--Irena Chalmers, "Home Base," "The Last Word," August 2010, Chef Magazine
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Women Chefs & Restaurateurs (WCR) on Aug. 19 will host its third annual "Unite for a Bite," a national campaign to support women in the culinary arts. This year, in response to the April 20 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, part of proceeds from participating member restaurants and partners will benefit the New Orleans-based Gulf Restoration Network.During "Unite for a Bite," diners are invited to visit participating restaurants, which will donate 5 percent or more of their food and beverage sales from that day to WCR. Following this year's "Unite for a Bite," WCR will work with Susan Spicer, a longtime WCR member and chef/owner of Bayona and the recently opened Mondo, who sits on Gulf Restoration Network's board of directors. Spicer will assist in directing raised funds to benefit foodservice operations nationwide that are impacted by declines in tourism and fresh seafood as a result of the oil disaster.
WCR member restaurants and partners participating in "Unite for a Bite" include:
- American Roland Food Corp., New York
- Argia's Italian Restaurant, Falls Church, Va.
- Bacchanalia, Atlanta
- Boat House Waterfront Dining , Tiverton, R.I.
- Club 223, Hallowell, Maine
- CommonWealth Gastropub, Washington, D.C.
- Diane Gordon Catering, New York
- Hank's Oyster Bar, Washington, D.C.
- Hank's Oyster Bar Old Town, Alexandria, Va.
- Hemenway's Seafood Grill & Oyster Bar, Providence, R.I.
- Laurey's Catering & Gourmet to Go, Asheville, N.C.
- New Rivers, Providence, R.I.
- Pizzeria Paradiso, Washington, D.C.
- PS 7, Washington, D.C.
- R Bistro, Indianapolis
- Sunset Grill, Sanibel, Fla.
- Tallulah on Thames, Providence, R.I.
"We are thrilled to know that Rhode Islanders ranked La Masseria as the best new restaurant," said Edward W. Ricci II, a principal with La Masseria, in a statement. "We knew we had something special when we decided to bring La Masseria to East Greenwich. The passion and creativity our guests find in our New York City location can be found right here in Rhode Island."
The bar at La Masseria, East Greenwich, R.I.This is La Masseria's second location, opened in late 2009. The flagship restaurant was founded in 2004 by three first-generation Italians: Peppe Iuele, Enzo Ruggiero and executive chef Pino Coladonato. La Masseria, named for Italy's ancient fortified farmhouses, highlights the cuisine of the Puglia region. For more information, visit www.lamasseriari.com.
Do you know a chef who is a leader in the foodservice industry? An inspiration and mentor to others? An innovator in cuisine, techniques, management style and dish applications? A steward of community tenets?Then nominate that chef for Chef Magazine's 2010 Chef of the Year! Nominations are now open to executive chefs, chefs de cuisine, sous chefs and pastry chefs currently working in the United States and the Caribbean, within the 2010 calendar year. All Chef of the Year nomination forms must be received by September 24, 2010.
Download a PDF of the nomination form here.
On Aug. 3 and 10, chef Michael Fiorelli (pictured, left) of Mar'sel restaurant at Terranea Resort, Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., joined other top Los Angeles chefs in support of Cart for a Cause to help feed the needy.Cart for a Cause is the nation's first philanthropic meal truck. Patrons find the truck's whereabouts on Twitter or Facebook and buy lunch prepared by a L.A. chef for $10, with 100 percent of net proceeds going to help feed homebound seniors and those who are unable to prepare their own meals. Fiorelli's menu included barbecued beef bahn mi with house pickled vegetables, jalapeño, cilantro and chili aioli; and crispy roasted eggplant cake with marinated vegetables and aged provolone.
For more information, visit www.cartforacause.com.
As a result of waning optimism among restaurant operators, the National Restaurant Association's (NRA) Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) declined for the third consecutive month in June. The RPI, a monthly composite index that tracks the health of and outlook for the U.S. restaurant industry, fell 0.3 percent from May's index level to reach 99.5 in June. This is the second consecutive month the RPI has been below 100.Restaurant operators reported a net decline in same-store sales in June, though the results were a modest improvement from the May performance. Thirty-nine percent of restaurant operators reported a same-store sales gain between June 2009 and June 2010, up from 35 percent of operators who reported higher sales in May. Additionally, 33 percent of restaurant operators reported an increase in customer traffic between June 2009 and June 2010, matching the proportion who reported higher customer traffic in May. Similarly, 43 percent of operators reported a traffic decline in June, unchanged from the proportion who reported lower traffic in May.
Forty-three percent of operators said they made a capital expenditure for equipment, expansion or remodeling during the last three months, down slightly from 45 percent who reported similarly last month.
For complete data, visit www.restaurant.org/trendmapper.
In conjunction with Chef Magazine's July issue (read it here), which focused on breakfast foods, we bring you some innovative breakfast and brunch-buffet tools to help make the most important meal of the day an easy one to prepare, too.
Automatic pancake machine. If breakfast is big business for your restaurant, check out Popcake, a commercial-grade, fully automatic pancake-making machine. With the press of a button, Popcake churns out perfectly cooked, low-fat pancakes every 20 seconds in three possible sizes: large (5 1/2-inch diameter), medium (4-inch diameter) and mini (2-inch diameter). Consider the uses beyond standard pancakes, too; the company recommends trying the mini size for blinis and canapés. Smaller than a commercial microwave, the Popcake machine is an easy addition to the back of the house--or it can be incorporated into a buffet setting. Visit www.popcake.com.
Safer bagel slicer. While bagels are an ideal breakfast food for on-the-go customers, slicing a plethora of bagels individually to order can be tedious as well as dangerous. But most kitchens may not have the space for a relatively large-footprint automatic slicer either. Enter the Brooklyn Bagel Slicer, a stainless-steel serrated knife with an outer guard to allow the operator to neatly and evenly cut the bagel in half without worrying about fingers. The Brooklyn Bagel Slicer has an ergonomic design and is dishwasher-safe. The Classic model has one blade for creating even halves, and the Club Knife has two blades to cut bagels or rolls into three slices for making club sandwiches. Visit www.brooklynbagelslicer.com.
Waffle mix dispenser. Looking to cut down on labor for the brunch banquet and save time by prepping the day before? The Waffle mix masters at Carbon's Golden Malted offer the Better Batter Dispenser for self-service applications, and the machine allows for batter to be prepped up to 24 hours in advance. During breakfast, guests can walk up to the machine, place a single-serving cup under the nozzle, and push down on the lever to fill the cup with batter, then cook their waffles on a hot waffle iron close by. The batter is held in a disposable liner inside the stainless-steel body, which makes for a nice presentation and easy clean-up at the end of breakfast service. The unit maintains the batter at the proper temperature yet does not need an electrical hookup. Visit www.goldenmalted.com.
In celebration of the recent expansion of its South Florida division, foodservice distributor U.S. Foodservice donated 2,000 meals to Feeding South Florida and hosted a cooking event featuring some top U.S. chefs.Troy McLellan, Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce president and CEO was among attendees at the event, which included tours of the new U.S. Foodservice facility, cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs and samplings of the latest food trends. The chefs included:
- Walter Scheib, executive chef at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, W.V., the Boca Raton Club and Resort and the Capitol Hilton in Washington, D.C.
- Johnny Rivers, culinary consultant
- Allen Susser, owner of Chef Allen's Seafood Grill, Aventura, Fla., and Taste Gastropub, Delray Beach, Fla.
- Rudy Speckamp, CMC, senior culinary consultant to the Culinary Institute of America
For more information about U.S. Foodservice, visit www.usfoodservice.com.