Publisher’s Memo

The 19th Hole with McIntyre

LET’S NOT RETURN TO “NORMAL”

I’VE BEEN ON THE ROAD for 30 years.

In fact, earlier this year, I thought to myself, “I’m traveling too much. I’ve missed a lot because I’ve been on the road so much. I need to slow down a bit. Life is too short, and I’m tired.”

Now I’m sitting in my home o ce saying the exact opposite. I can’t wait to get back on the road and be busy again.

I know that I’m not alone in my desire to get back to our pre-COVID-19 way of life. But I believe we’d all be foolish not to take this time to fi rst refl ect on how we can come back better.

This has been a painful time for our society and our industry. But everyone has creatively pushed through. In fact, many of the ways that you’ve responded (and that we’ve reported on, in this issue and elsewhere) have been downright inspiring. And because of how resilient and resourceful you’ve been, we’ll come out better than when we went into this mess.

Still, most of you entered into this profession because of your ability to be creative and productive under intense pressure. And many of you have been recognized, honored, and rewarded fi nancially because of your ability to thrive in this environment.

But at what cost? Is the old way of doing business worth saving?

I don’t think so. Members’ expectations cannot be mutually exclusive to the changes you will want and need to employ as the “new normal.” That will take precise and laser-focused communication. And it has to be done.

We call our line cooks and dishwashers “essential” to our operation. But if that’s truly the case, shouldn’t we pay and treat them that way? Some of you give your dishwashers bus money to get to and from the club. Some of your line cooks are drowning in debt, but they are paid what a grocery clerk makes. club. Some of your line cooks are drowning in debt, but they are paid what a grocery clerk makes.

Maybe post-COVID-19, we can help those who have been hit hardest by this virus with a more sustainable paycheck, better hours, and a better work-life balance.

I’m not naïve. I understand P&L statements and balance sheets, and that dues-paying members expect a certain level of gravitas (and sometimes, unfortunately, a whole lot of ass-kissing, too). But I do believe their mindset will be di erent now, and perhaps we’ll see a more accommodating base that not only makes reservations, but adheres to them. And that might be a little more patient as you sanitize a station, even if that might slow service a bit. And that accepts a smaller menu with fewer choices, but still awesome food. And that might even accept a dues increase, or at least a slightly higher menu price.

If all of this can be communicated as e ectively as you’ve been communicating while clubs have been limited to takeout and delivery, we will see the positive change that we desperately need.

The time to strike is now. Don’t wait to let your members know how your team struggles. Today is your best chance to propose and plan to deliver long-term goals for your team, and how you want your operation to look on the back side of this crisis.

We’ve all been talking about changes that we as an industry need to make. COVID-19 has given us that chance to e ect change for the better—for our clubs, our teams, our members and guests, and for us individually.

What will you keep? What will you change? I would love to hear your thoughts. E-mail me at tmcintyre@wtwhmedia.com.

VICE PRESIDENT-GROUP PUBLISHER Tom McIntyre tmcintyre@wtwhmedia.com 216-533-9186

Deep change

Sedge eld CC is adjusting, learning and evolving its food-and-beverage approach in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.

By Joanna DeChellis, Editor

SINCE THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC took hold in mid-March, Executive Chef James Patterson has navigated Sedgefi eld Country Club (Greensboro, N.C.), point-to-point, through the changes brought on by the outbreak. He’s been steadfast in adjusting, improvising and redirecting as the situation changes.

Patterson’s leadership is nimble, confi dent and proactive. He and his team have introduced a dozen new programs, including carryout, a butcher shop, food truck partnerships, and a locally focused pantry box.

In the midst of much uncertainty, Patterson has been unwavering. He has forged stronger bonds with his culinary team, as well as with Beverly Marler, Sedgefi eld’s Club Manager, Maya Panayotova, Director of Food and Beverage, and the corporate team at McConnell Golf, Sedgefi eld’s owner.

As the Sedgefi eld team continues to refi ne and improve each initiative, new ones are also being dreamed up. The pandemic has revealed that there are no bad ideas, and that food plays a critical role in the bond between members and their club.

RETHINKING EVERYTHING

Patterson has been with McConnell for more than 14 years, serving as Corporate Executive Chef for the past four. He’s been with Sedgefi eld—which has 600 members and does $2.4 million in annual F&B—for six.

This level of familiarity helped Patterson identify immediate needs when North Carolina received the shelter-in-place order. First, the club pulled all outdoor furniture, so golfers wouldn’t be encouraged to loiter. Then Patterson and his team ironed out the details for a new carryout program.

An expanded menu of grab-and-go style lunches would be o ered out of the Greenside Café. A la carte dinner menus were also made available to-go, out of the main clubhouse in the evening hours. (Sedgefi eld has two clubhouses on either side of Greensboro.)

To keep the menu interesting, Patterson introduced to-go family-style meals with three di erent themes: comfort, Italian, and fi ne dining. He also began o ering nightly specials.

“We used to only be open Wednesday through Saturday, but we’ve extended service to include Tuesday, too,” says Patterson. Pre-COVID-19, the club would typically do 50 covers on a Wednesday night. “Last Wednesday, we did over 75 covers,” he reported in April.

MORE WAYS TO SERVE

In addition to carryout, Sedgefi eld created a Butcher Shop that allows members to pre-order steaks cut to order, as well as lamb loins, pork chops, seafood and more.

“We ran a ‘Lobster by the Pound’ program and sold 121 lobsters, totaling over 150 lbs.,” says Patterson. “We sold them either raw or steamed with clarifi ed butter and lobster bibs. When we o ered a ‘Surf and Turf’ package we sold 56 orders of crabcakes, 25 orders of 40-day, dry-aged New York strip steaks, and 31 orders of ribeyes that day.”

To help support local businesses and connect members to needed supplies, Sedgefi eld partnered with its broadline distributor and with local produce companies to design and sell customizable grocery boxes. The club also partnered with a local bakery to make its products available to members.

“We’ve been able to set up a strong supply chain,” says Patterson. “I think we have a responsibility to our community and our members to incorporate local products and businesses whenever we can.”

DIY STARTER KITS

Wine sales have been strong during the quarantine period, says Panayotova, who has been o ering wine by the bottle for both take-out and delivery.

“We have an active wine society,” she says.

Taking the carryout model one step further, Panayotova pitched the idea of o ering cocktail kits to-go for some of the most frequently ordered drinks at the club. In each kit, all of the ingredients are included, minus the alcohol.

“We o er a bloody Mary, margarita, and French 75,” says Panayotova. “We include mixing instructions, too.”

Patterson has plans to not only extend the “kits” model to include burgers, tacos, and fajitas, but to also launch a spino of “ Nailed It,” where the culinary team will assemble kits for members, who will then compete with one another to see who can replicate the meal the best.

“We’ll have members submit a short video or photos of the family preparing the meal,” he explains. “Then my team will judge them based on style, creativity and family bonding.”

FEELING THE IMPACT

Even though its to-go numbers have been holding steady, Sedgefi eld, like many clubs, had to lay o more than half of its service sta .

“My exec sous and I sat down and discussed who we felt would best suit the new model,” says Patterson. “Since we chose to limit service to the Greenside Café during the day and only do curbside pickup from the clubhouse at night, it made the most sense to lay o

our a.m. culinary team while retaining our p.m. team.”

Because the club has two clubhouses, that decision meant the secondary clubhouse went from a four-person team to just one, who is now working four days preparing sta meals and pre-wrapped sandwiches for the beverage cart, and one day assisting at the main clubhouse.

“We went from a team of 16 down to a team of 8 for the two properties,” says Patterson. “I’m not going to lie and say it’s been easy. We’re working with half the sta and doing more volume than before in a shorter window of service. It’s challenging, but this is a really unique chance to catch our members’ attention and serve them in a way no one else can right now.”

Throughout this process, Marler, who has been with Sedgefi eld for 30 years, has been diligent about supporting her managers and guiding them down the path. “As much as the layo s hurt those former sta members, I think they impacted the department managers just as profoundly,” she says.

Marler even started a daily walking group to help sta members unplug and socialize from a distance.

“We can’t pretend the cutbacks never happened,” she says. “We can’t pretend to know if or when we’ll be able to bring those people back, or what the club will look like on the other side of this crisis. Right now, we have to focus on being as e cient as possible with the team we have in place.”

NUMBERS AND BUDGETS

While it’s impossible in the current environment to compare numbers year-over-year, or even month-overmonth, the state of Sedgefi eld’s current budgets isn’t all doom-and-gloom, Pat

Executive Sous Chef Joaquin Campos has been hugely helpful to Executive Chef James Patterson, running point on many of Sedge eld’s programs as well as doing dinner prep for the line sta .

terson reports.

“While sales have increased, our cost of goods has increased as well,” says Patterson. “We’re o ering these options to our members at a drastically di erent pricing structure than before. So our margins are entirely skewed by this style of service.”

In 2019, McConnell Golf made the switch to all-compostable branded packaging and disposables. During the pandemic, Sedgfi eld has realized an increase in the need for those style of items.

“We knew there would be an additional cost factor to carryout,” says Patterson. “But we’ve stayed ahead when it comes to supplies. That has been one of the most impactful moves we’ve made to streamline service.”

In March, Sedgefi eld exceeded budgeted food sales revenues. April appears to be on target as well. However, the lack of banquets will have a deep impact on the overall operation.

“We are creating as many useable options as we can,” says Patterson. “Ownership has been very supportive of our e orts. The expectations are to do our best to keep our budgets in place, when and where possible.”

FUTURE UNKNOWNS

With a situation that changes so frequently and dramatically, it’s hard to make plans for the future.

“Every day, the management team spends 15 to 20 minutes brainstorming and discussing ‘what if’ scenarios,” says Patterson. “The fi rst hurdle I see in reopening will be sta ng. Our members will expect us to be fully operational once the COVID-19 stay-at-home order is lifted, but that’s not going to be a quick switch to fl ip.”

Anther big unknown for Sedgefi eld— and the industry at large—is banquets.

“We have to consider how our members are going to feel once they are allowed to come back” says Marler. “I don’t think anyone is going to rush back into hosting parties of 200 with bu ets and passed drinks.” C+RC