F&H May 2023 Digital Issue

PEOPLE AND PLANET

PLANTIFUL OPTIONS

Operators are capitalizing on plant-based trends

WASH & WARE

Warewashing systems put efficiency and savings first GREAT OUTDOORS

New patio regulations are in place in some parts of Canada

Andrea Carlson chef/owner Burdock & Co., Vancouver

ALBERTA

Gordon Food Service Canada – Calgary

Gordon Food Service Canada – Edmonton

Intercity Packers – Edmonton

BRITISH COLUMBIA

Intercity Packers – Richmond

Gordon Food Service Canada – British Columbia

MANITOBA

Gordon Food Service Canada – Winnipeg

To-Le-Do Foodservice

NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR

Atlantic Grocery Distributors

NOVA SCOTIA

Gordon Food Service Canada – Atlantic

ONTARIO

Gordon Food Service Canada – Ontario

Intercity Packers – Toronto

Macgregors Meat & Seafood

QUEBEC

Gordon Food Service Canada – Montreal

Gordon Food Service Canada – Quebec

Les Viandes Intercite

The future is green. Or at least, that’s what we’d all like to believe.

In recent decades, there’s been a great deal of talk about sustainability. Whether we focus in on climate change, on food waste or on recycling efforts, we all like to believe we’re committed to greening. But while talk is cheap, there’s only been a handful of companies that have truly lived by this ethos. But that’s no longer enough. We can’t rely on the efforts of a few to make the kind of impact we need. If we are truly to achieve success on this front, we need to be all in.

Certainly, there are many stellar foodservice companies making great inroads in this area, and today’s chefs are increasingly mindful of waste and should be lauded for their efforts. But we have a long way to go to truly create the impact we need. While the simple mantra of the three R’s: reducing, recycling and re-using apply more today than ever, we need to become more comprehensive in our efforts. To truly be sustainable, we need to focus on all elements of our infrastructure — from transportation, to the energy we use, to our water supply, to waste — not just food waste but also water and energy waste. We need to focus on the kinds of products

THE GREEN CHALLENGE

we use in the kitchen and reduce our carbon footprint. And, we need to treat our oceans and lakes with the respect they deserve. The only way to accomplish this is to ensure your business has a sustainability strategy in place and provide practical steps that are easy for staff to follow while engaging them to follow suit.

At the Restaurants Canada show held in Toronto last month, one of the presenters at the Breakfast of Champions cited statistics that show that 58 per cent of the food we produce never gets eaten. Another harsh reality, the average Canadian household wastes almost $2,000 of food every year. To put it into perspective, on a global front, food waste equates to $1.2 trillion. Those are staggering numbers and speak to a recklessness of spirit that needs to be eliminated — both by consumers and businesses — especially at a time when we’re grappling with food insecurity and increasing costs.

But let’s not forget that sustainability is all encompassing. Certainly, it’s about focusing on all the points mentioned above. But it’s also about paying staff living wages so they can have a sustainable future, treating them equitably and giving them a voice. That’s the true measure of sustainability.

At the end of the day, if we can’t all work towards this common goal, how viable is the future for our children and their children’s children.

NB: Kostuch Media Ltd. is proud to present its annual Green Leadership Awards at our Top-30-under-30 Leadership Summit, scheduled on June 13th, held at the Toronto Sheraton Centre. FH

ROSANNA CAIRA rcaira@kostuchmedia.com

@foodservicemag

EDITOR & PUBLISHER ROSANNA CAIRA

MANAGING EDITOR AMY BOSTOCK

ASSISTANT EDITOR NICOLE DI TOMASSO

ART DIRECTOR COURTNEY JENKINS

DESIGN ASSISTANT JENNIFER O’NEILL

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER JANINE MARAL

WEBSITE MANAGER TYLER BECKSTEAD

DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

WENDY GILCHRIST

ACCOUNT MANAGER CATHI KREWICKI

SALES & MARKETING ASSISTANT/ EVENTS CO-ORDINATOR KIMONE CLUNIS

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT DANNA SMITH

ACCOUNTING SERVICES DANIELA PRICOIU

CIRCULATION PUBLICATION PARTNERS

ADVISORY BOARD

ASCARI HOSPITALITY GROUP JOHN SINOPOLI

BROWNS RESTAURANT GROUP BRUCE FOX

CHARCUT RESTAURANT CONNIE DESOUSA, JOHN JACKSON

CHEF/ADVOCATE NED BELL

LACTALIS CANADA IVEN ZANARDO

MAPLE LEAF SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT DAN MORROW

MTY GROUP MARIE-LINE BEAUCHAMP

PARAMOUNT FINE FOODS MOHAMAD FAKIH

PROFILE HOSPITALITY GROUP SCOTT BELLHOUSE

SOTOS LLP ALLAN DICK

THE HOUSE OF COMMONS JUDSON SIMPSON

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH, SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY & TOURISM MANAGEMENT BRUCE MCADAMS GARLAND CANADA MARY CHIAROT

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WORKING IT OUT

Canada announces extension of post-graduation work permits for up to 18 months

Post-pandemic, employers are facing unprecedented challenges in finding and retaining the workers they need during a period of economic recovery and growth.

In March, The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced that international graduates with a recently expired or expiring postgraduation work permit (PGWP) will qualify for an additional or extended work permit to stay longer and gain additional work experience for up to 18 months. The PGWP Program

allows international graduates to obtain an open work permit to gain valuable Canadian work experience.

“We need to use every tool in our toolbox to support employers who continue to face challenges in hiring the workers they need to grow,” says Fraser. “At the same time, we’re providing international graduates whose work permit is expiring or has expired with some additional time to stay in Canada to gain valuable work experience and potentially qualify to become a permanent resident.”

Effective April 6, these measures allow PGWP holders who wish to

International graduates are an important source of future permanent residents. Tens of thousands successfully transition to permanent residents each year, including more than 157,000 in 2021, a record high, and nearly 95,000 in 2022, the secondhighest total ever

At the end of 2022, more than 286,000 international graduates were in Canada with a valid post-graduation work permit. About 127,000 PGWPs expire in 2023, though about 67,000 PGWP holders have already applied for permanent residence and won’t need to extend their work permit through this initiative.

stay longer to opt in to a facilitative process to extend their work permit and will allow Canada to retain high-skilled talent.

Foreign nationals whose PGWP has already expired in 2023 and those who were eligible for the 2022 PGWP facilitative measure will also have the opportunity to apply for an additional 18-month work permit. Those with expired work permits will be able to restore their status, even if they are beyond the 90-day restoration period, and will receive an interim work authorization while awaiting processing of their new workpermit application.

Talented and skilled international graduates play a vital role in addressing Canada’s labour shortage, and those nearing the end of their PGWP are already well integrated into Canada’s labour market. The additional work permit will allow eligible applicants to continue contributing to the Canadian economy while gaining valuable work experience and preparing for the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. FH

Paris Baguette has opened in Toronto, marking the brand’s first bakery café in Canada. Paris Baguette’s North-American expansion will see at least seven stores open across Canada this year, with an additional 64 in the U.S., through a strategic approach of corporate-owned and franchise locations.

The Paris Baguette bakery café highlights signature cakes, specialty brewed coffees by Lavazza and baked breads and pastries. Initial growth in Canada will be concentrated in Ontario, focusing on the Greater Toronto Area; in Alberta, with locations in Edmonton and Calgary; and in Vancouver.

The Toronto store is 2,300 sq. ft. and has seating for up to 20 guests. Large self-serve displays feature an extensive menu and an open kitchen provides a window into Paris Baguette’s expert bakers at work. A large centre island showcases signature treats, such as the Strawberry Soft Cream Cake and mochi doughnuts. The café has a modern design with French architectural features.

“The expansion of our bakery cafés into Canada marks an exciting period of growth for Paris Baguette,” says Darren Tipton, CEO, Paris Baguette North America. “We can’t wait to celebrate moments of joy with our guests as we establish our neighbourhood bakery cafés in Toronto and bring our vision to life throughout Canada.”

A TASTE OF PARIS RAISING THE BAR CFIN NAMES NEW CEO

The Canadian Food Innovation Network has named Dana McCauley, formerly Chief Experience Officer, to the role of CEO. Working in step with outgoing CEO Joseph Lake, McCauley played a key role in building the organization, developing and implementing key strategic initiatives, identifying and working to solve the most urgent roadblocks to Canadian food innovation, and creating a meaningful member experience.

Throughout her career, McCauley has had her finger on the pulse of food innovation as a successful food writer and editor, a television food-trends commentator, a senior executive in the food manufacturing sector, and a trailblazing food business incubator and accelerator. Her dedication to innovation, collaboration, and the resiliency of Canada’s food ecosystem will continue to propel CFIN forward.

WORLD CLASS CANADA has crowned Jacob Martin from Toronto’s Bar Banane as the World Class Canada Bartender of the Year 2023.

After demonstrating his bartending prowess in seven unique challenges across a three-day competition hosted at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, Martin proved that his style of hospitality set him apart, edging out nine other top bartenders from across the country. He will go on to represent Canada at the WORLD CLASS Global competition in Sao Paulo, Brazil in September 2023.

Diageo’s World Class challenges are crafted to showcase the five key characteristics it takes to be a World Class bartender: hosting, craft, flavour analysis, knowledge and world-class advocacy. With each challenge, judges are not just looking for a beautiful cocktail, but also a meaningful display of storytelling that embodies these five pillars.

“To represent the Canadian bartending community and be amongst such innovative and respected bartenders is such an honour; winning the title is just the cherry on top,” says Martin. “It’s incredibly rewarding to see the time, dedication and determination of a competition of this nature take pay off and I’m excited to push my creativity even further on the global stage this September.”

MAKING HISTORY

Daniel Craig, executive chef at The Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto, has been inducted into the Academie Culinaire de France (ACF), one of the oldest organizations of professional chefs based in France. This induction marks the first time a Toronto chef has been named to this prestigious ranking. Craig is also the first Canadian-born chef to be inducted.

Craig lived in France to develop his talents in French cuisine, attending the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu School of Culinary Arts in Paris. This led him to accept a position as commis at the two Michelin-starred L’Abbaye St. Ambroix under the guidance of chef Francois Adamski. After graduating, he placed first and brought back gold for Canada in the prestigious Chaine Des Rottiseurs Jeune Chef Concours and placed second in the Bocuse D’or National Finals. He was also named Executive Chef of the Year (North America) by Marriott International for his contribution to The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto.

“We’re so proud and incredibly grateful to have chef Craig’s talents shaping our foodand-beverage program, and for his leadership in guiding our extensive culinary team,” says Peter Gilis, general manager at The Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto. “I’ve had the pleasure of watching my friend and colleague grow throughout the years as a culinary leader. I’m thrilled to see this prestigious institute recognize his accomplishments and dedication to his craft.”

STAYING TRUE

Little Chief restaurant, located within the Grey Eagle Resort & Casino, has launched its new seasonal menu. Designed by chef Willow Eaglespeaker, the menu incorporates seasonal and locally sourced ingredients, staying true to its Indigenous heritage.

Little Chief’s new menu features a mix of modern and traditional Indigenous-inspired dishes, including Pan-Roasted Kuterra Salmon, Juniper-Braised Beef Chuck Flats, Pow Wow Taco Poutine and a hearty Hamburger Soup. Its side dishes include traditional Bannock and Fry Bread with Saskatoon berry jam.

Chef Eaglespeaker is known for his complex flavours and creative plating style, infusing modern French techniques with his cultural knowledge. Growing up in Calgary, his cooking style has been influenced by his Blackfoot and Cree heritage, and his passion for cooking began at an early age while learning to hunt and harvest with his father and further developed working in professional kitchens. He trained under chef Barton-Browne at Deane House and chef Brandon Dashnay at Grey Eagle Resort & Casino.

THE BIG REVEAL

Following their merger in August 2022, Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) and The NPD Group (NPD) have unveiled a new combined company name and brand identity: Circana.

Created in partnership with global brand consulting firm Landor & Fitch, Circana is the leading advisor on the complexity of consumer behaviour. Through unparalleled technology, advanced analytics, cross-industry data and deep expertise, Circana provides clarity that helps clients take action and unlock business growth.

Leveraging the vast data and expertise of its heritage firms, Circana tracks millions of products spanning more than 2,000 categories across more than 500,000 stores in 20 countries, with insights powered by the industry’s most advanced technology platform, Liquid Data. Today, Circana advises almost 7,000 brands and retailers worldwide.

“We are proud to begin this new chapter together as Circana, a name that conveys our 360-degree, full-circle understanding of the consumer and market, and our unique ability to bring clients a complete view of the consumer, store and wallet,” says Kirk Perry, president and CEO, Circana. “In today’s dynamic global retail and media environment, our value proposition has never been stronger. Circana is undeniably best positioned to advise the world’s leading brands and retailers across almost every industry on how to identify opportunity, ignite innovation and grow well into the future.”

ROBERT LOWDON [LITTLE CHIEF]

BY ROSANNA CAIRA AND AMY BOSTOCK

CHANGING THE NARRATIVE

Unconference aims to break the barriers to diversity, inclusion and equity through meaningful discussion

The inaugural Quell Unblock Conference was held in April at the Evergreen Brickworks in Toronto. Approximately 150 people attended the event, which focused on diversity, equity and inclusion in the food, drink and hospitality industry.

The brainchild of Quell founders Trevor Lui and Stephanie Lui-Valentim, the Unblock Conference offered education and networking opportunities with all industry sectors — from

academia, to business leaders, to operators. The program featured two keynote speakers, an executive panel, workshops, a curated vendor food market and a bodega comprised of 12 small business entrepreneurs.

“This is a monumental occasion for us,” said Lui-Valentim during her opening remarks. “I truly believe this is the first unconference of its kind in Canada. You’re here today because you’ve also made a choice to commit to making a change. So, change starts here as we collectively come together

as an industry to learn, to champion the need for better DEI in your organizations, your restaurants, your businesses and your schools to ensure that this is not just a moment — this is a movement.”

The first day of the conference featured a keynote panel titled “Winning Strategy: When stepping to the plate with two or more strikes against you.” Panellists included Erica Karbelnik, Top Chef Canada season nine winner and Chopped Canada, season three winner; Erika Casupanan, winner of season

Whittington; Arora, GM, Janice Bartley, FoodpreneurLab

41 of Survivor; and Marissa Leon-John, twotime Master Chef Canada alumni.

Day two of the conference opened with keynote speaker Justin Wu, award-winning director, photographer and creative director of T&T Supermarket, talking about his life as the child of immigrant parents who had a hard time fitting in.

“I didn’t have the best childhood,” he said. “I had very loving parents but being raised with eastern values at home while being taught western values at school, I had real identity issues. I had a hard time assimilating to culture, not knowing who I really was.”

He recalled throwing out his traditional Chinese lunches at school because the other, predominantly white, students would make fun of him and telling his mom he wanted the same things his friends were eating.

“From an early age I had trouble finding my place, but it was in the world of art, the world of film, that I finally found my voice. I was able to find those values that I could associate with and that became my true foundation.”

LEADERSHIP JOURNEYS

Following the keynote, attendees were able to choose from concurrent sessions across four pillars: DEI & Leadership; DEI & People/

Culture; DEI & Brand; and DEI & Food.

Breaking through invisible barriers: leadership journeys brought together panellists Debbie Shing, co-founder, Vinequity; Hassel Aviles, co-founder/executive director, not9to5; and Cheryl Appleton, founder, Canadian Women in Food. Moderated by Christina Veira, co-owner, Bar Mordecai and owner, Stave, the panel and workshop followed the journeys each woman embarked on in their lives and careers, the challenges they faced along the way and how they overcame — and continue to overcome — in order to build success in their respective spaces.

“It’s so great to see so many faces in this room who are interested in progress,” said Shing, who led off the session. “Myself and six other women of colour got together in the summer of 2020 [to form Vinequity] after the killing of George Floyd when we realized that we all had a few things in common in terms of being held back in our positions or being refused opportunities. Of not being seen or heard as a leader in our respective positions. We decided to get together to form an organization that could drive change.”

She said her organization believes in “the campsite rule; we want to leave a situation the same or better than when we found it.”

The group founded Vinequity, a not-forprofit that is mostly a scholarship fund for people that identify as BIPOC in Canada’s beverage industry. “But it’s also a mentorship program, as well as an advocacy and resources platform for people who feel underrepresented or want to have a louder voice.”

Aviles, a restaurant-industry veteran, took the floor next to talk about her struggles

with mental health and how those led her to form not9to5,

“After so many years in the industry, I found there was so much neglect of workplace mental health and of the substance-abuse challenges that exist in our industry. And I lived with mental illness myself for many years and just saw a gap. There was so much suppressing and repressing of emotional experiences and decided ‘why not me? No one else is doing this.’ About two years of that slow conversation and open dialogue and awareness led to an incorporated non-profit.”

not9to5 focuses on advocacy, training and education around workplace mental health and has partners all over the globe.

Appleton, founder of social enterprise Canadian Women in Food, talked about how her organization supports women who own their own businesses in the food-andbeverage space. “We have more than 250 members across the country. A 30-year veteran of the food industry, Appleton shared stories about how the industry she’s a part of helped shape who she is.

Session attendees were then broken into groups and each group had one-on-one time with each panellist, asking and answering questions about DEI challenges and strategies within their own organizations.

DE-COLONIZING THE TABLE

At a workshop led by Bashir Munye, professor at George Brown College, the Sommalianborn chef lead an interactive session called De-colonizing the Table, in which he challenged attendees to break the age-old preconceptions of food bias and food sovereignty. Through a series of short video interviews with racialized chefs, speaking about the challenges of being a minority in the kitchen, Munye showed how we can work together to dispel

tor) Ryan Whittington; Shilpa GM, DoorDash; Bartley, founder, FoodpreneurLab,

some of the myths around food while educating everyone about the importance of changing the face of the food industry. “Just because you’re the first black guy in the kitchen is not good enough,” said Munye.

Before change can be made, Munye highlighted several key points that need to be addressed, starting with acknowledging the role that colonization has played in shaping our food biases. “We cannot talk about our own food biases and our own food sovereignty without really thinking about the rights and sovereignty of indigenous people,” stressed Munye, adding it’s not enough to spout phrases like diversity and inclusion and then “lift the carpet and put the Indigenous experience under it.”

Munye also stressed the dichotomy of changing hiring practices to ensure more representation of racialized communities, while continuing to pay low wages to its workers.

Earlier in the day, a workshop on Neurodiversity at Work highlighted an innovative and unique social enterprise and charity called Melly’s Workshop, which offers an interactive development program for adults with intellectual and development disabilities. The Whitby, Ont. Group was developed for those “who want to work but are looking for support in learning the workplace behaviour required to be a great employee.”

Directors of the group were on hand to walk attendees through the group’s goals, and to introduce and celebrate several of the agency’s workers, looking to find employment.

The program includes 16 development modules such as customer service and time management while focusing on independence, self-advocacy and selfawareness. As part of the agency’s role, adults receive a structured schedule that changes weekly, with different learnings and activities planned for each session. Each student is able to independently manage their schedule and transportation to Melly’s. The organization provides those with developmental challenges a place to learn, grow and develop new friendships. For more information on Melly’s, contact info@mellysworkplace.ca

Other session topics for the day included designing an inclusive customer journey; a journey in flavour, taste and tolerance; leveraging human-centred design for DEI; and Indigenous food culture.

BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS

For racialized communities, women, and under-represented minorities, breaking barriers is a common thread in their job trajectory. As part of the industry Executive Panel at the afternoon Plenary session at fledgling Unconference, two women leaders spoke of their career journeys, highlighting how they worked to break down those barriers to achieve success along the way.

For Janice Bartley, founder and executive director of Foodpreneur Lab, a Toronto non-profit whose mandate is to develop and support emerging and established food entrepreneurs, when she looks back on her journey she admits she came from a “place of frustration provoked into purpose.” Bartley says she heard many no’s along the way but she still pushed through.” Looking back, she believes many of her gains came through allyships, pointing to the strongest ally being the Canadian Food Women’s Network and its director, Cheryll Appleton. “They saw me, they heard me and they understood,” said Bartley, who stressed the importance of not being performative. “You have to do what you say you’re going to do.”

As an entrepreneur, Bartley, says “It’s hard work mentally and emotionally. You don’t know if there’s going to be any money but showing up every day is the beautiful part of what I do. “I know what it feels like when your opinion isn’t asked for.” Knowing that has made her a better leader and she’s learned that by asking her team their opinion, she says, “It empowers them,” whether it’s to do a better job or to eventually start their own business.”

Like Bartley, Arora says allyship was important in moving along her career. But she says her parents were her biggest allies. “They believed in me and pushed against the very conservative values in India,” where she was

there but when we moved to Canada it was different,” she said, explaining that she spoke a different language and dressed differently. Arora arrived in Canada in 2008, determined to work in the area of M&A, and from the get go, she said she didn’t take no for an answer. But, she adds, sometimes “I stood in my own way.” Today, as part of management at DoorDash, she says her values resonate with the company she works at.

Asked to grade the industry in terms of dismantling barriers, Arora said 10 years ago the score would have been four or five for women in tech. “Today, most of the teams are led by women, but are we at 10? No. There’s still a lot of work to be done so for now it’s a six or seven.” Arora admits that while there’s more awareness today, there’s still a lot more work to be done, stressing the importance of keeping the conversation going.

Bartley agrees, noting “the food industry is doing well but we’re at a three. There haven’t been enough opportunities for [minorities] to access different food experiences.” But with double-digit growth expected in the food industry and more workers needed to support it, Bartley says the “landscape will change whether you embrace it or not.” And, she reminded delegates that Generation Z have zero tolerance to discrimination, which means changes will continue to percolate. “We need to embrace more conferences like this and determine what we can bring to the table,” says Bartley. “We have to be aware of who we are and what we want but it won’t happen overnight. We’re at the tip of the iceberg.”

The final part of the day included more breakout sessions on a range of topics, including leadership in nightlife, bars and restaurants; addressing and overcoming the labour crisis; going beyond land acknowledgements; and appreciation versus appropriation. FH

Justin Wu with Trevor Lui

The National Restaurant Association (NRA) Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, is returning to McCormick Place in Chicago May 20 to 23. As the global restaurant and hospitality industry’s premier trade show, the National Restaurant Association Show is the place to explore everything that’s happening in the hospitality industry, from the latest food-andbeverage trends to emerging technology.

New York restaurateur Danny Meyer and Slutty Vegan owner and CEO Pinky Cole will headline the event as the 2023 keynote speakers. During the session, these two restaurant visionaries—who have had entrepreneurial success both individually and in collaboration—will speak about the challenges and opportunities that paved the way for their business growth.

“We are thrilled to welcome Danny Meyer and Pinky Cole to the National Restaurant Association Show as our esteemed keynote speakers to share their strategies for success in building a diversified restaurant empire and leading the way for the next generation in the industry,” says Tom Cindric, president of Winsight Exhibitions, which owns and operates the show.

This year’s event will mark the newest wave of foodservice innovation, showcasing the industry’s latest technology and equipment enhancements, solutions driving operational efficiencies and the latest in flavour, taste and dining trends.

The NRA’s president and CEO Michelle Korsmo will also take to the stage to present a strategic industry outlook

SHOW TELL

National Restaurant Association Show shines the spotlight on trending issues in the industry

showcasing the work being done across the association to advocate for and advance the foodservice community. “Restaurants, and the people who come to work in them every day, are the foundation of our communities,” says Korsmo. “The National Restaurant Association is proud to highlight the innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship that have been the hallmarks of our industry and most certainly part of our future.”

With a trade show floor that is larger than 10 football fields, the show is the ultimate destination to source inspiration and innovations in more than 900 product categories — from food, beverage, equipment, technology, tableware, sanitation and everything in between.

In addition to the keynote session, the show will hold a featured session with Technomic, titled Chart Your Course: Traversing What’s Next for the Restaurant Industry on May 22, where attendees will embark on a journey through the future of the restaurant industry. Technomic’s Joe Pawlak and a Winsight Media expert, along with top industry operators, will provide insights “on the key issues impacting the industry today — from labour and menu trends to innovation and industry growth.

The show also features a curated education program featuring an array of expert-led sessions and deep-dive workshops, all designed to give attendees forward-looking insights, perspectives and strategies that facilitate growth. A variety of pavilions offer numerous opportunity to learn from and network with industry experts across a wide range of segments — from food and beverage to equipment and technology. FH

A TIME OF TRANSFORMATION

Three important foodservice transformations to watch

ASyou may have seen in the media over the past few weeks, IRI and NPD have come together to form Circana. Our focus on transforming complexity into clarity for the industries we serve has forced me to think about other transformations. In particular, I have been reflecting on the transformations we’ve witnessed in the foodservice industry in the last three years and which we anticipate will continue well into the future. Here’s my take on three important transformations worth watching.

1. DIGITAL ORDERING

Online shopping, e-commerce, digital ordering — call it what you will, but there is no denying it’s transformed the way consumers shop. Digital ordering (orders placed on the Internet, through a mobile app, or by text message) in restaurants has been one of the fastest-growing traffic segments in Canadian foodservice for the past five years. Circana’s CREST data for the 12 months ending February 2023 reveals digital ordering accounts for 12 per cent of all restaurant occasions in Canada. This adds up to more than $10 billion in sales.

CREST also reports that about two-thirds of this volume is captured by third- party aggregators, which reflects their ongoing influence in this burgeoning marketplace. More than half of digital consumers report participating in a loyalty program, while almost the same share report taking advantage of a

deal. This provides plenty of opportunity for marketers to develop diverse programs while they engage with this tech-savvy customer base. As you might expect, digital volume is heavily concentrated among the youngest consumers. Consequently, this is one transformation that will continue as these consumers grow their economic influence and as the technology evolves.

2. BRICK-AND-MORTAR SHOPPING

Despite the popularity of e-commerce, in-person retail visits have rebounded over the past year. According to recent Circana omnibus studies, consumers report they enjoy the experience of shopping, and others appreciate the social aspects of in-person shopping. From a foodservice perspective, this is promising, because about 12 per cent of restaurant visits originate with a shopping excursion. That’s about the same number of visits that originate from a workplace. Meanwhile, mall food-court traffic is almost back to historical levels, even if retail spending continues to lag.

For QSR operators that focus on these venues, this is good news. But it’s not all about QSR any longer. In Toronto, there is some buzz around two new food-focused investments launching at area malls. The Eaton Centre will transform its food-court experience by welcoming a new development by upscale FSR operators Oliver & Bonacini. At the same time, Eataly is building out its

second location at west end shopping hotspot Sherway Gardens. Beyond Toronto, we see similar examples at The Post Vancouver re-development and Le Cathcart in Montreal. Malls used to provide food options to encourage shoppers to stick around and shop more. Now they are transforming into destinations unto themselves.

3. INDEPENDENTS AND SMALL CHAINS

Small chain and independent restaurants have faced many challenges since 2020, resulting in thousands of closures. Even so, there is cause for optimism for these operator subsets. Sales volumes, traffic, and share grew in the past year. For example, the major chains (500+ units) that dominate QSR have been losing traffic share, while smaller chains are growing. This is transforming the landscape to match the restaurant consumer’s changing palate. Many consumers are now more inclined to visit a restaurant to treat themselves or seek out an indulgent menu item. These emotional visits demand more variety, more diversity, and more authenticity, as only independent and smaller operators can provide. Meanwhile, functional visits, driven by a need for convenience, have diminished. As with digital ordering, this trend toward smaller operators is overindexed among younger consumers, thus ensuring these transformations will continue over the coming years. FH

Vince Sgabellone is the director of Client Development and Foodservice Industry analyst at Circana. He can be reached at vince.sgabellone@npd.com

BY SCOTT MITCHELL, VISTAR MEDIA (CANADA)

With a looming recession and high inflation rates continuing to keep Canadians stay awake at night, consumers are re-considering their dining habits. As a result, many restaurant owners and brand marketers have adapted to these challenging circumstances by creating new opportunities for innovation and creativity.

There are many advantages to maintaining, or even increasing, ad budgets during weaker economic times,

often resulting in increased sales and market share during or after a recession. Digital out-of-home (DOOH), specifically, offers several advantages to restaurant marketers, including the ability to pivot creative when needed (which is especially key during uncertain times), strong measurement and data insights, as well as a platform for greater creativity and execution to better engage with customers.

For those looking to maintain a loyal customer base amidst an unpredictable market, consider these trends and best practices for your media mix.

DYNAMIC CREATIVE NEEDS TO BE TABLE STAKES

Creativity is a critical element of driving engagement when it comes to powerful advertising. In fact, according to the Advertising Research Federation, 75 per cent of an ad’s effectiveness is determined by its creative. Each year, the attention span of audiences is decreasing while the fight to grab attention by advertisers grows more intense. During trying times, it’s even more important that advertisers grab and maintain audience attention — and dynamic creative can be one of the best tactics to deploy in DOOH to do this.

There are several approaches to creating mesmerizing creative that will captivate audiences, but here are three of our favourites:

❱❱❱ Contrasting colours: Neuroscientific experiments show us that visuals with a contrasting colour pattern will capture more attention. In 2023, advertisers should consider how they can best use contrasting colours when designing campaigns to pique audience attention.

❱❱❱ More images than words: Using more images than words to convey messaging as well as leveraging contextual and relevant storylines will continue to trend. DOOH delivers high-impact screens to grab the consumer’s attention, so it is critical to convey messaging quickly and efficiently in the space with a core brand or product message.

❱❱❱ Motion-based campaigns: People tend to be more alert to moving objects; that means using DOOH to create motion-based campaigns can be vital in bolstering engagement with advertisements. Most DOOH screens have a short dwell time (time spent engaging with the screen) depending on how long it takes the consumer to pass by. With that, consider using that motion time effectively by tapping into looming imagery and animation.

FLEXIBLE MESSAGING OPTIONS

The ability to shift messaging in real-time as needed is a beneficial asset of DOOH. Given that 2023 is laden with market uncertainty, restaurant brand marketers should consider channels that

provide them with the flexibility and efficiency they need to quickly pivot at a moment’s notice based on external conditions. For example, with DOOH, you can upload assets electronically and schedule, optimize or pause campaigns in just minutes as consumer behaviour or situations evolve. Brands can also run different versions of their messaging based on varying locations, times, demographics, weather conditions and other factors, giving advertisers even more flexibility to adapt when needed. And finally, while most traditional out-of-home (OOH) media requires long-term upfront commitments done months in advance, programmatic DOOH can be executed — and optimised — in near real-time.

DATA-DRIVEN AND OMNI-CHANNEL IS KEY

Restaurant marketers must prepare for possible reductions in ad spending in light of the current economic climate. However, marketers that leverage DOOH capabilities will benefit from the flexibility provided by the medium. In fact, brands can even use the same video content built for television and social channels, for example, and deploy it via DOOH to maximize their own resources. Additionally the measurability of results and use of data to quantify the performance of a DOOH campaign will be critical in demonstrating the success of advertising this year.

LOOKING AHEAD

This year will continue to present opportunities and challenges for Canadian restaurants and brand marketers to thrive. By leveraging dynamic creative and flexible messaging/omni-channel content, Canadian consumers will continue to engage with high-quality content that will ultimately yield a higher ROI for restaurant brands.

Vistar Media has built a complete end-to-end programmatic eco-system to enable data-driven, automated, and measurable DOOH transactions. This eco-system helps its partners, from retail to casual dining, incorporate DOOH and mobile as part of their broader marketing strategies to achieve key results, such as awareness, consideration, favorability and foot traffic, through custom and efficient targeting, messaging and measurement. FH

locations, marking the first time the product, produced by Greenleaf Foods, was available to consumers anywhere. It was also the first pepperoni alternative made with pea protein instead of soy. Crafted with whole pieces of fennel, cracked black pepper, garlic and paprika, the plant-based pepperoni became a permanent menu item and is available as part of six plant-based creations, including the Planteroni, Vita Plant, Aloha Plant, Campo Plant, Gusto Plant and Piccante Plant. That same year, Pizza Nova introduced its Plantollini Chick’n Bites, which are GMO free, vegan and contain no artificial flavours.

“We first launched our plant based Planteroni in 2021 and the response has been overwhelmingly positive and constant. In

NotCo, a plant-based food solutions and global food-tech company, has partnered with Hero Certified Burgers to launch plantbased and non-dairy food options across Canada. NotCo plantbased products, now available at Hero Certified Burgers, are developed using a combination of NotCo’s first-of-its-kind patented AI technology, named Giuseppe, and chefs. Giuseppe was created by NotCo’s team to understand the foods people love to eat and look for ways to re-create them by replacing all animal-based ingredients with plant-based ones. This technology has the ability to analyze animal-based product structure at the molecular level and replicate it using only plant-based ingredients.

fact, nothing demonstrates its success more than our expansion of plant-based options. Since then, we’ve introduced our Plantollini Chick’n Bites to all Pizza Nova locations,” says Domenic Primucci, president of Pizza Nova. “Our customers appreciate having quality menu options so that every person, regardless of their tastes or diet, can find what they are looking for.”

More recently, Mary Brown’s Chicken partnered with Lightlife to offer plant-based Tenders and Sidekick Snack Sandwiches in two flavour profiles at stores across Canada.

7-Eleven Canada also introduced its firstto-market Lightlife Plant-based Chick’n Tenders in more than 600 locations across

the country. Lastly, Booster Juice created two new sandwiches featuring Field Roast Italian Garlic & Fennel Plant-Based Sausage — the Italian Crumble Plant-Nini and the Italian Crumble Plant Wrap – topped with mixed peppers, onions, spinach and pesto.

In addition to these fast-food chain collaborations, more adventurous eateries have entered the market with 100-per-cent plant-based menus.

In summer 2019, Rita Haddid, and her daughter Alexia, opened their family-run vegan restaurant in Mississauga, Ont. called Nourishmoi. Heavily influenced by MiddleEastern cuisine, Nourishmoi’s menu consists

Burrito Bowl, Lettuce Love Café

(above) Buddha Bowl

Pacific Barista Series™ Oat is in full supply and available for order.

of healthy vegan dishes made without refined sugar or sodium. Nothing is deep fried and everything on the menu can also be made gluten free.

In October 2022, Happy Belly Food Group Inc. acquired Lettuce Love Café, located in Burlington, Ont. The 100-per-cent vegan and gluten-free restaurant uses sustainable, non-GMO and fair-trade ingredients. A few months ago, the group signed an area-development agreement in Ontario for the opening of 20 franchised Lettuce Love Café restaurants.

“Plant-based eating has become more popular in suburban markets,” says Sean Black, Chief Investment Officer of Happy Belly Food Group Inc. “Our franchising model for Lettuce Love Café will allow us to [reduce our footprint] and tap into markets where there’s demand for plant-based eating, such as Mississauga, Oakville and Bolton, Ont. We want Lettuce Love Café to be approachable and affordable, and we’re working toward making it the go-to plantbased restaurant in a community.”

Categorized as a fast-causal concept, Lettuce Love Café occupies between 1,000 and 1,800 sq. ft. and can accommodate up to 40 diners. More than 50 per cent of the business can be represented through delivery and takeout, says Black.

In fact, the former owner of Lettuce Love Café, Neven Madzarac, is now serving as senior Operations manager of Happy Belly Food Group Inc. With more than 30 years of foodservice experience in area management, sales and distribution roles, Madzarac purchased the restaurant in early 2017 with his partner at the time.

Madzarac recently re-introduced fish back into his diet, but was fully vegan for roughly six years. He kept Lettuce Love Café’s core menu, but introduced the Big Veg — a spin-off of the Big Mac. Currently, the most popular menu item is the Power Bowl, which is “a great combination of quinoa, braised kale, marinated Portobello mushrooms, black beans and an amazing lemon-tahini sauce,” he says. Going forward, Madzarac wants to introduce wraps as a new hand-held item and continue to evolve the brunch menu with soups and yogurt parfaits, for example.

“We’re so excited about the opportunity to grow Lettuce Love Café into what I envisioned originally when I bought the business back in 2017,” says Madzarac. “We can do some great work for this brand

Currently, the group is discussing three LOIs and anticipates the next opening will be in Q3 or Q4 of this year. Black is optimistic this will be the first of several area-development agreements across Canada and hopes to make Lettuce Love Café a national brand over the next 12 to 24 months.

Previously, Happy Belly Food Group Inc. owned Fresh Kitchen + Juice Bar, Toronto’s original vegan restaurant, which Black considers to be the leader in full-service plant-based dining in Canada, but sold the business to Recipe Unlimited in 2021.

As one of the frontrunners in plant-based lifestyles, vegan restaurants have popped up across Canada, such as Vancouver’s Hierloom, Calgary’s Saveg Cafe and Quebec’s LOV.

“Full-service restaurant operators are still rationalizing their menus in this post-COVID era,” says Sgabellone. “If something isn’t selling quickly and making a good profit margin for an operator, it’s probably coming off the menu. The pandemic prompted fragmentation in the foodservice landscape, so operators can’t be everything to everyone all the time. They need to pick their lane and stay in it.”

Supply-Chain Strategy

Arguably, plant-based meat alternatives have started to lose their lustre, creating a movement away from highly processed foods and toward a whole-food, plant-based diet. This includes not only fruits and vegetables, but also nuts, grains, legumes and seeds.

“We’re going to continue seeing evolution in the space,” says Sgabellone. “When we think of the giant splash plant-based meats made three or four years, there was high trial. Everyone was excited to try something new. Then, people started to investigate and ask more questions once they realized plant-based meats are still highly processed, creating a trend back to [fruits, vegetables and other proteins.]”

Last year, Maple Leaf adjusted its plant-based meat investment to align with a drop-off in sales. Conversely, Lactalis Canada unveiled plans to convert its Sudbury, Ont. facility into a plant-based production hub to complement its current plant-based product lineup, including Sensational Soy, Lactantia margarine and Siggi’s coconut-based yogurt alternative.

Moving forward, an ongoing debate over the trajectory of the plant-based meat market, especially FH

Generally speaking, younger generations, including millennials and Gen Z, are the driving force behind the explosive growth of the sector. According to a survey conducted by the Angus Reid Institute in May 2022, locally sourced food, comfort foods and plant-based dishes have remained popular among younger Canadians. Specifically, the percentage of Canadians that said they were “very interested” or “somewhat interested” in plant-based burgers and sausages was 46 per cent for those between the ages of 18 and 34; 31 per cent for those between the ages 35 and 54; and 25 per cent for those over the age of 55. Additionally, the survey found women were more likely to try foods that are natural and unprocessed compared to men (78 per cent versus 68 per cent), as well as vegetarian dishes (50 per cent versus 31 per cent).

Plantollini Chick'n Bites

PEOPLE

PLANET

OPERATING A SUSTAINABLE AND PROFITABLE RESTAURANT IS TOP OF MIND FOR OPERATORS AND STAFF

BY MORAG MCKENZIE

estaurant operators, suppliers and entrepreneurs from all sectors across Canada are working together to make innovation and sustainability the operating and cultural core of their business. A recent survey by Restaurants Canada suggests that 67 per cent of restaurant operators rate sustainability as one of the most important factors in their decision making.

“Today, you can operate a sustainable and profitable restaurant — taking care of your people and the planet — it’s one and the same,” states Emily Robinson, food education manager at the University of Guelph.

Foodservice operators across Canada have proven this countless times. “Sustainability makes good business sense as more and more customers make their restaurant choices based on sustainability decisions — plus it saves us money,” says Court Desautels, group leader & CEO of the Neighbourhood Group, a chain of five restaurant/pubs in the Guelph, Ont. area. He adds, “The really neat thing is, multiply the impact of an individual times 2,000 guests per week — then multiply that by five restaurants. We want our guests to know the incredibly positive impact our sustainable decisions are making.”

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IT ALL STARTS WITH REDUCING WASTE

Food waste is responsible for 10 per cent of all greenhouse-gas emissions. Environmentalists and experts agree that reducing food waste is the most effective thing each of us — and restaurants — can do to curb climate change.

“At Tap & Barrel, we recognize the critical relationship between food waste and environmental sustainability. We introduced the Brunner-Anliker robotic vegetable cutter to extend produce shelf life, reduce product waste, and streamline our prep process by processing up to 150kg of product per hour,” says Daniel Frankel, CEO and founder of Tap & Barrel, a chain of five restaurants and a brew hall in Vancouver.

“The key to reducing food waste is to really caring about the product including any scrap bits. Our very popular Potato Skin Cream is just one example of how we do that,” explains Andrea Carlson of Burdock & Co. also in Vancouver.

Compass Group Canada, a leading provider of foodservices across Canada, has committed to reducing food waste by 50 per cent by 2030. The first step in doing so was to complete an exhaustive audit of all recipes to optimize sustainable ingredients, review portion size and meet Compass’s

sustainability objectives.

“Over 50 per cent of all of our recipes qualify for a better-forthe-environment tag like plantforward, flexitarian et cetera,” explains Heather Wilkie, SVP Sustainability and Innovation.

Compass has also introduced Waste Not 2.0, a real-time tracking and reporting dashboard built by chefs for chefs. “It provides managers and chefs with the tools needed to measure and report the carbon impact of their kitchen waste and then develop longlasting solutions, resulting in a reduction in waste of up to 45 per cent in pilot sites,” adds Wilkie.

Innovation and technology have combined to offer foodservice operators across Canada another opportunity to reduce waste and turn their unsold food into revenue through the use of the Too Good To Go app. Launched in Canada in 2021, foodservice providers are able to sell their surplus or near-expiry food to customers

The Future has never been

Up to now, much of the innovation in sustainability has focused on customer facing initiatives. This has helped operations build a strong and loyal client base — and grow their sales.

However, to introduce even more sustainable practices into foodservice operations, the same attention needs to be paid to back-of-the-house operations. “We need to take a circular approach to our business and keep everything in a closed loop. A great deal of innovation is coming in water and energy tracking,” states Anna Pham of LEAF (Leaders in Environmentally Accountable Foodservice)

Andrea Carlson chef/ owner Burdock & Co., Vancouver

total waste diversion rate is 90 per cent,” states Shane Harker founder and COO. He adds, “Not one of our clients went out of business during COVID, further proof that operating an environmentally friendly business makes good business sense.”

DISTANCE MATTERS

What you purchase and where it comes from can be the difference between being a sustainable restaurant — and out of business. As part of its commitment to local purchasing, the Neighbourhood Group purchases up to 90 per cent of its food from FEAST ON. Managed by the Culinary Tourism Alliance, FEAST ON recognizes businesses committed to sourcing Ontariogrown food and drink. There are currently more than 150 FEAST ON-certified restaurants in Ontario generating more than $30 million in food purchases. Purchasing decisions go far beyond food. “To be fully sustainable, to reach that full circle, all our supplies — from paper to uniforms to equipment — need to think and operate sustainably. Voting with our money is the greatest influence on change,” adds Desautels.

In October 2022, Vancouver, B.C.’s Burdock & Co. was awarded

a Michelin Star for its focus on using local, organic ingredients to create polished, original dishes available at a medium price point. The menu is complemented by responsible wines that tell the story of their unique terroir.

Chef-owner Andrea Carlson says, “We have always been focused on sustainability and supporting our local food systems. We build our tasting menu around what is available each month.”

Each of Carlson’s pre-set tasting menus are built around a theme. “Our Early Spring menu was built around flower power and based on wild foraged flowers — magnolias, red current flowers and cherry blossoms,” explains Carlson. A vegetarian menu option is always available.

To achieve all of this, Carlson has built strong relationships with each of the local farmers, foragers and suppliers she partners with.

“The key to our relationship is communication, so you are aware of what is happening; respect, as farmers are under a lot of stress; and flexibility, so you can adapt your menu as needed.” She adds, “Investing in our local economy just makes sense. If you look close to home you can probably find it. Our next month’s menu includes lemons grown on Salt Spring Island and soya sauce made in Vancouver.”

Selling for $95/person, April’s 6-course menu includes Lisbon Lemon (Stracciatella cheese, Lisbon lemon & Foxglove Farm ginger ice, hosui pear & endives) and Rangpur Lime (slow-roasted lamb saddle, fermented potato & charred grain risotto, Rangour lime and mountain huckleberry) and Meyer Lemon (parfait, malted milk chocolate cremeux, salted biscuit and malt caramel.

“We pair our menus with locally sourced wine that is produced with values that match our ownrespect for the land, artisanal technique and no additives,” adds

Quick tips

Review menu portions. Modify those that generate plate waste.

Don’t include condiments or cutlery in your take-out order unless requested.

Don’t offer water unless requested.

Print as little as possible. Use QR codes for menus, etc.

Put Dyson hand dryers in your bathrooms.

Use re-usable containers with a lid, eliminating the use of plastic wrap.

Buy seconds and less than perfect fruits/ vegetables.

Communicate with suppliers to minimize packaging. Use crates that can be exchanged.

Implement a turn on/ turn off schedule and program it if possible.

Re-finish, Re-use or Repair — don’t replace.

Carlson.Wine pairing is available for $65 or $99/person.

CHANGES IN PACKAGING

Since December 20, 2022, the manufacture and import for sale in Canada of checkout bags, cutlery, several categories of foodservice ware, stir sticks and straws as defined in the Federal Government’s new regulation, are prohibited. By December 2023, the sale will be prohibited as well.

“To be truly sustainable, we need to break the cycle of singleuse packaging and containers,” explains Anna Pham, executive director of LEAF, (Leaders in Environmentally Accountable Foodservice). LEAF certifies restaurants demonstrating efforts in environmental best practices.

Founded by Kayli Dale and Jacque Hutchings, two Chemical Engineering graduates with a passion for environmental

sustainability, Friendlier provides fully re-usable packaging to restaurants in the London, Toronto and Ottawa, Ont. areas with plans to expand to Montreal. Customers set up an account using the Friendlier app then pay a $0.50 deposit with their purchase. They then return the used containers to any Friendlier bin and Friendlier picks up the bins, scans the unique QR code on each container then e-transfers the deposit back to the customer.

“We have 10 different sizes of packages with the price of each container approximately equal to compostable packaging. Every container is sanitized and thirdparty testing has proved they can safely be re-used up to 100 times,” explains Jackie Hutchings, COO & co-founder.

Wilkie of Compass Group added, “We have introduced Friendlier at many of our client

locations. In our pilot test site, we eliminated the use of 40,000 containers in the first few months of use.”

Tap & Barrel Restaurant Group wanted to eliminate as much packaging as possible, including the bottles, boxes

et cetera associated with bottled wine. “To achieve this, we partnered with a local business to pressurize wine into 20L stainless-steel kegs. We then

UPCYCLING IS KEY TO SUSTAINABLE RESTAURANT DESIGN

practices can look quite different. For Andrea Carlson, chef/ owner of Burdock & Co. in Vancouver, BC, sustainable design focused on re-using, re-designing and upcycling.

“All our tabletops and the bar top were upcycled from a local fire hall which, had been renovated while the wood panelling facing the bar was from an old floor in a local business which was also being renovated,” explains Carlson.

Building sustainability into restaurant design can also extend to energy supply. At Guelph, Ont.

Neighbourhood Group's of five restaurants, solar panels have been installed to provide the energy required to heat water as opposed to electricity or gas. “At Borealis the original stone walls were re-finished versus removed. We source local building materials and re-finish…not replace,” adds Court Desautels, group leader & CEO.

serve each customer from ‘taps’ in a similar fashion as our locally crafted draft beer. Our sommelier purchases all our wine from the Okanagan Valley,” explains Frankel.

MAKING AN IMPACT BACK OF HOUSE

Operating an environmentally conscious foodservice business must include every aspect of your front and back of house. One of the most effective ways to do that is the installation of a variable speed exhaust hoods. It exhausts air only when it detects grease and steam from cooking, reducing energy use by up to 50 per cent and saving operators an average of $4,000/year. “Approximately 50 per cent of new construction uses this hood. The next evolution will be heat recovery, which takes 50 per cent of the heat from the exhaust air and translates it to the incoming

outdoor air,” explains Don Fisher, president, Fisher Consulting.

However, the real future of energy-efficient equipment is the move to electrification. “Induction cooktops heat twice as fast as gas, however can be up to three-times more expensive. A single gas burner is 30 per cent efficient, while induction is 90 per cent. McDonalds, A&W and Earls are just a few examples of restaurants that have moved to all electric when gas is not available,” adds Fisher.

Innovation is also seen in fryers and ovens. “Our fryers have a filtration system that prolongs the

“One of the main barriers to restaurants being more sustainable is they don’t know where to start — or what to do next. Often, they don’t have the right information or know what information is credible,” explains Emily Robinson food education manager, University of Guelph.

“To make a business sustainable, everyone needs to be on the same page. Operators need to demonstrate to their

sustainability. Leading people based on these values and shining a light on them creates this culture. It has made a very positive difference in our ability to attract and retain staff,” says Frankel.

Carlson of Burdock & Co. agrees. “Our teams shared sustainability values are what keeps us together, and successful. It is what we believe in and matters most to each of us.” FH

people the measurable impact they are having,” states André LaRiviere, founder of the Sustainable Foodservice Professional (SFP) program.

To help you accelerate your sustainable foodservice goals SFP is offering 50 per cent off the $49 list price of the SFP Level 1 - Professional Edition online certificate program to Foodservice & Hospitality readers.

Patio Primer

AS PATIO SEASON GOVERNMENT SUPPORT HAS SOME AREAS

BY AMY BOSTOCK

Primer

SEASON RAMPS UP, GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS AND HAS CHANGED IN AREAS

With summer right around the corner, many operators have patio planning in full swing. During the pandemic, patio dining became a lifeline for many operators. Outdoor eating spaces, some housed in open-walled shelters with heaters — began to pop up all over the country, while restaurants with existing patio spaces extended them, re-creating their indoor-dining experience outside their four walls. Now, what started as a survival strategy when dining-rooms had to close has not only become a common way to dine, but an opportunity for operators to increase revenue. In fact, according to research

by leading international restaurant and hospitality consulting firm VSAG (Vucurevich Simons Advisory Group), adding an outdoor patio can potentially increase restaurant gross profits by up to 65 per cent. The report claims that an investment of $200,000 in creating an outdoor dining space can potentially yield a gross profit of more then $500,000, with noticeable growth during the peak seasons for dining outdoors.

“Overall, we also found that with a robust strategic management plan in place, there is great potential for a hearty profit return on investment,” reads the report. “By looking at the space/layout options you can envision transformation of a designated area into an oasis for guests, while help to boost sales and increase your business’s outdoor dining visibility and exposure.”

BY THE BOOK

While many cities and towns offered a number of support measures during COVID-19 for those restaurants wanting to add patios, postpandemic, that support has fizzled in some parts of the country. Here is a breakdown of the patio landscape in some of Canada’s city centres to help you get your outdoor dining space up and running.

Ottawa

During COVID, restaurants in the nation’s capital were given a break on permit fees, but this summer operators will once again need to pay the city to use the space, albeit at a 50-per-cent discount.

In a statement to CTV News Ottawa, Mark Young, the city’s program manager of public realm and urban design, said the city is taking a “phased-in approach” to right of way patio and café seating fees after they were waived from 2020 to 2022, adding “the council-approved decision to re-instate fees at a 50-per-cent rate for the upcoming summer and winter patio seasons is intended to mitigate growing costs to businesses and continued economic instability, particularly in the downtown core.”

And while patio operators that wanted to have their permit by April 1 needed to submit their applications by March 17, there is no deadline for these applications as the City reviews and issues patio permits year-round.

A draft bylaw currently under discussion could make changes made to help restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic permanent. This includes allowing patios on sidewalks, on-street parking spaces and roadways to stay open until 2 a.m.

Toronto

In February, The City of Toronto made its CaféTO program permanent and introduced new amendments that offer a phased-in approach to the program’s participation fees.

When the city originally proposed changes to CaféTO, the amendments were met with concern by Restaurants Canada, BIAs and other stakeholders, as they failed to recognize the state of the foodservice sector. While most expected 2022 to welcome a rebound, restaurants struggled with crushing debt, labour shortages, supply-chain challenges and inflation. Together, these issues resulted in 50 per cent of restaurants currently operating at a loss or just breaking even and 54 per cent of foodservice operators in Ontario seeing 2022 bring a lower financial performance than that of 2021.

Restaurants Canada, as well as other organizations including the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA), carried out a presentation before the executive committee on January 31, and the committee passed the mayor’s motion to provide options that address transition concerns for 2023. As a result, Toronto’s City Council adopted the recommendations made by Restaurants Canada to keep the CaféTo program affordable to lessen financial pressures on businesses and allow Toronto restaurants to keep re-building post-pandemic.

CaféTO’s fees have now been significantly reduced to approximately one-third of the program’s proposed amount, with plans to phase in additional fees by one-third year-over-year until 2025. In 2023, the program’s one-time application fee will cost $285, while permits will be set at $14.56 per square metre for sidewalk patios, and $43.70 per square metre for curb-lane patios. The fees will roughly double next

year, and triple from 2023 levels by 2025.

But despite that good news, a report in the Toronto Star stated that fewer restaurants in the city will take part in the program this summer. In fact, only 500 restaurants had submitted applications as of April, down from last year’s total of 835 permits issued. This, the report says, is largely the result of the stringent permit requirements set out by the city, including comprehensive insurance coverage, approved site-plan drawings for patio and landscape design and an approved temporary accessible platform package.

For patios associated with restaurants and bars located on private property, The City of Toronto has enacted temporary-use zoning by-laws to permit larger outdoor patios than would otherwise be permitted and to allow outdoor patios in parking lots. These temporary use zoning bylaws will expire on Dec. 31, 2023.

Vancouver

On the west coast, restaurants, bar, brewery and winery owners have been given additional time to make outdoor seating areas permanent.

The B.C. government is extending its existing temporary expanded service area (TESA) authorizations until Dec. 31, 2024, allowing thousands of liquor-licensed businesses to create new or expanded outdoor seating spaces, such as patios and sampling areas.

“We know that many business owners who wanted to make their patios permanent have already done so,” says Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. “This final extension will help those who were unable to complete the process in time, without disrupting people who want to enjoy our world-class food and beverages as the patio season approaches.”

The TESA program was implemented in May 2020 as a measure to help the food-and-beverage sector through difficult financial times during the COVID-19 pandemic. In June 2021, the Province extended existing TESA authorizations to provide time for local authorities to update their patio policies and for licensees to apply to make those areas permanent.

“Many licensees have not applied to make their TESA permanent due to the stress and pressure as a result of the effects of the pandemic and the unprecedented labour shortage,” says Ian Tostenson, president and CEO, BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association. “We would like to thank government for being conscious of this and providing the muchneeded extension.”

Brenda Bailey, Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation, says: “Supporting small businesses to keep their doors open during the pandemic was a top priority for our government. Patio service for the hospitality sector proved to be a lifeline for many of those businesses, and the option to make those patios permanent recognizes a much-needed income generator that also contributes to more vibrant neighbourhoods and communities.”

Businesses wanting to make their current TESA permanent must apply through the Liquor and Cannabis Licensing Portal for a new outdoor patio permanent structural change (for indoor TESAs), or a new interior service area permanent structural change (for outdoor TESAs). Permanent approval of expanded service areas must meet all local bylaws and requirements (e.g., related to parking, building codes and the use of public land). FH

eliminate the need for external hot-water heaters. The two main drivers for water consumption are the amount that is needed to fill the main wash tank, and the water used in the fresh final rinse. So, the more water that can be filtered and re-cycled, the better.

According to Gabriele Forneris, sales development manager, Warewash and Food Machines for Hobart in Toronto, today’s machines use up to five times less water than 10 years ago. “Less water means less hot water, energy, and chemicals. While the government is not telling us the maximum water machines can use, we expect this will be mandatory within the next five years.”

Frontier studies show that the energy consumption for warewashers is as much as the cook line, says Zabrowski. “If you focus on things like hand sinks, you won’t go far. But if you focus on pre-rinse and dish-washing operations, that’s where you will get the biggest potential gains. However, the performance very much depends on how machines are installed, commissioned, maintained, and operated.”

“The technology we are most excited

about is [ventless] heat recovery,” he adds. “Dishwashers operate using heat to break down food soil and oils. Hot-water sanitizing machines use even more heat for the final sanitizing. Rather than using a vent hood, the heat is captured on a heat exchanger and transferred to incoming cold water.”

While ventless heat recovery has been a relatively common technology on flight machines, over time it has been scaled down to conveyor, door types and even on some undercounter style machines, notes Zabrowski. “Although with smaller machines there is a slight trade off in that it slows down throughput as it takes 15 to 30 seconds longer to capture the heat and transfer it to the cold water.”

Another energy-saving option is drain water energy recovery — a technology that transfers the heat generated during the cycle to the incoming cold water, resulting in an up to 20 per cent energy savings and reducing water tempering by up to 90 per cent, explains Forneris.

Other features helping the cause include active soil removal or ASR (a process that pumps food soil from the wash tank rather

than allowing it to fall), improved water filtration, Energy Star certification, adjustable wash cycles, and intelligent controls that allows data to be transmitted to a central computer to monitor usage and performance.

“Hobart [has recently] introduced its Advansys system that enables ASR, drain water heat recovery, automatic cleaning and de-liming, and smart connections to Wi-Fi,” says Gary Lummis of Gary Lummis Food Service Design in Fredericton, N.B. “They now offer Advansys into their smaller machines including uprights. Champion has introduced the Prodigy Controller communications systems on its bigger machines, while Meiko’s GreenEye Technology is included in the M-iQ flight machine.”

Beyond the heat capture and water-savings features, there’s an equally important focus on managing food waste. Food-waste systems are typically deployed closest to the source, that is, in warewashing and food-prep areas.

Depending on the size of the operations and space, operations may go with pulpers or bio digesters. Pulpers can reduce foodservice waste volume by up to 85 per cent and can

be coupled at the waste-collection source. Foodservice waste sent to the pulper is mixed with water to create a slurry that is transported via a pipeline to an extractor for removing the water. The extracted water is recovered and returned to the pulping tank for re-use.

“It’s much like a trash compacter,” says Forneris. “Separating the water from the solid means you have much lower waste volumes.”

There can be a labour-savings component as well, he adds. “Some businesses clean dishes before going to the dish room, creating a lot of waste and labour. With the right systems, servers can bring everything straight to the dish room for separation to the pulper. When you compress waste there is much less risk of bacteria, less space requirements, and less water usage.”

Another area of interest is reducing food waste to water by chemical processes, says Lummis. “It’s a very efficient way to handle your waste, but there are also disadvantages in terms of cost and concerns over pollutants.”

Depending on the model, bio-digesters use an anaerobic digestion process in which the waste is put into three chambers (a grease interceptor, a biological digester, and a soak pit)

and processed using gas and bacteria. However, the process can be lengthy and the systems require a great deal of space, and in some cases output is not suitable for discharge to the sewer.

“Most bio-systems occupy a lot of space, so they don’t suit facilities such as hospitals,” explains Forneris. “They might suit environments that have a lot of space, such as a military base.”

Some large-scale Canadian food operations are looking at technologies such as the Power Knot, which has various sizes of units, and generates grey water that can be safely discharged, notes Lummis.

“Because the world situation is becoming more critical,” says Lummis, “everyone is putting more effort into delivery energy efficient systems that can collect waste and run more efficiently.” FH

Champion Prodigy Controller Communications System, Flight Main Screen Image.

MEIKO GreenEye Technology.

HOBART LXe Advansys Dishwasher

Sommeliers are shifting their roles post-pandemic

BY JENNIFER FEBBRARO

While the hospitality industry struggled during the pandemic, it also had to re-invent itself. Sommeliers are a case in point, with many having to pivot to new roles within restaurants or jump ship altogether.

Jammie

Drummond, senior

artisanal wine, beer, and spirits, says the shift was inevitable.

“A lot of my sommelier peers were laid off and disgruntled to discover they were deemed non-essential by top-level management,” says Drummond.

He notes many sommeliers worked as private wine agents – the Toronto-based Grape Witches, for example, specialized in importing natural wines and gained popularity during and post-pandemic.

In fact, so much interest in artisanal wines was generated that Drummond says “the genie is out of the bottle. That can’t go backwards”, meaning that sommeliers continue to discover their niche customers and cater to them in both public and private venues.

Justin Madol, a sommelier and wine consultant at the Toronto-based Don Alfonso 1890, a Michelin-Star finedining restaurant, says a few sommeliers took the pandemic as an opportunity to further their education. “Once we realized that the pandemic would go longer than a couple of weeks, many people, such as myself, went back to the books to try to reach an even higher tier in the sommelier world.” Others pivoted to the online space: “Some people I know moved to creating wine inventory apps and avenues like that — but many became consultants.”

Madol also states that like so many other professionals, postpandemic, many sommeliers sought to re-assess their role in the industry. “A lot of people took a step back after the lockdown to question how they wanted to participate in the wine business,” he says. “Working in restaurants is a different type of pressure and it’s long hours.”

editor and director of

the Good Food Revolution website, which aims to raise public awareness on

“So, many opened bottle shops. He says Peter Pan was a classic example. The Toronto-based restaurant thrived by opening a bodega called Peter’s Pantry, which paired wines with meals.

Other sommeliers shifted into the consultant role and went into private wine sales. “Many sommeliers would be cherrypicked by a wine agency that was now advising private clients,” says Drummond. “With more well-off people having more disposable income, they often sought out artisanal wines through different channels – so they would be searching for wines not available through the LCBO, for example.”

While some sommeliers missed the in-person hospitality of a restaurant, others veered in a new direction: “Some went into retail, some went into wine education, and some began their own private wine business. It really depended on who you were and at what stage you were in your career,” says Madol. FH

Food has always been at the centre of chef Brian Ng’s world. In fact, the chef has always used it to nurture and cement bonds between family and friends. That’s no surprise given his parents constantly encouraged him to be curious about food and to open his palate to new flavours and textures. At age 11, he was exposed to the inner workings of a kitchen in his family’s café in the Yukon. “I was already buttering toast and burning the eggs,” he quips. Although he didn’t know it then, Ng was already building the foundation that would eventually lead him to become a chef.

At 14 years old, Ng’s passion for food led him to work in a local Greek/Italian restaurant in town, where he started as a dishwasher and learned about basic prep, as well as how to cook pasta, sauces, steaks, and calamari. Still, he viewed cooking as a hobby rather than a career.

After high school, Ng took a break from his post-secondary studies to travel. While rock climbing in Thailand, he met a couple of gastronomists who introduced him to Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential, a turning point that solidified Ng’s choice to re-ignite his aspirations of becoming a chef. “I grew up watching Bourdain on the Discovery Channel and thought it would be cool to be a chef, but it was just a dream. It wasn’t until I read his book that I seriously thought about making this dream a reality.”

In 2014, Ng and co-partners Andrew Seymour and Eddie Rideout created a catering business. Through hard work, trial and error, the business’ success led to the opening of The Wayfarer Oyster House in 2018. Located next to the Historical Shipyards Park and the

PURSUING PASSION

Chef Brian Ng delivers innovative, globally influenced modern dishes with an Asian twist

BY SUZANNE CHIN-LOY

Yukon River, the restaurant, which is located inside the local craft brewery, Polarity Brewing, made Air Canada’s enRoute 2019 Best New Restaurants list just one year later.

The restaurant has earned recognition through Ng’s innovative, globally influenced modern dishes with an Asian twist. Menu items follow the seasons using locally sourced ingredients with mainstay signature favourites such as his Sablefish collars ($14). “We take the Sablefish collars and marinate them in many Japanese flavours of soy, sake, mirin, sugar, salt, ginger, greens, and garlic,” explains Ng. “We then roast it in the oven and charcoal it (skin side) to create a smoky flavour and brush it with Maple syrup, infused with miso and serve it with some pickles on the side.”

A spring seasonal favourite is Ng’s Torch Albacore Tuna ($21), served in an aromatic coconut broth with ginger and lemongrass. “It reminds you of a Thai coconut soup (Tom Kha), but it’s more aromatic with warm spices like star anise, coriander, black cardamon, and a bit of cumin. It’s served with crispy pop rice and chilli oil for some heat,” Ng states.

Chef Ng has come a long way from burning eggs in his family’s café kitchen. He’s created a unique concept with his menu variations at The Wayfarer Oyster House. Ng likens himself to a Swiss Army Knife, saying “he’d like to be a [jack of all trades but] master of none — constantly re-inventing, improving upon, moving forward, and trying new things when it comes to food.”

He has plans to expand the business and further develop his skills as a chef. “I’d love to take a work vacation and establish a few chef friends across countries. Sometimes you need to get out of your bubble and be somewhere else to light a fire under you and absorb different ways of thinking and learning.” FH

BITS & BITES

Favourite culinary destination?

“Vietnam. From a culinary standpoint, the foods are very refreshing and aromatic. I’m a sucker for soup and noodles. It doesn’t matter if I’m sick or well or if I’m hungover; I want to stick my face in a bowl of food while sitting on a tiny little blue plastic stool.”

Favourite ingredient to cook with Thai basil and brown butter. “I try to sneak that into every dish.”

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Check out the Table Talk podcast to listen to conversations between Foodservice and Hospitality’s editor and publisher Rosanna Caira and industry leaders speaking about the issues impacting the dynamic foodservice industry.

FEATURED PODCAST HOSTS

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MICHAEL STADTLANDER CHEF

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