Menu Spring Bites

Beer Good, Sales Bad!

            Please don’t allow the title to confuse you, we are BIG advocates for beer and their other malt-kindred and in fact I used to home-brew throughout my college and graduate school years.  As my taste in beers have changed over the years I must assume I’m not alone as we have experienced a rise in micro-brewery openings and the new Renaissance of craft beer even in the smallest of burgs.  The issue our title suggests is the challenge to the mega-brewery brands and how we have arrived at this point in time.

        The Casual Dining Operators “Survival Guide”  

I admit I have a warm place in my heart for casual dining chain restaurants; however, as their sales continue to slip it appears my fellow Americans may not have their hearts in the same place.  We’re not going to berate the “casual dining set” as they appear to need all the support they can garner.  We’ll point out some differences between the chain-operators versus the independent operators through consumer feedback and attempt to offer some suggestions for the chains attempting a “come back” tour.

Cause and Effect: Higher Wages vs. Restaurant Closures

            Our position is to advocate for operators to review their current business model and evaluate the options regarding wages to determine the “best fit” for their business.  To that point we’ll offer some suggestions and attempt to start the conversation as this issue affects both the business owner and their most important asset, the people who bring their concept to life on a daily basis.

Casual Dining can be Fixed!

             Okay “spoiler alert” we’ll be discussing the casual dining segment this month but we won’t be “beating up” on them as some industry observers have over the past year.  What we will do is review how the segment came to be and what has changed historically from that point to the present.  Along with way we hope to offer some observations of our own and suggestions on opportunities to move forward for the segment.

Using “Wine Culture” to Drive Margin Gain

            As the title might suggest we’ll be speaking to the wine portion of our audience today.  Wine holds a special place in the fabric of our lives, we often drink some form of it in a toast for weddings, anniversaries, job promotions and retirement events. Wine is also used for sacramental purposes such as wedding ceremonies (not just the reception), baptisms and of course communions.