Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News - April 2016

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P A C I F I C / P R A I R I E April 2016 | Vol. 22 | No. 2

N AT I O N A L

C O V E R A G E

R E G I O N A L

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The Hawk adds Nightingale to his flock

By Kristen Smith, Managing Editor

Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010152

VANCOUVER — The newest addition to the Hawksworth Restaurant Group, Nightingale, is landing in Vancouver’s Coal Harbour in midApril.

The name was inspired by the fable of The Hawk & The Nightingale, which is responsible for the proverb “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” Chef David Hawksworth explained the idea, as it applies to the restaurant, is to celebrate the here and now.

“To enjoy today as best you can rather than waiting for something bigger around the corner,” he said.

The 7,400-square-foot restaurant seats about 180 guests on two levels at 1017 West Hastings St. in the MNP Tower. The heritage façade has been maintained at the space that was once home to the University and Quadra clubs.

Some historical features have also been preserved, such as exposed copper pipes and remodelled library furniture.

The interior was created by Alessandro

Munge — whose firm Studio Munge was also behind the James Beard-nominated design at the original Hawksworth Restaurant. An autumn-inspired colour palette of hunter green, faded rust and muted oxblood is accented with marble counters and wood. The interior is intended to pay respect to the past as well as celebrate Vancouver as a coastal city.

“We wanted a bit of a rustic look to it to a degree — inside is beautiful. There’s a bit of iron here and there and I’m hoping that the feeling is quite relaxed,” Hawksworth said.

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Nacho typical restaurant financing model

By Bill Tremblay CALGARY — A new financing option for entrepreneurs will help bring a craft nacho restaurant concept to life in the Inglewood neighbourhood of Calgary.

Madison’s 12|12 is the first restaurant funded by SeedUps, an online investment platform where private companies are able to raise capital from investors. The idea is similar to crowdfunding, but instead of a T-shirt or free meal, the investor receives shares in the company.

“I call it e-trade and Dragon’s Den combined,” said Tom Wach, Madison’s 12|12 cocreator and SeedUps director. “The average investor can act like a dragon and choose the companies he or she thinks will be successful.”

SeedUps provides online investment documents, electronic money transfers and an opportunity to send questions to companies seeking investors.

“For the average investor, you don’t always

know whom you are dealing with,” Wach said.

Madison’s 12|12 is a partnership between Wach and Pieter Boekhoff, who was named one of Calgary’s top 20 up-and-coming entrepreneurs in 2012 by the Globe and Mail.

The restaurant will serve a dozen varieties of craft nachos, served with toppings such as honey and truffles, as well as a dozen types of craft sal-

White Spot targets growth with Triple O’s

VANCOUVER — One of White Spot’s menu items will help drive the brand outside of its home province of British Columbia.

White Spot president Warren Erhart said the portability and flexibility of Triple O’s makes the burger concept an ideal vehicle for growth in Western Canada.

Triple O’s has locations in colleges, on B.C. Ferries, in Rogers Arena and 23 units in Chevron stations.

“It’s so diverse; it can work in so many plac-

es,” said Erhart. “The same supply network that we have in British Columbia can satisfy all of our needs from Winnipeg west.”

The 87-year-old British Columbia brand has 65 White Spot locations. The spin-off Triple O’s, which focuses on burgers and milkshakes, has 59 Canadian locations (one in an Alberta hospital) and 12 units in Asia.

“We have this beloved brand that’s 87 years old and it’s really a fabric of British Columbia; it seems that you can’t go anywhere without

ad, which will stray from the usual lettuce bases.

“When I say craft nachos, it’s not the standard pub nachos,” Wach said. “We’ll serve dessert nachos as well. It’s kind of something I’ve never seen before.”

Menu items will cost $10 to $15, a lower price point than most restaurants in the Inglewood neighbourhood, according to Wach. someone telling their White Spot story,” Erhart said. “The important thing for us is to remain relevant after 87 years. Just because you’ve been around for 87 years, doesn’t guarantee future success. In fact, your past success could impede your future if you keep on doing the things the way you’ve always done things.”

However, it’s important for some things to remain the same, such as its key suppliers.

White Spot’s initial french fry agreement was with a Kennebec potato farmer in the south Delta area, now called Felix Farms and run by Peter Gichon.

“Felix Gichon and Nat Bailey, our founder, shook hands on a potato deal back in 1938 and we’re still buying potatoes from the same family today,” Erhart said.

Triple O’s menu offerings play in the space between quick service and premium burger joints with a price point of around $8 or $9.

Chris Hiesl, director of operations for Triple O’s Burgers by White Spot, said the brand takes elements from QSR, such as drive thrus, speed of service and marries them with premium ingredients from local suppliers.

“Triple O’s really straddles right in the middle. Most marketers will tell you it’s probably a place you don’t want to be in, but it’s worked so

“Given Calgary’s economy, it just makes sense,” Wach said.

The floor plan includes 75 seats, plus a 49seat patio. Each table is equipped with electrical outlets for charging laptops.

During the day, Madison’s 12|12 will feature a coffeehouse-like atmosphere and open its doors to fellow entrepreneurs as a co-working space.

“We have a fairly low cost of operating, so we won’t have to push people out the door,” Wach said. “It will be a bit more conducive for being an entrepreneur and working on your laptop.”

In the evening, the space will transform into a casual restaurant.

“Around 5 p.m., you crank the music a little louder, dim the lights a little bit and make the switch from a coffee buzz to a wine buzz,” Wach said.

With construction underway in March, Wach expects Madison’s 12|12 to open in the summer. well for our brand because we take the best of both worlds,” said Hiesl.

The Triple O’s brand is undergoing changes in decor, moving away from the retro diner theme and from the logo connecting the brand to White Spot. “It’s important for us, but for guests that are unfamiliar with our brand, the chicken has no meaning,” Hiesl said.

He said plans include highlighting the company’s product stories to help explain the price/ value relationship.

“We’re poised for growth, the model is a cookie-cutter model,” said Hiesl. “Really it’s about identifying and partnering with a master franchisee who wants to grow the brand.”

Woods Coffee White Spot parent company Shato Holdings is bringing Woods Coffee, a Washington State brand with 18 locations, to Canada.

With the rights for British Columbia, a test location is slated to open in late April at Shatoowned Tsawwassen Springs. The drive thru location will be about 1,800 square feet with about 44 seats.

“The key to their uniqueness is small-batch roasting — they only roast 30 pounds at a time — with fresh-baked daily pastries,” Erhart said.

From prison grub to fine dining PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. — When life handed Kevin Tetz lemons, it gave him the zest he needed to open his own restaurant.

Tetz worked as a foodservice worker at the Pine Grove Correctional Centre in Prince Albert, Sask., for about eight years. Last fall, the provincial government announced it would privatize its prison foodservice, and Tetz was out of a job.

“They gave us a warning a couple years ago they were going to privatize,” Tetz said. “Nothing happened and we sort of forgot about it.

Then one day they said ‘here’s your pink slips.’”

Tetz had been moonlighting with his own company Executive Chef, a fine-dining catering company that travelled around Saskatchewan.

“I built up a pretty big following,” Tetz said.

Losing his day job convinced him to take his fine dining expertise full time. He is now open-

ing Boreal Bistro in Prince Albert’s Quality Inn Hotel and Conference Centre.

“I had it in the back of my mind for about five years,” he said.

Tetz admits the 70-seat location is more than he originally planned to tackle.

“This is a way bigger operation than I expected,” he said, noting he was looking for a space that could accommodate 30 to 40 guests.

“It’s a bigger step, but there’s a huge kitchen here. I have all the toys.”

The name Boreal Bistro is a nod to some of the ingredients Tetz plans to use in his recipes.

He explained items foraged from the forest will make an appearance on the menu.

“I learned how to cook with spruce bark and different weeds from the bush,” he said, adding guests should expect dandelion root ice cream on the menu.

“It actually has like a mocha, coffee flavour.”

For lunch Tetz plans a counter service-style menu, offering food truck inspired items such as gourmet hot dogs.

“I’m downtown, and people say they can’t get quick, nice lunches,” Tetz said.

At night, the menu changes to fine dining and a private dining room will allow Tetz to serve the tasting menus he created with Executive Chef. “I’ll come in and serve it and explain the dishes,” he said.

Boreal Bistro isn’t Tetz’s first time cooking in the hotel. He apprenticed in the restaurant under its former name The Mill. The hotel also hosted his wedding reception about 10 years ago.

“A lot of things have happened here. It’s kind of strange taking it over,” he said.

Although strange, Tetz is welcoming the

Kevin Tetz. change from working the kitchen in a corrections facility.

“It’s a big step. Corrections you just show up for your job and watch the clock. We did 12hour shifts. Basically your mind goes to Jell-O after a while,” Tetz said. “This is my life-long dream I guess.”

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P A C I F I C / P R A I R I E

EDITORIAL

e tip our hat to Ivan Gedz. The Ottawa restaurateur and the male wait staff at Union Local 613 donned short skirts and high heels in an effort to make a statement about the “hypersexualized female dress codes,” which Gedz said is a major issue in the restaurant world.

In opinion piece for the Globe and Mail in mid-March, Getz explained the idea was to highlight the absurdity of the situation.

A CBC Marketplace report investigating dress codes at some of Canada’s top chains thrust the topic into the spotlight in early March.

Then, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) put out a policy position on gender-specific dress codes on March 8, International Women’s Day. The position called out the restaurant industry as a common culprit when it comes to sexualized and gender-specific dress codes.

“Employers must make sure their dress codes don’t reinforce sexist stereotypes,” said OHRC chief commissioner Renu Mandhane.

“They send the message that an employee’s worth is tied to how they look. That’s not right, and it could violate the Ontario Human Rights Code.”

The OHRC linked dress codes that require female wait staff to wear dresses, lowcut tops and short skirts to unequal treatment that leaves those employees vulnerable to harassment, contributes to discriminatory workplaces and excludes people based on sex, gender identity and expression or creed.

While many stayed mum on the subject, Earls Kitchen + Bar piped up saying while its women servers were offered the opportunity to request pants, the Vancouver-based chain would rework its guidelines.

“Although our female service staff have a choice in what they wear, we understand that even our suggested dress code could be considered discriminatory,” a company statement said.

“We were unaware we were in contravention of the Ontario Human Rights Code until recently, and consequently, female servers will now be offered the choice of pants or a skirt rather than having to request it.”

Another operator defended the requirement to for wait staff to wear skimpy clothing, as did the women wearing what was re-

ferred to as a “costume.”

The Tilted Kilt uniforms reveal cleavage, midriff and quite a bit of leg, and are considered a theme at the group of pubs.

Toronto manager Todd Kehoe told the Toronto Sun the women who apply for a job at the Tilted Kilt are made fully aware of what they will be wearing at work.

“We have them try on the themed costumes because we want to make sure that they are right for us and we are right for them,” he said.

“If they don’t feel comfortable wearing an outfit like this, then we realize they are not right for our company and vice versa.”

Frankly, if someone who is not comfortable showing their body is not comfortable wearing a particular outfit, it shouldn’t be a requirement in the restaurant industry.

There is no need for a sexualized costumes — whether it be requiring women to wear tops resembling bikinis or even just to wear their hair down or put on makeup — if an establishment has good food, good service and a welcoming atmosphere.

Isn’t that what we are trying to achieve?

Kristen Smith Managing Editor

NEWS BRIEFS Restaurants Canada names new president and CEO TORONTO — Shanna Munro will become the new president and chief executive officer of Restaurants Canada on June 1. She will replace Donna Dooher, who took on the role on an interim basis in November 2014 and was appointed to the position last spring on a one-year contract.

According to the national foodservice association, Dooher will reassume her position as Restaurants Canada director.

A senior executive with experience in the foodservice, retail, entertainment and financial services industries across North America, Munro joined the association as chief operating officer last September.

Munro’s career in the foodservice industry spans more than 25 years starting with Priszm Brandz, previously Scott’s Restaurants, where the Ottawa native progressed from an hourly employee into a senior vice-president role overseeing multiple YUM! Brands concepts across Canada including KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Long John Silver.

Prior to joining Restaurants Canada, Munro served as president of Cash Converters and president and COO of Putting Edge Corp.

chief executive officer of Saskatchewan Hotel & Hospitality Association (SHHA).

At press time, he declined to name the participating resorts and restaurants, since “letters of intent still need to be signed.”

Last October, SHHA signed an agreement with the Solomon Islands’ Guadalcanal province to facilitate the entry of recent graduates of its hospitality program to work on a temporary basis in Saskatchewan to gain industry experience.

Hospitality grads will serve 120-day work terms, but Bence expressed his wish that terms could be extended.

Trudeau hires new chef OTTAWA — There’s a new chef in the kitchen at Rideau Cottage.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has hired chef Neil Dhawan for his official residence.

Dhawan was previously chef for Earnscliffe, the home of the British High Commissioner to Canada. More recently he worked for the Farm Boy chain of grocery stores. He replaces chef Tim Wasylko who was relieved of the position in November.

Wasylko is now chef to interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose.

Cooking for the Prime Minister pays an annual salary of $67,168 to $76,151.

Delivery robot in development Solomon Islands to Regina REGINA — Two Saskatchewan resorts and one quick-service restaurant are expected to welcome the province’s first student workers from the Solomon Islands in late spring.

Those workers are expected to arrive in June, according to Jim Bence, president and

4 | Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News

QUEENSLAND, Aus. — Domino’s Pizza has created an autonomous delivery vehicle named DRU (Domino’s Robotic Unit).

DRU is a four-wheeled vehicle with built-in compartments to keep the customer’s order hot and drinks cold while travelling from the store to the customer’s door.

Domino’s is working with the Austra-

lian Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads, along with other global partners, to ensure the delivery droid concept meets legislative requirements.

DRU, designed to travel on sidewalks, is currently able to navigate from a starting point to his destination, selecting the best path of travel. His on-board sensors enable him to perceive obstacles along the way and avoid them if necessary.

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Donnelly Group heads east TORONTO — Donnelly Group’s affinity for the city is bringing the Vancouver restaurant and pub operators to Toronto.

Slated to open in the latter half of April, Belfast Love is taking over the former Zoe’s Bakery space at 548 King St. West. Knocking down walls to transform the 6,000-square-foot space into one room, the pub will have capacity for 270 guests inside and 120 on the patio.

Each of the three bars, including one on the patio, will feature a lineup of 40 taps including a handful of British Columbia brews.

Chef Istvan Galambos, formerly of Mercatto, will lead the kitchen team with a “really thought-out pub menu” designed

by Vancouver chef David Gunawan, a partnership that was formed with Donnelly Group through the joint opening of Royal Dinette in Vancouver last year.

Operating partner Regan Truong will head up operations with Jex Woods, who is moving to Belfast Love from a position with Local Public Eatery.

Truong said Donnelly plans to open between five and eight distinct Toronto establishments.

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From left: Chefs Joseph Gosselin, Chris Whittaker and Richard Courtoreilli. Photo by Nelson Mouellic.

Timber tips its toque to Canada VANCOUVER — Instead of expanding the successful downtown Forage restaurant, executive chef Chris Whittaker opened Timber, a more casual restaurant, in a former art gallery space.

“We’ve got Forage right beside it and it’s basically been running at capacity for the last two years and it seems to be growing by anywhere between eight and 10 per cent and we’re just running out of seats,” he said.

Increasing Forage’s 78 seats by expanding into the neighbouring space wasn’t an option for Whittaker.

“I think that Forage would be a different restaurant if it were bigger. I don’t want to do that kind of food at 400 covers a day,” he said. “We’re talking about sustainability and that’s not really sustainable when you’re feeding the masses on products that are really difficult to get to begin with.”

The kitchen team, along with chef de cuisine Joseph Gosselin, will continue to use local produce and sustainable proteins at the 88-seat restaurant and take the same approach as Forage in Timber’s preparation methods, with everything made in house.

“I like doing things the hard way and I think it shows,” Whittaker said.

“Everyone has a different idea of what Canadian comfort food is,” said Whittaker. “It’s things that everyone’s been raised on in this country that we try to target.”

The menu includes deep fried cheese curds, maple baked beans, game tourtiere, bannock with spicy maple and haskap berry chutney, mushroom poutine, perogies, and for dessert, butter tarts and deep fried Nanaimo bars.

The bar menu features a selection of local craft beers, whiskies, cocktails and five Caesar-inspired creations. The beverage menu was a collaboration between restaurant manager Sarah Hussey, restaurant operations manager Margo Baloro and key bar staff.

Dustin Prichard the blacksmith at Glorious Organics in Aldergrove, B.C., where Whittaker buys much of his produce, collaborated on the space.

“I wanted it to be rustic, but not too hokey,” said Whittaker. “A lot of the material actually came from the barn on Glorious Organics and a lot of the wood was milled from either trees that had fallen or the barn, which got all its wood from trees that were milled 80 years ago.”

While hunting for ideas and materials, the Timber team came across stacks of old Canada Post bags and had a seamstress turn them into banquette seats.

“We wanted the food to feel Canadian and we wanted the room to feel the same,” Whittaker said, adding there are crosscut saws and grappling hooks incorporated in the design. “We wanted it to pay some tribute to the guys who built a lot of Canada, loggers.”

Dale MacKay opens Little Grouse options as well as a whole-roasted SASKATOON — As a tribute to grouse served with turnip, radicSaskatchewan’s provincial bird, chio and orange vinaigrette. the sharp-tailed grouse, the team Connie Young of Cece Debehind chef Dale MacKay’s signs in Calgary, who worked on Ayden Kitchen & Bar opened Ayden Kitchen & Bar, used samLittle Grouse on the Prairie in ple palettes of floral wallpaper, late February. antique artifacts, vintage frames Set in the historic Birks buildand old hutches to decorate the ing at 167 3rd Ave. South, the space. “Things you would see at 36-seat Italian restaurant focuses your nonna’s house,” said Cho. on the concept of “alla famiglia,” He said the name and design according to co-owner Christoare intended to evoke the compher Cho. fortable feeling of home and “You dine with multiple Little Grouse head chef Jesse Zuber. family. shared plates and you’re passing The beverage program includes an all-Italian wine list, plates around the table,” Cho explained, adding it has a designed by Erick Strong, general manager and sommelier, “neighbourhood, family feel.”

MacKay and chef Nathan Guggenheimer have tapped and a list of cocktails aged in oak barrels created by Cho. “We age them for four to five weeks and one of the perks Jesse Zuber, who moved from his position as head chef at Ayden, to lead the Little Grouse kitchen. The menu focuses of barrel-aging cocktails is it cuts out the harsh edges of a cocktail and infuses a lot of flavours like vanilla, oak, smoke on traditional Italian dishes with modern presentation.

A six-seat bar table allows guests to interact with the and caramel,” said Cho. “Using these barrels over and over again, you’ll extract a lot of flavours from what you barrelchefs while they make fresh pasta.

In addition to a selection of house-made pasta dishes, aged before … [The cocktails] are essentially different every the menu includes beef tagliata, branzino and duck secondi time, but in a great way.”

April 2016 | 5

Sean Beckingham

Home

Rules for Engagement Sean Beckingham March 22 • Toronto, ON, Canada •

“This local awareness campaign is definitely the one restaurants have been waiting for.”

Social media has the power to make ketchup famous.

Here’s how it may help your business.

By Bill Tremblay

A

n item on an Orillia, Ont., man’s grocery list is credited with sparking a national buy local food movement.

While grocery shopping in February, Brian Fernandez noticed French’s — a company he knew for its mustard — had started selling ketchup.

Rather than purchasing the unknown product, he went home to research French’s new condiment. That’s when he learned Heinz had closed its plant in Lemington, Ont., and French’s moved into its competitor’s former facility with a promise to only use tomatoes grown in the vicinity. Fernandez decided to buy the ketchup and share the story with his 400 Facebook friends.

“Two days later, my phone was going crazy with notification from all over Canada,” Fernandez said.

His post was shared more than 133,000 times on Facebook and translated into dozens of media interviews with national publications from Buzzfeed to the Toronto Star.

“I never dreamed that this would happen,” Fernandez said. “I’m just a construction worker from Orillia that put this out to my friends. Now it’s mind boggling.”

While the viral post earned Fernandez notoriety, it also pushed the relatively unknown French’s product into the Canadian spotlight. The ketchup sold out shortly after his post went viral.

Essex MPP Taras Natyshak presented the Ontario legislature with a petition to remove Heinz from the Queen’s Park cafeteria. Premier Kathleen Wynne tweeted a photo of herself with the French’s product.

“Proud to buy Ontario-grown. We’ve invested in Leamington’s Highbury Canco plant where French’s ketchup is made!” Wynne said in the tweet.

Weeks after Fernandez’s viral post, French’s continued to generate headlines and social media posts.

Don’t be direct The topic of how foodservice companies may leverage social media was addressed during Restaurants Canada’s recent Breakfast With Champions.

Manjit Minhas, co-founder and chief executive officer of Minhas Breweries and Distillery, explained social media content requires soft branding paired with a proper plan.

“It has to be a little more intuitive than right in your face. A 30-second TV commercial is expected to be in your face,” Minhas said.

David F. Clanachan, president and chief operating officer for Tim Hortons, explained the company used footage from a television commercial to create soft-branded social media content.

Tim Horton’s filmed NHL stars Sydney Crosby and Nathan Mackinnon returning to their hometown of Cole Harbour, N.S., to work at one of the restaurant chain’s drive-thrus.

“The idea was for footage for a TV commercial, but someone was smart enough to put cameras everywhere in the restaurant,” Clanachan said.

6 | Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News

With about 20 hours of footage, Tim Horton’s posted the hockey players’ drive-thru antics on YouTube. Within five weeks, the video series was watched by millions of viewers, with four of the clips ranking in YouTube’s top 10.

“It was an unbelievable success,” Clanachan said.

If you can’t afford Sid the Kid While viral social media posts have the power to draw international attention, Facebook is working on methods to capture audiences from the immediate community surrounding a business. This year, Facebook launched local awareness campaigns allowing brick and mortar businesses to target their posts to specific demographics.

“This local awareness campaign is definitely the one restaurants have been waiting for,” said Sean Beckingham, founder of Branding & Buzzing, a social marketing agency specializing in foodservice.

Right now, the new tool may cost as low as 5 cents per click. Beckingham noted other sponsored content on Facebook costs as much as $1.50 per click.

“They’re making this cheap right now because they’re essentially beta testing it on the market,” Beckingham said. “Because it’s new, Facebook is really rewarding restaurants with a low cost per click. I’ve seen some pretty good results with a few of our brands.”

Beckingham explained one of their clients is using a local awareness campaign to attract parents in the 25 to 35 year old age group. The campaign content focuses on what is available for youth, while Facebook’s geo-targeting is used to reach parents in the predetermined age group living in the area of the restaurant.

Drawing from its massive knowledge base, Beckingham noted Facebook’s geo-targeting ability is quite specific.

“If you have your cellphone on, and you accept all the privacy terms and conditions for Facebook, it will know when I’ve walked past your store,” Beckingham said. “It’s become amazing.”

When creating sponsored Facebook content, Beckingham recommends ensuring the ad has a clear call to action. As well, start with a budget of about $50.

“It’s a nice small spend for a restaurant for their first time,” Beckingham said.

While a paid Facebook campaign is custom-

izable, guidance is nearly non-existent.

There’s no help waiting at the end of an 800 number.

“One of the hardest things about Facebook is there is zero customer service. Navigating it can be kind of tricky,” Beckingham said.

A picture is worth 1,000 words Photography can make or break a social media campaign. Using quality photographs, a restaurant should also try to tell the story of their business through images of dishes as well as key staff.

“It is so important. People eat with their eyes first,” Beckingham said. “One of the first things we do when we take over a restaurant’s social media is photography.”

To tweet, or not to tweet?

At the end of 2015, Facebook had about 1.59 billion users. For Twitter, about 320 million people are actively tweeting and Instagram has grown to more than 400 million users.

While Facebook’s usage eclipses other platforms, Beckingham doesn’t recommend ignoring other social media channels.

“Instagram is the fastest growing social network for food and Twitter is still good for customer service and community engagement,” he said.

Beckingham recommends posting to Instagram three to five times per day, Twitter daily

Vikram Vij at the Restaurants Canada Show.

and Facebook about once a week.

“In the past, we used to pump out content every single day on Facebook,” Beckingham said. “They changed their algorithms in 2015 and only 10 per cent of posts are seen by fans organically.”

Restaurateurs should also pay attention to review sites like Yelp and TripAdvisor.

“Don’t ignore it. Stay in check with it,” Beckingham advised. “I’ve seen success and horror stories with people complaining about those sites. If they’re done right, they can be a powerful tool.”

With social media platforms constantly changing algorithms that dictate content viewed by its audiences, Beckingham suggests following a podcast such as Social Media Examiner to stay on top of the changing formats.

“If you want to spend the time, listen to a podcast,” he said.

Check your inbox Years ago, email was the primary form of online contact. However, with the advent of social media, the inbox began to fade away.

Things have, once again, changed.

“Now if anything is back in 2016, it’s getting inside somebody’s email box,” Beckingham said.

Ron Cates, director of digital marketing at Constant Contact, explained email now has the highest return on investment of any form

of marketing. He added the majority of email marketing campaigns leave ample room for improvement.

“I would suggest the average email isn’t that great. If you do email really well I would suggest your return is phenomenal,” Cates said.

Consumers have “raised the bar” when it comes to what they will read in their inbox.

“If it doesn’t look great, people assume the product served at the restaurant is second rate or amateur somehow,” Cates said. “They expect it to look professional.”

Constant Contact, as well as services like MailChimp, offers html templates that will improve the design of an email newsletter. Cates explained an html template generates eight times the action compared to plain text.

“You can just cut and paste your content and it looks great,” Cates said.

Alongside a professional design, an email newsletter should be short and quickly get to the point.

“I don’t want to read a long email ever. I’d rather have a root canal,” Cates said.

The tone of the email should also be genuine to the brand and show off the persona of the restaurant.

“If your restaurant were a person, what language would it use? What words would it use or not use? That’s how to communicate in email,” Cates said.

So how does a business build its audience for a newsletter? Just ask your customers, Cates recommends. When simply asked, 57 per cent of consumers will provide their email address, he explained.

“If that gets 57 per cent, what happens if the staff is trained well?” Cates said.

No substitute for quality Vancouver restaurateur Vikram Vij doesn’t rely on social networks to attract new customers to his restaurants.

“What is social media? It is an experience someone has and they’re sharing it with their friends,” Vij said. “That’s word of mouth.

We’ve given it a fancy name, but it’s really just word of mouth.”

Rather than rely on social media marketing, Vij said he aims to ensure his customers are provided the best possible dining experience.

“The reasons these establishments do well is because we take care of the people that walk in the door. It’s showing them love and respect,” Vij said. “Everything else is all bloody fake, it has to be back to basics.”

Graham Hayes, French’s Food Company Canada.

April 2016 | 7

Christine Farkas demonstrates cooking with pulses.

Hospitality Unleashed

From Feb. 28 to March 1, about 12,000 foodservice industry professionals gathered at the Enercare Centre in Toronto for the annual Restaurants Canada Show.

Butcher Dwayne Ellard talks about Canadian beef.

Robert Serapiglia prepares Sterling SIlver bottom sirloin flap.

Don’t discount the elderly, restaurateurs told TORONTO – Restaurateurs should prepare for an influx of elderly customers, according to Dr. Darrell Bricker, chief executive officer of Ipsos Public Affairs.

Bricker, who served as keynote speaker at the Restaurants Canada Show’s Breakfast With Champions, told his audience Canada’s population is aging and declining coast-to-coast.

Nunavut is the only province or territory recording population gains.

“Not only are we having fewer kids, the average lifespan of Canadians is expanding,” Bricker said.

In 1920, the average Canadian lifespan was 57 years. Today, Canadians will live to 87 years on average. By 2061, nearly 80,000 Canadians will live beyond 100 years old.

“We’ve added almost a whole additional lifetime onto our lives,” Bricker said. “We have lots of old people, but not very many kids. Are we going to be building hospitals or schools?”

He urged his audience to prepare their restaurants for single diners as well as customers with mobility issues.

“I don’t know how many restaurants have seats set up for people on their own, but there are a lot of people out there,” Bricker said. “How easy is it to sit at a table in your restaurant? How

Dr. Darrell Bricker. easy is it to get in and out of the door?

Do you accommodate walkers in your restaurant?”

He added it’s the elderly who have the financial means to visit restaurants.

“Who has the money? It’s not the downtown hipsters. It’s the old folks sitting in the suburbs. If you’re interested in the mass market, that’s the mass market,” Bricker said. “Everybody thinks there’s going to be this tremendous wealth transfer between old people and young people — no there isn’t. Old people are going to spend it all.”

In the future, “aging in place” is a term Canadians should expect to hear more often, and Bricker said restaurants should cater to seniors who stay in

their homes. “How do I copy the meals on wheels model?” he asked.

“Not to take care of destitute people, but to actually take care of people who have money to pay for that type of service in their homes,” Bricker said.

Immigrants are another demographic where restaurants may find new customers, according to Bricker.

The bulk of new Canadians are coming from China, India, Philippines and Pakistan.

“Canada is rapidly moving from being a white country to being a brown country. Get used to it,” Bricker said.

“Nine out of 10 immigrants live in a major urban area. If I have a restaurant there, I’m thinking about them.”

Shane Fisher in the Top Shelf Bartending competition.

Philman George from High Liner Foods.

Technology broadening consumers’ foodservice options: Technomic TORONTO — Technology will continue to play a leading role in broadening consumers’ foodservice choices in the coming years, according to Erik Thoresen, a principal at Technomic consultants, who led an industry trends seminar Feb. 29 at the Restaurants Canada Show.

At chain restaurants, for example, appbased technology will continue to provide more delivery options (through third-party companies) and also increase customization options, said Thoresen.

On top of that, Thoresen predicted chain operators will use technology to reduce onsite staff.

Another emerging trend is dietary apps,

8 | Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News

such as Second Waiter, which enable consumers to monitor, report on or help make decisions about the nutritional elements of their restaurant meals.

Until now, restaurants have been slow to adopt nutrition programs, but Thoresen said that operators will likely integrate more nutritional information into their menus on a more widespread basis over time.

Supermarkets will continue to eat into restaurants’ business by increasingly offering clickand-collect grocery ordering systems and by offering a larger selection of freshly prepared foods driving in-store eating, he said.

Also expected to grow and further cut into

restaurants’ business are meal-kit providers who deliver portioned, fresh ingredients and corresponding recipes to consumers’ homes for them to prepare themselves, said Thoresen, who noted that there are over 100 meal-kit startups operating.

Driving the meal-kit business, whose players include Blue Apron, HelloFresh and Chef ’s Plate, is the entertainment value inherent in preparing dinner from scratch, especially using exotic or unfamiliar ingredients.

A variation on that model, Sprig, delivers prepared, ready-to-eat meals whose nutritionally balanced components have been selected by consumers using the company’s app.

Besides sound nutrition, consumers want cleaner, fresher ingredients that are humanely and locally raised without additives or preservatives — but also want “food that tastes fantastic,” said Thoresen.

Peering further into his crystal ball, he said that the custom-built fast-casual segment is growing twice as quickly as fast casual without the custom-built option. “Dine-in amenities are raising the stakes,” Thoresen said.

Bottom line, he concluded, is while new technologies and formats create new opportunities, they’re also raising consumers’ expectations regarding foodservice convenience and options.

Seating with Style...

New flare for an old firehouse

By Bill Tremblay, Assistant Editor BRANDON, Man. — A catering job has led to an antique firehouse being converted into a new restaurant for Brandon, Man. The Central Fire Station was constructed in 1911 and stands on the site of its 1882 predecessor.

In 2010, the local fire department left the building in favour of more modern accommodations.

About a year and a half ago, Anna Dumas was recruited for a catering job for the buyer of the building.

“He asked if we could put a restaurant in it,” Dumas said.

“It kind of fell in our laps. Of course, I agreed immediately. Right after that I started the planning process.”

To pay homage to the building’s history, Dumas named the restaurant Prairie Firehouse and built the concept and menu around a firefighting theme. The restaurant officially opened at the end of January.

“We kept a lot of the historic things about the building,” she said.

The original doors, floor and brick walls remain intact, while fire department gear was used to decorate the walls.

“The brick wall was the most challenging. There was years and years of thick industrial paint on it,” Dumas said.

“It’s beautiful brick and has a nice patina to it because some of the paint chips are still on it.”

Dumas also asked firefighters to donate their coffee

mugs to recreate a coffee cup wall that was in place when the building was a fire station.

“Most of them actually hadn’t drank from the coffee cups since they worked here because they were so nostalgic about it,” she said.

Although her catering experience was creating gourmet meals, the restaurant’s menu leans toward simpler tastes.

“Brandon is a very meat and potatoes and burgers and fries kind of place,” she said.

“We wanted a menu that was appealing to everyone, but still adventurous with the food.”

In keeping with the firefighting theme, many of the menu items are cooked in an in-house smoker.

As well, about 95 per cent of the menu is made from scratch. Bread, one of few exceptions, is purchased from a nearby bakery.

“There’s higher labour costs, but it’s worth it in the end.

The food tastes homemade and it tastes unique,” Dumas said, noting menu items range from $12 to $25.

For the bar, the craft cocktail list is based on Prohibition era drinks.

“That was the time when the building was built,” Dumas said.

While the current menu caters to the “meat and potato” tastes of the community, Dumas said she plans introduce a wider variety of flavours soon.

“We kept it a little more appealing to the general public,” she said. “But our summer menu will be a little more adventurous.”

Showroom & Stocked in Oakville

Nightingale features vegetable-forward menu Continued from cover A “very grand large bar” should be a hub of activity in the financial area, he anticipated.

The beverage menu features twists on classic cocktails, gin and tonic on tap, as well as local craft beers, a diverse spirit list and approachable wine program.

Influenced by “a lighter way of eating,” Hawksworth said, “the menu is all based on sharing.”

Designed by the executive chef, with culinary director Kristian Eligh and recently appointed head chef Phil Scarfone (who joined Hawksworth Restaurant in 2011), Hawkworth describes the menu as vegetable forward, modern Canadian cuisine.

Vegetables are no longer an afterthought; “They’re a real focal point,” he said.

“Our modern Canadian cuisine delivers options catered

to the way that people want to eat today. There are choices of share plates, house-made pastas, creative wood-fired pizzas, salad and seasonal vegetable dishes; as well as accompaniments such as charcuterie and crudo,” Hawksworth said in a release.

Menu items include: Pacific snapper crudo, pickled baby cucumber, dill and charred meyer lemon; beef heart tartare, cured egg yolk, horseradish, grilled bread and kale pistou; wood-roasted cauliflower, sunflower seeds, pickled raisin and green harissa; sweet baked potato, fresno chili, bacon, cream fraiche, scallion; and pizzas, such as wild mushroom, new potato, rosemary, garlic confit and fontina and spicy sopressata, san marzano, fiore di latte. For dessert, dishes include salted caramel pot de crème with whipped crème fraiche, butterscotch and pecan breton and meyer lemon tart with raspberry and almond wafer.

(855) 337−2995 www.BUMCONTRACT.com April 2016 | 9

Fast Casual Sandwiched between quick serve and full service establishments the growing foodservice segment has a lot to offer, but fast casual operations are continuing to evolve.

By Kristen Smith

W

Burger’s Priest.

hile the average consumer might not use the industry term “fast casual,” Crave It Restaurant Group president and co-founder Alex Rechichi said they understand the value proposition.

“I think people get it; they get it when they experience it, but they don’t get it to the point where they can define it with a term.

They understand that there is something different here and there is something unique about this experience,” he said.

Crave It operates the Burger’s Priest, Via Cibo and Stoney’s Bread Company brands, which have a presence in Ontario and Alberta. The restaurant group is also working with Khao San Road’s Monte Wan to develop a Thai concept, Bangkok Buri, which will open its first location in Toronto’s Union Station.

Rechichi, who was also involved in developing Mucho Burrito and Extreme Pita, said he has taken many lessons from the United States, which had a decade head start in the segment.

Mark Dempsey, director of client development for foodservice for NPD Group, said the majority of growth in Canada has been over the last five years.

According to NPD Crest data, 2015 sales for fast casual were about $275 million, up $12 million from the year prior.

“Fast casual in the Canadian marketplace continues to grow at double digit pace, which is a combination of not only increased store openings, which have been happening over the last several years, but also drawing additional traffic,” he said. “It’s stealing from the QSR marketplace because of improved experience and higher quality of food, and it’s been stealing from the QSR marketplace for some time, but now we are starting to see it steal share from the FSR marketplace,” said Dempsey, adding this is likely to have more of an affect on adult-oriented establishments.

In Canada, fast casual accounts for about one per cent of total foodservice share, while that number is closer to 6 per cent in the United States.

Although slower to gain traction and earn share in Canada, “chef-driven fast casual” was on both the National Restaurant Association and Restaurants Canada lists outlining 2016 trends.

New avenues Cory Vitiello, the restaurateur behind Harbord Room and THR & Co., recently made the move into the segment with a quick serve eatery, Flock, serving rotisserie chicken and chef-inspired salads. The first location opened in June 2015 at Adelaide and Peter streets in Toronto.

He recently transformed THR & Co. into the second incarnation with an expanded menu and more seating.

1 0 | Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News

“This was the sister restaurant to the Harbord Room for three years and we just found the neighbourhood was craving more of a quintessential, neighbourhood, all-day spot, than it was another high-end restaurant,” he said.

Vitiello is working on two more Flock locations at Richmond and Bay and Church and Bloor.

“This formula only really makes sense at four because it’s such a low price point that it has to be scaled to actually make it work,” he said.

He plans to use the Harbord Street location as a commissary for some of the labour and space-intensive prep, such as making dressings and dry-curing chickens.

The move to fast casual reflected the way Vitiello saw his own — and the neighbourhood’s — eating habits shifting.

“What they crave is something quick to go with their busy lifestyles; you can have a $25 dinner in 30 minutes or you can have a take-out salad every day that’s bursting with fresh vegetables and different flavours and textures,” he said.

Vitiello sees fast casual as a less competitive space to launch a concept than full service, noting there are far more people who eat lunch in the downtown core every weekday than those who eat dinner at restaurants, and it requires a quarter of the real estate.

“But it comes with its own challenges. I thought going from restaurant to QSR would be a pretty easy transition,” said Vitiello, who has been a chef for about 15 years.

He said it’s more than simply converting to a focus on lunch.

When 100 people walk through the door shortly after noon, the model has to be tight to put the food out fresh and ensure the last person in line doesn’t wait for more than 10 minutes.

“At this point, it’s just about hospitality; I get the same satisfaction from sending a salad out in a box that I do from cooking a six-course tasting menu next door. If somebody walks out smiling, it’s the same feeling for me now.”

Slow food, fast food Tacofino uses the term “fast food slow” to describe the food being served at the British Columbia eateries. The surf-inspired concept was born in Tofino, B.C., as a food truck operated by husband and wife Kaeli Robinsong and Jason Sussman.

“We like the idea of slow food but we also recognize that in a busy world, people want it quickly,” said Ryan Spong, who partnered with the couple to bring the two food trucks to Vancouver.

The first brick and mortar location opened in 2012 out of operational necessity, to serve as a commissary kitchen. Since then,

Via Cibo. two more locations have opened with a fourth slated to open in the Yaletown area in June.

“Our commitment is to use quality ingredients and prepare them with care. That means that the cost of the food itself is high and the labour that goes into it is high, but we choose to keep our prices low and make to food accessible to more people,” said Spong. “That’s an equation that’s tough. I think the thing about fast casual is, in order to make it work, you need a fair amount of volume. You can’t be fast casual and have a small place because the math just gets really hard.”

Vitiello said sourcing in the fast casual segment differs greatly from fine dining, where operators can take the cost of food and then price a dish accordingly.

“You have to be a little more creative in terms of what you use. People tend to overlook the true cost of what it takes to bring a vegetable into a restaurant,” said Vitiello, adding vegetables might be one of the biggest expenses at Flock and Harbord Room.

“On top of that, it’s one of the more perishable ingredients so you really have to watch and respect the vegetable and make sure you’re not over-ordering, follow the seasons and stay on top of suppliers,” he said.

“This is more challenging for me than the Harbord Room. We want to put this beautiful meal out, but it’s got to go out at $12,” Vitiello said. “It takes a lot more creativity, costing and know-how to make that happen if you still want to preserve the integrity of doing chef-inspired food.”

Pizza party Cypress Five Star brought Five Guys Burgers and Fries north of the border at a time when premium burger joints were ripe for expansion.

The Chopped Leaf.

Stoney’s Bread Company.

Now, pizza concepts are flourishing in the fast casual segment in the United States.

“The pizza segment … in the U.S., in fast casual, is the fastest growing segment,” said Guy Richardson, vice-president of operations for Eastern Canada for Cypress. The company opened the first Canadian outpost of Blaze Fast Fire’d Pizza in Toronto last year and locations are slated to open in Edmonton and Calgary this spring.

“Blaze is definitely the fastest growing in terms of unit numbers in the pizza race right now,” said Richardson. “I guess the thing that people really love about it, which is one of the things about fast casual, is it’s customizable.”

Healthy returns The Chopped Leaf founder and brand president Blair Stevens opened the first location in Kelowna, B.C., in 2009 after noticing an opportunity for healthy options in quick service.

“I wanted to bring something I was passionate about — what I would eat in my own kitchen — to the public,” said Stevens, noting the menu focused on clean eating.

After growing the brand to 18 locations, Innovative Food Brands (Teriyaki Experience) purchased the chain in late 2014. Since then, Chopped Leaf has grown to 30 units with plans to open in Manitoba and Ontario.

Nick Veloce, Innovative Food Brands president and chief operating officer, said they plan to have 55 locations by year end.

The menu’s offering of salads, wraps and soups have a natural health halo, which Veloce said is attractive to a large demographic, but particularly to the coveted millennial generation.

The company recently introduced online ordering, which Veloce noted is certainly con-

Blaze Fast Fire’d Pizza. venient for the customer, but has demonstrated impressive gains for the operator.

Pre-ordering in a more relaxed atmosphere than at the front of a line, where the customer might feel rushed, allows for the opportunity to upsell.

“We’re seeing an uptick on average ticket and we’re seeing incremental business because we’re line busting,” said Veloce.

Mix it up At fast casual restaurants, about two thirds of the traffic is on premise, according to NPD data, but only about two per cent of fast casual traffic includes alcohol. According to Dempsey, for those operators who can offer alcohol, it would be a profitable move.

He said the experience fast casual offers is linked to those occasions where diners might want to have alcohol: people are more likely to go with friends and less likely to go with children.

“It’s the kind of experience where alcohol might be expected to be had and really no one is capitalizing upon that yet,” he said.

He expects the percentage of alcohol sales at fast casual to increase significantly year over year for the next four years.

“I’d go so far as to say that if there is an alcohol manufacturer that can really jump on this and win in fast casual, it’s a multimilliondollar win for them in Canadian foodservice,” Dempsey said.

Blurred lines Rechichi said the line between fast casual and QSR were clearer about five years ago.

“The initial interpretation of fast casual is really becoming what QSR is for tomorrow — the lines are really starting to get blurred,” he

Tacofino. Photo by Laura McGuire.

said.

Quick service restaurants are reinventing themselves with better quality, service and environments.

Rechichi expects to see this happen more often and for more QSR brands to get closer to the fast casual line.

That said, he points to the upper tier of fast casual, where the food quality, plating and service models are becoming closer to casual dining than QSR. “The interesting thing about fast casual is what works in casual dining also can work in fast casual and what works in quick service can also work in fast casual depending on the daypart that you’re trying to focus on building,” said Rechichi.

He outlined three factors that will determine the future of fast casual.

“The quality of the food and what we do from a menu standpoint will only be determined by how creative we want to be, what kind of price point we want to charge and how quickly we want to put the food out,” said Rechichi. “We are still very much in the early stages of what fast casual can and will become in Canada.”

Regardless of daypart or craving, there is a fast casual option.

“Fast casual has very quickly become a 24hour phenomenon,” said Dempsey, adding this is appealing especially to millennials, because they can try something different every day.

Also appealing to the coveted generation of consumers, is the segment’s underlying motto: tell us how you want it, and that’s how we’ll make it.

“Fast casual is educating the rest of Canadian foodservice; the consumer wants things their way,” said Dempsey.

Via Cibo.

April 2016 | 1 1

CRIS + CROS addresses foodservice landscape TORONTO — The restaurant industry’s role within retail is comparable to that of live sports in the world of broadcasting, according to Ed Khediguian, senior vice-president of franchise finance for GE Capital Canada.

“You deliver the experience and they’ll come,” Khediguian said during his opening address at the Canadian Restaurant Investment Summit and the Canadian Restaurant Operators Summit on March 2.

The full-day event included breakout streams for both industry investors as well as operators in a new format held following the Restaurants Canada Show.

The foodservice landscape Robert Carter, executive director, Foodservice Canada, The NPD Group, opened the speaker sessions with Todd Jones, senior managing director, brand management of GE Capital, franchise finance.

According to Carter, new channels and emerging technology are affecting the way consumers are using foodservice.

“The more we know about the consumer, the better position we are in to achieve success both in Canada and in the U.S.,” Carter said.

“There’s no doubt that their eating patterns are evolving.”

In what’s a “steal-share game,” Carter said the way customers are interacting with restaurants is shifting from functional visit drivers to emotional ones, such as liking the establishment or having a specific craving.

Last year, consumers spent cautiously amid economic uncertainty and rising prices. Grocery prices increased faster (at 3.7 per cent) than menu prices (2.8 per cent).

Carter said snacking, or eating in between traditional meals, continues to grow. The average Canadian eats 3.8 meals every day.

In 2015, Canadians spent $196 billion on food with $50 billion spent on commercial foodservice reflecting “soft gains,” Carter said, noting foodservice visits were “relatively flat” at about 6.5 billion, an increase of about one per cent. The average number of visits to a foodservice establishment was 181, which is four fewer than the previous year.

When NPD asked why people chose not to eat at a restaurant, respondents’ No. 1 answer was they prefer home-cooked meals, followed by cost exceeding budget and that they only eat out on special occasions or weekends.

Carter noted an increased emphasis on special occasion dining represents an interesting opportunity for operators.

Casual dining’s share declined three per cent, while QSR is fairing well. Carter said both QSR and FSR chains are performing better than independents. “In the last couple years we’ve seen more independents close than ever before,” he said.

Carter said there is an increased demand for “better” for you food, with 55 per cent of NPD respondents saying they want more food sourced from Canada on menus.

He sees millennials as a key growth opportunity; the demographic makes up the largest share of the workforce and will continue to drive traffic in the Canadian marketplace.

Industry and economic outlook In the association’s 2016 outlook survey, 43 per cent of operators said they expect sales to

1 2 | Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News

From left: Paul Rivett, president of Fairfax Financial Holdings, Sean Morrison, Diversified Royalty Corp. president and CEO, Bill Gregson, Cara Operations Ltd. CEO, Michael Glen, senior vice-president, head of equities, Laurentian Bank Securities, and FranWorks CEO Derek Doke. Amanda Lang moderated the panel discussion. grow about the same as last year, while 30 per cent said their sales should grow at a greater rate and 27 per cent predict sales to grow at a lesser rate.

“But if you really break those numbers down, a lot of people who are in the optimistic camp are from Ontario and British Columbia and those who are in the pessimistic camp are from Alberta, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador,” said Restaurants Canada senior economist Chris Elliott, adding not one respondent from Alberta said they expect to see greater sales growth than last year. “It’s really Armageddon out there right now.”

Since June 2014, there has been a 70 per cent decrease in crude oil prices.

Elliott said the impact is twofold.

“The consumer is a little bit happier because they have more money to go out and spend elsewhere,” he said. “But the downside is we’ve seen basically a 35 per cent reduction in investment spending in the energy [sector] and that has, of course, hit Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador really hard.”

According to the February forecast, Canada is expected to have real GDP growth of 1.2 per cent in 2016, down one per cent from predictions made in March 2015.

“Of course this has a ripple effect across our economy and certainly on our industry,” Elliott said, adding the reason Canada is expecting weaker growth is because of weaker growth globally.

“It really depends on where you are in the country,” he said, adding he doesn’t feel the restaurant industry should be panicking.

“The good news is this is a growing industry overall,” Elliott said.

Merger on the menu A panel moderated by Bloomberg’s Amanda Lang delved into recent mergers and partnerships and included insights from FranWorks chief executive Derek Doke, Michael Glen, senior vice-president, head of equities, Laurentian Bank Securities, Bill Gregson, Cara Operations Ltd. CEO, Sean Morrison, Diversified Royalty Corp. president and CEO, and Paul Rivett, president of Fairfax Financial Holdings.

Cara saw a strong 2015 with the completion of its acquisition of Landing Group of Restau-

rants and New York Fries as well as a spring IPO. Parent company Fairfax also purchased a 45 per cent stake in The McEwan Group in September.

“We are always on the lookout for good businesses, at a good price, with good management,” Rivett told delegates. “We’re open to invest in this climate, but very cautiously.”

He said there appears to be an exchange of dollars that would have been used on vacation or on cross-border shopping into restaurants.

“Cara and The Keg are seeing same-store sales actually go up, so folks are trading those dollars to other things it seems,” said Rivett.

Cara’s brands have been working on menu re-engineering and making the kitchen more efficient to find cost savings without sacrificing guest experience. During tougher times, Gregson said, a company can “discover things you never would in the good times.”

After putting on the brakes and focusing on turnaround within, Gregson said Cara is poised for a “ramp-up year” with about 30 new builds across the system, compared to 16 in 2015.

“There are some good rent deals out there, construction costs are coming down as well,” he said.

With respect to trends in the industry, Gregson is keeping an eye on fast casual.

Glen noted the segment has developed “much slower” in Canada than in the United States.

“I would fully anticipate that you would see that accelerate in Canada,” said Glen, noting there is opportunity for home-grown Canadian concepts.

Following the first year of Tim Hortons ownership by 3G Capital, Rivett said he doesn’t think there are any Canadian brands with the scale to be of interest to the large Brazilian private equity firm.

“I don’t think 3G is coming, but you don’t need 3G, Fairfax is here,” said Rivett. “Prem [Watsa] created a company where we believe in decentralized operations … you can sell a piece, sell it all, whatever you want to do, but you’ll know you get to continue to run your business.”

Rivett said Fairfax is fond of the restaurant industry and considers it one that makes good business sense long term.

“We’re looking for talented individuals that

want to continue to run their businesses. What this current environment provides is an opportunity for people to see that maybe it would be better to be with a partner because you can take advantage of synergies and continue to run your business the way you want to run it,” he said.

Restaurant real estate is evolving The possibility of opening a restaurant with a drive-thru may soon be impractical.

Grant Kosowan, co-founder of Orange National Retail Group, explained the vehiclefriendly real estate is becoming more difficult to acquire.

“Drive-thrus in Canada are becoming rare golden geese and you want to keep mindful of that,” Kosowan advised. “You’re not going to see much more of them.”

Municipal government is partly to blame for the demise of the drive-thru.

“More and more communities in Canada these days love to get into social engineering and social responsibility,” Kosowan said. “They don’t want drive-thrus.”

When a location suited for a drive-thru does arise, banks are easily able to outbid a restaurant for the real estate.

“When they pay an extra $10 a square foot for that space it’s not even a rounding error when you declare $2.5 billion a quarter profit,” Kosowan said.

While drive-thrus are becoming rare, new real estate options are emerging.

“Mixed-use developments is a buzz word a lot of communities are using,” he said.

“What you’re finding right now is a level of retail and restaurants, with office above it and multi-family above that. You’re seeing it on a more regular basis as developers try to squeeze more value.”

When the time comes to scout a new location, many real estate companies will use artificial intelligence to generate the ideal spot to set up shop.

Kosowan warned computer-generated pinpoints for a new location should be paired with local market knowledge.

“I’ve seen pinpoints in the middle of rivers.

I’ve seen pinpoints in neighbourhoods where you probably need Kevlar before taking a walk,” he said.

Albion and Intercity team up

VANCOUVER — Albion Fisheries and Intercity Packers will form a strategic Vancouver partnership under the name Albion Farms and Fisheries, effective May 29.

Danny Ransom, Albion Farms and Fisheries general manager, said an internal survey of the two companies’ customers “strongly supported having a single source” supplier for centre-ofthe-plate options.

“This strategic alignment is the first of many streamlining opportunities that allow Albion Farms and Fisheries’ customers to enjoy the highest quality fresh and frozen meat and seafood products with the simplicity of being delivered on one truck with one invoice,” said Ransom. “This also allows us to leverage our

economies of scale to provide outstanding customer service at competitive pricing.”

Meat and seafood will continue to be processed separately in their respective facilities, but sales and distribution will originate from Albion’s Vancouver facility on Great Northern Way. The joint company’s finance team will operate out of Intercity’s Vancouver facility on Kootenay Street.

The remaining three Albion Fisheries facilities in Victoria, Haida Gwaii, B.C., and Calgary, will keep their current name. The remaining Intercity Packers facilities in Edmonton, Mississauga, Ont., and Quebec will continue to operate as Intercity and with the same organizational structure at this time.

PJB-Primeline sold VANCOUVER — Food redistributor Dot Foods is moving into the Canadian market following the Jan. 1 acquisition of Vancouver-based Marketwest, the logistics and warehousing arm of PJB-Primeline.

The remaining portion of the business, PJB-Primeline, was acquired in early February by foodservice sales and marketing agency Waypoint, marking the Florida-based company’s first foray into Canadian foodservice. Waypoint’s parent company, Advantage Solutions, already has a Canadian presence in the retail sector.

PJB-Primeline has offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Halifax and Toronto and was formed in 2003 through a merger of PJB Marketing and Primeline Food Partners.

PJB-Primeline president Grant Huxtable sold both businesses and will lead Waypoint Foodservice in Canada with support from the company’s team in the United States.

“We are excited to join forces with a strong player in the Canadian market and we are looking forward to growing our clients’ business across North America,” said Waypoint president Kevin O’Beirne.

According to Waypoint, the company has a long-standing relationship with Dot Foods, which will be maintained with the Canadian acquisitions.

Founded in 1994, Marketwest has warehouses in Toronto and Calgary and currently delivers dry and frozen products to 120 distributors across Canada.

Marketwest’s employees will remain on board and play a role in educating Dot about the Canadian redistribution industry.

It will continue to operate under the name Marketwest with a timeline of becoming Dot Foods Canada by the end of 2016.

Dot plans to integrate the companies and eventually build volume.

“We’re new to the country, we’re new to the market so we’re in no hurry,” said Dot Foods chief executive officer John Tracy.

“Our plan is to learn the business and then build a foundation to really grow it substantially by expanding our offering and expanding the customer base and expanding into different channels.”

Dot’s core business is redistribution to different channels, including foodservice, Cstore and retail grocery.

“All of those channels, we believe, are ripe for redistribution to play a role in their supply chain, similar to what we do in the United States,” he said.

Dot has positioned itself as a supply chain solution for manufacturers to get products to distributors in less than truckload quantities, explained Tracy.

“The Canadian consumer is looking for more choice, like consumers everywhere in the world,” he said. “And more choice means more offerings and more options, which means we need supply chains that are pretty efficient and make small-volume products more accessible — and that’s what we do.”

PRODUCTS Globe launches new spiral dough mixers

Broasters introduces grab-and-go kiosk The Broaster Company is introducing the newest addition to its lineup of grab-and-go foodservice equipment and its branded food program.

The all-inclusive kiosk package comes with a warmer, a printed or optional digital menu board, and fully wrapped, eye-catching graphics. The kiosk line comes in four, six and eightfoot sizes and is available branded as Genuine Broaster Chicken or Broaster Express.

The kiosk allows convenience store operators to drop the unit into their business and serve food the same day.

Using a pressure fryer, Broasters allows operators to prepare fresh chicken, pork chops, chicken wings or ribs.

Globe Food Equipment has added two spiral dough mixers to their food preparation line.

It’s designed for bakeries, pizzerias and others interested in developing the proper gluten structure of their dough without overworking it.

The GSM130 model has a 130-pound dough capacity and the GSM175 is equipped with a 175-pound dough capacity.

Globe spiral mixers are constructed of heavyduty metal with front-mounted dual 20 minute electronic timer controls for automatic shift from first to second speed as well as reversible bowl drive for smaller batches providing mixer versatility.

Libbey unveils new stemware

Bunge introduces new margarines Bunge Canada has introduced two new margarines to the market.

The company’s new Delicia NH Canola Margarine is made from canola grown and processed in Alberta, and the recipe now includes sunflower lecithin.

Bunge also introduced its new Delicia NH Soya Margarine, available in 13-kilogram pails.

The soya product is made with soybeans grown and processed in Ontario. Both products are non-hydrogenated, lactose free, gluten free, non dairy and Kosher parve.

Rivere is the newest pattern in the Master’s Reserve collection from Libbey Foodservice.

The modern look of the Rivere glassware features a wide, gracefully designed bowl that cradles the wine and concentrates aromas while the large surface area allows wine to breathe.

Other distinguishing features of glassware in the Master’s Reserve collection include sparkling clarity, thin, beadless edge and signature flat foot.

April 2016 | 1 3

PEOPLE

Maritime restaurateur elected Restaurants Canada chair TORONTO – Bill Allen is now chair of the board for Restaurants Canada for 2016-2017.

Allen, president of Fresh Casual Restaurants based in Aulac, N.B., was elected chair at the association’s annual general meeting held at the Restaurants Canada Show on March 1.

“I look forward to working with you to bring more stakeholders to the table, to grow our membership and to create opportunities in the industry for many years to come,” Allen said.

Fresh Casual Restaurants is a multi-unit franchisee representing several brands, including five Bill Allen (left) with past chair Paul Methot.

Swiss Chalet restaurants, one Harvey’s location, and the Aulac Big Stop Travel Lobster Barn restaurant in Timber River, N.B. Plaza near the New Brunswick - Nova Scotia He is a 1985 graduate of the hotel and restauborder. Allen employs more than 300 people in rant management program at New Brunswick Community College.

Atlantic Canada.

Allen began his career with JF Food SysHe joined the Restaurants Canada board in 2008 and has served as chair and vice-chair of tems, and later joined regional distributor Judson Foods. In 1993, he ventured into operating several committees.

“Over the last few months, I’ve given consid- full-service truck stops and travel plazas. He is erable thought to what I’d like the Restaurants also an instructor for the National Food Safety Canada team to accomplish during my term Training Program and the Canadian Code of as chair,” Allen said. “It really comes down to Practice for Food Safety.

Allen replaces Paul Methot who now moves working together. Let’s grow our industry and align with all the people and industries related into the immediate past chair position.

“To the team at Restaurants Canada, let me to the foodservice sector.”

His first priority as chair will be to engage all say I appreciate your patience, hard work and loyalty to our members,” Methot said during stakeholders in the foodservice industry.

Allen has been part of the restaurant busi- the meeting. “I look forward to serving alongness since his teens, when his family owned the side you for years to come.”

CAFP Vancouver branch lauds industry leaders

From left: Bruce Fox, Liam Lewis, Lorne Deutsch, Peter Lam, Barb Finley and Justin Henry.

Christopher McFadden joins La Pentola VANCOUVER — Christopher McFadden is the new wine director of OPUS Hotel Vancouver La Pentola restaurant.

McFadden brings passion and enthusiasm to La Pentola’s wine program and focuses on education as a key part of his role as wine director, providing guidance to the team when creating special food and wine experiences for diners. Honouring the Italian heritage of La Pentola’s wine program, McFadden showcases Italian family-run and boutique wineries, alongside Italian-style New World wines.

A member of CAPS (Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers), McFadden brings 16 years of restaurant experience to La Pentola. In 2000, he joined the Walliser Stube Wine Bar at The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. Formally trained with the ISG (International Sommelier Guild), McFadden then joined Biff ’s French Bistro in Toronto and after that,

worked at The Fairmont Banff Springs, Le Beaujolais and The Evergreen Restaurant in Banff.

In 2006, he and his wife Joanne moved to Calgary, where McFadden was sommelier and restaurant manager at The Belvedere for three and a half years.

Following stints at Salt Tasting Room and Glowbal Group’s Italian Kitchen, McFadden has spent the past four and half years with Hy’s of Canada Steakhouses in Vancouver as sommelier and restaurant manager.

Saysomsack joins See Ya Later Ranch OKANAGAN FALLS, B.C. — David Saysomsack is the recently appointed winemaker at See Ya Later Ranch, set on Hawthorne Mountain 2,000 feet above sea level in Okanagan Falls, B.C. Saysomsack is taking the reins from winemaking veteran, Dave Carson, who is helming Jackson Triggs’ Okanagan portfolio following Brooke Blair’s return to her native Australia.

“I believe much of the Okanagan’s success as a wine region can be attributed to its highly diverse growing conditions,” said Saysomsack.

“The searing dry summer heat paired with a cooling diurnal shift allows the vines to thrive,” he added..

After working in Ontario, California, Wash-

ington State, Oregon and New Zealand, Saysomsack is thrilled with his new home at See Ya Later Ranch.

Born in Laos and raised in Abbotsford, B.C., Saysomsack’s passion as a hobbyist winemaker spanned more than a decade before he headed back to school to complete an honours degree at Brock University in Oenology and Viticulture.

RICHMOND, B.C. — The Vancouver branch of the Canadian Association of Foodservice Professionals announced the recipients of its annual awards on at its Leadership Night Gala.

Before the dinner, glasses were raised to salute the life and achievements and life of Canadian Food Service Executives Association past national and local president Inge Hausner, who passed away on Jan. 10.

Lorne Deutsch was recognized as the chapter’s Food Executive of the Year. The Red Seal-certified chef is the key account manager for Shalit Foods Inc. Leadership Awards were

handed out in three categories: for community service, founder of Project CHEF Education Society Barb Finley; the industry development award went to Justin Henry, Northern Divine Aquafarms general manager; and 13-year-old food blogger Liam Lewis (The Little Locavore) for educational leadership. Peter Lam was given the John McCormick Memorial Award for his commitment to the foodservice and hospitality industry and associations.

Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News presented Browns Restaurant Group its annual British Columbia Newsmaker of the Year award.

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1 4 | Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News

HAVE YOU GOT IT? The 2016 media kit is here.

Contact our sales team today. sales@canadianrestaurantnews.com

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