but B.C. will never double its acreage, although there is room for growth in emerging regions, which include: Shuswap, North Okanagan, Thompson Nicola and West Kootenays.

“We’re finally building up the kind of quantity that we can start really focusing on exploring opportunities outside of our traditional base of British Columbia,” says Prodan.

ONTARIO Ontario’s wine industry covers the most ground with about 17,000 acres of primarily vitis vinifera plants and a focus on chardonnay, riesling, pinot noir and cabernet franc grapes and a 60:40 red to white ratio.

VQA sales for the year ending March 2014 were $395 million (17.5 million litres), with about $120.6 million from the LCBO, $120.3 million in winery retail stores, $55.2 million sold directly to licensees and $99.4 million exported or sold interprovincially.

There are more than 150 wineries in Ontario in three designated viticulture areas: Niagara Peninsula (with 10 sub-appellations), Prince Edward County and Lake Erie North Shore.

The number has grown from 20 when Wine Council of Ontario chair Allan Schmidt came on the scene 28 years ago when Vineland Estate

1

Winery was just a vineyard, to 66 in 2003 and 102 in 2008. “The growth of the industry has been spectacular despite the challenges that we face,” says Schmidt.

“The wines that were made in 1987 weren’t of the same quality they are today because a lot of the grapes that were in the ground were of the labrusca species of grapes, which make better jams, juices and jellies, than they do wine,” he laughs.

When tariffs that protected the Ontario industry were removed, people thought homegrown wine wouldn’t be able to compete internationally. Schmidt says there were a handful of wineries making higher-quality products and the VQA appellation standards were developed.

“It actually gave the winemakers a quality bar to start raising every year, and they kept

challenging themselves and the quality kept going up as newer grape varieties came on and winemakers realized what varieties grow better in what sub-appellations, what type of soil merlot needs versus cabernet franc,” says Schmidt.

Over the last 25 years, Schmidt says the industry did a lot of fine-tuning and is now at a point where there aren’t enough shelves.

“Every winery has got their own retail store on the winery and that works great during tourism season. But if people live in Ottawa, they actually can’t purchase all of the wines that I or my colleague wineries make,” he says.

Allowing licensee-direct sales in 1999 saw huge growth of Ontario wine in the foodservice industry.

In Ontario, the market share at the LCBO is less than 10 per cent, which Schmidt sees as

2

an obstacle to the industry’s being able to own its own market.

He says there is willingness from wineries to invest, great winemakers and grapes, and the land is there to increase acreage by 50 per cent.

“We have all the capacities to grow our industry, but what we don’t have is the shelves.

That’s simply because the government hasn’t been able to keep up with the growth of our industry,” says Schmidt.

For the last 28 years, Schmidt says, new wineries haven’t had access to the private wine stores, which are now owned by a handful of companies that have bought up the original 20 wineries and consolidated over time. “They’re making great wine, that’s not the issue, but they have a grandfathered distribution channel that’s now a private monopoly,” he says.

3

1. A barrel cellar in Ontario’s Niagara Peninsula.

2. Food and wine pairing at Reif Estates Winery in Ontario. 3. Icewine grapes in an Ontario vineyard.

4. Naramata Bench near Penticton, B.C. 5. A winery in Okanagan Falls, B.C.

4

5

NOVA SCOTIA Nova Scotia’s growing industry has 19 wineries and about 700 acres situated between the Annapolis Valley and the shores of the Northumberland Strait.

On one of the cooler climate limits for vines, the province’s warm summers and long falls create crisp aromatic wines, with 40 per cent red and 60 per cent white grapes grown.

In 2012, the province came together to launch Tidal Bay, described as a fresh, crisp, still, dryish white with a bright “signature Nova Scotia” aromatic component.

Judged by an independent tasting panel of industry professionals, Tidal Bay wines must have an alcohol content of between 9.5 and 11 per cent, follow certain production rules, and are required to be made with only Nova Scotiagrown grapes with primary varieties of l’acadie, seyval, vidal and geisenheim 318.

“We’re really promoting our whites and

sparklings; we do good reds, but I wouldn’t say that on the world stage, they are at that level.

We have our local audience for them, absolutely, who love our reds,” says Wine Association of Nova Scotia (WANS) manager Gillian Mainguy.

She says many wineries sell out of their reds, but sees major future growth in aromatic whites and traditional-method sparklings.

The industry set a target for growth for the year 2020 to increase vineyard acreage to 1,000 and the number of wineries to 20. Current stats have them quite close to that goal with 19 wineries and 700 acres.

Most recently, Planters Ridge Winery was opened by an Ontario couple and Mainguy expects more coming onboard.

“I think that’s a big thing: we’re going to see a lot of new wineries starting to expand and open up in the province. I always say we’re about 20 years behind Ontario,” she laughs.

“Right now, we’re getting a lot of attention as an emerging wine region, which is very exciting,” says Mainguy. “The story in Nova Scotia is catching on, but we haven’t done a great job of explaining the story outside of Nova Scotia.”

Only a couple wineries are selling in other provinces and a few are exporting.

“The majority of wineries in Nova Scotia are still small, classic, 100 per cent Nova Scotia grape content,” says Mainguy, adding this is an important part of the province’s story. It’s an intimate industry with a majority of sales through the cellar door.

WANS hopes to increase restaurant sales through education and training and pair N.S. wine with N.S. food products at events.

“We’re getting everyone onboard from different ministries to try and lobby them pretty hard to recognize what the grape and wine industry is doing for the province in terms of

Nova Scotia economic impact,” says Mainguy.

“I’m cautiously optimistic about where things are going in this province with the wine industry. I think there’s going to be changes. I think we’re going to see some sort of government initiative or program to encourage the growth of this industry because they are realizing that there has been limited government intervention,” she says.

“The capital investment has been capital investment directly from the winery owners.

They’re a passionate bunch, they’re altruistic, they work together, they see the common goal of a successful wine industry and the payout is just around $200 million in economic impact,” says Mainguy.

With affordable land to grow grapes and adjacent growing policy under review, Mainguy says she feels the future of the industry is on track for growth.

Additional information: Quebec has 138 wineries and 2,000 acres of grapes producing dry, fortified, sparkling and sweet wines from a variety of cold hardy grapes.

Prince Edward Island has three wineries and New Brunswick has eight wineries. Newfoundland and Labrador mainly has fruit wineries.

May 2015 | 1 3

PEOPLE

TCU staff.

Charlotte Bell Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador kicked off its 2015 conference and trade show with its annual general meeting and the announcement of two new directors at large.

New to the board are Colleen Kennedy, executive director of Gros Morne Co-operating Association and Darlene Thomas, Seaside Suites owner and operator.

The conference closed with the annual Tourism Excellence Gala, which recognized the outstanding tourism leaders and businesses that make great contributions to the provincial tourism industry.

Chef Shaun Hussey and Michelle LeBlanc, co-owners of Chinched Bistro in St. John’s, N.L., were given the award for restaurateur of the year.

Accommodator of the year went to Ocean View Hotel in Rocky Harbour, N.L. Fogo Island Inn was named tourism business of the year.

Town and Country Uniforms has announced the recipients of its annual chef ’s coat draw. Entries were taken at the company’s booth during the Restaurants Canada Show between March 1 and 3. The list of those who will receive a free personalized chef jacket from Town and Country’s Gusto Collection is on www.canadianrestaurantnews.com.

Charlotte Bell has been appointed the president and chief executive officer of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC), effective April 9.

The announcement was made by TIAC’s chair Andrew Lind.

“With more than 25 years of experience in regulatory, corporate and government affairs, Charlotte is a seasoned executive bringing a wealth of experience and proven track record of success leading regulatory change in the broadcast sector,” said Lind.

Michelle LeBlanc The Tourism Industry Association of PEI (TIAPEI) celebrated the industry’s best at its 34th Annual Tourism Conference and Awards Gala.

Honoured for their contributions to tourism were: Gary Craswell, Rodd Charlottetown, Lieutenant Governor’s Tourism Award; Karen Hatcher, The College of Piping, Hospitality Award for Prince County; Shawna Grandjean, Comfort Inn; Hospitality Award for Queens County; Charlene Belsher, The Old General Store, Hospitality Award for Kings County; Welcome PEI, Walt Wheeler Media Award; Rachel Vidito, Murphy Hospitality Group, Operator of the Year; Prince Edward Island Lighthouse Society, Parks Canada Sustainable Tourism Award; Linda and Gary Lowther, Dr. Kent Ellis Quality of Excellence Award; and Mitchell Rennie, President’s Award; Canadian Potato Museum, Premier’s Award.

Lieutenant Governor Frank Lewis and Gary Craswell.

The Women’s Foodservice Forum (WFF) presented Lisa MacNeil, general manager, United Restaurant Supplies, a subsidiary of Gordon Food Service, the Volunteer of the Year Award at the 2015 Leadership Conference in Orlando, Fla. in March.

“Lisa’s scope of responsibility and investment of volunteer time in WFF is significantly greater than any other volunteer role. Due to the volunteer structure in Canada, she leads the planning and hosting of a variety of regional events on an annual basis,” said Hattie Hill, WFF president and chief executive officer.

MacNeil has been engaged with WFF as a member since 2008, joining the volunteer ranks in 2009 as the first company ambassador for GFS Canada and stepping up to lead the Canadian Ambassadors group in 2011 for two years. She eventually took on the leadership role for all WFF events in

Lisa MacNeil 2014 and expanded Canadian events into markets beyond Toronto.

The Canadian Franchise Association presented awards to members of the foodservice industry on April 13 at its national convention held at Sheraton on the Falls.

The Vince Nichols Memorial Award was given to Graham Cooke, A&W vice-president of new restaurant expansion.

Named for the former director of franchising for Maple Leaf Mills, the memorial award “is given to an individual who, through their volunteer activities and works as an ambassador for franchising, helps the CFA grow, evolve and deliver on its mission and vision.”

Pizza Pizza Limited was presented the CFA Hall of Fame Award “in recognition of outstanding performance by a franchise system over a significant period of time.”

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TORONTO — Companies from across the foodservice industry showcased new products at the annual Restaurants Canada Show in early March at the Direct Energy Centre in Toronto.

With more than 10,000 attendees and 1,100 booths, here are just some of the new items the showroom floor had to offer:

1. Bunge creamy cooking sauce Bunge has introduced a lactose-free creamy sauce base suitable for sweet and savoury applications.

The vegan-friendly sauce has a dairy flavour profile and is intended as a one-for-one replacement for cream in soups and sauces and can also be used in desserts and to make whipped cream.

It comes in one-litre tetra packs by the dozen and has a one-year refrigerated shelf life.

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2. Oreo Churros J&J Snack Foods teamed up with Mondelez International to introduce Oreo Churros. With a crispy exterior, warm soft interior and cookie pieces in every bite, the dessert has a “justbaked” Oreo taste. The churros can be served with Oreo cookie cream dip, supplied by J&J Snack Foods, rolled in sugar or topped with a favourite ice cream and prepared using an oven, fryer or TurboChef.

3. Reuven chicken drumettes Reuven’s Frenched Chicken Wing Drumettes can work as an appetizer, on a shared platter or as the centre of the plate.

Offering neutral seasoning, they’re fully cooked (saving time in the kitchen), Halal certified and are of a consistent piece weight for

uniform plate appearance.

4. Twisted fries Simplot rolled out a new flavour of its Sidewinders fried potatoes. Marketed to QSR operations, Conquest Sidewinders are “light and fluffy” on the inside and crispy outside and have a clear coating that triples the hold time of regular fries, according to the company.

The new natural potato flavour adds to the lineup of Smokey BBQ , JR Buffalos and the original Bent Arm Ale craft beer-battered Sidewinders.

5. Frank’s RedHot sauces Frank’s RedHot Sauces introduced two new globally inspired flavours, Sriracha Chili and Asian Sweet Ginger. Preservative- and gluten-

6. free, the Sriracha Chili sauce features heat from a blend of chili pepper and jalapeño. Sweet, mildly hot and tangy, the Asian Sweet Ginger balances tomato, garlic, ginger and spices, and works as a recipe ingredient or as a topping or dipping sauce.

6. Billy by UTC Available in July, Town & Country Uniforms unveiled its Billy by UTC collection.

Inspired by the new generation of chefs and restaurateurs, the more casual line includes raw cotton canvas aprons in charcoal grey, natural and copper with interchangeable straps.

The line also features unisex button-down shirts, denim or striped denim aprons, a black striped bib apron and men’s and women’s denim shirts.

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