KITCHEN: Use the Touch Test for Cooked Meats [Hack #104]
Sometimes in fast-pasted kitchens, we need little cooking hacks to get the job done without too much of our time. One cooking trick is to use the Touch Test to make sure meat is cooked right
DID YOU KNOWS…
All-American Diet?
Politics aside, Trump has… interesting taste. There’s his love for steak cooked well-done and served with ketchup (bwah!?), but now we also know that he really loves his McDonald’s. So much, in fact, that he would have the White House cooking staff recreate the Quarter Pounder and, when it wasn’t to his liking, had his bodyguard go on a McD’s run to get the original.
The Top 10 Reasons Startups Fail
Some startups succeed spectacularly and Facebook is an obvious example. More often than not, however, startups tend to fail and fail brutally. Here are the top 10 reasons why startups fail.
2018 Food Trends
According to Whole Foods, 2018 will be the year of the mushroom coffee and jackfruit. They’re predicting flowers and “super greens” that can be mixed in smoothies will continue to be popular, as well as “functional mushrooms” where fungus is infused with coffee and hygiene products. People are weird.
A POP-UP WITH THE FORCE
Why it matters to you: Transform your bar into a pop-up and have some fun.
The term pop-up has been bandied about these past few years as fun trend in our industry. From pop-ups focused on cultural phenomenon (think Stranger Things or Super Mario Brothers) to chefs trying out new concepts in a less risky model, pop-up restaurants have been all the rage. But what says that the concept of a pop-up only works in a neutral location or in a big metropolitan area? Nothing is the answer, and maybe it’s a strategy you can apply to your ailing bar traffic problems.
If you have a bar and some personality, you can transform it from the expected to the unexpected. There is no shortage of inspirations. Take the Star Wars pop-up that is opening in NYC, DC, and Hollywood. While these are opening in otherwise novel locations, that doesn’t mean you can’t follow their lead. Each of these spots will be open from the premier of the new Star Wars movie to just after the New Year. Think of it like decorating for Halloween and leaving the stuff up until you convert to a Christmas Holiday theme. First, it’s fun. Second, you can involve your whole team. It simultaneously keeps your bar fresh and your staff engaged. What’s not to like?
JUST A LITTLE MORE TIME
Why it matters to you: New menu labeling requirements begin on May 7th.
Here’s some irony for you. When the Trump Administration postponed the implementation of new nutritional information publishing requirements for restaurants it was met with grumbles and frustration from the restaurant industry. Why? Because it was incredibly last minute and most chain operators (you have to have more than 20 locations to be required to comply) had already taken steps to manage the new regulations. They weren’t made better off because of a patchwork of local ordinances. However, the National Restaurant Association seems pleased that this delay has also led to some further guidance and adjustments by the FDA.
Since most of our subscribers are exempt, we won’t spend a lot of time describing these changes, but a brief read of this article will show you that the execution is complex and the enforcement will be even more difficult. It’s good news that the FDA is listening to the industry and had relented on publishing issues associated to buffets and is reviewing how pizza ingredients and production are impacted. So, if you are a small group or independent, you probably didn’t need to read this (sorry) and if you are a chain player, you have six more months to get ready. Either way, change is coming and it will be interesting to see how it affects our industry.
